The packed Forum venue was already breezy with excitement and anticipation for the return of one of the most accomplished, one of a kind rising star acts of this century, Jacob Collier, who finally returned to Australian soil for his 82nd show of the Djesse world tour. And even after so many shows, oh boy did he deliver.

If there’s two words I can use to describe the quintessential Jacob Collier extravaganza, they would be ethereal and idiosyncratic. This was not an ordinary show in the slightest, but more-so a journey and collective insight to the mind of Jacob. From Collier enthusiastically running barefoot onto the stage jumping around and hyping the crowd, to swiftly sitting at his grand piano accompanying slower but funkier/soulful tunes lead by his band whose talents know no bounds.

Never before have I seen such a brilliant display of musical versatility brought out on stage. Jacob never ceased the flaunt of his multi-instrumentalism and extensive improvisation, as he’d  tirelessly jump between multiple instruments in one song,  like faster than a broke uni student catching money in a cash machine.

And whilst on the topic of things, I’ve never seen the kind of audience interaction/participation at a live gig than what was at a Collier gig and it is quite boldly unmatched. For Jacob managed to turn the entirety of a packed, sold out Forum into a harmonic and angelic choir for around 10 minutes straight, with such precise conducting of an ethereal, orchestral beauty that I never thought I would be amongst in my lifetime. The combination of this, non stop banter, and the occasional chat with the audience really made this whole experience personal and brought a togetherness among us

Now don’t get it twisted, our boogie boots were strapped on once Collier picked up the electric bass, and lead his incredibly talented band for back to back tracks Time Alone With You and All I Need. With his hit song Hideaway being amongst the set. Let me tell you that there was not on idle pair of legs amongst the crowd, as everyone moved like Bootsy himself.

We all thought it was over, and were waiting for the house lights to come on, as it had been set up with Jacob introducing his band and crew and smashing it one last time before triumphantly leaving the stage, but the audience were hungry for more. What started off as the quintessential “ONE MORE SONG” chant eventually became the iconic “Boom Boom Clap” rhythm of We Will Rock You, enticing the young Londoner to grace us with one last encore…..and oh boy did he do such a thing as he stormed the stage to the roar of hundreds of fans, right before delivering an incredible solo rendition of Somebody To Love by Queen. He even once again transformed the audience into a choir for the operatic sections of the iconic track, permanently leaving an incredible mark on us.

Thank you Jacob for a fantastic performance, well worthy of 2 sold out shows in Melbourne alone.