Parisian pop-rock band Revolver’s first show of their debut Australian tour kicked off a So Frenchy So Chic-themed evening of music at Adelaide Festival Centre’s summer music season, Sessions. The season features an assortment of live music from 23 local, national and international acts over 13 nights in the intimate Space Theatre. (French-Australian chanteuse Nadeah, a hit of the 2012 Adelaide Cabaret Festival, followed Revolver’s session).
Named after the 1966 Beatles album of the same name, Revolver consists of Ambrose Willaume (vocals and guitar), Christophe Musset (guitar and vocals) and Jeremiah Arcache (cello and voice). The band’s lush indie-pop style has been described as what country and western would have sounded like if it began in Paris, not Memphis. Singing in English rather than their native tongue (believing their songwriting occurs more naturally in English), the evening began with melodic tunes showcasing the group’s excellent harmonising and inventive lyrics. Later, the trio was joined on stage by a drummer and bass guitarist.
Willaume, the band’s tousled-haired, Hawaiian-shirted, charismatic spokesman charmed the audience between songs and confidently and accurately predicted the exact moment that the cabaret-style seated audience would get up and dance. The first bars of ‘Get Around Town’ were rapturously welcomed by the audience who filled an improvised dance floor at the foot of the stage. The song’s memorable jangly guitar sound and mellow vocals featured on the 2010 So Frenchy So Chic compilation album, and also appeared on Revolver’s debut album, Music For A While, certified Gold in France. During ‘Balulalow’, their highly popular 2010 single, the audience responded with similar relish when invited to sing the onomatopoeic refrain.
Arache’s unrestrained and energetic dancing with tambourine to the trio’s upbeat tracks emboldened the audience to respond to the beats with similar expression and vigour. Musset’s crisp voice, the standout of the trio’s vocals, provided a soulful and sorrowful counterbalance to some of the evening’s pulsating tracks.
The set consisted of songs from Revolver’s two studio albums plus cleverly reinvented covers, including the Buffalo Springfield classic ‘For What It’s Worth’ (written by Stephen Stills of Crosby, Stills and Smith fame) and The Flamingos’ ’I Only Have Eyes for You’. Revolver’s 2010 single ‘Leave Me Alone’ and their frenetic hillbilly track ‘Bird’ also featured in the set.
The entertaining night ended intimately with the band stepping down to join the audience for a charmingly sweet acoustic rendition of The Mills Brothers’ 1950 hit ‘Nevertheless (I’m in Love with You)’.
Rating: 3 ½ stars out of 5
Revolver
Sessions 2013
Space Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre
17 January
Additional dates:
BRISBANE: Brisbane Powerhouse, 18 January
MELBOURNE: So Frenchy So Chic in the Park, Werribee Park, 20 January
SYDNEY: Paradiso at Town Hall, Sydney Festival, 21 January
