It’s been a while since Josh Pyke has been on the road. Apart from a small fans’ gig a few months ago, tonight was his first gig in his hometown after releasing his third album Only Sparrows. Even more reason to catch a man who, in my opinion, is one of the best lyricists in Australia.

First up were Melbourne folksters The Paper Kites who looked slightly abashed at being on such a big stage. Opening with acoustic guitar and nice ‘woo oohs’ they quickly ease into their performance. Frontman Sam Bentley joked with the 'small' audience, remarking that it’s actually the biggest they’d played in front of. The five-piece band juggled guitars, banjos and ukuleles, creating a catchy and melodic sound in the vein of Boy and Bear, only more pleasant and bucolic.

“Bloom” is a good example of their sound – woozy and charming with sleepy harmonies and sweet whistled melodies. Their excellent cover of Laura Marling’s “Rambling Man” gives co-vocalist Christina Lacy a welcome chance to flex her voice out front. They close out their set with some swinging harmonica and the audience clapping along; it’s nice and fun but it never really reaches out and grabs you.

Continuing the theme of earnest folk music was Emma Louise. Immediately, however, there’s a clear difference between the two acts. Where Paper Kites were breezy and fun, Emma Louise is captivating and achingly sincere. From touching opener, “Sandalwood”, she pours herself into her songs, shutting her eyes, twisting her leg, and swaying before arching up to reach the microphone.

She’s also matured since I last saw her perform at the Metro in June when she supported Boy and Bear. Then, she was clearly dwarfed by the space of the venue and disinterested crowd. This time though, the Cairns songstress is more confident on stage, chatting with the crowd and describing the stories behind her songs. When she sings as well there’s more intimacy and connection.

The acoustic setup perfectly frames her amazing voice – as do the spot on harmonies from ex-Middle East keyboardist Bree Tranter who impressively learnt 9 songs in 3 days. “Jungle” is irresistible but her final number “1000 Sundowns” is captivating. I didn’t particularly like the song itself but her performance has so much feeling, so much of herself invested in it that it absolutely holds you. Make damn sure you get along to her first headline show in Sydney on 4th November at GoodGod.

Josh Pyke finally takes the stage, backed by a drummer, bass player and guitarist. Starting with the entertainingly quirky and meandering opener from Only Sparrows “Clovis’ Son”, Pyke and his band wheel through the first 3 or 4 songs rather quickly with just the odd ‘Thanks very much’. It feels as though he’s rushing through the set trying to get it finished as soon as possible. The added instrumentation too, from melodica to sharp electric guitar, adds a definite buzz but it also takes away some of the charm and whimsy of Pyke’s sound. “Forever Song” – which I’d been quite looking forward to – was good but felt unrealised.

After a while though, Pyke starts to open up and joke with the clearly adoring home crowd. At one point he leads a fast forwarded Happy Birthday to a fan and his cousin, Angus, in the crowd. He also gives a shout out to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation, an organisation he’s championed for a while.

Mid-way through the set, the band leaves and Emma Louise joins Pyke for a sweet version of another newie, “Punch in the Heart”. With the band back, “The Summer” has the crowd singing along and “Middle of the Hill” gets the biggest cheer of the night as it begins. His new material proves just as sing along-able. The crowd joins in for the impressive “Factory Fires” and “The World is a Picture” which provides a surprisingly fun end to the gig, sounding a lot bigger and brighter live than on record.

When Pyke and co. return for the encore, they offer a few treats – “Silver” is a great throwback. While I was desperately hoping the final song was “Sew My Name”, “Love Lies” is amazing. Performing the song solo, with the lights down and everyone’s attention focused on him, Pyke is in his element and shows his true talent.

When he takes his fingers off the guitar strings and the flighty melody continues it takes a few seconds to realise that he’s using a looping pedal. Then he adds a vocal layer on top. Then another. And another slightly higher. And one more, so that they spread together like a warm blanket across the entire room. It’s spell-binding. Then, like being woken suddenly from a dream, he says ‘Thankyougoodnight’ and walks off leaving his vocals spinning through the air.