Courtney Barnett

Courtney Barnett arrives in Bristol less than a week after the release of her debut album Sometimes I Sit And Think, And Sometimes I Just Sit (when she asks the sold-out crowd whether they’ve bought a copy yet, the vast majority of the room responds in the affirmative – they’re clearly not lying, as the album subsequently surged into the Top 20), and cresting a wave that’s washed her onto the sweaty streets of SXSW (for roughly a billion shows), TV appearances with Ellen DeGeneres and Annie Mac and a seemingly endless tour of the world.

Warming up every date of this UK stint are fellow Melbournian singer-songwriter Fraser A Gorman and Manchester dudes Spring King. Fraser opens with his throwback Aussie-American folkism, channeling the ghost of Dylan through matching hair and gentle, singsong storytelling. Spring King follow, clearly buzzin’ at the prospect of basking in Barnett’s swift ascendency. They rattle through their fuzzed-out garage jams with an infectious energy that does its job of getting everyone pretty stoked for Barnett’s imminent performance.

She saunters on stage and rolls out a solo version of Depreston as technicals with the bass are resolved. It’s a gentle start to a set that ebbs and flows, from the BJM-aping Nobody Really Cares If You Don’t Go To The Party to the ripping ender of the transcendent Pedestrian At Best. In between, Barnett’s gentle demeanour, inter-band-bants and high-end guitar skills enamour the crowd completely. When they return for an encore of the Divinyls’ 80s classic I’ll Make You Happy, it’s clear that’s been her mission all along.