Kacey Musgraves at Palais Theatre
Performing in front of a sold-out show at the Palais Theatre, MEL Live flocked to see Kacey Musgraves as the American singer songwriter visited Melbourne for the first time on her Oh, What A World tour.
Supported by Bahamas, Canadian musician Afie Jurvanen brought his smooth folk rock tunes to the packed out Melbourne audience. With a drummer and backing vocalist in tow, the trio performed a relaxed-setting performance that was a little folk, a little jazz and extremely entertaining.
Opening the set with So Free, the band won the crowd over with well-fitting Opening Act (The Shooby Dooby Song) as they played through their hits. Jurvanen took the time to speak with members of the audience, encouraging the younger punters for getting out and seeing some live music and commenting on the affordability of St Kilda coffee.
No stranger to the Palais Theatre, having toured with other groups including Feist, Jurvanen marvelled at the beauty of the acoustics at the Palais, the moment not lost on the incredible performer. Finishing the set with popular songs Lost in the Light and All The Time, we hope to see Bahamas again soon.
Soon enough, it was time for Spacey Kacey and band to make their grand entrance. From the moment Kacey took to the stage, it was clear to see that the country pop princess had some surprises up her sleeve. Opening with one of our personal favourites Slow Burn, Kacey wasted no time in showing the audience they were here to dance and party the night away.
The Oh, What a World tour features a Kacey performing her latest album Golden Hour in full, with tracks including Wonder Woman, Butterflies, and Lonely Weekend commanding sing-a-longs from young and old. There was a perfect blend of pop and country music as the set went on and we were treated to Golden Hour, Die Fun, Mother and Oh, What a World.
What we loved about the set was how professional everything went – as Kacey, a true performer – shone as one of the next big things both in country music and the music world in general. She spoke regularly to the crowd, made jokes, laughed and included her band in everything they did. The lighting was next level and the production both intimate and large at the same time. A key highlight for us was when Kacey asked the crowd if they’ve ever seen a huntsman spider and was truly horrified with the response.
Catering to crowd requests by performing It Is What It Is, covering a classic Weezer track Island in the Sun and even responding to the week’s earlier controversies by doing a “Shoey” on her own terms, Kacey Musgraves summed it all up when she stated, “Basically, you’re welcome”.
The set came to a close with Kacey performing her biggest songs to date: Space Cowboy, Follow Your Arrow, Rainbow and High Horse. As they departed the stage, adored by all who attended, we can only hope to see Kacey and band back on our shores soon.