Ah, The Annandale… Where else will you find a disco ball nailed to a piece of two by four? Despite falling to pieces and being almost over run by roaches, this is one of Sydney’s most iconic music venues and over the years, has played host to a multitude of stellar artists. On tonight’s bill – Mike Noga and Paul Dempsey. 

Stepping out from his usual vantage behind the drum kit, Mike Noga, of The Drones fame, had no hesitation in announcing “Tonight is my fucking time to shine”. Standing beneath a single spotlight, Noga addressed the scarcely filled venue with great pride in the fact that tonight these were his songs and this was his moment with our undivided attention (or at least until 8pm). Having also played drums for Dempsey, Noga is no virgin to the stage; however Sunday night’s performance gave a different impression. 

Mike’s rustic voice and country/rock style were well received by the ever growing audience and, as he switched between voice and harmonica, the man sounded impressive. His performance was only brought down by the fact that he pointed out when he was off key, that he was nervous and when he made jokes about his inability to play guitar – things that could have gone unnoticed if not drawn to our attention.

Following a memorable version of "All My Friends Are Alcoholics", Noga treated us to an beautiful yet lyrically pensive Irish murder ballad (surprisingly written by a man from Canberra who has never killed anyone). By track five, Noga had delivered a new found vocal strength and on stage energy that was a far cry from the nervous performer of the first two songs. Unfortunately this didn’t remain and Noga’s closing number was perhaps the weakest of Sunday night’s repertoire. 

By the time Paul Dempsey took to the stage, The Annandale had come to life with an excited zeal. Ex-Something For Kate lead singer and frontman has been touring on and off since releasing his first solo album, Everything is True, back in 2009.

Entering the stage to a rapturous applause, the distinct vocals that have rendered Dempsey such high accolades were soon heard. Playing with raw passion and effortless ease, Dempsey treated us to an extensive fifteen song set list comprised of both new and old material. With the briefest of introductions Dempsey followed a stunning acoustic rendition "Out The Airlock" with an equally impressive performance of "Fast Friends". With a light hearted yet genuinely captivating air, Dempsey’s striking ballads rung our across the venue and his immensely emotive lyrics seemed to loose their ache when sung in such a beautiful way.

While Paul Dempsey is talented, he doesn’t exactly scream rock and roll, nor does an intimate Sunday evening gig. Never the less, this didn’t stop an overly eager female fan from trying to climb on stage mid set, only to be wrenched off by Dempsey’s management.

Welcoming his “second wife”, Mike Noga, back on stage for a couple of tracks, the two shared some jovial repartee before delivering a much darker and more number. The second of the two songs saw the roles reverse with Noga taking the vocals and acoustic lead while Dempsey played back up. This time, Noga was back in fine form.

Dempsey crowd favourites "Ramona Was a Waitress" and "Bats" received mammoth reception and the audience never held back on shouting out SFK requests. The charismatic performer regularly engaging in humorous banter with the audience and frequently expressing his gratitude for us being there. Wrapping things up with a lively performance of "Theme From Nice Guy", Dempsey left the stage and, before the ovation had even begin to calm, returned to encore with two final tracks.

Paul Dempsey’s set was genuinely flawless and incredibly stunning to watch.

Header photo by Alex- from Paul Dempsey's


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