Vivid double bill creates very different musical journeys, plus reviews of other big shows this week

Joan Sutherland Theatre, May 31

One of the more interesting double bills to come along in a while pairs Welsh art-pop musician and producer Cate Le Bon with Bay Area-born singer-songwriter Cass McCombs, the artists sharing little in common beyond both being gifted, idiosyncratic world builders.

McCombs’ landscape is full of finely drawn oddballs, such as the titular protagonists of A Girl Named Dogie and Priestess, or the macho trucker in Big Wheel. These character portraits, often laced with dark humour, are delivered with patient, precise detail, pulling you in closer to people you should probably be keeping a safe distance from.

In contrast, Le Bon’s musical universe feels far more ephemeral, like hearing a song in a dream and half-remembering it upon waking. The cloud-like bunches of white netting that adorn the stage during her set are apt, as many of the tunes from recent album Michelangelo Dying feel weightless and form-shifting – always slightly out of reach and harder to connect with as a result.

Enmore Theatre, May 30

Heroes to Zeros, the title of the third album from Scottish group The Beta Band, acts as a succinct summary of the group’s career.

After being feted by the music press in the late ’90s for a series of visionary, genre-mashing EPs, they went on to release three albums to mostly critical praise but middling success, breaking up shortly after Zeros′ 2004 release and £1.2 million ($2.2 million) in debt to their label.

For their first ever Australian show after reuniting in 2025, the group’s original members – Steve Mason (vocals, guitar), Robin Jones (drums), John Maclean (keyboard, samples, turntables) and Richard Greentree (bass) – finally get to enjoy a hero’s welcome once more.