kd lang in concert

Last night G and I went to see kd lang and the Siss Boom Bang in an open air concert at the Myer Music Bowl. This was the cause of great excitement, as we both have loved kd lang long time, and it was the first live music show we've been to together since our eldest child was born over 8 years ago.

8 years is a fairly long time between drinks, especially as, before-kids, we used to go to concerts and live music in pubs fairly frequently. We often did the Saturday night at the Espy (St Kilda's Esplanade Hotel) thing. We saw bands ranging from Radiohead to Nick Cave and Billy Bragg at bigger venues, sometimes with friends, sometimes just ourselves.

In the past 8 years, if you don't count Wiggles, Kazoos and Hooley Dooleys performances that I've taken the kids to, I've been to 4 music performances - I've seen the Indigo Girls twice (once earlier this year with my Miss 8), I've been to an acoustic Deborah Conway performance at Tony & Rae's, and last night I got to go to kd lang. This means that a full 50% of my live music attending post-children has taken place in the last 8 months - perhaps this means the tide is turning?

The evening was fantastic. It was a warm day yesterday in Melbourne, so the air, as we arrived with our blanket and takeaway Thai food at 6:45, was still pleasantly warm. (By the end of the concert it was decidedly chilly and most people were wrapped up in coats or blankies, but there was no rain, and that was the main concern, as it always is with outdoor events in a Melbourne spring.)

As the sky slowly moved from light to dusk, the support act, Shane Nicholson, played his set. A friendly guy sitting next to us informed us that Nicholson, who we'd not heard play before, is actually the husband and frequent co-performer of Kasey Chambers, a singer we both like. Shane Nicholson was good - very relaxing music - but no-one got to really hear him properly because the sound system was acting up, and everyone past the seated section could only get the sound like a muted radio playing in the next room. They got it sorted out for the last two songs, which I really enjoyed, but I'm sure it would have been a better experience overall if we'd have heard it all.

The sound was perfect for kd lang, however. I have never seen her live before, and to me she seemed relaxed, happy to be in Melbourne and performing. Her set was full of little humorous and cheeky touches which really made it as a live performance. An oh, her voice ... it just soars. When she sang Constant Craving and Hallelujah, she almost brought the house down. (No mean feat given how many people there were on the hillside).

All in all, we loved it. I have not been to many outdoor music events (well, not since my teenage days of doing the Big Day Out thing) but kd lang showed how it's done last night. G and I were very happy to have chosen her concert to break the 8-year drought of shared live music.

This post is part of NaBloPoMo. 13 down, 17 to go!