Live Review: Saskwatch, Hachiku, Moonlover

Melbourne band Moonlover kicked off the night's festivities with some familiar, lofty guitar tunes. For what they lacked in creativity, evident in generic song names such as Wedding Day and On The Day That I Was Born, they made up for in charisma. Moving through their set with confidence, the band showed themselves as accomplished and present performers.

Next up was Hachiku aka Anika Ostendorf filling Oxford Art Factory with a dreamy landscape of keyboard, sweet vocals and left-of-field percussion; she put the audience in a daze. Caught up in her avant-garde tunes, we swayed along as we were transported to another world during Moon Face and Zombie Slayer.

Saskwatch on the other hand wanted us to enjoy being in the moment, kicking off with newbies December Nights and Then There's You. To celebrate the release of Manual Override, the band opted for a lively set made for grooving, leaving out the slower but no less excellent numbers from their repertoire for the evening.

Traversing the last three albums in their catalogue, there was undeniably a theme of love in the air, whipping out numbers Finger Painting, Renoir, North Terrace and In Your Arms. Oldie Love Divine really kicked the set up a notch, showcasing Nkechi Anele's impeccable vocal range - singalongs, flailing arms and grooving ensued. Mass scale dancing continued as they transitioned into endearing ditty Born To Break Your Heart and the timelessly cool Gemini; while I'll Be Fine closed the set on a high.

Calls for another song were strong. Saskwatch returned to the stage for one last hurrah with Hands, beating the crowd into a frenzy and leaving no doubt in our minds that the six-piece are, and will continue to be, an absolute powerhouse.