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August 25th. Metropolis Fremantle. Saturday night fever. Well, it may as well have been in the mosh-pit at the first show of Client Liaison’s A Foreign Affair World Tour. Fans were busting out dance moves you thought belonged only in the 80’s and 90’s. The vibe was extremely groovy, and the immense energy portrayed by the band was mirrored back by the crowd. Though there was an old school feel to things, Client Liaison turn an old vibe brand new in their own quirky way. From the stage set-up to their costumes and dance choreography, the four piece put on a performance which was nothing short of professional, thoroughly planned out and successfully executed, much like the corporate and diplomatic dealings that they sing about. Only much more exciting. 

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Client Liaison // A Foreign Affair World Tour

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Harvey Miller’s drum kit took the shape of an old-fashioned corporate office, envisioning a white, boxy, desktop computer and a telephone with the curly cord, among other fabulously nostalgic props. Large, light-up water coolers were placed on either side of the desk, complimenting the dynamic light and vision show throughout. You couldn’t forget the Australian flag feature either, which is integral to their image. The red-dirt Australian desert was displayed on the backdrop to kick the show off. Vocalist Monte Morgan had on a show-stopping, multi-coloured, patterned suit, while the rest of his band mates were in block-coloured suits of red, yellow and green. This wouldn’t be the only get up you saw these guys in though, you could bet on that.

Amongst their first few songs was Where Do We Belong, a song describing key features of Australia and life within. This was the perfect way to set up their performance, in keeping with their true-blue image. The end of this song saw Morgan bringing out a didgeridoo in the traditional Australian style, showcasing not only his grand lung capacity but yet another talent of his.

Perth was then addressed and described by Morgan as the perfect place to start off their world tour. Hotel Stay was introduced as their next song. The singer put on a show from open to close, creating hand actions all throughout, when he wasn’t making more elaborate jumps, spins or working the mic stand. His front men and guitarists, Triple J Hack news program presenter, Tom Tilley and Geordie Miller accompanied him for coordinated side step dances. The timing on the men was impeccable.

Wild Life was up next. The bridge of this song saw Morgan ripping off his blazer, revealing a green long-sleeve, button up top, which worked weirdly well with the colourful trousers. This, of course, had girls near the front row screaming and whistling, and the rest of the crowd clapping to the beat. Morgan’s flamboyant demeanour produces exaggerated dance moves, but in a gentle way. A woman in the audience even compared him to the likes of Freddie Mercury. Although he led the show, this is not to take away from the brilliant spirit displayed by the remaining three members of the band.

Feed the Rhythm from their 2014 title EP had Morgan amping up the crowd, and Harvey Miller busting out a drum solo, followed by an endearing rap. Tilley was caught doing a little butt wiggle. There was an enormous amount of movement plotted on the stage, as well as several effortless changes in attire. The guys ended up in silk robes, and Tilley even sported a Kookaburra feather necklace at one point. Geordie Miller’s stance and stature had something very appealing about it. Morgan even asked the crowd to give it up for this “sexy beast”. No arguments there.

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Client Liaison

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A rendition of Stardust’s Music Sounds Better With You was performed, but not without the boys taking a minute to hand out cans of beer to the audience. Beer with packaging that was definitely designed thirty years ago. A pretty, young, blonde girl by the name of Frankie was invited on stage to sing a special song, A Foreign Affair, filling in for the part of Aussie icon and ARIA award winner, Tina Arena. She had a similar sounding voice to the star, very sweet, but could have perhaps projected a bit more, to better compliment Morgan’s voice. Her dance moves and actions however integrated brilliantly with the rest of the show.

“Good times are down. This feels like a very sacred place. It’s the furthest place in Australia and still feels very special to us”.

These words came from the charismatic leading man before he welcomed the crowd to the Word of Our Love. The end of the album’s most feel-good track marked the grand finale of the show, or so they would have liked us to think. Client Liaison fled the stage, forcing the crowd to chant for their return. The screen eventually projected words asking whether the crowd wanted to hear unreleased music, and after an enthusiastic response was received, a segment of a never before seen music-video played for the crowd.

The possibility of a greater ending seemed slim, but with fire tracks such as Canberra Won’t Be Calling Tonight and Off White Limousine, the cherry was added to the top of an already stellar performance. Client Liaison made an absolute party out of the debut performance for their latest tour. The band closed for real this time, leaving an invitation with fans to continue to the after party with them.

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AMNPLIFY – BD