It was a cold, almost wintry March evening on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin when Chris Isaak performed at Commonwealth Place as part of the Enlighten Festival.
Most audience members came prepared with picnic rugs, camping chairs and blankets to keep warm. Those that forgot the essential guards against the damp lawn and chilly wind were able to warm up with ample food and drink choices available next to the stage.
Soon enough the McClymont sisters took to the stage, showing off their toned, bare legs covered in goosebumps and making jokes about Canberra’s infamous weather. Their country rock tunes had eager audience members swaying in front of the stage, whilst the majority were happy to watch from their aforementioned chairs.
The three sisters displayed their musical talents by singing in harmony and playing guitars throughout their set. Their feelgood songs such as ‘I’m Not Done With You Just Yet’ and ‘Love Me In The Morning’ were well performed with the sisters making an effort to playfully interact with each other and the audience.
The hour-long wait from the McClymonts finishing and Chris Isaak starting was filled with talented ladies dancing with lit-up hoolahoops. They wandered through the crowd providing a pleasant and unique distraction from the usually boring wait that set changes involve.
Chris Isaak arrived on stage and immediately the atmosphere in the audience changed. Chris didn’t have to ask twice for people to stand up and start dancing. His silky-smooth voice, coupled with his heart-felt lyrics and dangerous good looks immediately had the female portion of the audience swooning. He even created a crush of middle-aged women trying to touch him when he left the stage and walked through the audience in the middle of his third song.
It was impossible to take your eyes off him, clad in a bright red suit with golden flames embroidered on the sleeves, and his hair slicked back and piled into a Elvis-esque quiff. The rest of his band were kitted out in a black version of his suit.
Chris consciously entertained the crowd, dancing and chatting to all musicians and pulling girls out of the crowd to join them on stage. He played a variety of guitars beautifully throughout the show, including an acoustic that had his name written on it in white paint, and a super white Gibson electric guitar.
He performed a mixture of his songs including ‘Wicked Game’, ‘We Lost Our Way’ and ‘Best I’ve Ever Had’ and included well-known covers to fit with his flame theme like Johny Cash’s ‘Ring of Fire’ and Jerry Lee Lewis’s ‘Great Balls of Fire’.
He returned for the encore wearing an eye-catching mirrored suit and closed out the night with ‘Pretty Woman’ and ‘Blue Spanish Sky’. The audience meandered to their cars, super satisfied with a night of quality music and entertainment.
Photography by Grace Keyworth
