Live Review: The Plot

It's early days and a handful of punters have gathered to vibe along to Dorsal Fins. The crowd is very young and as is the norm with boutique festivals these days, the boho-chic fashion statements are out in full force. Cornrows, psychedelic prints, sheer skirts and tops, rustic tribal jewellery and glitter hair roots are around every corner. On the male front, it seems ironic consumer merch is the go - one dude is wearing an Opal Transport windcheater, another a Bunnings Warehouse shirt. Dorsal Fins are on point as per usual, their huge band all having a blast with their upbeat, jazzy indie pop. Ella Thompson and Jarrad Brown are yin and yang today, clad in all black and all white respectively. 

It's a cosy venue they've cornered in the large Parramatta Park, four stages scattered within a few minutes of each other. The fences around the stages are adorned with kooky food-focused graffiti art - a hot dog and soda making out, a lemon squeezing its own lemonade, cheeky burgers, playful beer kegs and more. Another wall has skateboard decks being painted by artists as part of Decks For Change. It all compounds to give the festival a distinct shot of youth-influenced flavour, no doubt appreciated by the plethora of under-18s who have made it out to the all-ages event. 

A haze of smoke and the smell of eucalyptus hangs over the psych/surf rock of Ocean Alley at the Duck Pond stage (and it really does smell like animals might live around here, thanks to the hay bales). The singer Baden Donegal has a beautiful smoky voice to match and his moody floral shirt, blonde and black dreads and brimmed hat just seems to fit in so well with this leafy haven. 

Having prepared my plus-one for the mania of The Belligerents' Lewis Stephenson, we settle in at the Future Sailors stage (love the Mighty Boosh reference!) to watch the uber hip five-piece rip in. They've all got the normcore shopping-at-Vinnies thing downpat and with big pink shades on and a shirt tucked into his cream slacks, Stephenson looks like a a traffic controller on too many drugs when he flails his hips and arms around. Caroline is a big hit with the crowd and people try to mimic Stephenson's frenzy. 

We discover Alex Lahey's slot has been pushed from 3.20pm to 8.20pm (and a few others have been shuffled too) so we haul ass to the back of the High Society stage to see Hellions at Duck Pond. As soon as the first notes of Quality Of Life drop, the dust is kicked up by bros eager for a mosh. Lotus Eater follows with a sick drumbeat and bassline, a dynamic song that's fronted by singer Dre Faivre's brutal growl. The circle pits are insane here and as punters back away, the photographers just get closer to the scuffle. The band are tight and a breath of fresh air to the hardcore scene. 

Polographia bring cowbell-heavy, groovy tunes to the High Society stage, their synth, electric guitar and drum combo a cool change from the throwdowns of Hellions. They mix in tunes like Biggie's Hypnotize and people are really vibing it in the adjacent bar area. Over at Future Sailors, Bootleg Rascal's reggae-rock has pulled the biggest crowd we've seen all day and there are a ton of people watching the magic side of stage. We just catch their last song as Tired Lion are due to take the stage - '90s classics like The Next Episode and Jumpin' Jumpin' keep us interested until they come on. A foghorn ushers in the beginning of the band's set, heavily distorted guitars chugging along as Sophie Hopes' slightly whiny yet powerful voice swings into their first song. She's got rockstar attitude and the banter with the band to match — "our drummer doesn't speak, he just communicates via airhorn" — and she tells us the quartet are keen to trial a new song. Plus it's their guitarist Matt Tanner's 21st birthday today! 

Over at Duck Pond there are a bunch of people awaiting AB Original, and their hypeman/DJ Total Eclipse does an awesome job amping us up with Turn Down For What and Be Faithful, scratching away at his decks. Briggs and Trials take the stage, getting the crowd screaming "ohhhh yeah!" and "no justice, no peace!" within minutes. The duo command the stage with ease with songs like 2 Black 2 Strong and of course, January 26. 

Ziggy Alberts plays chill, boho acoustic tunes with pinch harmonics and percussive tapping and it's easy listening, but Alberts' preaching about not texting while driving and "finding good in the world" in a world helmed by President Trump feels a little unnecessary. We're here for a good time - we don't want a lecture! Regardless, he's a talented dude. 

The crowd at Vera Blue is PACKED - but it means Gold Fields over on Future Sailors have a looot of space for more punters to come and boogie. Their snappy tunes are polished and confident and we love the all-black-errythang uniform the band have instated. Singer Mark Robert Fuller seems a bit nervous playing their first song — a new one — his hands wrapped up in the bottom of his shirt. It's their first time on stage in three years. Dark Again is received well and we love the huge and incredibly tight sound having two drummers (one on pads and one on a kit) brings. Both drummers are enthralling to watch and we love the sweaty grin that regularly breaks out on their faces. These guys are great and we're sad more people haven't come to see their return to the stage. 

We miss most of Nicole Millar but find that she's drawn a healthy crowd for her summery synth-pop tunes. She's wearing a cute pink pyjama-type two-piece and is awesome at navigating the stage with her tantric dance moves, lost amid the rainbow lights and smoke machine. Fans bounce up on shoulders for her mega-hit with Peking Duk, High, and she owns it; Signals does the same. Her voice sounds slightly hoarse but is heavily altered with effects. Over on the Future Sailors stage, Tash Sultana has a massive turnout to marvel at her rootsy multi-instrumentalism. Having just taken out the title of triple j Unearthed Artist Of The Year, it's almost like she's showing off about her fluency in ten instruments when she picks up the pan flute and flamenco guitar tonight. She finishes up with triple j blockbusters Notion and Jungle. 

In that gorgeous white frilly top juxtaposed with big imposing Doc Martens, Montaigne takes the stage to Glorious Heights. Her operatic voice is the showstopper here and even though the crowd come nowhere close to her dizzying vocal control, we try anyway. Greater Than Me allows Montaigne to rip out the stiff robot-esque dance moves and we love the way she leaps about the stage without losing command of those tricky vocal pops. 

There's a decent crowd milling about waiting for Alex Lahey at High Society, but the stage is running a whole set behind. Stage techs are frantically running about and it looks like the crowd are on the cusp of impatience. Just as the first drops of rain come down, she takes the stage armed with an apology and Air Mail. People are still keen to have a dance in the rain to songs like Wes Anderson (such a cute song!), Perth Traumatic Stress Disorder, a new song called I Want Ü and, of course, fan favourite You Don't Think You Like People Like Me, and by the time she leaves the stage, people have all but forgotten the delay. 

Melodic punk takes over the Future Sailors stage thanks to Luca Brasi. The crowd is older than we've seen all day and they mosh, clap and thrust their fists up high to welcome the Tassie boys to Parra. The vocal harmonies work wonders to build a cohesive sound for the lads but it's the snappy drums and stellar songwriting that really makes these guys compelling. 

As the final act on the Future Sailors stage, The Bennies are the partystarters we all know they can't help being. There's a lot of stage diving happening and the stoners are all out to have a good time, and the band kill it. They debut a few new tracks that we miss the names of, but suffice it to say, The Bennies fans should be excited for a new release.