It was my first time stumbling across Devendra Banhart at last year’s Big Day Out; I went along to his set because of a friend’s suggestion. As soon as the man started strumming away at his guitar I was mesmerised; as soon as he opened his mouth, I felt a deep attraction to his music - a bohemian Jeff Buckley perhaps. Whatever comparison I could think of, none would do justice to how amazing that set was.

It makes sense that I jumped at the opportunity to see Devendra Banhart at the Metro Theatre, as a sideshow to his appearance at this year’s Splendour in the Grass. This time Banhart brought a band called The Grogs with him to assist the live translation of his free spirited jams - ensuring that this performance would be one of the stand-outs amongst the Splendour sideshows.

Before we would witness Devendra’s show, we were treated to the support act which came in the form of Melbourne folk band Husky - a perfect compliment to the night. Their music coming off as folk with a bit of class and a lot of melody, this four-piece were a treat to the ears. Lead, Husky Gawenda and bassist, Evan Tweedie created some gorgeous vocal harmonies which took their music even higher and left a great impression on the growing crowd. The band lets the quality of music speak for itself, with little to no crowd interaction - but none was really needed. Their beautiful songs undoubtedly endeared their name to everybody in the audience. While it was a short set, it was a great display of up and coming talent.

Devendra and The Grogs hit the stage quite modestly and began jamming away with their respective instruments, much to the crowd's delight. You could tell Banhart’s fans were extreme with their admiration for the man, as declarations of love came from all corners of the Metro. While when I saw Devendra last, he was making a show out of being an out-of-control hippie, the beginning of this gig showed no signs of the quirkiness that made me a fan. Thankfully, that changed as soon as The Grogs made their first exit - not that they were a bad band, it’s just that the first few performances were a tad uneventful, especially if you weren’t familiar with the songs - amongst which were “Baby“ and “Foolin“.

The first highlights of the set quickly became apparent as Devendra was left solo with his guitar. The aforementioned comparison to Jeff Buckley was demonstrated here with Banhart’s gorgeous guitar work, especially on the excellently written numbers “Bad Girl” and “At The Hop”, the latter of which included tongue-in-cheek lyrics like 'cook me in your breakfast and put me on your plate ‘cause you know I taste good.'

The Grogs eventually made their return - I was initially disappointed as Devendra was shining so bright by himself, but that disappointment quickly turned to delight as the band worked together brilliantly. Highlights included the beautiful “Angelika,” the crowd-favourite “Seahorse” (probably the best performance of the night), and a great cover of “Sportsmen,” which was once made famous by Yellow Magic Orchestra.

Devendra and his band closed out the main set with sure-shot crowd pleasers and his most popular songs - “Carmencita” and “Long Haired Child,” inspiring a lot of quirky dance moves from members of the audience.

Returning for a two-song encore, the men gave us “Little Boys” and Devendra’s most well-known song, the emancipating “Feel Just Like A Child,” which again got everyone back into the quirky-dancing mode (I could have sworn, some Janis Joplin look-a-like next me was having a seizure).

Mixing fun, beauty, and wit, this showcase of Devendra Banhart and The Grogs proved this: Devendra’s witty lyrics and beautiful music place him as one of the greatest and most overlooked song-writers of our time - he should not under any circumstances be ignored.