Unfortunately I was unable to attend the entire day of the latest “pub” festival to hit the Sydney scene, and as such arrived just as 4th band for the day, Alter Ego Mania, were finishing their set. I didn’t see enough of these guys to comment on them properly, but liked what I saw of the five piece! From there, I moved over to “The Filth” stage in the main room (this was a festival of two stages and 19 bands), to check out the next act.
A six-piece from Sydney, Winter People have been floating on the outskirts of the Sydney rock scene for some time, playing what they call “Post Rock Folk Music”. Recently winning Annandale’s Jager Uprising, they’ve finally started making their mark – bit by bit – and deservedly so. Folk music, indeed, but this is truly unassuming rock, with a strong violin presence that helps position the band beautifully in and amongst the Sydney live scene.
I have to say, at first, I wasn’t too impressed – they came off a bit weak – perhaps they just hadn’t played in a while – but then came an epic little number called “Top Of the World” and not only was I impressed from there on out, but each song just seemed to improve on the last, ending their half hour set with “Gallons”. Check out their music at their official website.
Back on the groupie.com.au stage, Alphabet Cities were up next, and took us from the folk side of rock and roll, to a 100% no-holds-barred rock and roll sound, with some great talent on the guitar to boot. The problem, however, is that there are simply too many bands like these guys out there, and the songs simply don’t stand well enough apart from the rest. This, and they definitely need a bit of bass guitar. I sense potential, however, so let’s see how they develop – great name, too!
With Joysticks, the bass guitar returns in fine form – and on the shoulders of the lead singer, no less! I initially found his voice slightly Luke Steele-esque (Sleepy Jackson era), but slightly more rock and roll. This fluctuated throughout the set – sometimes it left quite a bit to be desired, even coming off borderline irritating… yet other times it worked.
As a band, they are as tight as you get, and their older tracks are incredibly well developed, showing off plenty of talent on the stage. Producing quite a few catchy beats along the way (especially in “Poseidon”), the band were at their best when “jamming” (however practiced it may have been), with the keyboards holding their sound together, taking it up to the next level along the way. While I didn’t catch their names, their last two tracks were particularly impressive.
On a sidenote, the sound engineer seemed to let this band down quite a bit – why does the BAND have to instruct a SOUND ENGINEER as to when a voice is too soft, or an instrument is overpowering the rest? Isn’t that their job to… oh, I don’t know… have a good ear?
Moving on, Shaman Son, a 5 piece from Melbourne, brought a bit of a Sevendust-meets-Nirvana vibe up north. And with this came a whole heap of uninspired lyrics and repetitive riffs, leaving me bored by the second song. I can totally see these guys having a good pub rock sort of following in Melbourne – they’re certainly got the energy to boot – but they’re simply not for me. And if they want to be MORE than a pub rock band, they’ll have to start thinking outside the box.
In Dimity Claire and the Bleeding Hearts, we find one of the most enthusiastic lead singers since Patience from The Grates! Opening up, she told the crowd “We’re a brass band – only not boring!!” and she was pretty spot on. However, there’s only one real way to describe this band: fucking groovy. Unfortunately, the Annandale speakers, combined with an average sound technician, didn’t provide the band with the best coverage for the evening, but they impressed nonetheless.
Dimity Claire gives off a Duffy-esque vibe in her voice, however it’s entirely more bearable in large doses; she’s a genuine good singer. And her brass backing band are a sight for sore eyes and ears, in a city which has seemed to ignore the trumpet since The Cat Empire shot into the spotlight.
It wasn’t all peachy, however – their cover of Ladyhawke’s “My Delerium” was almost unrecognisable – which on paper isn’t usually a bad thing, but simply came off as flat and messy, ultimately feeling out of place. A cover of Dandy Warhol’s “Godless” came off more appropriate to their sound.
It was when Dimity donned the guitar for a solo, ‘sober moment’, however, that she was able to show off her talent the best – and it was here that the venue sound suited her best, too. The rest of the time, the brass could be a bit overwhelming, her voice fighting it’s way through – but usually, she just got it over the line.
I really can’t say too much about The Ivys other than the fact I found them a bit too generic for my taste buds, and didn’t hang around for too long. Sorry guys!
Kids at Risk: These kids (pun intended) pull off some wicked riffs, and are a pretty damn solid band in general. Led by a tall man in a tank top, he clearly goes against every stereotype of the current Sydney rock band vibe (skinny black jeans etc.) I love it. “Sugar”, which is their apparent single, is of particular mention. Check them out!
The Vignettes were, unfortunately, the last band I was able to catch on Saturday – with Royal Chant, The Salvagers, The Protectors, Beaumont, After the Fall, Red Ink and Calling All Cars still to come … sorry guys, I’ll make sure to catch you next time you’re in town. Meanwhile, The Vignettes put on their usual schtick: simple yet delicious rock songs, combined with hilarious, if not disturbing, banter. I particularly enjoyed their admittance of one of their songs being a “Cure rip off dance number”. It was, but how could you not love it? “Hey Little Girl” ended their set.
I didn’t stay long enough to see how the crowds were by the end of the night – but while the Groupie stage always felt packed out, the small numbers in attendance (while I was there) made the main room feel pretty empty. It’s a pity, because there was such a wide range of talent on display, you hate to see it go unnoticed…
… which brings me to my next point: does this city even give a shit? An interesting quote made its rounds last week – if the people who are now complaining about the Hopetoun closing ACTUALLY attended the venue on a regular basis, paid money to enter, and bought a few drinks, venues like it, and the Annandale, wouldn’t be facing the problems they are.
