To see anyone perform at Tilley’s is a privilege. To see Darren Hanlon perform there was an extra indulgence, for not only could you bask in the musical intimacy that the theatre style layout of the venue allows, but you could hear each and every one of Darren’s words. Which continuously captured our ears like a cheeky spider’s web.
First up was Anthony Atkinson, taking a solo break from his band The Mabels. He introduced himself as Jon Butler, said he wasn’t happy about the environment, then played a song about riding your bike from one suburb to another to see your girlfriend, and realising you want to live in Collingwood.
It was a charming warm up performance, and while his words have a similar bite to Hanlon’s, his music didn’t quite have the same edge.
Darren began in solo mode, warming the audience to the gallant playfulness of his songs. From the opening ditty of ‘video party sleepover,’ we were invited to spend the night with childlike grins on our faces.
To my delight, Darren spent as much time talking in-between songs as he did playing. He told us how to sneak into Wonderland for free, about his job of putting Slim Dusty’s hat on his head and compared Swedish folk music to line dancing on acid.
He played many songs from his new album, displaying their appeal also with his band. The girl from the rebel astronauts proved an exceptionally skilled drummer and glockenspiel player, only I wished her vocal mike was turned up more. The band worked best when it was just two guitars and brushes, as this meant there was no chance of losing any of Darren’s lyrics in the mix.
The banjo came out, to which Darren said ‘why does everyone automatically laugh when they see a banjo?’ He then knocked out the profound ‘Falling airplanes’ the song that first busted him onto the scene.
It was a epic evening, that ran into two extended and truly deserved encores. By the end of the night I felt that if I heard one more witty, catchy lyric, I would explode.
‘He cut you a diamond, I cut you lunch…he wrote you a verse novel, I struggled with a haiku…they say waking up is hard to do…the jeans west acid wash sale…we were upside down on a roller coaster, coins fell from my pockets like silver rain.’
Darren is such an affectionate, honest performer, who throws a positive spin on every song in his set, like a magician spinning plates. His ability to laugh in the face of danger makes his a timeless Australian voice, able to tickle your heart till it cries.
For his last tune he was singing about time, and pretending he was a clock. Time flies when you’re with Darren Hanlon.
Justin Heazlewood
