Icehouse and Michael Paynter = Stellar.

You're probably already sick of me telling you that I love music... It's true... But here is some more music love for you.

I was lucky enough to go and see Icehouse and Michael Paynter perform recently, and it was amazing.

Icehouse

If you're not Australian, then you might not have heard of Icehouse, but they are a band that were dominating the radio waves in the 80's. Michael Paynter, on the other hand is a Melbourne singer-songwriter-multi-instrumentalist-allroundniceguy, who was born in the 80's.

Michael Paynter doing his thing.

Michael Paynter is a favourite of mine (as you can see here), and when I heard that he was coming to my town playing in Icehouse, as well as being the support act, I was incredibly excited. This was my fourth time seeing Michael perform live, and I was back at the venue where I had first witnessed his amazing talent. He did not disappoint.  Armed with just an acoustic guitar and his stellar voice, he managed to keep the excited crowd quiet. He started his set with a stripped back version of 'Another You,' from his album 'Weary Stars,' and filled the rest of his set with new takes on songs from the album, ('Love The Fall,' 'Weary Stars' and 'Let Go,') as well as some back catalog stuff ('Freedom's Not For Me' and 'Closer'). A cover of Elvis' 'My Babe' also made it into the mix.  All songs performed to perfection, with Michael's trademark range and vibrato. And not to forget the between-song banter that Michael does so well, making fun of himself for audience amusement.

(A tiny snippet of Michael Paynter playing 'Let Go.')

Next up were Icehouse, who after 20+ years of playing and touring have got it down to a fine art. Watching these guys was like watching them jam in the studio, nice, relaxed and fun.  Iva Davies' voice is as good as it is recorded, and he commands an audience when he sings. And you can tell the band has been playing together for a while, purely by the way they interact on stage.

The man himself, Iva Davies.

They played all of their hits ('Electric Blue,' 'Crazy,' 'Hey Little Girl,' 'Great Southern Land,' 'We Can Get Together,') and so many more. Each band member had their time to shine, with sax solos, guitar solos, drum solos and keys solos left right and centre. Michael Paynter even got his time in the spotlight, taking the lead on 'Touch The Fire.' The only disappointment of the night, was the fact that 'Man of Colour' didn't make it into the set.  I've seen many a video of Iva and Michael performing it together, and it's a shame I couldn't witness it in person.

Michael and Iva performing 'Touch The Fire.'

All in all, a brilliant night of music, and despite ending up with seats in the nosebleed section, it was still phenomenal.

Have you seen any good gigs lately? I'd love to know.

Beth. x

I Miss Michael Paynter.

There I said it. I miss Michael Paynter.

For those of you who don't know, Michael Paynter is an Australian singer, musician/multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer, all-round awesome human... And that still doesn't sum up the talent that this guy has!

Me with the lovely Michael Paynter at
The Deluxe Sessions in 2008.

Michael has been an enduring musical favourite of mine since my cousin took me to see a Shannon Noll show in 2008, and Michael was the support act. I was absolutely taken by this guy who could sing and play, and man could he sing! Since then, the only other chance I got to see MP perform was at The Deluxe Sessions - a special, intimate, rehearsal-space gig - because I wasn't old enough to attend any of his other shows. But now I'm 18, and Michael has been missing.

His stint on The Voice saw him reach audiences who had never experienced the MP magic, and I was so glad that he was reaching wider audiences. He was let go from the show far too early, (don't even get me started on that), but while all the other contestants are releasing music, MP (humble as he is) is helping up-and-coming artists to fulfil their dream of musical success on the big stage.

I have days when I play his back catalog and reminisce and remember why I love his music so much. My friends will tell you just how much! His music is just...uplifting. It tells a story. It has heart. Yes, it is unashamedly commercial pop, but it's REAL. It doesn't tell stories about getting drunk and getting with someone, it tells of overcoming hardship, of dealing with heartache and of taking chances. And yes, the music and MP himself have evolved, but everyone does over time.

I miss spending hours replaying a song like novocaine on YouTube, just so I could learn to play it and sing it myself, (and show my parents, my friends, and my school just how amazing this music is). I miss his hilarious vlogs and amazing one-take covers that were truly phenomenal.

(One of Michael's phenomenal covers).

It's not often that you find an artist that really resonates with you. I listen to so much music - I adore the stuff! - but I keep coming back to Michael Paynter. With lyrics like "There's a moment when we all, have to choose to fly or fall, here's yours," and "Before you go let me know if you're happy pretending, before you leave make believe that you know who you are," it's hard not to!

('Praying For Rain' - an original song).

It frustrates me that we have talented people like this in our own country, but can't give them the support they need and deserve. I want great things for all these striving, talented people!

So, Michael if you're reading this, your fans (and there are a lot of us!) "won't run away... We're all a little broken, hoping, to get closer."



Beth. x

Check out Michael here: https://www.facebook.com/michaelpayntermusic?fref=ts