Live Review: Gignition

The temperatures were soaring and an ambient aroma of the livestock ships wafted across from the docks on Sunday. As the Railway Hotel staff set up for Gignition, though, it was the last thing on their minds. Thankfully, a lovely breeze swept the smell of the sheep and their contributions away, and the show saw a good start.
First up was duo Aishl, who laid some lovely groundwork down to set the mood for the night. As is often the case with Gignition, the two were performing their first ever gig and they certainly came through with the goods; wonderful compositions with quietly profound lyrical content put them in good step for future gigs.
Second on the bill were a group who were clearly no strangers to the stage; Della Fern ripped into their set with a tight, indie pop sound and killer three-part harmonies that locked in expertly. They succeeded very much in their mission of bringing happy times to their audience and showcased some brilliant songwriting as well.

The Mondays brought their own brand of acoustic pop to the table, as they kicked off with a stop-start number; lead singer Dan Mijat swapping between acoustic guitar and keyboards to provide a diverse sonic backdrop for their compositions. The quartet's set included a slammin' cover of The Gorillaz' Feel Good Inc (complete with De La Soul rap verses sung by a skinny white kid!) and some tasty originals.

With 50,000 cymbals, a Peavey combo amp and a seven-string guitar being brought on stage for the next set, you could tell it was going to get loud. Severity One reaffirmed such suspicions by launching into a little number titled Down South, an ode to Margaret River, merrymaking and mischief. The following set was fast-paced and had huge amounts of energy
Lastly, Blue City Underground wrapped up with their own brand of ragged, gritty blues-rock. Featuring a lead singer on keyboards, some burning guitar lines, heavy thumping bass and a brand new drummer who had only just learnt the songs, the band brought the night to a wicked end.