Fresh off the back of the release of their first string of music since 2015, Indie-folk legends Boy & Bear have finally embarked on their national tour. With an album about to drop next month, Boy & Bear have left the punters of a sold-out Tivoli show on a cold Thursday night in Brisbane drooling in excitement. The lucky attendees were blessed with songs new and old and a live performance so encaptivating and effortless, it’s no wonder they’re still selling out shows 10 years later. With the help from support acts Jess Day and Tia Gostelow, the Tivoli showcased how lucky supporters of the Australian music scene really are.
Setting the tone for the night with her gritty vocals and dark melodies, Jess Day gifted the early punters with a set worth showing up for. The South Australian native made the stage her own when she played through her so far small resume of released music. The set was energetic throughout and the guitars remained heavy up until her hit song and crowd favourite ‘Why Is She So Beautiful’. Stripping things back with the softer guitar melodies, ‘Why Is She So Beautiful’ introduced the crowd to a relaxed set of vocals and displayed the pure talent she possesses. The remainder of the set was heavy and dark, but her smile was bright as the pure elation of playing live music clearly took over.
Twenty minutes later the crowd nearly doubled in size as the excitement for Mackay born but Brisbane local Tia Gostelow started to grow. After a breakthrough 2018 with her incredible and some could even argue underrated debut album ‘Thick Skin’, Tia Gostelow is taking the music scene by storm. A set worthy of selling out the Tivoli on her own, her catchy tones and indescribable vocal range put the crowd in the palm of her hand. Warming up the crowd with pleasers such as ‘Vague Utopia’ and ‘Giants’, Tia floated between relaxing Sunday morning music and energetic Saturday night movers.
As the crowd began to move in even more, Tia put her guitar down, moved her way back to the microphone and added “so a while back I was invited to Triple J…” the crowd cut her off there with loud cheers knowing exactly what she was moving into. Her sing along Like a Version cover of Empire of the Suns ‘We are the People’ rung through the Tivoli and the dance moves finally came out of the woodwork. The remainder of the set introduced her new song ‘Get to It’ before moving into crowd favourites ‘Strangers’ and ‘Phone me’. Tia left the Tivoli with an energetic set providing a tough follow up for headliners Boy & Bear.
A sophomore album with the same calibre of music as her debut will spell big things to come.
Now to the main act. Any concerns of rustiness from Indie-folk kings Boy & Bear were quickly laid to rest as they took centre stage. If there are any restrictions on noise throughout the Fortitude Valley and surrounding suburbs on a school night, they were clearly ignored as the Tivoli proved once again proved why it is one of Brisbane’s greatest venues.
The room was packed shoulder to shoulder from wall to wall as Boy & Bear heated up what Brisbane otherwise considers a ‘cold’ winters night. The sing-alongs kicked off from the opening song when ‘Old Town Blues’ filled the room and it didn’t stop throughout as Boy & Bears committed fans knew just about every word. Pulling out songs from all ends of their extensive repertoire including ‘Three Headed Dog’, ‘Bridges’, ‘Part Time Believer’ and even reaching as far down as their breakthrough song from their first E.P ‘Rabbit Hole’. “Sing along if you know it” they said almost sarcastically as the crowd erupted into every word.
The set remained flawless throughout as they played through their hits but the moments that stuck out the most was the chemistry between the crowd and band when Boy & Bear played their new songs live for the first time. The latest singles felt like they have been playing them live for years and the sneaky introduction of an upcoming song spells only exciting things to come for fans of Boy & Bear.
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