Working through tracks new and old, Ali Barter headed to Geelong for her first real headline show in town.
Warming the stage IV League introduced their unique sound to the people of Geelong. Burning through tracks relatively quickly, the band complemented Barter nicely with their personal lyrics and rock-tinged performance.
Several songs into Barter’s performance, things really heated up – on stage and in the audience – with Barter having to take her shoes off as a means of body temperature control. Thankfully, her pedal ability wasn’t hindered at all.
With Barter’s newest release, A Suitable Girl, serving as the catalyst for the tour, it was interesting to see how the songs took shape in a live setting. Barter has confessed this album focused more heavily on her vocals instead of hiding behind the many instrumental layers and effects on top of it. And with the live version they took on a new purpose, with songs ‘Tokyo’, ‘Cigarette’, ‘Please Stay’ and many others gaining a new life with extended guitar solos and heavy riff sessions (something fans cheered for every time) a feature.
Just over halfway into the set, the rest of the band left the stage for two songs, where Ali let her vocal ability (and guitar prowess) shine through. ‘Community’ was a highlight from these two tracks, a song that slowed things down, really tested the audience’s ability to stay quite and listen and was filled with emotion. Barter confessed to the audience it was a song she wrote after she wasn’t able to sing for quite some time.
When the rest of the band joined Barter again on stage, the set reached the peak of the night, ramping things up ‘till the very end. Special mention goes to the guitarist accompanying Barter (Nick?) for absolutely shredding the guitar in several song. An ability that got him mentioned as the “shredster” throughout the set. It all finished off with ‘Girlie Bits’, which had men, women and everyone in between singing along to every word.
Workers Club, Geelong – Friday, April 28
Supports: IV League, The Attics
Reviewed by Amanda Sherring
Photo by Patrick Callow
