The streets of Brunswick have recently been decorated with posters declaring the release of Ecca Vandal’s debut EP End of Time. On Saturday night, she made her way to the secreted hollows of the Howler to entertain the adoring folks of her hometown.
Support act Waax delivered a ferocious punch, frontwoman Marie DeVita ensnared in their songs and consequently ensnaring the punters. Her hands clawed the air, her eyes rolled back revealing their whites and her wide mouth poured forth an American-tinged howl. The snarling attitude clung to her persona between songs, as she shouted at people to fill the gap between crowd and stage and dedicated Something’s Not Right Here to Donald Trump, “the little shit cunt”. DeVita ran off without warning during their final song, leaving her four bandmates to roll out a thundering build-up and abrupt finish.
Despite Vandal’s End of Time falling to Earth only a few weeks ago, Howler was filled with folk excited to see the young performer. The crowd were as varied in aesthetic as Vandal is with her influences, bright blue hair mingling with surfer curls, business suits and inevitable man buns. For tonight, the grungy crunch of Vandal’s sound rose to the surface and dominated. The diminutive Vandal twisted, paced and jumped in a sizeable clearing in the middle of the stage, pointed fingers slicing through the air and slinky hips shifting in time. Her presence was magnetic. A three-piece band accompanied her, seemingly in a honeymoon trance and savouring the energy emitted from the crowd. Her recorded material wasrendered more jagged and chunky onstage and within minutes a small cluster of aggression formed front and centre of the crowd. The short and sharp set began with lesser known material from the EP, before her first ever single White Flag grabbed more attention and injecting new vigour into the set.
Whilst Vandal has a powerful voice and a powerful sound, the two elements seemed to battle one another throughout. The vocal delivery was strong, but there is a hidden finesse to her singing and that’s what it remained for the duration – hidden. In her quieter moments, such as Father Hu$$la, the fluidity and versatility of her voice was clearer, but still buried underneath the surrounding noise. However, this was the only qualm for the night and it didn’t overpower Vandal’s star quality. It’s early days and she’s already oozing with charisma, whipping sizeable crowds into frenzies with unstoppable drive from start to finish.
LOVED: The roaring call-and-response during End of Time.
HATED: Howler’s carpet feeling like a treacly cake underfoot. Yum.
DRANK: Water. Girl’s got to scrimp.
BY ANGELA CHRISTIAN-WILKES
PHOTO BY ZO GAY
