In my opinion, one of the best things about reviewing gigs for ITM is that I often get the chance to see local artists that I haven’t seen perform before. Sometimes they completely blow me away. This was the case on Thursday night when I arrived at Capitol just after 9pm to find The Typhoons already on stage.

It was all too easy to groove along to the smooth beats being laid down by the Typhoons. I was really enjoying listening to the MCs Lewis Galaga and Emcee Able, and vocalist Natalie Alley infused the tracks with a soulful essence. Did I mention the brass section? I’m such a sucker for brass! I was left standing slack-jawed at the array of talent before me on stage (10 people!) and it was easy to see how this “soul-hop” collective won Best Live Act at the 2007 Perth Dance Music Awards.

I thought I was safe to pick my jaw up off the floor and enjoy the delights held by lukewarm beer served in a plastic cup when the keyboardist Brian Kruger stepped up to the microphone for the third song. Yet another amazing voice! Then he proceeded to rap during the track Automated, and later belted out the best violin solo I’ve seen since… well, probably since Warren Ellis playing with Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds (and I had to think long and hard about that one).

I could rave on and on about the performance from The Typhoons. I was excited to hear that they have just finished recording a debut album and accordingly I’ve put this on my “must buy” list. Excuse the poor Molly Meldrum impersonation, but seriously, do yourself a favour and check these guys out. If you’re a hip-hop fan, if you’re a soul fan, if you’re a fan of good live music, I think you will be seriously impressed by The Typhoons.

I had thought the crowd to be a bit light on but the club seemed to rapidly fill up between sets. At around 10.15pm Lyrics Born’s live band took to the stage with his backing vocalist (and wife) Joyo Velarde. They quickly launched in to Don’t Change from his latest album Everywhere At Once. Lyrics came around the corner, mic in hand, and the crowd roared its approval.

Lyrics Born reminds me of one of those old school showman types, in the same ilk as James Brown. His rapport with the crowd is essential to the show, as is the support from his backing musicians who were extremely tight throughout the set. There were a few tracks from his latest album, such as Hott 2 Deff, I’m A Phreak and Differences that had a much greater impression on me live than when I listen to the CD.

During Differences the comedic spiel regarding how long it takes a female to get ready had all the males in the audience quickly on side and yelling approval. The female response delivered by Joyo had a similar effect on all the ladies. It was nice to see performers not taking themselves too seriously on stage, bringing a sense of humour to the night.

I am still mystified as to how Lyrics Born can flow so fast and not pass out. Talk about breath control! If I had one complaint it would be that sometimes his words were indistinct from the music. It was hard to judge whether that was a sound issue or just because he was talking so fast his words became a blur. I thought it did detract from songs such as Do U Buy It?, where the message regarding global warming and the war in Iraq was probably lost on the audience.

Lyrics Born and band kept delivering hit after hit and the audience was clearly having a fantastic time. Well, except perhaps for that one dude who made a failed attempt at crowd surfing. Stop Complaining featured a hellish drum solo that once and for all showed just how talented his band are. I thought the set was going to finish with Calling Out when everybody on stage froze up at the end of the song. However they suddenly launched into I Changed My Mind, during which Brian from The Typhoons was spotted dancing madly away at the back of the stage.

Then came the real end of the set, but after much furious yelling from the crowd they delivered an encore performance which included Top Shelf, a freestyle rap from LB and a solo track from Joyo Velarde’s forthcoming album. Lyrics Born also took time out to quiz the audience as to who owned his records and paid out in a good-natured manner on the guy down the front who was stupidly brave enough to admit that he had the latest release but hadn’t paid for it!

The night ended on a huge high with Bad Dreams and Shake it Off (Bad Dreams Pt 2). During the show, Lyrics Born said he wasn’t doing his job unless he lost his voice and his hearing, so he expected the same commitment from his audience. I may have taken this a bit too seriously. Five days later and I still sound like the squeaky voiced teenager from The Simpsons. But it was a fantastic night that reminded me why I love live music and I would gladly lose my voice again if I get to see a show of that calibre.