*REVIEW*

Gonzales/Feist/Spod at The Annandale Hotel 23rd January 2003

Whaddya want, blood? Two days after this bewilderingly good show, Chilli Gonzales will fight and lose to overwhelming odds in a cavernous tent at Big Day Out, trying to bring the twisted fruits of his mangled mind to the (very) public arena. All this, it’s worth adding, in spite of perhaps the most immersed, passionate and downright terrifyingly, sweatily intense performance ever from master of all trades Chilli himself, multiple costume changes and tap-dancing. I mean really, whaddya want?

Anyway, back at the Annandale, things are going considerably better for Chilli, the gangly, strange-faced mastermind behind last year’s magnificent Presidential Suite album. After a clearly deranged, reassuringly portly Melbournian called Spod has prepared the crowd by pouring beer all over his pink polo shirt and wince-inducing stubbies, while writhing on the floor and breathing “scorpions….of SEXXX!” into the mic – ok, you probably had to be there, but do yourself a favour and check out his website - the scene is set for some lurid filthy hip-hop acid cabaret action. And what do we get? Chilli, straddling his piano like Tori Amos’s satanic little brother, playing delicious lounge versions of Daft Punk, The Bee Gees and Nick Cave…

It’s only when Feist, a tiny woman with an incredible voice, joins Chilli that things kick off in full style. “Shameless Eyes” is simply delicious, the duo swaying onstage like the tall poppies they are, and “Salieri Serenade” takes on a new life when transferred to a live setting. “Take Me To Broadway”, the one everyone knows, is rattled off early on, and even a mid-set appearance from minor irritant (and Gonzales labelmate) Taylor Savvy for “1000 Faces” can’t dampen the atmosphere. This is hip-hop like you’ve never heard, cabaret like you’ve never seen, and a night like you’ve never experienced: more fun than microwaving lightbulbs. More!