Josh Radin @ The Zoo, Brisbane 25/06/2011

Words by Scenewave Oz - Published on June 29, 2011

Joshua Radin, purveyor of soundtrack music, held the last leg of his Australian tour at The Zoo on Saturday night, with a rambling, joyous set. Mixing a mostly whimsical acoustic set with a surprisingly hard detour in the middle (or as hard as Radin can get. Which is like a cotton ball evolving into a cushion), the show showcased Radin’s delightfully lo-fi, whispering sound.

Performing at times without a microphone, it was an impressive display, with his voice only slightly blowing out during the performance of his well known song “Closer”, which you would inevitably recognise from Grey’s Anatomy. Or possibly from Scrubs. Or Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Like I said: the guy is a soundtrack whore.

The female-dominated audience lapped up Radin’s frequent flirtatious dialogue with the crowd. I could have done with a little less chit chat, and a little more sing song, especially in light of the fact he left out a few well known songs from the play list, including “Wedding”, and “hey, I made you a play list”, anthem “Only You”.

The audience deserves full marks for their perfectly timed heckles. At one point, Radin said “If you don’t mind, I’d like to rock out a bit now”, to which one young lady replied “You won’t…” as if to suggest he did not have the balls to do so. During another rambling introduction to the song “You Got What I Need”, another young lady piped up “I understand what you’re saying okay” during an extended explanation of the geographical boundaries of the US mid-west. It made the lengthy interludes more bearable.

Set highlights included “Winter”, which Radin claimed was the first song he ever wrote. If that is the case, bummer, because none of the other songs – as delightful as they are – quite lived up to the moving nature and the expectation of this ditty (this is my first review for Scenewave – you guys say “ditty” right?). “You Got What I Need”, written to help his friends conceive also “delivered” (puntastic, yes?), as did Brand New Day.

As far as first dates go, it is hard to imagine a better concert to take someone to. It’s not particularly edgy or overtly indie, but it’s enjoyable, and the lack of self conscious hipsters was a bonus. Radin seemed to be enjoying himself, so did the crowd. After the show, my partner and I ran into Radin outside the Zoo. We apologised on behalf of Brisbane for the crowd member who encouraged him to head to The Vic after the show, which was frankly inexplicable. As he headed off to find some sex not at The Vic, we remarked what an engaging, unique and understated man he was. Just like his music.