The Tiger Lillies present their fiercest, filthiest tunes for the perverse pleasure of fans old and new. Mean, moody and magnificent – if Hell had a house band, it’d be The Tiger Lillies.
Formed in 1989, the Olivier award winners’ distinctive musical style weaves together the macabre magic of pre-war Berlin, anarchic opera and gypsy music, echoing the voices of Bertolt Brecht, Jacques Brel, Edith Piaf and the savage edge of punk.
Led by the accordion-wielding ‘criminal castrato’ Martyn Jacques, the Grammy nominated band presents a show of wild emotion, featuring the greatest and worst songs of their long career. The cult musical three-piece from London have been unleashing their riotous cabaret, music hall antics and bar room brawl songs on audiences the world over.
Martyn Jacques, the band’s front man, songwriter and founder, spent most of his twenties in a flat above a brothel in London’s Soho, peeping through his window at the buzz of Soho’s lowlife. It took him a good ten years to turn that strange world into art, while training as a singer and songwriter. In 1989 he bought his first accordion and was given a painting of Tiger Lillies that he hung on the wall above his bed. And that’s where it all started.
The band stood out immediately for its distinct sound and style and worked its way up from London pubs to the Piccadilly Theatre and buskers’ benches to the Sydney Opera House. In their early days, The Tiger Lillies attracted mainstream recognition for composing the music and starring in the hit junk opera Shockheaded Peter, which earned them an Olivier Award and for their Grammy-nominated album, The Gorey End.
They have participated in numerous shows, collaborating with artists of all disciplines: from circus performers to Shakespearean actors, experimental dancers to avant garde photographers and burlesque puppeteers to classical music ensembles. The band has recently won rave reviews for its new shows The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Lulu – A Murder Ballad and is constantly working on new projects.
The Very Worst of the Tiger Lillies
Magic Mirrors Spiegeltent, Adelaide
Performances continue to 17 June 2017 – 10.00pm
Bookings: www.adelaidecabaretfestival.com.au
MEMO Music Hall, 88 Acland Street, St Kilda
Performance: Sunday 18 June 2017 – 8.00pm
Bookings: www.memomusichall.com.au
For more information, visit: www.tigerlillies.com for details.
Image: The Tiger Lillies – photo by photo-graphic-art.at