Darren Hanlon
The Factory Theatre, Sydney

In ‘Hold On’, Darren Hanlon sung of the stage fright and self-doubt that were once as much a part of his pre-show routine as tuning up the banjo for ‘Falling Aeroplanes’: “Sometimes my biggest fear is a dressing room between two mirrors/Watching myself disappear forever and ever”. Tonight, you imagine it was more like a dressing room sipping from a tea cup with his feet up on the couch. Relaxed is the word, from the pleasantly rambling stories of his recent American road trip to the way he sits on the edge of the stage to sing ‘Manilla, NSW’ and the general air of mellow ease between him, keyboardist Cory Gray and new addition Evelyn Morris (Pikelet) on drums.

Nursing a sore throat from a show the night before in Canberra (“He did a 15 minute rap solo,” Morris tuts) which requires judicious sips from said tea cup, the weary road warrior’s set includes a hilarious “prog-rock harmony” on one song, a rare appearance of B-side ‘Eli Wallach’ (complete with an anecdote about an awkward phone conversation with the song’s aging subject) and an unfussy cover of The Magnetic Fields’ ‘The Book of Love’. It’s not the first time he’s covered a Stephen Merritt song, perhaps unsurprising given the knack for clever wordplay and droll humour both artists share.

There’s also a gorgeous version of the wordy ‘Fire Engine’ with Morris on vocals, a moving ‘Old Dream’ (which he needs a cough drop to get through) and an as-yet-untitled new song. Featuring some typically quirky observations (‘It’s a chocolate fondue/There’s no nutritional value’) and a bouncy, instantly memorable melody, it seems a natural radio single. Mostly though, it was familiar old favourites, the irresistible spectacle of Australia’s best lyricist in ultra-laidback, lounge-room rehearsal mode.

by Daniel Herborn