West Thebarton Brothel Party Declare War & Deal With Horrible Cheese Toasties

Monday, September 5

We celebrated a Monday night off in Brisbane sinking Queensland’s best/worst tinnies (XXXX Gold for those playing at home) and bottles of red.

Tuesday, September 6

Tuesday began with pure disappointment when a cafe in Brunswick Street Mall tried to pass off cold cheese and tomato slices between toasted bread as a tomato and cheese toastie. I’d spend the next hour or so helping Sarah put up posters for the Title Track pre-party at The Brightside.

Later that day, the gang dropped by The Triffid for a few drinks with the 123 Agency family. After speaking to our booker on the phone the last six months, it was nice to see Harry's ugly mug over a beer for a change.

Following Wollongong and Sydney, we’d nailed the trifecta with our first show in Brisbane. We shared a few more celebratory drinks and watched our pal, Mossy, before loading out to catch Ceres at Crowbar.

Wednesday, September 7

The better part of Wednesday was spent running around the Valley like headless chooks for interviews. We finished the afternoon razzing up Lachie and Dave at the triple j Unearthed desk. They advised us that the best way for an emerging artist to make it in the industry these days is to start a rivalry. Watch this space, Tkay Maidza.

Ray and I caught up with the rest of the gang at The Elephant to catch Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, who are a great bunch of blokes with excellent guitar lines and verbal diction. Lured by the promise of alcohol, food and massages, we ended up at flashy rooftop party and it seemed like everybody we knew back home was there sinking cocktails and bubbles. Someone had told me the night before that I’d probably end up spending most of my time at BIGSOUND with people from Adelaide and they were not wrong.

Having another night off meant that we could roam around to see a bunch of bands and drink (more, again). I got to see Unity Floors and FLOWERTRUCK who were awesome as expected. Hideous Sun Demon blew my head off and set my whisky-filled belly on fire. Bonus points to the Perth boys for incorporating three heavy breakdowns in the final song of their set.

The after-party at The Brightside was calling and we answered loudly. A few hours later, we met a local kebab shop owner named Frank who a bone to pick with BIGSOUND, or as he affectionately called it “a big, fucking fart”. He had a lot of trouble seeing the benefits of the conference and festival, but it seemed like BIGSOUND hadn’t been properly explained to him or he just didn't understand it. We were burning out and tried our very best, but I think he just needed someone to listen to him. I just wanted to eat my kebab in peace.

Thursday, September 8

With a bit of time on our hands, we got tattoos on Thursday and Stenno was absolutely amped that we had one of his drawings done. Hugh partied pretty hard the night before and paled out in the process of getting his tattoo. When got back to our place, we had a cat nap and headed over to meet Zak for a couple of press shots. He had been the voice of reason during our previous 4am discussion with Frank and knows how to take a good photo.

After loading in to The Empire Hotel, we got a bite and caught Den who were off the chain. The Empire Hotel has a nautical vibe, a bunch of wooden booths and a fuck-off long, marbly bar that Ray really put to work.

Having played three solid sets in a row, I was admittedly nervous that we couldn’t back it up with a fourth. As it turns out we kicked it in the dick with what was quite possibly the best show we’ve ever played to date. We sang our guts out, the rhythm section locked in and Ray had a vertical leap like Gary Ablett Snr circa 1989. We turfed our gear back at the apartment and celebrated with what wine we had left. Mission accomplished.

The Woolly Mammoth played host to an after-party and we started double fisting drinks immediately. Shit got weird straight up. I’m convinced this is the only timeline that exists where you will witness Healey screaming to Kelly Clarkson. Ray and I stumbled back to our place in the early hours to find Tom and Batters locked out and sleeping in the foyer. What a stitch up. 

Friday, September 9

I woke up, still half-cut, to the sound of Nick barging in (also still half-cut). We made our way to the airport and JB left his bag at the apartment with another week of touring with Horror My Friend ahead of him. Tom and JB would fly to Melbourne whilst the rest of us head back home. We’re currently cooked like a well done steak but could’ve done BIGSOUND back to back for sure. That’s what you get for a week of schmoozin’ and boozin’ in the land of lanyards.

Check out theGuide for all upcoming West Thebarton Brothel Party tour dates.