For those unfamiliar with the work of Kate Miller-Heidke, hearing ‘Sarah’ for the first time in the dwellings of a cathedral is somewhat of an experience.
The song tells the true story of Miller-Heidke losing her friend – Sarah – amidst a drunken haze and wash of people at Brisbane’s now-defunct LIVID Music Festival.
After an unsuccessful trip to the St John’s van and hours of late-night searching, police discovered her blue dress in a nearby creek the following day.
Thankfully, Sarah arrived safely back at her parents house a fortnight later, though she had no recollection of what had occurred during the previous two weeks.
Even without musical accompaniment, it’s a terrifying tale.
When you add in Miller-Heidke’s tingling vocal reach, the deft fiddling of guitarist/husband Keir Nuttall and the moody backdrop of St Michael’s Uniting Church, it encompasses a whole different level of mood.
It was one of a number of quiver-inducing moments that struck during Miller-Heidke’s remarkable hour-and-a-half long performance last Friday night.
Prior to her appearance, Brendan Maclean excelled in support. Indeed, if Maclean doesn’t want to progress any further as a musician, he’ll make a handy comedian. His timing and banter is spot on.
Still, that shouldn’t take away from his wares as a singer and songwriter, the best of which was demonstrated during his performance of ‘Stupid’, his latest single which was delivered with the assistance of a ukulele named ‘Murphy Brown’.
As a vocalist, Miller-Heidke is on a level occupied by a chosen few. Hearing her switch between opera and pop stylings within a few bars is otherworldly – there’s not a single note she can’t hit.
If the Devil came along and forced you to pick an artist to sing for your salvation, you’d show little hesitation.
The deliveries of ‘Caught In The Crowd’, ‘The Tiger Inside Will Eat The Child’, ‘In The Darkness’, and ‘Mamma’ captivate a capacity crowd that had been lining up for seats long before she took to the alter.
If the night proved one thing, it’s that her songs are best delivered accompanied only by her vocals and the smooth barre-chord progressions of Nuttall.
His impact was pivotal. He especially came to the fore during ‘Words’, where his extended solo echoed the late Michael Hedges (particularly Hedges’ brilliant ‘Ignition’).
Miller-Heidke nicely splintered the night’s mood with several hilarious tales from her time on tour, including a too-cool-for-school letter from a Year 7 student named George and mistaking Wil Anderson for Adam Hills during a frosty hangover.
She also pulled off a spunky asymmetrical pig-tail – a rare feat regardless of gender.
The introduction of three new songs – including one in which her voice appeared to emulate a wobble board – were duly noted by an appreciative audience. So too were a pair of covers, including an excellent reading (no pun intended) of The Eurhythmics “Love Is A Stranger’.
‘The Last Day On Earth’ provided an apt closer, capping off a night epitomised by tabernacles, stained-glassed windows and a vocalist of rare capacity.
