Ben Harper manages to transform the Brisbane Convention Centre into a cozy and casual evening of intimacy, the kind you’d find at a tucked away side street cafe, not a 4000 seat theatre. Donning a plain white tee and wide-brim fedora, his outfit may have been simple but his performance was nothing short of a multi-talented virtuoso. With over a dozen various guitars of all shapes and sizes, a baby grand piano and a xylophone to boot, Harper’s gig was anything but one-dimensional.
Harper was a pro at capturing his fan’s hearts. First grasping his audience’s ears with crowd favourite, Diamonds On the Inside, Harper’s soothing voice was the perfect antidote in melting the week’s stress away. Before jumping into more songs, Harper addresses his audience, asking: “Is anybody here in love? Is anybody here looking for love?” And without a doubt, his fans roar in response. Harper’s reaction to his lively crowd was to up the ante with an acoustic, vamped up cover of Marvin Gaye’s ‘Sexual Healing’. Running with the love theme, next on the agenda was a new track off his current album, Give Till It’s Gone. The song title itself very accurately depicted his performance, ‘Masterpiece’ is a love confessional, a song oozing with genuine adoration that Harper humbly portrays.
Guitar after guitar, Harper clearly demonstrated his natural born talent. The most clear validation involved his lapsteel guitar in which he chose to perform a booming epic instrumental solo. Heavily plucking the guitar on his lap, Harper carefully blended light strums mixed in with playful reverbs to evoke striking drum beats, ultimately creating an effortlessly integrated sound. Retiring his guitar to its rightful stand, Harper goes on to explain the story of the extinct lapsteel guitar, an instrument created only within 1915-1925 consisting of a distinct coalwood. He proceeds in giving David Lindley and Ry Cooder shout outs for mastering the instrument before plummeting into a heartwarming anecdote about the history of his grandparent’s music store, the inspiration for the environment he aspired to create for his solo tour.
As the night wore on, Harper evolved from sensual soul songstress to slide-guitar guru to dynamic bluesman. A man of many talents, Harper perfected sound after sound; from the melancholic track, ‘Pleasure and Pain’ to the gloriously ukelele-strummed ‘Blessed to Be a Witness’ to the darker electric jam that is ‘Amen Omen’, each was graced with ecstatic crowd approval and showcased his excellent use of experimental aesthetics. In between songs, Harper would shyly respond to fan enquiries and shouts of praise and enchant his fans with charming tales.
It was a sad goodbye when Harper veered off the stage but everyone was pleasantly surprised when fans realized that they not only got quality but quantity, with a staggering eight song encore from the musician. Some people are just musically gifted and Harper is one of them. Harper manages to cast a spellbinding performance withholding the added flash and glitter. And even without the full band, backing vocals or a support act, Harper was brilliant as is.
Stephanie Wong
