When Tim Freedman announced that he was making his first record since 2006’s Little Cloud, I was excited at the prospect of Freedman releasing some new material and furthermore, seeing him live once again. Returning to his Adelaide home at The Gov, Freedman and his new band The Idle, had roused the attention of a decent amount of punters – a feat which was impressive, as tonight's show was competing with Elton John’s gig elsewhere in town.

I was only aware of the band having one opening act in Melbourne’s Gossling, so when I arrived at The Gov to see alternative country musician/The Idle’s guitarist Heath Cullen performing instead, I had to refocus a bit to get into his music. Performing with a certain charm and presence which initially reminiscent of a younger version of Freedman, Cullen’s short set was one I wound up being so grateful I’d been able to catch. Because the venue was decked out with tables and chairs tonight, Cullen looked as if he were performing in a restaurant-like setting, as opposed to a music gig. Melancholic and painfully honest, Cullen’s delivery of lyrics made the audience take notice of him, instead of becoming background noise. It’s not the sort of music people were encouraged to dance to by any means, but the way Cullen created a brooding and melodic atmosphere definitely caught the attention of many.

Gossling’s set didn’t seem to rouse much more of an excited response from the crowd when it was their turn to perform. The folk-pop group, headed by Owl Eyes/Lisa Mitchell hybrid Helen Croome, offered a set full of songs which were delivered in a simple and understated sort of way. While Gossling’s music seemed to be appreciated by most in attendance tonight, I lost interest after the third song. Croome’s unconventional vocals, like Lisa Mitchell’s and Brooke Addamo’s, became grating and frustrating for me to listen to; something which wasn't aided by the audio system, which remained too loud for the entirety of the set. The piano-heavy nature of the music made it difficult for me to differentiate between some songs, although the lyrical content was remarkably different. A cover of Ou Est Le Swimming Pool’s “Dance The Way I Feel” was a good moment in the set, even if it did arrive at the end of Gossling’s song list for tonight.

I couldn’t push the expectations I’d harboured towards the main act out of my head in the lead up to tonight’s performance; there was a large part of me that expected Freedman’s new act to simply be a new version of The Whitlams. I was proven wrong however from the performance of set opener “Peter Brown”. Freedman’s trademark flair as keyboardist was in fine form tonight, which reminded me of every other time I’d seen The Whitlams live, yet watching him being backed by four different instrumentalists (including two ladies) gave off a completely refreshed impression. Freedman wasted no time in getting stuck into his new material, featured on the Australian Idle record and true to form, he was not without his well-known caustic wit.

While a few remarks fell flat amongst the audience and prompted some surprised looks from his band mates, Freedman worked hard in regaining a mood of a flowing and enjoyable set. Particular highlights included “Girlfriend Heaven”, “You Weren’t In Love With Me” and “Misty”, while a memorable cover of “Two Little Boys” prompted one of the biggest applauses of the night. Performing a few Whitlams songs for good measure, including “Beauty In Me” and “I Make Hamburgers”, demonstrated the chemistry which has clearly developed between Freedman and his new cast of musos. These renditions were performed with a new level of vibrancy and emotion, with the vocals of Amy Vee and Zoe Hauptmann livening these renditions up in a new way.

For the most part, I really enjoyed the gig tonight – Freedman’s new venture showed him in a light that, creatively, a lot of people probably haven’t seen him in for some time. He performed with the balance of arrogance and cheekiness that has made crowds fall in love with him and his style for years, but it didn’t stop the musical talents of The Idle from shining through. Tim Freedman and The Idle are evidently still in the early stages of perfecting their live show, but they performed cohesively and seemed to be having as much fun with the performance as we were by the end of it. Which is a good place to start.