Tag: Tripod

Tripod and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra – This Gaming Life

By Elyce Phillips Tripod

Tripod (Scott Edgar, Steven Gates and Simon Hall) have teamed up with legendary composer Austin Wintory and the MSO to produce a suite of songs about video games that sound as beautiful as they are hilarious. This Gaming Life spans the history of gaming, from the pixelated magic of early arcades to the expansive 3D universe of Skyrim, and explores the depth of Tripod’s relationship with the medium.

The songs in this oratorio are stunning. Yes, there are plenty of gaming references for the nerds in the audience – I did a little inward squeal when they mentioned the Nesingwary quest line from WoW – but more than anything, this is an ode to the social aspects of gaming. How they can cement friendships, help us traverse the distance between ourselves and a loved one, and create lasting memories in impossible landscapes.

This Gaming Life is also incredibly funny. Tripod’s lyrics deftly skewer the industry, gamers and their concerned loved ones. A song targeting the absurd designs of many female characters was my personal favourite. As a special added treat, we also got to experience a beautiful performance of Wintory’s Journey score, complete with some choreography and highly suspect costumes from Tripod.

Partnering with the MSO for this show was absolutely inspired. The impact of the orchestra emphasised the scope of Tripod’s history with gaming. Scod, Yon and Gatesy have the kind of on-stage chemistry that can only come from years and years of working together, and it’s an absolute joy to see them in Hamer Hall in a performance of this magnitude.

As it was only a short run, Tripod’s This Gaming Life has already finished up, but you can check out one of the songs from the show at this beautifully ‘90s website: http://content.mso.com.au/driveking/

Perfect Tripod : Australian Songs

By Alanta Colley

Tripod and Eddie Perfect are a match made in heaven. Perfect’s jazz tones and soulful bass complement the already dynamic and elastic voices of the infamous comedy trio. Performing in the 900 seater Play House in the Arts Centre the quartet display the full range of their musical prowess. Though despite the fancy venue and the formal suits they’ve not discarded the playful irreverence for which we know and love them for; using VB bottles for tuning; and being ready to mock each other at any given opportunity.

This show is a celebration of the richness of Australia’s musical heritage. It’s hard not to swim in sentimentality as we encounter the familiar sounds from the halls of musical fame. John Farnham’s ‘You’re the Voice’ gets a reworking that is not a little cheeky. Gotye’s celebrated ‘Heart’s a Mess’ takes on a new dimension; the four part male harmony fully embodying its sweet soulfulness. The more modern greats in the shape of Lanie Lane and Clare Bowditch are also included in the line-up. The Bee Gees; those sometime Australians also made an appearance. As well as a few delightful features from Tripod and Perfect’s own body of works.

The show is an emotional rollercoaster; full of laughs, reminiscence and spinal chills at moments of absolute pitch perfection. There are no low points in the performance. Flexing their musical mastery every song inhabits a different genre and a new interpretation from the original. The four exercise egalitarianism in divvying the spotlight; taking turns to lead. The result is an ever moving, entirely entertaining hour of vocal magic.

This is the second time round this show has been part of the Melbourne Comedy Festival and it is no less enjoyable the second time round. New songs have made it to the set list. An ecstatic evening of A cappella brilliance from Australia’s deeply loved comic muses.

Australian Songs was on at Arts Centre Melbourne, Playhouse
http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2014/season/shows/australian-songs-perfect-tripod

The Dragon

By Elyce Phillips

 

A knight in shining armour, a damsel in distress and a terrifying three-headed dragon – all the elements may be there, but this is no run-of-the-mill fairy tale. Based on the play by Russian writer Evgeny Shwarz, ‘The Dragon’ is a sharp-witted exploration of power and courage. Lancelot (Jimi Bani), sets out for Dufresne, hearing it is beset by a dragon. Once there, he decides to rescue the lovely Elsa (Nikki Shiels), however, she has no desire to be saved.

The original play may have been written in the 1940s, but its satirical lancing of totalitarianism remains painfully relevant today. Toby Schmitz’s adaptation is accomplished and hilarious, from the Aussified knight Lancelot’s quest for beer and chicks, to the strangely poetic doubletalk of the dragon. The story has a timeless quality. The small town of Dufresne could stand in for any number of stifling political regimes – the leaders taking away the rights of their constituents under the guise of protecting them from enemies abroad.

The performances are fantastic throughout. Kim Gyngell is gloriously unhinged as the town’s mayor and John Leary is a stand-out as his snivelling sidekick. However, Tripod (Scott Edgar, Steven Gates and Simon Hall) steal the show, appearing both as Lancelot’s animal guides and as the three heads of the titular dragon. The trio also created original music for the production.

The Dragon is a visually striking production. The use of a rotating set is effective and a clever use of the space. The drab Cold War aesthetics of the set and the costumes play well against the absurdities of the character and the story and are a nice nod to the original.

The Dragon is uproariously funny, thought-provoking and full of heart. It is the perfect play to lift your spirits from the mire of pre-election rhetoric.

The Dragon is showing at the Malthouse Theatre until July 26.

For bookings and more info:
http://www.malthousetheatre.com.au/show-listing/the-dragon/

Tripod – Men of Substance

by Lisa Clark (with help from Virginia Graham)

The members of Tripod all recently turned forty and what’s lovely is that instead of being in denial or panicking they are embracing and celebrating their maturity through song and comic banter. So yes it’s another fabulously entertaining Tripod show that’s pretty much in the same style that they’ve been doing for sixteen years, if now with the surprising addition of interpretive dance.

Generally Tripod’s audience have matured along with them. They prove that forty comes to all of us; even World Famous Comedy Superstars and the songs are a funny and melancholy commentary about what that means. The opener Adult Contemporary is a sweet gentle acceptance of the way your musical taste has become closer to your parents’ than to your teenaged self. Triangle of Happiness is a surprisingly dark look at feeling trapped by the life you’ve chosen.
After the first few songs you could be worried that perhaps they might have forgotten their nerdy game boy roots but with their funky ode to maths and taxes, BAS Time and Waiting for the Game to Load you realise that while they have mellowed, their underlying geek still reigns.

Tripod’s songs have also matured over the years, with the musicality at times being sublime and rather than ditties about kitchen implements, sailors or Darryl Somers meeting the baby Jesus, they have occasionally become political and are better for it. Some of their best songs in recent years have been Santa’s Papers and Suicide Bomber both seemingly gentle in style with a surprisingly vicious humour and brutal message. This show does not let us down with an attack on the gentrification of the inner suburbs that is destroying the live Melbourne music scene in the gorgeous protest song The Blueprint.

I saw this show in its first outing at The Arts Centre last year and appreciated seeing Men of Substance in its mature state. The adorably sexy DILF had been placed earlier in the show and now works as a call back to earlier references to MILFs. Tripod have the benefit of being a band rather than a straight comedy act which means that you can see their show more than once and never tire of hearing their fabulous songs. Gaybar was another highlight and is a great singalong for the audience. This was a launch for their album which features not only the songs from this show but also some older songs that fit into the theme such as Thursday and Yon’s fear of surviving in a post-apocalyptic world, Climate Change.

All three of the boys (or should that be Men) have their time to shine, the banter is still funny and their harmonies are still the best in the business. I love Yon’s trumpet and Scod’s organ adding to the sound. If you love them, you won’t miss them, if you don’t know them you’ve been cruelly deprived. If you want a sure thing for the Comedy Festival, go and see Tripod, you can safely take your family and friends and have a fabulous time.

Tripod are performing at The Famous Spiegeltent at The Arts Centre
http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2013/season/shows/men-of-substance-tripod

The Shelf season 1, 2011.

By Lisa Clark

To Celebrate our Featured Podcast we are republishing a room review of The Shelf from it’s Debut at The Toff in Town.

Melbourne has a fabulously healthy live comedy scene with venues offering comedians for all tastes, from the nervous newcomers to the polished stars. Four months ago Melbourne comedy legend Dave O’Neil started up his Comedy Funhouse in Fairfield and now two other stalwarts have opened up a weekly room, for the month of October at least, and have their own fun.

These two are Fabulous Adam Richards, gossip bitch of top rating breakfast radio show The Matt & Jo Show,and Justin Hamilton, currently a movie reviewer for breakfast at Mix FM in Perth but cherished as Australia’s best stand-up comedian who isn’t a household name. They seem like an unlikely pair of mates, but apart from both being astute experienced comedians they are geeky fanboys at heart and have obviously created a place where they can put on a show in their own terms and have some fun with friends.

So what is The Shelf and how is it different to the established rooms about town? For starters it has a team of regulars joining Hamilton and Richards: Steven ‘Gatesy’ Gates of Tripod, Tegan Higginbotham of The Hounds and relative newcomer European Man (Ted Wilson). The evening is separated into three distinct brackets, the first is a bit of a mix of chat, stand-up and music, the second a full long set from a headlining guest and the third a live trivia gameshow.

The first section on opening night begins with Hamilton providing a searing set about his recent shenanigans touring New Zealand with Greg Fleet, as well as introducing the evening and co-host Richards. Hamilton is fairly renowned as one of the best comedy MCs in the country and is the perfect host, clearly excited by his new enterprise.

The first guest is rising star Celia Pacquola, home from her new digs in London, her stand up just gets better and better as she becomes more assured about her work. Pacquola has a delightfully quirky edge to her comedy that always adds surprises to her warm, friendly style. She endears herself to the home crowd, which tonight is full of friends and comedy geeks, with tales about how she’s having fun in the UK using her Australian openness to freak out the Pommies.

Next up is a bit of a historical moment in Australian comedy, the first ever solo spot by Gatesy from Tripod. The highlight, which is going to be a weekly feature is his ‘Non Topical’ song where Gatesy sings a song that has been topical in the past, but is not now. Tonight’s song is about Stuart Diver being rescued. It was a bit shaky, but his experience at working an adoring crowd got him through.

The second bracket is pure nonstop Tom Gleeson, currently starring in Good News World and fresh from Edinburgh, where hecklers quickly learned that Tom is not to be messed with. In fact the bulk of his material was about how his hair-raising experiences at boarding school made him impervious to persecution. Tom is in top form, like a thoroughbred during the Spring Racing Carnival he sprints out of the gates with the crowd roaring, and is magnificent to behold.

The final segment is the least polished, which is part of its charm. A mini game show hosted by Richards, with team captains Hamilton and Higginbotham with a guest each, Pacquola and Gleeson. The trivia questions are about things found on the shelf: books, DVDs, CDs or games etc. Helping Richards are European Man and Gatsey, who provides the clues through song.

The room itself is set up in cabaret style with small tables. Toff in Town has hosted many legendary comedy nights including Tripod’s Pod August Nights and Asher Treleaven’s Oyster Club. On this night, I couldn’t recommend the bar as everyone on our table had bad experiences with service. A more positive aspect is that you can book your seat and know in advance that you will get in, which is important for a room with a limited run and popular line-ups.

There is nothing revolutionary about The Shelf, it reminds me a little of Hessie’s Shed by Crowded House’s Paul Hester which was a series of high quality live comedy and music with a trivia quiz at the end hosted by Brian Nankervis. That quiz went on to become Rockwiz on SBS, so who knows maybe ‘The comedy show you’ll never see on TV’ as The Shelf is describes itself, will somehow end up there anyway

Originally published in Chortle.Au on 7th October 2011

Check out  http://shelvers.com.au/

MICF 2012 Shows on sale now

Tickets are now on sale for shows in this years Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

The Comedy Festival Gala is being hosted by Sammy J & Randy and has already sold out, but there are still tickets available for some of the festivals biggest events including the Opening Night Comedy Allstars Supershow, RAW Comedy National Grand Final, The 23rd Annual Great Debate Upfront and more!

Highlights in 2012 include American comedy legend Wanda Sykes, the return of UK based comedians Dave Gorman, Shappy Khorsandi, Glenn Wool Tim Key and Aussie born Sarah Kendall. Simon Munnery’s two shows, including his conceptual restaurant ‘La Concepta’ which we tasted a sample of during his show last year and, as always, a new one from Daniel Kitson. Four of Australia’s best comedians are getting together to perform a live silent film; Andy Mclelland, Asher Trelevan, Celia Pacquola and Sammy J in Tie her to the Tracks. Interesting pairings include Bob Franklin and Steven Gates (of Tripod) in Stubborn Monkey Disorder and the husband and wife team of Mike McLeish & Fiona Harris in …..Plus One. There is also Rod Quantock’s Mystery Comedy Tour which is garanteed fun if you don’t mind walking and don’t forget to try something new. You might discover the next big name! Of course there are many, many more shows happening, so get to it.

To get in early and secure your seats, check out the full list of shows on sale here. New shows are being added as they go on sale.