Review and photos by Peter Coates – www.facebook.com/InsideEdgePhotography
JAYNE DENHAM
The Beer Shed Brewery – Campbelltown
May 3rd 2024
Album Launch show for MOONSHINE.
Having reviewed the record last week, it was fantastic to be able to get to the live launch of the Moonshine album with Jayne Denham fronting her highly proficient band in a thoughtfully crafted and structured pair of sets, at the excellent venue within The Beer Shed Brewing Co premises in Leumeah, NSW. Boasting a great sound system, and better lights than many inner-city music venues, the venue was packed for this sold out show.
The first set was basically a run through of the new album, in a different order – with the band sitting around a camp fire for the introduction and lighter versions of Poison and Chain Smokin’and the evocative Face Of The Sun. Jayne’s voice live is clean and powerful, even when sitting on a milk crate she can really belt it out. The intro for the album was played to run into the title track Moonshine which saw the band start to hit their straps, adding that live edge to the superbly produced album. This featured Colt Ford on the video screen for his parts of the track which was a nice touch. Stunt Double is growing on me as one the catchiest tracks on the record, and this was a raucous version that got the crowd up on their feet.
The last segment of Set 1 was a riot of upbeat country rock, with Risk It All being the mood for the tour, given the need to fund the whole damn thing without external support. That’s why there was plenty of family support around the band, including husband Dave looking after the merchandise all night. We got the rocking Are You Ready For This, performed on the album with Hurricane Fall, but it kicked just as hard tonight, and then closing with the latest single release, which is the evocative power-ballad of Lovin’ A Wild Thing, which really amped up the intensity and emotion as it progressed.
There was time to take a breath, and taste the two flavours of Moonshine which have been produced to go with the album – however which sadly are still in Nashville due to the outrageous costs of shipping them back to Australia as bottled goods – volunteers were requested to bring a couple of bottles back if they happen to be heading to Nashville in the next few weeks – if all of the Aussies going to CMA Fest can bring a bottle or two back, we will all be Moonshiners for real. Jayne had no rest mid-set, as she spent the time meeting, greeting, signing and being selfied by half the crowd, as is the lot of the hard-working independent musician.
The second set saw the majority of the crowd on their feet from the start, and featured a mix of tracks from the last themed-album, the Spaghetti Western influenced Wanted, with the title track followed by Raggedy Ann and Beautiful World, and then a dip into the back catalogue with the bouncy road trip of Black Coffee & White Lies, and the duet with Troy Kemp from 2022 in Car Trouble, again with Troy on screen for the track. There was a lot of crowd participation for the truck-drivers’ Stacks, before the loud and lively Better Make It A Double, and then the John Farnham classic That’s Freedom which Jayne had no trouble with vocally! After Shake, Jayne threw on a black leather jacket and delivered a raunchy, I Love Rock’nRoll styled cover of Kasey Tyndall’s Jesus and Joan Jett which saw Michael on Guitars and Greg on Bass let rip, while Matt pounded the kit. The set proper closed with the perfect track in Porch Party, which was a bit what the gig tonight felt like – a great band in a friendly environment! While the whole band were on great form tonight, special mention to Marian on backing vocals for really adding an extra layer of harmony to the lead vocal line, and when she really opened up, she blew the roof off the Beer Shed.
The band rolled smoothly into a medley of tracks as a postscript, with the Aussie Rock / Country crossover of Addicted to the Diesel from the 2013 Renegade album being a highlight, before reverting to the new album and the closing track Moonshine Money to be the full-stop at the end of this epic album launch. The show confirmed to me that Jayne and her touring band are more than capable of translating the massive production of the last two albums into a live setting, including the backing vocals, and they delivered a really lively, impassioned, occasionally raucous and always upbeat performance tonight that the crowd at the Beer Shed will remember for some time.
Review our Album Review: Jayne Denham – Moonshine
MOONSHINE Tour Dates
May 17, 2024 – Harmonie German Club
Jun. 7, 2024 – Freemasons Hotel Molong
Jun. 15, 2024 – Barra & Boots Music Festival Lake Proserpine in the Whitsundays
Jun. 21, 2024 – Moonshiners Tamworth
Jun. 28, 2024 – Stag & Hunter Hotel, Newcastle
Jul 5, 2024 – Astor Hotel Goulburn
Jul. 6, 2024 – Oaks Hotel Albion Park Rail
Jul. 23, 2024 – Camden Hotel
FESTIVAL dates
Sept. 27, 2024 – Texas QLD Country Music Festival
Oct. 26, 2024 – Mandurah Country Music Festival
Nov. 29, 2024 Roma QLD Country Music Festival
Website :
https://www.jaynedenham.com/
Facebook :
https://www.facebook.com/denhamjayne
Instagram :
https://www.instagram.com/jaynedenham/
Moonshine video :
https://www.jaynedenham.com/video
