Perfect Tripod: Australian Songs

It’s clearly going to be a good night when Tripod (Scott Edgar, Simon Hall and Steven Gates) and Eddie Perfect kick things off with an a capella four-part harmony version of ‘Waltzing Matilda’ that effortlessly segues into a cover of Gotye’s ‘Hearts A Mess’. The four artists banded together in 2013 and have returned to Melbourne International Comedy Festival with another helping of clever covers of Aussie classics.

Australian Songs is a wonderful, spirited show. The music, as one would expect, is just about flawless – not surprising, given the talent present on the stage. A lot of the humour (and there is a lot of humour) also comes from the banter between the group. It’s so funny you’d almost think it was scripted, except that the rhythm feels too natural for that.

One of Perfect Tripod’s best qualities as a quartet is that they don’t simply defer to Eddie Perfect at every opportunity. It would be an easy enough choice to make, if they chose – he’s the most natural showman of the four and his singing performances can get pretty epic, pretty quickly if left unchecked. However, while Perfect is given a few chances to revel in his comedic chops (his overtly sexy performance during a cover of Lanie Lane’s ‘Oh Well, That’s What You Get for Falling in Love with a Cowboy’ is a hoot), the spotlight is shared well between the four performers. Hall’s lead vocal on Billy Field’s ‘You Weren’t in Love with Me’ is a stunner, as is Gates’ much-fanfared performance of Little River Band’s ‘Reminiscing’, where backing vocals meet piss-taking in the most musical way imaginable.

There are plenty of laughs, some lovely quieter moments (yes, the now-famous cover of Paul Kelly’s ‘Meet Me in the Middle of the Air’ did make an appearance) and some impressive musicality on display in Australian Songs. Perfect Tripod are as close as you can get to a sure bet at MICF – you’re pretty much guaranteed to walk away smiling.