Daniel Champagne had no reason to feel nervous, as he admitted during the show, about playing at The Basement in Sydney. With an expressive voice that floats on top of his prodigious guitar playing, this one-man show has more than enough talent to belong at the quaint iconic Sydney venue, and indeed many other bigger ones around the world.
His signature tune ‘Nightingale’ was an early highlight of the set with intricate yet highly melodic guitar playing, and subtly beautiful vocals. This seems to be a bread and butter type of tune with a longing voice which has listeners believing every word when he sings “When I told you I was afraid to fall/really I was afraid to fly at all”.
Champagne has spent the last five years on the road and many of his songs, mostly pulled from his new album The Gypsy Moon documented this experience from his unique blend of acoustic-hip hop, to the many songs that document the ups and downs of touring.
The experience was evident to anyone in the enchanted audience at The Basement, who all seemed to be caught up in the intimate atmospheres created by Champagne’s sparse tunes. The moody music was punctuated by his endearing banter eliciting many-a-laugh out of the punters.
Despite demonstrating his ability to craft a hook with ‘Heart Like This’, nothing enthralled the crowd like his dynamic virtuosic guitar playing. Champagne’s ability on the instrument is a sight to behold, encompassing a wide array of styles, from intricate, melodic songs, to bluesy romps to percussive numbers.
The singer makes his guitar more than sing, challenging the instrument throughout the set to keep up and produce the sounds he desires.
His skill, which would be largely unmatched by other Australian singer-songwriters, brings a unique element to his music and stage show.
Champagne intelligently uses it like a spectacle to break up the heartfelt tone of many of his songs such as the energetic, instrumental closer ‘Pendulum’, which used the crowd as percussion to bring the song home and send his fans off into the night.
