When it comes to musical comedians, I often concentrate purely on the comedy and take for granted what talented musicians and vocalists they really are. On Thursday night at the packed out Corner Hotel in Richmond, Tripod made sure that I will always remember how exceptional they are with a performance that left me awestruck.
So many highlights – where do I begin? Probably at the moment when the stage lights actually went out as their supposedly frustrated lighting technician with a grudge, in the form of comedian Casey Bennetto, belted out an impressive solo about how nobody ever shines a light on him.
The featured songs included a couple from their 2007 MICF show, and though I was not familiar with any of their Christmas songs, there did appear to be some old favourites amongst the crowd. Some new favourites of mine included one about a homophobic Christmas tree, another outlining the rise and fall in the career of Daryl Somers, and a version of events of the Christmas story according to Billy Bragg.
The night was split into two sets with The Bedroom Philosopher as a welcome surprise support act. The special guests didn’t stop there though. Opera star Ali McGregor also joined the boys up on stage for a festive finale. That was preceding the outstanding encore of course, where Eddie Perfect together with Tripod, left the audience with an utterly captivating and moving A cappella rendition of Paul Kelly’s ‘Meet Me in the Middle of the Air.’ It was a performance not soon to be forgotten.
Move over Carols by Candlelight, I think I’ve just found myself a new annual Christmas tradition.