Live Review: Black Coral, The Dunes

Adelaide has a great psychedelic rock scene with a myriad of great bands. The Dunes and Black Coral are just two of those bands, and together they shared the bill for a free-entry show at Crown & Anchor for the launch of Black Coral's big nothing EP.

The Dunes, a well-loved six-piece band, begin playing to a largely full room. Dark, moody and enchanting projections wash the back wall of the stage, also shooting a silhouette of the band onto the wall. Their set starts in a similar fashion every time; Adam Vanderwerf will present a slow and rhythmic bassline. This will drone on carefully, before being met by a drum beat to sit behind it. Keys and synthesiser populate the soundscape and dissonant guitar notes complete the picture. Soon that initial bassline is a thick and atmospheric wall of sound. The thick, oozy vibe wafts over the audience as they sway to the hypnotic sounds. Vocalist Stacie Reeves then acts as the pilot of this generous vessel, her sweet vocals and vivacious onstage movements evoking a maternal sense of wonder. It's an introspective journey nonetheless and The Dunes will only continue to gain momentum.  

Black Coral are a real musician's band. Every element is honed to be exact. Their songs are played with clockwork precision with the ruthless intention of being on point. Black Coral are spiritual torchbearers to Joy Division, from the never-ending, relentless basslines to the array of surgically executed 4/4 drum beats, plus the dissonant guitar riffs and great big enveloping vocals; it's certainly extremely intriguing to see a band implement these elements with such uncanny familiarity. Of course coming with it are the emotional ties of dreary post-punk. Watching Black Coral certainly evokes a sense of longing combined with a misery-filled yearning, which is surely how those listening to Unknown Pleasures in the late '70s felt. That said, Black Coral are far more unrelenting in their rock sensibility. Their tempo is always quite fast and sustained. By this point it's well after midnight and there's a near-full room of people still dancing to the sounds of Black Coral. They're the kind of band that make you feel sad, but you're kind of happy about it!