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| Jamilla |
Sydney.
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| Luca Brasi |
I only saw one show in Sydney. Luca Brasi supported by Tiny Moving Parts and Eliza and the Delusionals. In order to get to this show I walked across the city from my hotel near Kings Cross all the way to the university. Once I got there finding the student bar hosting the show proved to be nearly impossible. Until I asked for directions and found the unmarked building.
Eliza and The Delusionals were the gold coast indie rock four piece who kicked things off. From what I can remember I was pretty impressed by them. Although not nearly as much as i was by Tiny Moving Parts. An American emo band who seemed to have already conquered the hearts of many an Australian despite it only being their first tour over there. Some readers may already be aware of Luca Brasi from their UK tour with Moose Blood. Being unfamiliar with them I was pretty blown away by the energy in the room from them. This young emo band have sold out small rooms all across Australia and have packed them out with the same fanatic crowds that i have seen attend UK shows for the likes of Creeper or Milk Teeth. I don't rate them as highly as some of their UK emo/pop punk contemporaries. Yet based on the love they receive in their home country I am sure they could be conquering our shores any time soon.
Darwin.
Aside from a few performers in Byron Bay it wasn't until a month after that gig in Sydney that I caught another show. I was lucky enough to catch the Australian legends The Preatures in Darwin. Coming towards the end of a mammoth Aus tour The Preatures performed a fantastic set of sexy, swaggering rock n' roll that few other bands can deliver nowawdays. I was lucky to see them in Darwin as few major bands play them and as i can attest to, even a huge act such as The Preatures can struggle to fill a venue in Darwin. I was also impressed by how outspoken they were, particularly in regards to their respect for aboriginal culture. The support came from the endearingly awkward Ali Barter. Her live show was stripped back to just her and a guitar, a far cry from the full band sound of her album. Despite fighting against a crowd that would not shut up her incredible voice stood out as an obvious sign of her talent. Ali Barter's songs are a candid look at her mental health and sexuality. She tackles heavy topics with a dry sense of humour and is therefore an artist who I feel could be making some very vital music in the future.
Adelaide.
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| W.M.N |
Adelaide may be overshadowed by it's big brother Melbourne but it has a thriving music scene of it's own. I caught a show at a small pub that opened with the political, alternative RNB duo Argus and The Liar. The duo mix conscious rhymes with a trippy neo soul style backing. Perth native Jamilla followed on with her very modern style of alt-RNB. Her songs can be both reflective of her experiences being a young black woman and overtly sexual. While at time her sound felt a bit artificial it was the strength of her voice and personality which made her shine. W.M.N are a band like none other that I have seen. I am only going on my assumptions but one member appeared to be a classically trained violinist with an operatic voice. While two other members appeared to be transgender. These 4 people mixed electronic production with, violin accompaniment and elements of rap and spoken word. I have little other way to describe it yet I can think of few other bands so evocative of the age that we live in.
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| Draining |
Another night I found the (quite literally) underground punk club 'Ancient world'. I saw a plethora of local acts. From the grunge trio Agapanther, the post-rock duo Still They Slept and best of all the shoegaze band Draining. The self described 'Sad Punx' Draining played a fantastically noisy set of punk rock drowned in guitar effects. They capped things off by smashing up their gear.
Melbourne.
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| Sophisticated Dingo |
I couldn't wait to go to Melbourne. While the inner city is chaotic and crowded the suburbs are every bit the hipster paradise I imagined the city to be. The Yarra suburb is an oasis of bars, cages, restaurants, tattoo parlours and of course.. live venues. Having known the city for producing acts such as King Gizzard and Rolling Blackouts I was eager to find the next big thing. After scouring about 30 shows alone that night in the local rag 'Beat' I settled on local heroes Deathbeat. A punk duo who mix heavy grooves with furious rapping. While there are similarities to UK punks Slaves, Deathbeat have created a sound that is unique to them. One of the supports for that show Slim Jefferies also supported Sophisticated Dingo on the next gig I saw in Melbourne. Their a scrappy hardcore band who are endearingly rough around the edges. By the time Bad Bangs, Face Face and House Hats had finished their fantastic sets it was getting late. Sophisticated Dingo were launching their EP 'Tastes just like the real thing' with a hour plus long set in front of a packed out room. They bought some trippy light projections to make their show that little bit more special. If you've guessed by their name alone that Sophisticated Dingo are a scuzzy two piece surf punk band then you'd be spot on! They ooze an especially Aussie sense of not giving a fuck and as such their show was heaps of fun!
So it turns out that just as I had expected the fantastic Australian bands who have broke through in the UK are only the tip of the iceberg.
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| Deathbeat |
Links
www.elizaandthedelusionals.com
www.facebook.com/lucabrasipunkrock/
www.thepreatures.com
www.alibartermusic.com
www.facebook.com/pg/argusandtheliar
www.facebook.com/pg/jamillamusic/
www.facebook.com/pg/wmnmusic
https://draining.bandcamp.com/
www.facebook.com/pg/deathbeatband
sophisticateddingo.bandcamp.com/
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