INDEPENDENT! LOCAL! BRISBANE! OVERSEAS! get into it!

Hi everyone. I have been going to a few things here and there over the year thus far that have been more social events than "OH MY GOD I AM GOING TO SEE THIS BAND TONIGHT" which often tends to happen when you're out and about and you end up seeing a local band play a drinking venue. The best part about going out to meet up with friends and seeing some music along the way is you often find yourself really enjoying the band and you get something extra out of your night. It's why I prefer to go to a gig than go to a club, and it's why you should too! Anyway I thought I'd discuss some of the local bands I've seen so far over the past six months, or that I've noticed on the radar and would like to see. Come with me. 

LOCAL

Please click the names for links to bandcamp or similar artist pages! I've thrown in a couple of videos which happen to have been directed by very talented people I know, and I know it may seem like a great big plug but I honestly also think they're excellent.


Astrid and the Asteroids
I saw Astrid and her fellow Asteroids at the Zoo months back, and have wanted to write about them since. Simply put, they are a goddamn talented crew of musicians (mostly Conservatorium graduates, so figures) lead by the enigmatic and vocally marvellous Astrid. Not only do they put on an energetic and powerful live show, decked out in out-of-this-world space costumes, but their music is catchy, infectious and brilliant, in it's brassy, groovy style. I had some super mad fun at this gig. 


Cub Scouts
Cub Scouts have been touring with the likes of Brisbane darlings Ball Park Music and getting quite the name for themselves. They have a very Holiday's feel to me, blissful jangly pop with sweet lyrical moments. I can see them becoming the next indie pop faves on the Triple J circuit and beyond, and it's not hard to see why. Try not to get their song below stuck in your head, I dare ya. 

videoclip directed by world's greatest housemate Sam Rogers

Tiptoes
Tiptoes is a one man band here in Brisbane who specializes in electro-post-pop with the essences of Pulp and Prince, mixed with some Microphones-esque folk. His subject matter is often psychadelic, existential and apocalyptic, with lyrics of depth and complexity hushed in a contemplative croon. His work is both unique and brilliant, and he can even play two far-apart synths at the same time while singing, as I had the priviledge of witnessing at a show at a Real Bad Music gig in February. I'm looking forward to the split single he is currently recording with fellow musician Perpetual Nervousness, and hopefully a 6" EP later in the year. 


Mindjar
I caught Mindjar at the Zoo a few weeks ago and was pretty impressed with their tight set, reflective of old school 90's and 00's alt-rock with dashes of metal-lite. Lead singer Corrie has a superb voice, belting out heartfelt lyrics, sometimes with a screech, others a whisper, and was completely immersed in his performance. The band itself is well in sync and with thumping drums and growling bass, play tight together- but this is clearly Corrie's avenue to shine, sliding himself around the stage like a good frontman should. 

Blank Realm
Blank Realm were part of the third annual Deadshits festival, held at Black Bear lodge, at which I was eager to see label mates Kitchen's Floor for my first time. However good they were, it was Blank Realm that stuck in my memory, so much so that I considered checking them out again at Record Store Day (but did catch some very good Jungle Giants before departing instead). Very electro-ambient, full of reverb and fuzz, but also with some infectiously gritty rock moments, they also managed to entertain me most with a positively charged set. I expect they're already 4ZZZ old hat faves.

Royal Zephyr
Royal Zephyr are a bunch of suave Brisbane gents (I should stop typing the word Brisbane. They're all from Brisbane. Gah) who I'm yet to see live, but they channel some serious 60's - 80's punk rock in their songs; drum fills, electric riffs and all. One track sounds like it could have been a long-lost Doors recording, another is like something Tame Impala wishes they'd created. Whatever their influences are, they have a very retro feel which I have a feeling will be a lot of fun live.


Skypilot
Skypilot is a very easy to enjoy alt-rock band, made up of a group of excellent musicians around Brisbane. They've been compared to the National and U2, and while I'm not a huge fan of either of those bands, they have a similar vocal and musical style.. while in my opinion, being much more enjoyable. They have an excellent range from slow burning lovely acoustic moments, to intensity building drum-pounding guitar-screeching energy. 

videoclip directed by world's best brother and girlfriend, Nic F and Lydia H. I'm also in it!

...

OVERSEAS

Additional to some excellent local bands, are some fantastic international (namely US) musical acts I have come across via internet befriending and some that have travelled. These are all independent, local artists in their area, unsigned and completely excellent. I'd encourage you to check them out and support original, independent artists, also they're just freaking good. 


Pocket Vinyl
This Connecticut piano-rock duo has some clear influences, such as Ben Folds, Beirut, but with a fresh and unique passion that makes them stand out. Their songs are beautifully produced and coupled with frontman Eric's brilliant emotive voice and lyrics. Their shows are something I would really like to see over here, in which Eric plays and Elizabeth paints to the music, always something beautiful and inspired (no Red Paintings jokes). They auction off the painting at the end of the show, so the audience may get even more than just a performance. They're also husband and wife too. It's cute.


Clotworthy
Clotworthy, a young musical genius from Philadelphia, makes music I wish I could make (but I'd have to be the female version). Clotworthy tells the familiar story of what it's like to be a dude, trying to make a life, get a girl, maintain a friendship, chase that neverending carrot that is success, but not always make it. Also, what it would be like to be Bill Murray. Along with the relatable lyrics sang with his excellent and unique voice, his synth-driven electro rock music carries you along, and is destined to stick in your head. 


The Uncle Steves
The Uncle Steves, from Illinois, seem to have taken Beck's "Mellow Gold" era and taken it to a whole other level, turning it into their own unique genre. They excel at mixing hip hop with gritty rock, harmonies, acoustic ecstasy and some excellent handclapping. The Uncle Steves style is infectious and powerful, and stays with you for days... There are moments of melodic bliss amongst moments of raw shoe gaze, and it all ties together brilliantly; with heaps to discover upon repeated listenings. 

Max Hay
Away from his home of Montana, Max actually toured Australia in April and played a gig at the Dowse bar as part of their Wednesday event 'The Round.' The Round involves 3 musicians playing a number of songs each, in a round as it suggests. While the other musicians, Brad Butcher and Sam Buckingham, were quite good, Max was the clear standout. His style could be described as Bill Callahan meets Henry Wagons (except less Australian of course), with a tongue in cheek sense of humour peppered in between. Tying together his deep voice with acoustic guitar, harmonica and DIY percussion, his live performance was pretty mesmerising, and I hope he makes the trip back again. 

I'm sure I'll write about many more artists to come! I hope you like them.

So... guess what my next review is going to be of? The motherfucking man in purple himself, Prince. Never thought I'd ever end up at a Prince concert, but there I will be tomorrow night, hopefully in some faux leather, frills and purple eye shadow. Can't wait.

A short and sweet Elbow Review: Saturday, 24th March 2012, The Tivoli.

I want to just briefly post about my last Elbow gig in March, as I've already reviewed them, and this performance was essentially song-for-song identical as the Enmore gig I first reviewed. Regardless, there are things to be said about this performance, and while I'm in danger of sounding like an obsessed and crazed band groupie, I have to tell you how good they were. 
I only caught the tail end of Bombay Bicycle Club, as gig buddy and I decided that the jazz band at Black Bear Lodge were good enough to sit through most of during pre-drinks. A little bit of research tells me they were the Low Down Jazz Quintet. They were really quite entertaining and their smooth sounds, coupled with the rustic feel of Black Bear, with corner tables and real candles, overlooking a bustling city, made me feel like I was in some 1950's lounge bar in New York. I also now want to be the singer of a jazz band. 

Anyway, Elbow. Oh Elbow. I was really excited to see them for the third time, and despite not trailing off the same setlist as last year's, they did not disappoint in the slightest. Frontman Guy Garvey was all charm as usual, perhaps telling the same stories as usual but with fresh spark and excitement to be there, and keeping us all amused. He also gave annoying hecklers (we heard you yell 'MANCHESTERRRR!' the first time) what for, not being afraid to tell them to shut the hell up. 
The weird thing about me and Elbow is I actually dearly love their earlier albums (especially 'Asleep In the Back', one of my favourite albums of all time), over their newer ones, while I do love them also. Over the past few years, none of these songs are touched on in favour of Mercury prize winning 'Seldom Seen Kid', and latest 'Build a Rocket Boys'. Remember, I love these albums as well, both are stunning pieces of work, they just lack the darker, more mysteriously complex and brooding side of Elbow that their first ones contain. Basically, Elbow are much happier lads these days and it shows. But what really helped me have the  ultimate best time at this concert, was that I am a much happier lady these days, and I can actually relate to the jovial, schmaltzier stuff that they are all about in their live show. It's of course not all love stories and 'today is grand!' moments, and those sweetly melancholic songs they go back to e.g. "The Night Will Always Win", and "Puncture Repair", are enough to bring a little moisture to the eyes. So ending on the uplifting "One Day Like This", is a necessary move, because it ensures their audience leaves with an ultimate high and smile on their face, and that they reflect on the night as a performance to remember.
I haven't even mentioned how GOOD the band is, how precise and delicate and moving their musical performance is, and how fucking emotive and delighting Guy's voice is. It's this, combined with their obvious love of performing, which completely gets me, and even if I'd probably die of joy if they played "Newborn" or "Asleep in the Back" from their debut, I'm still enamoured by their performance every damn time. They're not hip hop or indie rock or ambient-electronic aficionados go-to band by any means, but dammit they're probably the best live band I've ever seen and should be rewarded as such.
Anyway, here are some piccies!

'Mirrorball'. Schmaltz.

oh heavens.

'Weather to Fly'. Still much better than on record.

probably some audience participation bizo or whatev

If you love Australia so much why don't you marry it.

9... and a half... armpits out of 10. 

Bon Iver (with Sally Seltmann), The Tivoli, Friday 16th of March

Riding well off the back of his recent grammy win, in which even One Direction fans want to know who Bonny Bear is, Bon Iver came to Brisbane for a rare three (3) shows, to appease all the new and old fans that have multiplied tenfold in the last year. The shows were announced way back in December last year, at which time I was pretty excited, until Justin Vernon and co.'s 'flavour of the month' status overshadowed everything else.
It was easy to get back into excitement mode when a Thursday night concert goer friend raved about how great he was, and also went and met him not a kilometer from where I was doing nothing in my house. DAMMIT!

Old Sal

My gig buddy tonight was my dear brother who had joined in on the Bonny bandwagon around the same time I had. We rocked up in time to see New Buff... I mean Sally Seltmann. I could be biased, but Sally didn't have quite the same stage presence that she did a fair few years ago under the moniker of New Buffalo. Now that she is riding off the back of female supergroup Seeker Lover Keeper, I guess the audience wasn't as excited as they would have been had SLK been onstage, and hence she played a lot of their songs. She also gave us a few new songs from her self-titled solo album, as well as a couple I recognized from her later New Buffalo repertoire. Despite the disconnect, she sounded lovely and I very much enjoyed it- her angelic voice still comes across well onstage. Sally's also definitely migrated from her days of pressing play on a backing track while singing into a microphone, as she did the first time i saw her in 2005 supporting Bright Eyes. Somehow I just remember more people being a little more transfixed by her back then.

The stage for Bon Iver was made up quite ruggedly with hessian draped around as if we were in a cabin in the woods. He's come a long way since those 'For Emma, Forever Ago' days, as he came on amid huge cheers. Everyone wants a piece of Bon Iver now, and I guess three sold out shows are testimony to that. As predicted by my brother (with a very accurate imitation of the opening chords), Justin and the band started off with the first song, "Perth" from the latest album 'Bon Iver, Bon Iver'. Live, it was a spot on, moving interpretation of the record, which is what I imagined it to be. From the quiet, building opening notes, to it's crashing crescendo, every sound filled the theatre, leading into the second song "Minnesota, WI". It was quite magnificent, and when Justin started to sing, I didn't expect it to sound quite so hauntingly beautiful. He sounded so true to recording, strong and echoey, I wondered if there were any effects going on. And even if there was it was still impressive.
The excellence went on from there and he played a wonderful selection of all the fan favourites, including "Blood Bank" off his title EP, and even "Brackett, WI" which he did for the brilliantly compiled 'Dark is the Night' compilation. 

The musicians were fantastic, and you really couldn't fault them for a second. As they left and Justin took the stage solo for "Re: Stacks", it was a delicate, gorgeous and sniffle-inducing moment. The only thing you could fault was that I realized just how similar their songs sounded and how much of a style Bon Iver have created. It is a style that is is not to everyone's taste, and can at times be in danger of getting old. In fact, there were a couple of moments where i did find my mind wandering... but to be honest that does happen at gigs, and it's not necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes I can think through an entire problem situation at a gig; it can be a nice place to reflect. (Unfortunately I cannot count gigs toward psychological professional development).

Old mate

Coupled with the brilliant music was the band's, and particularly Justin's, laid back manner. Despite the opportunity to be high and mighty, there is no pretension with this man, and he engaged the crowd as a genuine, down to earth fellow who could be your mate, just doing what he loves and having a good time. 


I have to mention the worst part of the show however. I became so mad about a group of metrosexual-appearing guys behind me that I wonder if i am actually getting quite senile, bitter and twisted. In addition to one of them doing the '*tap shoulder*, *look the other way*' routine to me before the performance, these guys nattered and laughed through the whole performance (because obviously Bon Iver is also a comedy group???). It reached breaking annoyance point when one of them said 'Where are we going afterwards?' and another asked 'Who is this guy again? He's good.' This happened while "Skinny Love" was being played. I was looking forward to hearing the ultimate sad times/break up/depression song transcending onstage and letting it wash over me, but I COULDN'T thanks to their giggling and chatting. I detest that feeling of someone laughing behind you; you wonder if they are laughing at you, know it's probably ridiculous, but continue to be unsettled anyway, and want to punch them all in their collective face. Instead of doing this however, I looked around and glared at them evilly. It did nothing, but I felt slightly more satisfied than if I had just stewed in my spot.


I just DON'T UNDERSTAND, if you don't know who a band is and you'd rather go pick up chixx at the Met, then why are you paying $65 to see a musician at a venue full of his fans? If you're not a fan, and are going to talk the entire time, then go away. I know this may sound hypocritical, because I did do this at Gareth Liddiard's show a year ago, but I was at the window rather than in the crowd, and he was a complete dickhead and sounded like shit. Sorry Drones fans, but not really. Bon Iver on the other hand were amazing, and I felt they were disrespecting the band by doing this. Support acts can suffer from the audience talking through their set, but that is kind of expected since people aren't there to see them, but during the main act... there is an exit. 
Now that rant is over, I feel dirty and like I should be writing to mX or A Current Affair. I just think there should be some mosh pit etiquette to follow. Why don't we list some etiquette rules now since we're in this mind funk?? No? Too bad. 


1. Don't fart. Hold it in. Go to the toilet. Don't fart. For the love of god. 
2. Keep your laughter and loud chats and stupid opinions to yourself. If you want to say a lot of things, use the text on your phone.
3. Don't lean on me, I'm not a pole, or a chair.
4. Do be expected to have your personal space ratio go out the window, and expect it to be somewhat smaller. Don't get too bothered when people accidentally touch you. Having said that, you are entitled to a bit of breathing space..
5. If you want to jump/dance/go mad, please be respectful of people who don't want elbows in their chins and their face on the floor.
5. If you want to drink, buy a couple beforehand. Don't try to go to the bar and get back to the exact same spot you were before, unless you're happy to be cursed by a lot of people. 
6. Putting your arm up in the air and pointing throughout the entire song is not only bad for your arm health but I don't want to watch/ take a photo of your arm. Feel free to point it up and down though, I can kind of work with that.
7. If you have diabetes, take your insulin. If you don't have your insulin shot, and you're about to faint, get the fuck out of the mosh pit. Don't eat my lollies out of my hand with your slimy tongue. I don't care how big of a Björk fan you are. 


I'm sure there are many rules that you, reader, could come up with and share with me. So maybe you should!!


Bonny Bear gets 8.5 "wanna be combovers and Minanite beards" out of 10.

Real Estate (with Feathers), The Zoo, Tuesday 13th March, 2012

New Jersey formed five piece, Real Estate, turned up for me kind of out of the blue for me about a year ago. They were shared to me on Dropbox, and after sitting there for a few months, became my latest new find. Soon Pitchfork were all over them like an electric blanket and they must have gained enough popularity to justify an Australian tour. So, investing wisely in a ticket (invest, real estate, geddit???!) I went to the Zoo on this Tuesday night with some rare-to-find fellow fans and got my property development happening. (this is the last bad joke.)

Supporting the band were a couple of indie-sounding-bands, and we got there early enough to catch some of Feathers. A couple of girls who look like they just discovered Warpaint and want to be their bffs, came onstage and began to commence a set of very obvious indie girl pop tunes. They were inoffensive and pleasant enough, but there was nothing really driving the music that stood out from the Tegan and Sara’s of the rest of the music world. They had similar musical stylings to that of Real Estate- summery, jangly pop vibes, but again, none of it really gelled to me- I was a wee bit bored.

They didn’t play for too long however and soon it was Real Estate time. I immediately recognised lead singer Martin Courtney’s very indie haircut (hello Dan Humphrey, the wavy dark mop may become trendy yet) which matched a lot of the audience's indie haircuts. This was a very pitchforkian occasion, but that’s the beauty of hipster gigs- everyone is one, so the wank factor goes into 'so bad it's good' territory, and you don’t notice it as much. It was clear though that everyone was here for the music, which, as they opened with "Fake Blues" from their first self titled album, was outstanding from the very beginning.

my one not shit photo.

In fact, I don’t remember a time when the Zoo sounded quite so good. The airy twang of the guitars and spacious drums were replicated perfectly, if not better than on record, and the sound enveloped the venue with such crispness. "Fake Blues" was followed by "Easy", the opener of their latest well loved album 'Days', and I found myself extremely delighted when hearing the opening chords. Martin Courtney had the quiet sensual frontman thing down with little fuss or fanfare, just pouring his soul into the words and chords. His voice was lovely and heartfelt, with that slight echoey effect which is covered all over the album tracks.

The songs churned out and each one had me bopping along even more than the one before it. Popular new ones "It's Real" and "Out of Tune" oozed sweet breezy goodness and every pulse was on the mark. 


Prior to the performance, a part of me had wondered how good this show was going to be, and if it may be one of the more boring shows of the year. WHY you ask? Well while Real Estate’s low-fi shoegazey pop is a celebrated thing right now, their music does have a very distinctive style that rarely crosses the boundary- and their second album is no great departure from their first. However, i realised just how much I enjoyed their songs as they played them, and their pristine production meant I was thoroughly, exceptionally entertained all the way through. It also says a lot about a band who can completely engage the audience not only with a catchy chorus accompanying pleasing music, but even while during their instrumental tracks, such as both incredibly melodic tracks "Kinder Blumen" and "Atlantic City" in which I found myself not even realising that there wasn't lyrics. That's what I think makes Real Estate a standout act, and why they have so much love at the moment; every instrument of their songs are tuned in perfectly with each other to collectively portray an outpour of emotion, encapsulated in every note, beat and chord. As a live band, they continue to do this effortlessly, and fed off each other like it was child's play. 


Time went relatively quickly, and before we knew it it was encore time already. At this point, the song that got me completely hooked on the band, the debut opener "Beachcomber", had not been performed, and I was not the only one waiting for it. I completely expected it to start up when they (very quickly) came back onstage, but I was sadly disappointed, and instead, the slow burning "Suburban Dogs" was chosen from the same album. I couldn't help but miss "Beachcomber", but their chosen song still left us in a quietly content, contemplative mood, as we slowly emptied from the Zoo. 
The greatest part of this gig was how much it made me appreciate their music more. I now have to stop myself from listening too much to both albums , as I have finally found a replacement for 'Watch The Throne' which is in now danger of being burnt out. I'm happy Real Estate exist and look to be not one of those 'so hot right now' indie darlings that burst onto the scene and then disappear, but a brilliant established band, that deserves its praise and a long progressive career. Well done indie kids!

9 tenancy agreements out of 10. (Sorry, I mean to say that was the second last bad joke.)

St Jerome's Laneway Festival, RNA Showgrounds, Saturday 28th January 2012

One thing that happened almost two months ago was the St Jerome's Laneway festival. Another majorly anticipated day of my January, it also marked the last big January thing and the end of my first week back at work. So it was guaranteed to be an epic day, or at least, I was going to make sure of it.


As I live a stone’s throw from its new home of the showgrounds (lane? Um, suuuuure), a few of my laneway goers came by for pre-drinks (beer for them, berodkas for me), and we headed around the wrong way through the rain to the venue. Due to the downpour, the organisers had decided to move everything indoors to the pavilions, meaning that while it was nice and dry, the echoey acoustics combined with rain drumming on the tin roof left the sound somewhat hindered. I’m going to make mention of that now so you can read my review of the bands in the context of this situation. A lot of people found this situation irritating, but to me Laneway did the best that it could, and to be honest, I didn’t really give too many hoots.

First stop was Yuck, the 90’s grunge band of 2011. I hadn’t got mega into their stuff but I enjoyed the familiarity of their songs, not just from what I heard of them, but also in how much it sounded like something I would have heard on the radio 20 years ago. (YES 20. WHEN DID I GET SO OLD). To me they’re a bit like Screamfeeder with a more American accent and it’s just the kind of nostalgia people seem to be up for these days. And it worked well, as we bopped along to the easy to enjoy/sing along tunes, it made the rain seem less present and felt more like a summer afternoon of sun and cider and relaxing. Cider from the bar did help this cause. Note: they also had a good snare.

After Yuck finished their set and more cider was had, we traipsed off, passing everyone we know in the process, and myself and gig buddy no. 1 checked out Total Control. Total Control is a semi super group made up of members of Eddy Current Suppression Ring, UV Race, and some other Melbourne bands I haven't really listened to. I had no idea what to expect, which is often a good thing, and I was pleasantly entertained as a result. They played tightly together, maintaining some of the grungey rock that ECSR is all about, but also with an added catchiness that I could easily come back to again. I think I was pretty drunk by this point because that's all the conclusions I could really come to about this band. They ticked the 'good' box, and I was content in my cider induced haze. More cider please. Goddammit I love festivals that provide cider.

After Total Control finished, we heard a bit of the DZ Deathrays, a band that is getting a lot of people talking, but aren't really my thing. They imposed upon the audience a loud, grating explosion of raw punk, a bit too harsh for my ears but definitely energy expending, and woke me up a little from my zoned out fuzziness. It was however a little repetitive and ear flooding so I was happy that it was only a temporary placement until Girls' set was about to start. 

Girls picked up where Yuck left off with their vibe: hazy, laid back and sunny, with slightly more of a Beach Boys feel than seattle grunge. Their new album heights were reached with "Honey Bunny", "Vomit" and "Saying I Love You"… as well as some blissfully catchy songs from the albums I hadn’t yet heard. Lead singer and ex-cult member (yep!) Chris Owens was as pretty as the music came with a subtly sweet, emotive voice, sporting flowers on stage to increase the prettiness of the vibe. So much pretty! As did Yuck, Girl’s set was assured to provide the feeling of relaxation, without being boring. It was perfectly timed, and got me back into the haze I was after Yuck.

Cults were a band I heard lots of praise about but knew pretty much nothing of. They were a little late starting but were apologetic and seemed ultimately thrilled to be playing here. Cults perhaps suffered the most from the sound troubles, and even at the very front they sounded particularly distorted and indecipherable. What I could hear however did sound pleasant, and lead singer Madeline had a charm and cuteness about her the audience found entertaining (and adorable) enough. They’re a band I’ll seek out more of as through the distortion was a catchy, poppy vibe that could quickly become infectious in the right circumstances.

We decided to catch a glimpse of Feist as there was some lag between Cults and Toro Y Moi whom were supposed to be playing at the same time as her. At this time, hours into the day, I finally located a friend I’d been madly texting back and forth to meet up with. I don’t remember it being so hard to find people at Laneway ever, but it was probably the packd like sardines situation that it was, that made it so difficult. Furthermore, I probably go on too much about this, but as Laneway grows as a festival, so too does its audience and popularity, threatening that it may become another large scale monster affair.
Feist was riding this tour off the back of her reasonably well received new album 'Metals' which, while not pure pop perfect as 'The Reminder' was, is suitably sexy and a definite grower. Hence, the few songs were heard were from it, and were lovely live representations of their album selves. Her voice was as touching and exquisite as the first time I’d heard her at Laneway’s second year. The atmosphere was much better then (it wasn’t p**ing down rain and you could also see her face), but it was still a pleasant, warm vibe. I heard later, as we scuttled off for some grooving, that she had been given electric shocks by the microphones a few times, which would predict further electronic difficulties later in the night. Ok, so the sound wasn’t great and no one could be blamed for that, but electrocuting the performers isn’t really cricket and I hope someone responsible was strongly told for it.

Next was Toro Y Moi which I had become enamoured by very quickly over the last few months, thanks to their album 'Underneath the Pine'. They came on with an energetic bang, and got myself and gig buddy 1 dancing and grooving along with the rest of the audience. The sound issues didn’t matter; the bassline was enough to turn up the dial to ‘dance’. It was one of my most anticipated spots of the festival and I was happy to unleash my love for their album right with the band members. "Still Sound" was the danceable peak amongst chilled downs and jumpy ups, with a nice amount from the new album so that there was a lot I could bounce around to in recognition. Chazwick (ha! that's his real name!) had a strong voice despite previously mentioned sound distortions and presented the lyrics with ample laziness, true to those on the album. While they played for a shorter time than I’d hoped, I was very satisfied with what I saw.

It was food and Horrors time soon after, my other highly anticipated act of the day. I’d been obsessing over the Horror’s last two albums (and their first, but not as intensely) for many a year now so the opportunity to finally hear them perform was fraught with excitement but also worry… as I had seen a few youtubes that suggested they weren’t so good live. I needn’t have worried though. They delivered extremely well and played a lovely selection of their best parts from 'Skying' and 'Primary Colours', including all of the built up instrumentals that I had come to love. Lanky and odd frontman Faris Badwan’s voice was a little touch and go with some of the songs, which you can’t help if you’re a monotone crooner used to a bit of enhancement on album tracks. But it worked well anyway, as well as totally on form guitar screeching, and drum fills making my hands imitate them on their own accord. 

There was nothing from 'Strange House', and it’s a sad fact that they appear to have neglected their raw gothic debut following, as it really is their background which gained them publicity, and got them to where they are today. Their maturer sound however, is excellent and they displayed that with prowess in their preformance. Each live rendition was a fitting tribute to how darn excellent they are at songwriting and how far they really have come. They even played a shortened version of the deliciously indulgent "Sea within A Sea". I wanted so much more from them. Come back and do a non-festival tour please fellas!


By the time the Horrors had finished my happy music cup had been completely filled to the point of spillage, so I contentedly wandered, ate and stood with my gang, not particularly waiting in anticipation for M83, but looking forward to hearing some familiar ambient electronic pop. As I chattered it became clear that m83 was going to be late. Twenty minutes.. thirty minutes… forty minutes went by, and the crowd was finally getting a bit anxious to see them come out. I wasn’t that bothered, but I had a friend waiting for me to go with her to see Toro Y Moi’s DJ set after the festival ended. Compared to the Kanye crowd at BDO, the crowd didn't appear that bothered either- it wasn’t until about 45 minutes of waiting that we heard any ‘BULLLLLSHITT’ chants, a decidedly larger amount of time longer than 10 minutes of BDO crowd impatience.
Again, there was no explanation as to why things were taking so long, but apparently if you were more of a social tard than my group, there were announcements being
made on facebook and twitter, alerting fans to the fact that technical issues again were marring the timely performance. I’d like to think not everyone is glued to their phones while in a moshpit (as I surprisingly wasn’t) so that does bother me that a microphone wasn’t picked up and a few words said.

Finally, almost an hour later, the frenchies appeared to play their set. Front man Anthony Gonzalez said a few words of apology and then launched into the excellent track "Teen Angst" from ‘Before The Dawn Heals Us’, which I was really happy to hear, expecting all new stuff. I’ve heard that their setlist was different from what it might have been due to whatever technical problems went down. But maybe that was a good thing, as I was pleasantly entertained by the few tracks from their earlier albums which they may not have played otherwise, including "Sitting" from their 2001 debut. The sound really wasn’t that bad, but I wonder if it was due to pre-recording rather than the actual live band.

They did play what everyone wanted to hear, including of course "Midnight City", which blew the crowd away as it promised to do, and while it’s been bordering majorly on overkill, I instinctively belted out ‘THE CITY IS MA CHURRCH!’ at the top of my lungs with everybody else. It felt like it was played extremely early, but it was only followed by one more song,"Couleurs" from 'Saturdays = Youth'. Thus, sadly, M83's set ceased reasonably quicker than desired, as soberly predicted by lawyer gig buddy, due to 10.30pm curfew constraints.


The night was not yet over and despite a ridiculously long day, our tired, weak legs carried us over to Woodland bar to see Toro Y Moi do a DJ set which we hoped would make us go crazy with delight. My friend who met us enjoyed it, and we did dance with all the energy we had left. However it was a rather large anticlimax as the songs he spun were a little lifeless, repetitive and all build up with no satisfying peak (and yeah, okay, I didn’t recognise any of them). Eventually we left the scene for a drink at Rics and then a stumble home much much later than I had anticipated. As predicted, it was a goddamn full blown motherflipping epic day, one that I could turn into one of those crazy all-in-one-day movies, like "Human Traffic" or "One Sweet Day" or "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" or "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" or "Go" or "Run Lola Run" or "25th Hour" or "A Single Man". I did die at the end. 


I give the day 8 and a half blockbuster rentals out of 10. 

BACK

This blog has been in an obvious hiatus ever since my belated Big Day Out post. It's actually not JUST because of laziness but due to my laptop becoming a dead brick instead of a functional device. A bit of money, fixed power socket and lots of dust cleaned out later, I'm BACK, INTERNETS! I do want to catch up on the gigs I've seen since, if I can remember what I've seen. Luckily there weren't too many gigs happening in February, but March has already become a hot month, what with Bon Iver and Real Estate last week, and Elbow with Bombay Bicycle Club this weekend. I promise to review it all!! Starting, erm, tomorrow.
Also, I don't know if you heard, but there's a smalltime band that I'm a little bit fond of, who I've contemplated the idea of seeing live a couple of times. They're called Thomus Yorkus and the Weezioheads, and I have tickets to see two of their November performances. 2012 really could not get much better at this point. Splendour lineup? What Splendour lineup?

can't wait to see this ugly mug in the fleshy flesh

BIG DAY OUT 2012, Gold Coast Parklands, Sunday 22nd of January 2012 (Mostly, Kanye West.)

This year's Big Day Out may well mark the most significant point in the demise of the music festival as we know it. From it's very inception it was fraught with major issues. The 20th anniversary of one of Australia's first and most popular festivals should have been celebrated with a suitable lineup of killer must-see headliners, and a generous variety of excellent local bands- in every state. 

Instead we were treated to international acts that had already made it to Splendour not six months prior (e.g. Kanye West, Foster the People, The Vaccines), and the usual run-of-the-mill or past-their-prime local filler (The Living End, Hilltop Hoods, Faker, etc.). Furthermore, the depressingly gaping holes in the Perth and Adelaide schedules where headliners should have filled; unnecessary clashes (sorry Noel Gallagher); and a way-too-public falling out between promotors Viv Lees and Ken West (Ken West having done a Charlie Sheen with the amount of mental interviews he gave, spitting criticism at everyone but himself) also made the formulation of this year's festival a spectacular disaster.

So.. why the hell did I attend?

Well, 2 reasons. 1. Kanye West was announced, and I had missed his show at Splendour that year. and, 2. My sister wanted to have her first festival experience with her friends, which became her christmas present, and it was deemed easy for mum to give us all BDO tickets for christmas, since us Fornasier children were now all infected with the Kanye virus. I would definitely not have spent money on this event (which, as you would expect, didn't even sell out). So, there I went. 

We started the day by checking out the Triple J Unearthed competition winners Dunerats. Already well into their set they were a smiling bunch of young fellas with long hair and a hazy, breezy attitude. Their music was of an Eddy Current Suppression Ring venacular with a dash of Tame Impala, with very casual subject matter: frontman X introducing one of his songs as being about "smoking cones and playing Xbox". They played well and had a pleasantly grungy feel, but I couldn't help but wonder if they were seriously the best band out of all of the competition entrants.

The Vaccines were a winner with the crowd who gathered thickly by the time they came on, and did a great job playing their top listed album of the year, 'What Did You Expect From the Vaccines?'. I had only just got it a few weeks ago and had no chance to give it a really fair go, but they pumped out a fantastic set showcasing the songs from it brilliantly. The more they played the more songs I recognized, now being one of those bands that play all those enjoyable songs I'd heard but didn't know the artist's name. The musicians were tight and mop topped frontman Justin Young was enigmatic, and replicated his signature drone excellently live. Crowds went crazy for their biggest hits e.g. "Post Breakup Sex", "Wolf Pack", but we left for OFWGKTA before they played gig buddy's most anticipated, "If You Wanna". 

I decided long ago, after giving them a decent go, that I didn't really care for the Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All / Tyler the Creator/ Lets throw a few more words in that don't go together crew. Call me a stiff, but I don't have much time for annoying abrasive beats, yelling and lyrics about rape and killing homos and whatever else they've pissed Tegan and Sara off with. But the crew was keen so I bit my tongue. And after seeing their show... I really still don't like Odd Future. While they certainly got the crowd moving and were able to somehow generate energy even while lazing around onstage, they sounded awful, barking together words I couldn't understand (thankfully) and generally being quite average. The sound may have been better closer up, but the only beat or sound I could decipher was was on the crowd pleaser "Radicals" with it's poignant chorus "Kill people, burn shit, fuck school". I was happy to leave for Kimbra. 

Kimbra was dressed in a manner that suggests she is attempting to do a Blasko and become NZ's answer to Björk in terms of quirk and style. Her colourful dress was pretty out there and she wore it with confidence that matched her onstage antics. I'm not the biggest fan of Kimbra's music, while I have much love for "Cameo Lover" and "Settle Down", I don't quite get the huge deal and find her slightly boring on record. However, watching her perform made me appreciate her a whole lot more and she managed to win me over a little. Kimbra threw her whole self into her performance, articulating every consonant and vowel with so much passion and facial expression. As a result, her voice was an exquisite centrepiece of each song, and completely enhanced the well performed music. It was a thrill to watch her completely enjoy herself doing this. I still don't think she could succeed in her quirk attempt because I doubt Blasko nor Björk could get away with saying things like “You guys hot down there 'cause it's a bit warm up ere!” and “Wow, I'm so glad you guys know my songs, it was a bit 'eavy goin' for a while there!” But that's part of why Triple J and the rest of Australia adore her.

After Kimbra it was Röyksopp time at the Boiler Room, and my turn to lead my group into more unfamiliar waters to them. We missed a few key tracks (grr, "Happy Up Here" and "Eple" would have totally got me grooving) and turned up in time to hear "The Girl and the Robot". Because it's hard to get Robyn and the girl from the Knife and Lykke Li, it's easier to get a girl dressed with her face hidden to sing so she could be any one of those girls. She did sound pretty good though, which made me wonder if she was actually miming to a backing track. As for the music, it all sounded pretty excellent even though we were so far back from the front. As the beats built up and dropped, the effect was excellently satisfying and it was impossible not to jive my feet along along with my head. Even the people with me who weren't big on the Royksopp club scene expressed enjoyment. And the assortment of weird insect-esque costumes enhanced the experience that little bit more.

After a relaxing sit at the Tony Hawk Vert Ramp, which was rained out prior to Tony's actual entry on to the ramp, we made our way to the D where Kasabian was just commencing their set. It was very, very weird not having to wait even a second to get through the barrier to the moshpit, where in previous years people were being crushed all over the place trying to get in, much earlier in the day than it was now. 
Kasabian came on stage brooding a bit of smug wankery but generally delivering quite well with their distinctive britpop. They successfully pumped out a pretty decent collection of songs from all four of their albums, hooking the crowd in early with "Days Are Forgotten (from the latest, 'Velociraptor') then later favourites, "Shoot the Runner" and "Underdog". Naturally the set was very hit-driven, including of course their most Sunday Sport friendly, "Fire" as their prestige, but most surprising were the couple of selections from their first self titled album. It's the album I had first enjoyed, after picking it up on a whim so many years ago, and it was nice to hear them play the much more beats-driven  "Club Foot" and singalong "L.S.F (Lost Souls Forever)". I've heard people criticize them for this, as it did kind of drag the momentum down for everyone else, but I was enjoying it. 


I'm not going to lie though, I cheered pretty hard when Kasabian walked off stage, mostly because it meant Kanye West would be playing very soon. Oh, after Soundgarden. 
For those who don't know, Big Day Out houses the headlining acts in two side by side stages, so that when the band on one side plays, the other next to it can soundcheck and be ready to play when the first finishes. Soundgarden was on the stage I wasn't waiting at, and for that reason I'm not going to review Soundgarden. Not only was I paying very little attention to them, but I've never been a fan and would be very biased, particularly as I was in 'lets get this shit cray muffukkas, ha!?' hip hop mood, not 90's Seattle grunge headbang mood.


Now, I'm no fool when it comes to BDO's scheduling boasting no gaps in between the two main stage acts. Kanye West (or Yeezy, if you're not sure who Yeezy is) is not going to take a few seconds to check everything is in order before prancing onstage saying 'how ya doin' brisbayne!!'. Also, I've rarely been to a show in which there wasn't at least a 20 minute wait for the next band to come on. So when 10 minutes passed before anything happened, I wasn't that bothered. I was excited along with my group, who had managed to gather in a prime spot, enhancing our collective excitement. The rest of the crowd, however, was already FUCKING PISSED OFF. As roadies came on and off, people began to scream "FUCK OFF!" as well as begin the most embarrassing chant of the bogan audience world; "BUUUUUULLLLSHIT". I couldn't restrain myself from yelling "SHUT UP!" back at them, horrified that all they would achieve was piss off the people trying to get the show happening, and of course, Kanye himself, who may well take offence (who knows, he's Kanye, he's been an unpredictable fellow in the past). Meanwhile, the whingey girl on my right had joined them, which made me even angrier. As she constantly complained that she was going to faint and this was ridiculous and she didn't even like Kanye that much anyway, everyone gave her a wide berth; which meant she had more space and air than anyone else in the mosh. But on and on she went, until she finally had enough and got herself pulled out (thank christ). UNSOLICITED ADVICE: If you don't really like the main act at a festival and you find yourself in a mosh pit, it's not worth it. Don't be in the mosh pit. Leave us fans to battle it out silently. Thankyou. 
Anyway, forty minutes actually went by before we had any indication that Yeezy was about to come out. The speakers had apparently been screwed up by the rain (oh the questions, why weren't they covered, why couldn't you have told us that earlier, blah blah blah), leading to the delay, but luckily, five minutes later, thank god the lights began to dim. 

The performance started with a backing intro of "H.A.M." off Kanye/Jay-Z's 'Watch the Throne', with a frenzy of dancers leaping around the stage in schizophrenic time with the music. Oh the joy and excitement! My year of becoming completely involved with Kanye's music was finally going to culminate in a hell of a stage show. This lead into "Dark Fantasy", and a moment of confusion where we could hear Yeezy's voice, but where was he? Not on the stage... Not in the audience... Oh look, turn around everyone! He's on a podium chair behind the audience. Why? Why not. This was his version of Michael Jackson's jetpack onstage entrance I suppose. He sang on his podium and then when the song finished he somehow found his way down through to the stage without getting mugged. Straight on into "Power", it was so very worth the 45 minute wait. I ended up flinging myself around with the crowd fully expressing my built up excitement for this moment. 

yeah we know you think you are God... and that's okay. 

The music was mostly backing tracks throughout, but made more effective with Kanye's thundering vocals, the momentum built quickly and shot through. As each song began it was a joyous moment, with "Jesus Walks", "Hell of a Life", "Monster" and "Flashing Lights" allowing the crowd to very easily forgive him for the delay. The show was as big as his ego, i.e. enormous, and it was just what I had hoped for. 
There were a couple of downsides however... One being, it was a bit odd not hearing the guest singers do their cameos. Of course it would have been impossible to get this to happen live, and I hadn't come to see Nicki Minaj so I wasn't that bothered, but the way it was handled was a bit disappointing. Instead of Kanye singing over it or doing a Royksopp (see earlier), they just canned those parts all together. Which did not allow for the same impact as these songs promised (e.g. see lady parts in "Monster", "ET" (which is Katy Perry's, so an odd choice anyway), and "All of the Lights"). 
The other down point was when Kanye went into '808's and Heartbreaks' mode. 808's is a stunning album and the first time I began to think Yeezy was actually of creative merit, however, it's a bit overshadowed by autotune and moping. Hence, not excellent for a festival performance. After three in a row "Love Lockdown", "Say You Will" and "Heartless", there was a collective feeling of discomfort and slight boredom at the downtempo material. The momentum took a while to build back up again. Kanye also used a lot of autotune in the show, which to me was a bit unnecessary- Cher may have needed it, but he really doesn't.
ANYWAY. It was good to hear some older songs I hadn't been too familiar with, including "Homecoming" which I didn't even realise I liked so much (luckily, you can't get rid of a guest vocal bit if it's the damned chorus), "All Falls Down" and "Through the Wire". It was also no Kanye show without a bit of amusing banter, for example when he stopped "All of the Lights" to command us to sing the words "MJ gone, our ni**a dead" again, louder, don't we realise that MJ IS GONE??!?. Similarly amusing was the breath-stopping moment when in between songs he suddenly came out with "She said, Ye can we get married at the maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaall?" ("Niggaz in Paris" lyrics off 'Watch the Throne'), then laughed and said he better not do it without Jay-Z, hinting at a possible Australian 'Watch the Throne' tour. Yes pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease.

The crowning and perhaps most anticipated moment however was when the dancers came onstage with a giant sheet and spent a lot of minutes dancing underneath, until the sheet cloud went away and Kanye emerged, set up with his lone synth on a small glass podium, ready for "Runaway". He began to play his one note, with all the passion one note can exude. The music came on soon relieving him of this job (good work Kanye! Couldn't have done it without you!) and he let himself muck around with the sample keys a bit too freely (for the "who gotcha!" moments in the song). Like a big kid being allowed to play his pretend keyboard at an orchestral performance, it was hilarious. 

The dancers were excellent and recreated the scene in the filmclip beautifully. As the song died down, one dancer remained, and Kanye continued with ad-libbed crooning, which extended into what felt like a ten minute rant about how "if you love someone tonight, you gotta hold them tight!" It was a sweet message, but it was incredibly indulgent and went on for too long, alienating the audience a little.
His final moments redeemed him however, with the Bonny Bear collaboration "Lost In the World", which I went cray for, as most people around me seemed too tired to bother. He ended on a lovely dedication to his mother, being of course "Hey Mama", which actually brought sobs to a few young girl's eyes. 


Oh man, what a day. I was so grateful that Kanye made up for lost time by playing for about 2 hours, although this meant a few people had to leave early to make their shuttle buses. I could have stayed for another 2 hours, despite how exhausted I was for the next two days. Despite all it's expected, indulgent flaws, Kanye's show was just so thrilling, and the most memorable show of the day, as I expected.


As a whole, BDO was a terribly organised event, but wouldn't it be great if all BDO's had that small a crowd?  It made places easier to get to, food and drinks quicker to get (despite me losing all my drink tickets at one point), and crowds easier to enjoy. As a result, I had a fabulous day. 8 out of 10 australian flag bikinis*.

And I bow down to you back, sir.

*Because in previous years you could see about 1000 of these!