Culture Club | Fremantle Arts Centre | December 8th | ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Many were surprised when Culture Club announced an encore Australian tour, the band had just delivered an amazing series of concerts around the country in early June. Last night the band returned for a show at the Fremantle Arts Centre that was even better than their first visit.
Pseudo Echo got the crowd revved up with Listening and then set them into overdrive with Funky Town. People were running to the front to join in the dancing. The band was in fine form.
As the sun set Culture Club took to the stage backed by their additional musicians, and trio of soulful backing singers. Unlike their show from earlier this year, which was seated, this set up allowed the crowd to break out the dance moves and enjoy the party.
The set list was also paired back focusing on their biggest hits and the strongest of their fresh material. When the band were here in June their sang 20 songs, this time seven of those tunes had been dropped and one added – and the show was better for it.
Opening up with Church of the Poisoned Mind, Culture Club set a party vibe, before quickly running through It’s a Miracle, I’ll Tumble for Ya.
Boy George asked the crowd if they liked reggae music before delivering his first solo record, a cover of the Bread tune Everything I Own.
The backing singers got to show off their skills with Black Money and Time before the band showed off songs from their forthcoming album. Like I Used To went down a treat and things got very funky with the Sly Stone inspired Different Man.
Without wasting any time it was back to the hits with Miss Me Blind, and a step back in time to 1982 for the band’s first hit Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.
Boy George asked the enthusiastic crowd at the front of the stage to quieten down for the emotional tune Victims. Back in November when the band played in Minesota they abandoned the song mid-tune when the audience was too noisy, but the Perth audience respectfully kept quiet.
To wrap things up the band launched into a stunning arrangement of The War Song, a tune that wasn’t performed at their show earlier in the year. The new version has slow dramatic versus and launched into a dance inspiring upbeat reggae chorus.
The inevitable encore quickly followed with a sing-a-long of Karma Chameleon and a rocking send off with T-Rex’s Get it On (Bang a Gong). Entertainment perfection.
Graeme Watson
Update: 11-12-16 this report was updated to improve accuracy.
