A beautiful and intimate performance in a Queensland backyard.
It was an invitation one couldn’t refuse. A performance by Jens Lekman in an inner northern Brisbane backyard. A perfect venue for Swedish Lekman’s style of indie pop.
We arrived at a typical Queenslander in an industrial suburb. Our venue for the afternoon.
It began with a performance from BIGSTRONGBRUTE. Normally a six piece, lead singer/guitarist Paul Donoughue set the mood with his acoustic guitar and powerful voice.
Then a change of pace with Lion Island. This folk/pop eight piece did the best they could with the space they had (drummer and double bass hidden in the back). At times it felt as if there was too much going on but ultimately they put on a good performance.
The sun began to set as the audience waited for Jens Lekman to begin. The mood was relaxed and the audience was highly respectful. One would be hard pressed to find a quieter audience. Reportedly a stark contrast (but no less respectful) to Lekman’s previous night’s performance under a house somewhere in Brisbane’s inner west.
And by the light of two unveiled lamps, Jens Lekman, his guitar, tambourine and laptop, and in a way that only Jens can – sang and told stories of love and love lost, of misunderstandings and broken hearts – to the sounds of the odd neighbourhood dog barking, the running water of the fountain next door, and the trains as they softly rumbled past.