Artist:  Something For Kate 
Venue:  The Forum Theatre, Melbourne 
Date:  7 September
Support:  From Deloris

The Forum Theatre, a familiar locale for any Something For Kate fan, casual and hardcore alike. It’s not hard to imagine the Melbourne based three-piece feeling the same way as they tread the boards yet again for this evening’s performance. Tonight kicks off the Murmur Years tour, to celebrate the recent release of the group’s Best Of, releasing them from their contract with Murmur – and their final tour before a break in which front man Paul Dempsey plans to release another solo album. To say anticipation is high is an understatement.

The band don’t disappoint either, Dempsey wanders casually onstage, picks up his acoustic guitar and gives a perfect rendition of Desert Lights track “Impossible,” it is a mark of the group’s affinity with their fan base that they can open with a solo number without meeting some questioning repose from the audience, but here it’s a perfectly natural occurrence. This tour, and tonight’s performance, is for the fans – confirmed later by Dempsey when he claims the setlist comprises of “songs we like to play” and evidently in turn, songs the audience like to hear.

The evening sees the band casting a wide net over their 11 year history, including songs from their first EP (a rousing rendition of “Higher Than You Think”), right up to the recently recorded “The Futurist.” Some of the group’s more familiar hits are given a reworking also, a slightly tweaked “Monsters” opening the encore.

Included are a smattering of album tracks and some excellent covers. The former consists of an energetic run through of “Hallways” and the latter a moving rendition of Cold Chisel’s “When The War Is Over”. Midway through the set, Dempsey returns to solo mode encouraging the audience to “sing out if you know the words,” playing through a crowd-assisted “The Astronaut” and a cover of Elliott Smith’s “Waltz #2”, duly appropriate melancholy provided by sideman Pip Branson on violin. 

The band are well-rehearsed and in top form. Bassist, Stephanie Ashworth, provides solid foundation while drummer, Clint Hyndman, pounds the drums with his usual ferocious vigour. At one point, he slams his stick so hard in the snare that it ricochets into the audience – he reaches for a replacement without missing a beat. Dempsey is the centre of attention however, providing casual banter (including some vague political commentary on APEC) between songs, which serves only to render his lyrics and singing voice all the more human.

Despite playing a surprisingly short set - considering this is their last tour for a while - clocking in at around 100 minutes, it is a mark of the band’s strong overall catalogue that any particular set of songs is a bid for quality over quantity. Tonight’s concert is only one in a string of consistently excellent appearances, whether in concert or on record. A heroic performance proving once again that Something For Kate are one of Melbourne’s, if not Australia’s, most treasured acts.