Ah, isn’t the Reclink Community Cup such a wonderful event? It’s one of the only live music oriented celebrations which I (as a resident of the Bayside City Council) can feel proud to say is close to home. This year’s event was nothing short of awesome, with a lineup that included a barrage of spectacular Victorian live music, and a game of footy that was well worth the $10 donation at the gate. I rocked up to the Elsternwick Football Ground right on doors, knowing I needed to write this review only a few hours later, and I figured that catching all the bands would help me perceive a well-rounded image of the event to report on efficiently.
I was a little embarrassed that I was unfamiliar with the show’s opening band, Elmo and Friends, until I rocked up and realised that it was a show which included Elmo and Cookie Monster singing children’s songs, which despite going down an absolute treat for the kids, I didn’t quite enjoy given the fact that their target demographic doesn’t happen to be hung-over dudes in their twenties.
Thankfully for me, not long after I was graced with the presence of Fraser A. Gorman, whose classic Australian country/folk stylings are forever a pleasure to be around. Next up were crowd favourites The Smith Street Band, who had their loyal fan base singing every word as sexy vocalist Wil Wagner screamed out his heart to his personalised lyrics, which feature topics of near death experiences and love/loss, and once they had completed their set, the game was to start.
It was a close match of footy with The Megahertz falling behind the class AFL skills of the almighty Rockdogs. In the entire history of the Reclink Community Cup, The Megahertz have walked away with the cup only once, and unfortunately for them, this year was not going to be their second. Although to The Megahertz’s advantage, I feel like the selection process may be a bit of a statistical anomaly due to their team being made up of community radio types who are far less common to find than live music types. And given The Rockdogs featured Ross Knight of Cosmic Psychos on their team, their opposite really didn’t really stand a chance (I mean, could you imagine that guy chasing after you? I’d probably wet myself if I had to look him in the eye and simply shake his hand).
As per usual, Saskwatch killed it during their soul-filled half time set, and their cover of Gorillaz track Some Kind of Nature was a treat throughout their funky/soul back catalogue. After the match, the crowd were delighted with Melbourne’s iconic Painter and Dockers, who had the audience in the palms of their hands during classics like Die Yuppie Die and You’re Going Home in the Back of a Divi Van. At 6pm the gates had closed and the few remaining stumbled just up the road to the Elsternwick Hotel for some post-game beers. Until next year, viva la Community Cup!
BY STEVE WILLIAMS
Photo by Mary Boukouvalas
Loved: Finding twenty dollars on the ground and donating it to Reclink.
Hated: Nothing.
Drank: Cider.
