A dark room with minimal lighting and the sounds of traditional Africana blared as punters shuffled into the Evelyn’s band room, and gazed at the incredibly diverse setup on stage. It became clear quite quickly that this was no ordinary show, as DJ Manchild began to spin and scratch on the decks faster and more ferociously, in contrast to the smooth jazz made famous by African sensation Fela Kuti. As he is swiftly joined on stage by MC N’Fa Jones, who motioned the crowd to throw their hands up in support, the crowd anticipates for the legendary Public Opinion Afro Orchestra to grace the stage as the MC flowed quite nicely over continuous and upbeat African jazz. Cheers followed when the lights went down, and the 17-piece walked onto the Evelyn’s stage in all their glory.
For anyone who hasn’t seen this ensemble perform live, it’s nothing short of incredible. It’s even hard to describe the level of technical prowess and ultimate perfection a band that’s so well versed over a range of genres shows with such ease. The Public Opinion Afro Orchestra opened with a beautiful combination of jazz sax and trumpet solos that went for at least 20 minutes, with no loss of appeal or boredom judging by the crowd response. As the bass guitarist slapped and held a driving force behind the vigorous ensemble, the band’s primary vocalist walked on stage to a vivacious roar from the crowd.
“Be yourself and enjoy tonight,” he exclaimed as the band launched into more jazz perfection. As the reggae vocalist initiated a call and response between himself and the backup singers, it becomes apparent that although vocals are a nice touch, the music can be appreciated solely by itself. An organ solo followed, almost hypnotising with each note played, and the sax player works triumphantly, making his playing look incredibly easy.
There isn’t a hip in the Evelyn that isn’t shaking and moving to the smooth sounds of Afrobeat. The band are almost two hours in when they’re joined on stage by Remi, which confused majority of the crowd, as most were under the impression he was playing a full set by himself.
As the night began to subside, and Remi was greeted with love and appreciation, Afrobeat trickled off into the night with dancing and energy from a crowd who truly made this night special, and watermarked it as one of Melbourne’s best for the year.
BY BENJAMIN POTTER
Loved – The Public Opinion Afro Orchestra. Incredible.
Hated – The line at the bar.
Drank – Everything.
