So this site is back to normal now it seems, without wanting to recover any of my lost stuff, so here goes again. I promise reviews will be more regular (well as I see shows!)
I hadn't been feeling the best that day, and I am afraid it overshadowed the experience somewhat, and being a seafood festival I felt a little uncertain about it... not wanting to disrupt my recent foray into vegetarianism (too much). Nonetheless I was there to see the bands, and while there was a stack of artists there, there was one in particularly I was really keen for, which was Hugh Cornwell from the Stranglers. For $25 dollars entry, that was a bargain for me. Not too mention the other quite seminal Australian acts on offer.
As we wandered around the area looking for some food, wine and a place to sit, we were treated with some house music before the first set: Beck's "Odelay". I know this information is irrelevant, but this immensely pleased me as it is an excellent sunny day soundtrack.
The first act that we saw was the Radiators, and while we sat for most of it, the music washed over the crowd indulging in seafood, wine, beer and sunshine. From a distance they looked pretty decent for their age and the music was quite good. Not really having known much of the Radiators, I wasn't sure what sort of stuff they had brought to the Australian music industry, but I was pleased to recognise a few songs. So it was a nicely educational and enjoyable experience.
Sitting in the hot sun drinking wine and eating food my body hadn't been used to in a while, was not a good mix for someone who had not been feeling well in the first place, so as we walked over to check out Gangajang, I quickly started feeling pretty faint. This was disappointing, not just because I was feeling my worst when they played their iconic "Sounds of Then", or as Dad would describe it "Down by the Patio We Sit". Kids of young and old were dancing along to it, after looking pretty stoic during their previously played songs, which were well played and while a little dated-sounding, nice tunes. I think. I was kinda seeing stars at this point.
As much as "Sounds of Then" has been flogged over the years not least because of ad campaigns milking the lyrics for all its worth; it really is a great song that does capture what Australia is all about, even now.
A couple of bottled waters later, I was feeling a bit better and stumbled over to see Hugh. He announced himself very subtly, "Hello. My name is Hugh. I used to play in a band called the Stranglers, you might have heard of them". A sweet humbling introduction. I'd seen the Stranglers play the Tivoli many years ago at one of my first ever gigs, with Paul Roberts fronting, who had long ago replaced Hugh once he had decided to leave the band. That was a great show, but it was fantastic to see the original frontman in action, and you could see on his face and in his voice the huge relationship he had with this music and lyrics.
See, you can see it on his face.
Hugh and band opened with "Nice and Sleazy", and immediately my ill feeling left me, as I got into the music with the rest of the crowd. It was fantastic to bop around with the old dudes who had come to hear the classic songs they loved so long ago. He played a great selection of the Stranglers' best material, "Peaches", "Duchess", "Golden Brown". Golden Brown was quite amazing, sounding a little different without an organ but still having the same vibe as the original tune. (My dad thinks otherwise). His voice was clear and it was lovely to hear the original voice of the Stranglers live, and the songs sounded just as good as on record. Even though it was a festival gig, he managed to do an encore as he had finished a little earlier. After a bit of to-ing and fro-ing, he came to the audience and told us "I think we'll do an extended version of "Walk On By"", which was a nasty tease. He did instead, a great version of "Get A Grip (On Yourself)" which was just as satisfying.
Whenever I see gigs like these, I again, as I've said many times before, feel like I really was born in the wrong era. It's still great to see the passion and creativity still persisting many years after the creation of the true 'punk' revolution. The songs still resonate, but to a different audience. You could tell Hugh was proud of the songs he was singing and enjoying every minute of it.
Due to a topsy turvy day, I decided to leave after Hugh Cornwell, missing out on the huge amount of other artists that were performing that day. Unfortunate, but I still got more than my monies worth. And no more sunshine wine on a icky stomach, or seafood for me. Blerg.
7.5 overpriced wines out of 10. Would have been more had I been fit to drink more overpriced wine.
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