Seeing as this was my fourth Cat Empire concert in as many years, I had a vague idea of what to expect at the Hordern Pavilion. One thing you can be sure about at a Cat Empire concert is that they always manage to bring some amazing local talent that are worth watching and, once again, they failed to disappoint. Beat-boxing extraordinaire Tom Thum began the night with his set of weird and wonderful mouth noises. He even brought in musician Jamie McDowell to cover old-school classic No Diggity and to play their original track Fever & Love. Up next was Madre Monte who managed to get the crowd going with their South American roots music even when they sung in a completely different language.
It wasn’t long before The Cat Empire arrived on stage and broke into Still Young; a personal favourite of mine and a great song to begin the show. Going through a set-list including old favourites such as Sly as well as a few tracks from their latest album, The Cat Empire really gave the crowd what they wanted. ‘One-night only’ competition winner Camilla Bellstedt joined in during fan-favourite The Wine Song and showed off her clarinet playing skills while Harry Angus encouraged the crowd make circles with those around them.
As The Cat Empire broke into the final pre-encore track All Night Loud, the crowd knew the concert was coming to an end which just made everyone dance and sing just that little bit harder as this sombre tune transformed into their typical upbeat style. Another highlight of the night was the traditional final song, The Chariot. The Cat Empire brought their supporting acts as well as clarinet-player Camilla back on stage to celebrate another killer show while a packed Hordern Pavilion sang along, ‘our weapons were our instruments, made from timber and steel’. This was definitely a night to remember.
Jess ○ Polak 