Monsieur Camembert Leonard Cohen trbute at the Perth Concert Hall, Friday 19th September

Long ago, a much loved friend gave me a wonderful book ”Dance Me To The End Of Love,” featuring the lyrics of Leonard Cohen’s song and the paintings of Henri Matisse. It’s a beautiful book and until tonight (Friday 19^th September), I had thought it not possible to do further justice to Cohen’s plea for love.

 

But I’ve just witnessed Monsieur Camembert perform the song as their final encore, at the Perth Concert Hall, with three stunning women alternating the vocals and a violin burning indeed. If you missed this concert, weep, for you have missed great beauty, talent and emotion.

Perth boy Yaron Hallis put the group Monsieur Camembert together in Sydney a year or so ago and they consequently recorded their tribute to Leonard Cohen, “Famous Blue Cheese” in May 2007. This concert is the touring version of that album, in fact they’ve just returned from hallowed turf – Cohen’s home country of Canada.

The muso line up was slightly different from the album, with WASO musician Peter Jensen coaxing emotion from the cello for the evening, along with Mathew Ottignon on sax, flute and clarinet, plus Alex Burkov setting fire to the violin and guitar. Guest vocalists Abby Dobson and Ngaiire Joseph feature, along with Emily Lubitz. Album musos Marcello Maio (piano and piano accordion), Giosofatto Ciampa (percussion) and Mark Harris (double bass)  completed the line up. Not forgetting the maestro Yaron Hallis on guitar and lead vocals.

The play list follows the two disk set album and if anything, is even better live, with my only slight concern being the reverb / echo distorting Yaron’s spoken intros and Cohen quotes. The musicianship was outstanding and the girls, dear God the girls! As I write this review, I’m listening to Abby Dobson caress and stretch my emotions with “Hallelujah,” just as she did in the concert hall, where she brought involuntary tears to my eyes. Ngaiire Joseph does an impossible version of “Bird On the Wire” – nobody that petite should have a gospel voice like that! And Emily Lubitz sears with “Who By Fire” and soothes with “Suzanne.”

Alex Burkov told me after the show that he gets nervous playing for long-term Cohen freaks such as me (I bought my first Cohen album in 1967), but he has nothing to fear. This band rocks. They’re sexy, wild, hot and “get” Cohen … they are just so damn good! Buy the CD set and don’t miss them when next they come to Perth. Cohen would be content, this group breathes new life to his beautiful, haunting melodies and deep poetry.