Christmas came early to The Basement last night. Dead Letter Chorus and their Xmas show to be exact. This fine Sydney band yet again put on a wonderful show, full of fun and passion. But, this report will have to be short, sorry. Due to Christmas parties and all other sundry activities I am a bit on the tired side and a little frazzled. But, put simply, Dead Letter Chorus were great last night. This was definitely assured after opening big with "11th Dream About Aeroplanes", which is always epic live. Other highlights of the night were the radio aired "Down In Your Valley", the big sounding "The Peaceful Sleep Of Death" and seldom played oldie "Drifting Along". I also loved the Gabby Huber sung "Fight The Morning". This song sounded as good as it ever has live on stage. The band were also joined on stage, towards the end of the set, by Canadian sister and brother act Matthew and Jill Barber. They played an Aussie classic in "Unguarded Moment", before launching into the Neil Young number "Only Love Can Break Your Heart". So, all in all, a great night and a nice way to spend time close to Christmas.

As stated, Matthew and Jill Barber played as support on their first visit to Australia. Matthew played first and he was very good. He has a lovely soulful voice, similar to Ryan Adams, and impressed greatly. His sister Jill followed and she was quite good as well. Playing a classical guitar she performed with great class and skill, producing some great melodies.