Live Review: Bad//Dreems, Fait Accompli, Creo, Wasters

Captain Cook Hotel launched their Summer Sessions last night with a heavy hitting line-up of local talent headlined by hyped garage act Bad//Dreems. Everyone did their best to stoke the fires of the crowd drawn in from a late spring storm, and the night focused on some real talent from the seemingly invincible guitar-led rock scene.

A lumbering kick drum opened the evening for grunge-emo outfit Wasters. Meaty anthemic arrangements built and surged through the short set, and all the while the hovering ghosts of classic American acts like Rival Schools and Sunny Day Real Estate smiled above them. They applied a firm hand to some fantastically angsty sounds that had weight and pathos, as well as being fun.

CREO crushed it. Their slick post-hardcore sound is as brutal as it is playful, and their set was exciting and stylish and atmospheric. The vicious bombast that would suddenly spring to life after several innocuous verses of fuzzy celebratory power-pop was exhilarating, and the intensity and precision of their music translated into a bone-crunching set.

Self-described soul-punks Fait Accompli went on the attack with a frayed set that seemed to capture chaos in a Tupperware container. It was hard to pin down their sound, and it was a high tension performance that felt loose and unpredictable in a good way. They matched their sound with individual visual styles that seemed to borrow from any number of influences, and made for a great collective stage presence. Hats off to Skarlett Saramore on sticks, whose frantic patterns were relentless and potent.

Bad//Dreems continue to ride an impressive wave of popularity despite bringing little in terms of depth. Fully capitalising on the room's energy, the group played well, performing favourites with machismo and drive. They lacked the punch of the previous bands, but still closed the night in impressive fashion. With Billie staring at them from giant Green Day posters on the walls, the crowd dispersed into the night, and the rain finally stopped.