15 sick bands – Geelong acts upstairs, Melbourne downstairs. There was an air much like that of a music festival at The Gasometer tonight.
Mesa Cosa know how to party. Tonight they had sax. Maybe they’ve always had sax and maybe I’ve just always partied too hard to remember, I dunno. Anyway the sax player made mention that someone’s guitar was out of tune. That someone didn’t give a fuck, and neither did the audience.
Geelong’s Hierophants proved that their hometown can be just as musically incestuous as Melbourne’s, and that it can produce equally shit-hot guitar outfits.
Having heard much about The Clits in the past year, I struggled to find them at any of their gigs. But tonight I struck gold and was treated to a sedate bout of pristine guitar pop. Disarmingly gentle, the band closed there set with a softly sweet ballad called Period Pangs.
Chook Race are pretty dreamy. They’re one of the few bands who are more tonally defined in the live setting than on record. It’s a shame the audience in attendance was one of the weakest of the night, maybe all the Geelong kids popped out for a ciggie.
There were moments during The Frowning Clouds’ raucous set where I feared the upstairs floor would cave in due to an overexcited crowd. Rising above and beyond the hackneyed ‘60s shtick which defined their formative years, the band have evolved into a heaps tidy rock outfit which falls in line with the likes of Black Lips and Thee Oh Sees.
Closing out the night was Melbourne’s UV Race, who were joined by special guest guitarist Marty from Twerps. This was the best I’ve seen the band since their perfect launch of last year’s Homo at Noise Bar. Tonight they were on point with the album’s standout tracks – Girl In My Bed, Burn That Cat, Inner North. It wasn’t long before front man Marcus was sans shirt, proving to be our worthy answer to Danzig and Iggy Pop. The Gaso dance floor was a frenzy and it was the perfect close to a showcase of invariably good bands.
BY LACHLAN KANONIUK
LOVED: Getting a fat dose of sick Geelong bands.
HATED: My mac and cheese cravings failing to be sated by the Gaso’s new menu.
DRANK: Vale Ale.
