Down Under: The Songs That Shaped Australia (Assembly Rooms Bijou) kind of does what it says on the tin – it uses Australian songs to tell us about the change that they and their associated hit-makers wrought in the country. It’s pretty much non-stop music – a band of lead guitar, bass, drums, keyboard, backing singer/guitarist, all headed up by their lead singer. It’s all loud and proud and had the audience singing along, clapping, feet stomping and joining in the very sweary chorus of one of the songs. It’s recommended for 12+ – but perhaps not if they (or mums and dads) aren’t up for the F word. Repeatedly and loudly. But just in one song.
Did I learn a lot about Australia’s history from Down Under? No, not really. It felt more like a bit of a handle to hang the idea of singing lots of Australian popular songs on. Fine. But the history lessons seemed at a remove from the songs themselves – though sometimes the lyrics were hard to make out, so maybe I lost some of the message as a result.
Michelle Pearson – lead singer – mentioned ‘when we play at weddings’ and I’m afraid that was it for me. I realised my unease was because this felt just like when the music starts at a wedding and all conversation is drowned out. You wish they’d turn it down a fraction – or you go with the flow and get up and dance. For the final number – Men at Work’s ‘Down Under’ – the audience was encouraged to get up and dance (where it was safe), but the venue was pretty full, so it wasn’t that easy. Such a shame.
There was lots of enthusiasm in the room – and lots of Australians – but the whole thing didn’t quite seem to know what it was trying to achieve. There was lots of chatting going on during the set, which is fine if you’re down the pub, but slightly odd when you’ve paid to see/hear a show.
Down Under The Songs That Shaped Australia has lots to commend it – not least Michelle Pearson’s rendition of Tina Arena’s ‘Chains’ – but it maybe just needs to have a word with itself and decide what it really needs to be. The juxtaposition of a history lesson and some real belters just didn’t work for me.
