There’s no doubt that Matt Corby is a prodigious talent and the journey to date is really only the beginning of a long and successful career. It’s hard to believe the rise and rise since he performed on, er, um, that show known as Australian Idol. It is unfortunate that he’ll continually be associated with that even though his career has sky rocketed in leaps and bounds without the publicity of that show and more importantly he’s done it on his own terms.

HQ was literally packed to the rafters and the sold out crowd is a testament to a loyal fan base who follow his every move via social media proving that a fancy ad campaign isn’t always necessary to sell out a show.

Opening act Alpine provided an interesting contrast and perspective compared to the main draw card rather than more of the same. Providing plenty of colour the band gave a great preview to their new album A Is For Alpine. Having not seen this band before I’ve got the feeling that we’ll be hearing a hell of a lot more from Alpine before the year is out. Phoebe made the remark about how great the Adelaide crowd was indicating they were “not shitty but delightful”. The highlight of their set was "Icy Poles".

The wait did seem like an eternity but a perfect opportunity to squeeze through the crowd to venture up to the merch desk to buy a limited edition screen poster of this gig with the added bonus of being signed. Woot! Woot! That’s going straight to the pool room. Finding my back to my spot was a little harder as the predominantly female crowd was getting a little excited on mass for what was about to unfold. When Mr Corby arrived on stage there was almost a collective orgasm as he started building up his first tune.

Corby has so many good tunes in the kit bag with the likes of "Winter", "Breathe", "Untitled" and "Lighthome" making anyone go a little weak at the knees. With an initial good evening and a wave his first comment was about shit being stuck to his shoe which was annoying the fuck out of him. He did apologise for the cancelled gig scheduled some time ago before treating fans to "Made Of Stone".

The cover turned epic hit for Corby "Brother" was a ripper and I was in need of a set of new ears after all the screams from the ladies in the house. It is hard to believe the mileage this song has given him considering the caliber of tracks of his EP’s to date. Nevertheless this was a major highlight proved so by the number of mobile phones being held up capturing that all important souvenir footage (none that has been seen on YouTube yet).

"Big Eyes" was a special moment in the set and combining with the lush vocals of Bree Tranter (from the now defunct Middle East) made it memorable. Corby took time before to explain what the song meant to him saying it wasn’t a love song like many thought but a crazy dream that someone was narrating which resulted in him being woken shaking. Adding further it was like having a “god thing” watching him.

There were some interesting tales about his time in Adelaide on previous tours telling a more PG version of events from the situation on Hindley Street, to registration plates to the crazy lady who got arrested in the house next door to where he was staying in Prospect – some good laughs indeed and Corby seemed more comfortable with his surrounds by that stage.

Just when I thought the set had reached epic heights he continued to maintain that buzz with "Kings, Queens, Beggars & Thieves" and the masterful "Soul’s A’Fire" making it one hell of a positive experience giving the crowd just enough and wanting more. Definitely one of this year’s best shows no doubt.