Counter Cultured

10 Sep 2015

BIGSOUND 2015 – Wednesday’s showcase

Holy cow it’s Thursday morning, I have no voice, a headache with a very presumable culprit and the most intense euphoria that can only come with experiencing the showcase that BIGSOUND puts on display for Australia. I saw a lot of phenomenal talent last night and trying to pick which acts I’d write about has been difficult – BIGSOUND artists are selected for their brilliance and ingenuity; trying to pick out your favourites is not an easy task.

bigsound-2015

Halcyon Drive are the extra potato cake with your fish and chips, they took to the stage at The Foundry with a vibrancy that really does capture the energy and vibe that permeates Melbourne during summer. It’s quite the experience to behold when the duo begin the show, Michael and Max are able to create a context and landscape that you would expect to be delivered from a much larger outfit.

Before you all boo the Melbourne boy who went to see the Melbourne bands play in Queensland, you have a point – however the next act I went to see was Jack the Stripper and they bloody awesome. Making tunes with teeth and attitude isn’t an easy task, you can’t fake it and you need to have that spark to be able to connect with an audience on JTS wavelength. Frontman Luke Frizon has this uniting effect marrying up the bands combined energy and connecting it to the audience hungry for more.

Making my way around the BIGSOUNDsphere and I arrive at Pearls. The group have a too cool for school vibe that makes me as a viewer want to know and witness more of them. The dichotomy that occurs with the melody and rhythm is nothing short of brilliant.

Super Best Friends fixed themselves as a prominent Australian identity a few years back with their record Round and Round specifically, the video clip containing Australian politicians in really candid shots. Last night Super Best Friends had The New Globe Theatre rocking and jumping from the very first riff over to the savoury bass licks and the last lyric.

Other acts that I could go on and on about like Ngairre who raises the bar at each performance or Cosmic Psychos, City Calm Down, Set Mo, Holy Holy the list goes on. BIGSOUND is the shop where you go to get the ingredients to make the cake but it’s up to the attendees to decide what cherry to put at the top.