Skinny Jean, Little Scout, Re:enactment, The Slow Push, Mosman Alder
This is the final week of Brisbane live music as we know it. The end of the Troubadour. I know I am devastated so I can't even imagine how others are fearing! But in times of crisis we come together and drink obscene amounts of cider. It makes everything bearable. Sam, doorman for the Troub and drummer for Skinny Jean put together tonight's line up. An interesting array of bands that actually complemented each other quite well. I wouldn't have though thought putting Mosman Alder straight before The Slow Push would have quite worked because they are just so completely different, but you know what? It actually worked really well.
Getting down to business first up were Mosman Alder. These guys have a fascinating thing going on. Where most bands stick to the "four to the floor" kind of time signatures for almost an entire set, Mosman had quite a substantial portion of songs in either 3/4 or 6/8. And it wasn't strange nor weird, but more captured what the band is really about. They write quite a catchy tune, and while I am usually one to dismiss the addition of a violin to the everyday workings of a band, they did really well to incorporate it while not making the texture too full and heavy. These guys have untapped potential. T'will be a group to look out for.
Like I said before, having The Slow Push straight up after Mosman Alder would not have been my choice, but it kinda worked. Again, I'd never heard of these guys, and to tell you the truth, they are not my cup of tea. Regardless they actually had me captivated by the end of their set. Go figure. Combining a frontman vocalist, a chick singing and dabbling on the synth, guitar and tambourine, a guy on bass, another on guitar and a kit player, the five piece created a sound that was uniquely their own. The whole ensemble had relentless energy despite the ever increasing heat in the venue, but the chick was actually a little mind blowing. There was not a second in the entire set where she let her energy lapse. Also she was wearing maroon culottes overalls! A winner in my books, always.
Since last I heard Little Scout almost 6 months ago the bad has undergone a rather large transformation. While still retaining their quirky pop nature, they have matured their sound quite a bit. I think recording with Jonathan Boulet has done them the world of good, and has influenced their sound taking it in all new and exciting directions. Most of their new material have frontgirl Mel freeing herself from bass duties (Shem from Skinny Jean picked it up instead) which allowed her to more freely explore the presence she can create on stage. She did however retake the bass for their older song, which was nice. Mix it up a little bit. While I was relishing in the material of their previously released EPs, I do quite like the new direction they are going with their songwriting and arrangements and am quite the exited to hear what is going to come out of the studio.
Skinny Jean. I do quite like this band. And they played a fitting set to farewell The Troubadour the way it should. Their set was tight as usual, but I think they need to find a little bit more focus in the direction they are going with the band. In saying that their rendition of 'Ape' was mind blowing. Dedicated to the landlord causing all the problems at the venue, it had so much passion and fire, and was a fitting end to their stellar set.
By this stage in the night, the room had been packed for a good portion of it, and the heat was getting unbearable! So I just couldn't stay for Re:enactment, which I was quite disappointed about. i would have loved to see what they would have done with a full audience as opposed to the three groups of people they had at the last gig I saw them at. But alas. Another time... maybe.
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