Soundwave - Twenty Ten

I had a long list of expectations for Soundwave 2010; but with a line-up including Taking Back Sunday, Faith No More and Jane’s Addiction I would be stupid not to. As I stood in line with my Pump bottle filled with Vodka in one hand and my I.D and ticket in the other, I could never have foreseen the madness which lay behind those rusted gates at the RNA Showgrounds in Brisbane.

Taking Back Sunday, an American foursome from New York released their latest album New Again last year; they were first on my list of bands to see. I’m short and fast so I was able to make my way to the front of the stage quickly. As I was maneuvering via a crouched sprint through the sweaty bodies, Cute Without The E was knocking at my ear drums. The singer, Adam Lazzara was bent down over the ledge on the stage and knowing full well that we knew all the lyrics he pointed the microphone toward us and let us sing all the best parts. Lazzara is renowned for performing drunk so I was surprised to see him in control of his movements; he didn’t slur a word when he said:
“Man I’m hungry. I haven’t eaten anything today, maybe I should have had a sandwich or something, jelly and peanut butter maybe…”
Oh how I wished I had a sandwich in my pocket at that moment.
Taking back Sunday was definitely one of the stand-outs for me. Mainly because my obsession with them has been going on for over eight years; but also because Lazzara sang the last half of MakeDamnSure hanging upside down like a bat from the stage’s scaffolding.

Throughout the earlier shows at Soundwave I came to a few observational conclusions:
1) It is beyond easy to sneak alcohol into Soundwave.
2) If you are on your friend’s shoulders for more than five songs there is a large chance they may resent you for the rest of the set.
3) Aside from the technical difficulties at the beginning of Motion City Soundtracks set, they sounded just like they do on their album My Dinosaur Life.
4) When on a ride, acting like a toddler having a temper tantrum screaming “Again! Again! Again!” will get you another turn.
5) Paramores Hayley Williams looks even more like a child in real life than the girl in their Brick By Boring Brick video.
6) The vibe at Placebo was ‘everyone for themselves.’
7) If you play UFC in the drinking area you will get kicked out of it.
8) Crowd surfing to get out of the mosh is a valid and legitimate reason.
9) Screaming at AFI to play a song from their Answer That album will not make them play a song from their Answer That album.
10) Jumping around like a crazy woman will result in a broken foot.

Jane’s Addiction stood out as the most theatrical and entertaining performance. Sky-high cut outs of two naked women loomed over the band, changing in colour with each brutally loud riff and chord change. PVC clad dancers groggily mounted podiums and gave us a bitter tasting feast for our eyes. But, as expected, I couldn’t take my eyes off of Dave Navarro. His thin, white, half naked body struck androgynous poses that made me quiver. Although he wasn’t singing the lyrics, he performed them in a way I can only describe as introvert and rehearsed. They played Up The Beach and Whores from the album Kettle Whistle and ended with Jane Says from their self-titled debut album. I was fixated on Navarro throughout the whole set and figured out why when vocalist Perry Farrell complained of not being able to find any good heroin in Brisbane, saying they had been ripped off by a local dealer.

I watched the beginning of Faith No More, they were very cute in their suits with pocketed flowers. My broken foot was slowing me down (thank goodness for the numbing powers of alcohol) and I had just ten minutes until A Day To Remember were due to start! I made my friend carry me to their stage, leaving a trail of the weak or bad-balanced in our wake. Waiting for them to come onstage was like waiting for a bad hair cut to grow out, it seemed to take forever. They played the first song off the album Homesick, Downfall Of Us All. I was so ecstatic I actually cried. This band had so much energy and we were the first to hear songs from Homesick live in Australia. It was obvious how thrilled they were to be there and judging by all the shirts with their name on them around me, this show had been a long time coming. The aching of my foot was dulled away as adrenaline pumped through my ready veins and convinced my brain I could fly. Plot Bomb To The Panhandle started, so I signaled to the guy next to me that I wanted up; he grabbed me and threw me forward. I took a photo as I lay flat and waited for the security guard to catch me. I gave him a big sweaty kiss and thanked him. Right after that A Day To Remember were thanking us and it was over. Only a year until the next Soundwave!

The Getaway Plan, Hi-Fi Bar Brisbane

The Getaway Plan have broken up! They released a statement on their Myspace page which said:
“There comes a point in everyone’s lives where they must sit back and assess if everything is working the way it should be. We have come to a decision that the Getaway Plan will no longer continue to make music together.”
I was lucky enough to attend their show at Brisbane’s Hi-Fi Bar in June. It was one of the last run of East Coast dates.
Now, before going to the gig I had seen them once before at Big Day Out this year and had no idea they were splitting. I was one of the very brave, right at the front of the stage, my collarbone mashing against the iron barrier. It was halfway through the show when I noticed how separate they all seemed as a band. The singer Matthew Wright sang only to the audience and guitarists Clint Splattering and Dave Anderson didn’t interact at all. I remember thinking “They sounded more like a band at Big Day Out.”
It was obvious that all the energy they got was from us, the audience and not each other. The band was tight, professional and the 10 song set was pretty much perfect overall. They performed they’re encore song Where The City Meets The Sea with no signs of fatigue BUT they lacked bandmanship!
The Getaway plan ended the show by thanking fans for encouraging and supporting them during their final tour. To be honest, instead of a thank you I wanted an apology for not giving it their all on one of the last few shows they would play together.

Hellogoodbye at Soundwave Festival

Hellogoodbye were the standout for me at the Soundwave Festival at Brisbane's RNA Showgrounds last month. I missed the begginning of the show due to my friends hunger pangs which couldn't possibly wait.
So while they went in search of greasy food I found a spot where I could see my lover (the lead singer) Forrest; and where my friends could easily find me. I have seen them play live before in Brisbane but this was waaaay better. Firstly, it was daylight and overcast; perfect concert weather. Light enough for me to see his facials and reach orgasm and cloudy enough for me to only have about ten (thousand) beads of sweat dripping past my flower headband. Secondly, it was in a car-park, hell yeah; and lastly, it was right near the food stands so as I jumped up and down whilst violently flailing my left arm in the air, I munged on wedges with my right.
When they played Two Weeks in Hawaii I honestly felt tiny tingles all throughout my body, up my boots and out my fingertips. Forrest stood completely still and executed the song just as he had the night before through my stereo.

During All of Your Love after the second verse he stopped, stared at the stage to his far left and said;

"Hey All That Remains! Can you please quieten down so we can rock out, softly."

He had me at Hey...
With pubescent crushes aside, they played a great show and didn't fail to surprise. During the last song Here in Your Arms they mixed it with Daft Punks' Digital Love. One would think this an unwise move, but, pure genius erupted from that stage.
I had an amazing day at Soundwave with shin splints to prove it but Hellogoodbye made it my most rad experience of 2009 thus far.

My Surfers Paradise Disappointment

I went to Surfers Paradise the other night. I can’t believe how unbelievably stupid consumerist Gold Coasters can be. The ugly look more grotesque than ever with each layer of cheap make up they plaster on they’re drug scabbed skin. Even remotely attractive people walk around, dancing up and down looking like fuckwits in a Kelly Rowland video; eyes darting about checking to see if anyone is watching. “Well I’m watching and you look like a freaking idiot!” I would love to tell them this but no, I’m in the same pissweak ‘sell your soul for candy and speed’ nightclub that they’re in.

People look at me like I am one of them, a dumbass consumer with nothing better to do with my time than watch my weight and pay 500 bucks for an outfit that looks like crap anyway. This world must be playing a joke on me; it’s pregnant with retards falling in ‘love’ all over the place. Let me ask them this: Would you take a bullet for that object of your affection?? I won’t be a part of this junked up TV series. I’ll start my own mutiny, dance how I want to dance, dress how I want to dress. Because I’m not afraid to get angry about the state of this town we call home. I’m not afraid to speak up and put on a show for all the little kids at home who right now, are probably at home watching grown men on coke parade around on TV for them.

Karnivool

Karnivool
at The Coolangatta Hotel

I often frequent The Coolangatta Hotel; so when I read Karnivool would be doing a gig there during their Aeons tour, I practically jumped out of my Mickey Mouse Jim Jams to get myself a ticket!

I brought my own vodka of course (crudely disguised in a Vitamin Water bottle), and found myself a spot at the front against the barrier; in front of a fat, bald security guard attempting to look threatening but failing miserably. I’m choosing to exclude my drunken recollections of supporting acts Mere Theory and That 1 Guy because they both had me quite confused. Mere Theory weren’t sure if they were punk or metal, so I’ll refer to their music genre as Petal, and my experience of Petal thus far has been a frustrating one. The people who did watch them weren’t sure whether to play an air guitar or punch the air with closed fists. That 1 Guy from San Francisco had me addled even further, he softly beat what I made out to be an oversized vacuum cleaner pipe, while head banging. Slowly.

So then a fight broke out and the bald, fat man moved out of my way. Karnivool dealt us a long intricate musical intro which resonated through the audience. The lead singer, Kenny has us so mesmerised I didn’t even notice his trimmed Amish facial hair. I had missed them at Big Day Out this year so had my doubts about a live performance. My expectations were all fulfilled during their songs from the Themata record. They played three or four new songs which I noticed most of the crowd didn’t recognise but responded well to. I only noticed the rest of the band when Kenny wasn’t singing. He hypnotised us with each lyric, his left hand held limp at his shoulder and his head lowered forward with the rest of his upper body.

They didn’t have time for two encore songs so after the first, guitarist’s Hos, Jono and Andrew man-piled onto the drum kit to literally go out with a bang; then a crash, and I think I may have heard a masculine cry of pain.

Afterward, as many bald fat men tried to round us up like sheep and escort us downstairs, I was scanning the room for a way backstage. Bassist Jono was casually lung darting in a corner outside. He asked me what me and my friends were doing after we left and I, in true pathetic groupie fashion said,
“Coming with you of course!”
In reality all I wanted was a peek backstage since it had been renovated. It was disappointing to say the least. Their tiny dressing room was sucked dry of all alcohol, a single half-filled bottle of yellow tail red remained which was ordered by That One Guy.

We had photo’s, we pissed the manager and roadies off with our school girl antics and went back to their apartment in Surfers Paradise. They were all very cool, calm and collected which I then found out was due to the insane amount of weed they kept in their hotel room. In the end, two of us got sleepy and went home, but one of us became a true groupie in every sense of the word. Can you guess which one?