Shaun Kirk with Josh Needs – 5 Sawyers 10th August
Another day, another mid week delight at 5 Sawyers on Darby Street. This week saw troubadour Shaun Kirk roll on in to town once again to lay forth his one man band, set on delighting the passionate punter.
Josh Needs kicked things off by effortlessly impressing the crowd with a display of precision and intricacy on the tiniest guitar I have ever seen. Josh was a perfect match for Shaun, and proceeded to throw everything into his performance. A gracious and welcoming artist, combining percussion, acoustics and an impressive harmonica display his set was, great.
An artist who has clearly worked hard on his craft, it was really a joy to watch someone so passionate light up on stage with every passing track. His covers and mashups were on point, and his originals even better. From everything I’ve read, it looks like he recently took a giant leap to pursue his music career so from one fellow creative to another, ‘you do you’.
Now, before the gig, I’d never heard Shaun play, or be privy to any of his tunes running through my headphones, and after everything I’d heard, was looking forward to seeing him strut his stuff on stage. After spending the supporting set incognito in the corner, it was an entirely enlightening experience to see him transform from the beanie clad individual to the performer who later lit up during the performance.
Shaun is definitely an energetic and driven performer. Someone who is willing to lay his heart (and hat) on his sleeve to showcase the passion he has for his craft. His songs were a mix of folk, blues, and a little bit of something extra thrown in to play to his overall brand.
Despite appearing as though it was all about the fans, Shaun did perhaps overemphasise the personal nature of the tour, taking the time to reflect upon his own journey gravitating away slightly from the intimacy of the show. However, the adult contemporary crowd lapped up his charm and charisma and took delight in crowd participation singing their craft beer-full bellies out.
Overall however, the performance was a hit, ending of course with Shaun shamelessly walking over tables, creating his own version of calculated chaos and singing A cappella, which is exactly what each and every fan was hoping for.
