Clare Bowditch will continue the 20th anniversary celebrations for What Was Left with new East Coast concerts, beginning with a What Was Left Reimagined performance at the Melbourne Recital Centre on Friday 20 March 2026. Tickets for the Melbourne show are on sale now, with additional dates in Brisbane and other East Coast cities to be announced soon. The new dates follow a successful run of regional shows staged earlier this year, which marked the two decade milestone of the ARIA Award-winning album.
Twenty years have passed since Bowditch and her band The Feeding Set set up a modest shed studio and recorded What Was Left, their second album. The project was crafted with limited equipment, yet the results shaped a career defining release. The album showcased themes that were uncommon in pop songwriting at the time, as Bowditch explored motherhood, grief, longing, hope and doubt with warmth and honesty. The record found an audience that connected deeply with its messages, and it grew to become a cherished work within Australian music.
What Was Left delivered Bowditch the ARIA Award for Best Female Artist. The win was unexpected, yet it confirmed her position as a prominent voice in Australian songwriting. The album also received a nomination for Australian Album Of The Year at the J Awards. Its legacy continues to expand as new listeners discover the work through vinyl reissues and retrospective performances.
The What Was Left Reimagined concerts will showcase the full album with new arrangements created by Bowditch and long-time collaborator Iain Grandage. Grandage, an acclaimed composer and artistic leader, has curated an ensemble to highlight Bowditch’s musical depth. Every track from What Was Left will appear in the set, presented with updated instrumentation designed to spotlight the emotional power of the original compositions.
Grandage says Bowditch’s transition from musician to broadcaster and author has only strengthened her artistic voice, and that the 2026 shows will reflect the maturity and insight she has developed across two decades of creative work.
The Melbourne performance will take place on Friday 20 March 2026 at 7:30pm at the Melbourne Recital Centre. This marks the beginning of the East Coast leg of the anniversary series, with Brisbane and further cities to follow.
Concert Date:
Friday 20 March 2026, 7:30pm, Melbourne Recital Centre
The 20th Anniversary Edition of What Was Left was issued earlier this year as a double LP pressed on white vinyl. It includes the original album across three sides and the bonus EP Loose Acoustic One Takes on the fourth side. The EP was first included with the initial CD release as a limited companion disc. The new edition features artwork by Kat MacLeod and comes with full lyric sheets.
Clare Bowditch entered the national spotlight after forming The Feeding Set in 2003. The line-up included Libby Chow on French horn and vocals, Warren Bloomer on bass, J Walker on guitar and Marty Brown on drums. After signing with Capitol Records, Bowditch released Autumn Bone, which introduced her as a major emerging talent.
In 2005, Bowditch joined Deborah Conway’s Broad Festival project, which saw her perform alongside Sara Storer, Katie Noonan and Ruby Hunter. Later that year, Bowditch and The Feeding Set released What Was Left, which reached number 35 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
The group released their third album The Moon Looked On in 2007, featuring newly joined guitarist Tim Harvey. The album peaked at number 29 and earned two ARIA Award nominations in 2008. Bowditch then embarked on an extensive solo tour, performing to full houses across Australia and cementing her reputation as a compelling live performer.
Tracklisting: What Was Left (2005)
“Starry Picking Night” – 5:52
“Lips Like Oranges” – 3:57
“I Thought You Were God” – 4:30
“Winding Up” – 3:24
“Divorcee By 23” – 3:40
“Which Way To Go” – 4:10
“The Thing About Grief” – 4:44
“Strange Questions” – 6:15
“When I Was Five” – 4:32
“Little Self Centred Queen” – 3:01
“Just Might Do” – 4:04
“On This Side” – 4:03
“Yes I Miss You Like The Rain” – 2:09
Bonus Disc: Loose Acoustic One Takes
“Good Grief” (Unreleased Track)
“Divorcee By 23”
“Empty Pockets” (Red Raku Number)
“Buddy” (From Autumn Bone)
“I Thought You Were God”
Stay updated with your free Noise11.com daily music news email alert. Subscribe to Noise11 Music News here
Be the first to see NOISE11.com’s newest interviews and special features on YouTube. See things first—Subscribe to Noise11 on YouTube
Follow Noise11.com on social media:
Bluesky
Facebook – Comment on the news of the day
