As Robert Forster walks on stage to a rapturous applause someone calls out “encore!”, to which Robert replies, “let’s hope so”.
Besides the obvious humour of this heckle, it brings to mind Robert’s long musical history, starting as one half of The Go-Betweens, before going solo, the later continuation of the band, and then his late career resurgence with his latest album ‘The Candle And The Flame’ containing some of his best work. Encore indeed!
Earlier, following the support slot by recently returned local Tim Hudspith, grateful to be supporting Robert Forster, Trinity Sessions program manager and MC Roger Freeman clarifies to newcomers to the venue that “it is an operating church but there won’t be as many people here on Sunday”.
Robert is genuinely pleased to be playing here and announces: “This is the best place I have ever played in Adelaide.” He starts with ‘Always’ from that aforementioned latter album before the earliest released song played tonight, ‘Spring Rain’.
These first two songs give an indication of the span of his releases played, although this second song is an exception in the context of the set that follows, primarily consisting of songs from the latter half of his career, half from just two albums, 2000’s The Go-Betweens’ ‘The Friends Of Rachel Worth’ and this year’s ‘The Candle And The Flame’.
Robert precedes the autobiographical (although that could be used to describe most of his songs) ‘Born To A Family’, with “if you don’t know much about me, this song tells you everything you need to know”, but this song is not as all encompassing as Robert would lead us to believe.
It is just one of a few songs along with ‘When I Was A Young Man’ within which Robert reflects upon his own life and what brought him to where he is now. His other main preoccupation is that of his wife Karin, the foreboding ‘Tender Years’ touching upon their early parenthood. It is a transfixing performance as the chorus comes around again and again.
‘Darlinghurst Nights’ (written in 2004 about 1984, Robert tells us) is a snapshot of Sydney at the time, Robert occasionally stepping off the stage and with a nod, acknowledging the front row.
The metaphysical ditty ‘I Don’t Do Drugs I Do Time’ is announced as a live world premiere before a stirring performance of ‘Dive For Your Memory’, and Robert seems to be almost surprising himself by what he is playing, exclaiming: “This is just one huge song after another,” later commenting he has messed up the set list, not that we would have noticed otherwise.
“Inferno brackets Brisbane in summer,” is how he introduces the title track of his 2019 album released when he last toured and this song is played at punk-rock speed, a contrast to the sombre ‘Clouds’ after which Robert comments, “That song sounded beautiful in this room – like really special”.
There is a stylistic continuation with ‘The Roads’ before Robert performs the punchy, energetic ‘She’s A Fighter’, the mantra of the minimal lyric of only six words including the title a tribute to his wife during a time of illness and recuperation.
‘Let Me Imagine You’ and ‘Life Has Turned A Page’ (apparently including the only guitar solo of the night) lead to the closing pairing of ‘When I Was A Young Man’ (with lyrics referencing David Bowie and Lou Reed) and the joyous travelogue ‘Here Comes A City’ bringing to mind Kraftwerk’s ‘Trans-Europe Express’ and although worlds apart musically, thematically they appear to be not too dissimilar with Robert musing, “why do people who read Dostoevsky look like Dostoevsky,” and cheekily inserting a lyric from Creedence’s ‘Proud Mary’.
Returning for an encore, Robert comments: “I can’t remember the last time there was an urn of tea backstage. It’s going to be on the rider from now on.”
He commences the encore with former musical partner Grant McLennan’s (via The Go-Betweens) ‘Boundary Rider’ and his own ‘121’ before completing his performance with fitting set closer ‘Surfing Magazines’, appropriately leading the congregation in song.
This sold out show was just the start of Robert’s Australian tour which continues over the next two weeks.