Reviewed Monday March 30

It’s a surreal experience to step into a theatre and sense that the act you’re seeing will soon be bigger than the theatre. Although Hozier has already proven himself worthy of this feeling from international performances on shows like Saturday Night Live and at the Grammy Awards this year, the passion and uproar he inspired at the sold out Metro Theatre on a Monday night showed that he is ready for much more.

Sydney local Dustin Tebbutt delivered a beautifully mixed set to start the night, with a gentle sound produced by just him and a bassist. Unfortunately, the buzzing murmur of the crowd waiting eagerly for Hozier to appear drowned out much of the tenderness of Dustin’s music, and the vast empty space on stage accentuated this feeling, meaning that some may have over-looked the full talent of this local treasure.

In contrast with Dustin’s subtler set, Hozier and his band burst onto the stage in a blast of polished blues guitar and gospel choir-like vocals. While Hozier effortlessly cruised through vocal runs with his wholesome voice, you could be forgiven for thinking that the whole crowd was singing the lyrics along to this first song in perfect tune, because his back-up vocalists exerted such force and precision that the sound filled the room.

That said, the crowd really did start singing all the lyrics to his set. So loudly that at times it was difficult to make out his voice. His wider-known numbers such as ‘Take Me To Church’ and ‘To Be Alone’ were not necessarily his best for this reason, with much of their detail and heart lost in the sheer noise of the audience.

Yet Hozier dealt with this with such grace, and took time to get the crowd to appreciate the variety in his music. He patiently told tales of moments in the landscape of Ireland that had influenced his lyrics, and swept the on-lookers into his more intimate melodies in songs such as ‘Cherry Wine’ and ‘In a Week’ – the latter of which was performed as a tender duet with fellow Irish songwriter Alana Henderson.

By the end of the show, fans screamed and pleaded for him not to stop, perhaps because they too sensed that this might be the last time he would perform a show of this scale in Australia.

Hozier’s humble attitude, gratitude and above all, talent, made this gig one to cherish over the coming years.

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