Live Review: BIGSOUND Night Two 2018

It’s weird being in the Family at 8pm on a Wednesday, something doesn’t seem quite right. But hey, it’s BIGSOUND so we’re on board. Taking to the stage in an early slot is Sydney-based electro-pop artist FLUIR. With slick production and a shiny gold jacket, it’s somewhat a shame that we aren’t dancing to this later in the evening.

There’s a big local family for metal music – and the familiar crowds gather downstairs at Crowbar to catch one of the first sets of the night, Wildheart. Blasting their melodic hardcore sound through several amplifiers is enough to deafen the ears of anyone within seconds. While they are certainly interesting and energetic to watch, there’s too many similarities between this band’s canny, gruff sound and many other outfits within the genre.

Erthlings start and the industry-heavy room in Laruche goes quiet. After a nervous and quiet first track, the four teenagers from Sydney warm into their second show ever. Bear in mind, this is BIGSOUND and bigwigs are watching. The vocal track is a little too soft and this highlights the tentative nature of the group, but it's impressive to watch an attentive audience appreciating the talent of these four youngsters. Bridges, their debut single, sees them breaking out a little more. There's a future for them but time, and likely a lot of people in this room, will be the judge. 

Brisbane’s funkiest homegals Pink Matter kick off day two of BIGSOUND at The Brightside. Effortlessly cool as always, the jazzy outfit waste no time providing us with the neo-soul vibrations we’ve come to expect from them. Vocalist Kerry Raywood’s smooth vocals shine as per usual, backed perfectly by the band’s drummer, Libby Scott. The boys from Bugs show up to support their former opening act and join the rest of the punters in boogying on down for crowd favourite Quicksand.

At only 8.30, The Valley Drive In is very full for Eliza & The Delusionals. Clearly, word has spread, and very rightly so, vocalist Eliza Klatt's vocals filling the tent and drawing more and more people in. The group’s last showcase is tonight. Make sure you're there good and early.

Eliza & The Delusionals

Heading to Crowbar next, WALKEN take the award for best song interlude of the fest with a funny little diddy while they changed guitars. Side note here: why is every band showcasing in ALL CAPS? Crunchy energy from the get-go, a change in pace for Unomi before a slam dunk of a breakdown to end, we’re walken’ out of this one with smiles on our faces.

A big crowd has completely packed out The Foundry for Miss June. The New Zealand neighbours jump on stage and manage to get the audience at least dancing around a little bit. Even with straight punk tunes, there’s still a psych element of Sonic Youth deep within their sound that almost branches away from traditional punk/psych.

Triple j Unearthed High has uncovered an amazing array of artists and KIAN, the latest discovery, plays a showcase that attracts a packed room at 256 Wickham. The teenager is probably still coming to terms with the win but his first show is confident, moving from soulful singing to rap. Vince The Kid from Shepparton joins him on stage and they collaborate on a couple of tracks, including Too Far Gone and Waiting, the track that led to KIAN's win. There's a real burgeoning talent here and we are lucky to see the first sparks.

KIAN

Back downstairs at Crowbar, Melbourne pop-punk band Between You & Me take to the small stage and utilise the space better than almost any band of their size before them, frontman Jake Wilson even jumping on top of the foldbacks. It’s a fast and energetic set that leaves a strong impression on the small crowd.

Sydney-based producer and vocalist CLYPSO lights up Famous Nightclub with her high energy, acid synth dance tunes. Her music is punctuated by a pulsating, percussive bass and her own crazy, energetic dance moves. The set climaxes with a surprise performance from rapper Kwame.

Tape/Off are dad-punk done well. Opening The Valley Drive In with a track that tells us it’s “better to burn out than rust” the fuzzed-out, aggressive guitars overlaid with spat lyrics of societal despair, we don’t hear songs, we hear anthems. The band dedicate Micronations to “Scott Morrison, the next ex-Prime Minister of Australia” before finishing the track with a blistering, “If that won’t make you not vote for him I don’t know what will.” Hey Tape/Off, “can I buy you a beer?” 

Good luck to anyone rocking up late to The Foundry for A Swayze & The Ghost because the room is rammed. The Tassie four-piece have packed enough people in to bow the floor. The high point is surely when frontman Andrew Swayze parts the crowd like Moses did the Red Sea, gaining huge cheers from the crowd. Their set is fast and scathing and easily a BIGSOUND highlight for 2018.

A Swayze & The Ghost

"These are my goons," announces Genesis Owusu as he takes off on the Woolly Mammoth stage. The Canberra rapper has a presence bigger than any politician, bounding around the stage with tracks dedicated to women, his homeland and love. The purposeful and powerful lyrics drive something more than fun. There's emotion and passion in his delivery and the packed crowd get into it. Bounce, yell, get involved - that's the feeling you get. Owusu can look forward to many more packed crowds of hands in the air.

Genesis Owusu

Making it down to the Family nightclub stage, Sydney-based electronic pop artist Kota Banks begins her set while the venue’s lit with heavily bright flares of pink and blue lighting. With a sound crossed somewhere between Flume and Ariana Grande, it's no shock that the crowd seem so pleased with this performance.

Kota Banks

Melbourne born metalcore band Windwaker take over Crowbar’s basement with their rowdy set. Full of headbanging breakdowns and complex solos from the lead guitarist Jesse Crofts, the boys ensure that not a single punter leaves with their hearing intact. Vocalist Will King displays an impressive range, his performance ranging from clean, angsty vocals to grating screaming and back in the space of one song.

RAAVE TAPES is PACKED. (More caps, see we told you!). Crowbar is turned into a thrashy, rocking party and it looks like the whole of BIGSOUND was invited. Are they catering? Serving up pure fun with a bite, we also get some solid life advice from the band - “Drink more water. Speak more truth.” Some choreographed guitar moves to end and we’re in, hook, line and sinker. 

The Elephant looks very full on arrival for MANE’s set. Sadly it seems that most of the crowd are more interested in chatting than listening, which detracts a sizeable amount from the set. The harder-edged tracks prove to be a highlight but sadly it’s mostly lost in background noise.

New Zealand has a reputation for quiet, electronic pop artists. Wax Chattels are not one of these. The packed Foundry witnesses a set from a band ready to take it to that next level. Pulsing drums, electric keys and furious lyrics, they are a band not to be messed with. The crowd enjoy a furiously loud and energetic set and something that will stay with everyone longer than the night.

Melbourne local RO takes the stage at Heya Bar and launches straight into a set filled with warm, smooth vocals and clever, storytelling lyrics. The performance is intimate and emotive with a distinct American indie vibe.

Even with such careful planning, even BIGSOUND can’t seem to escape the inescapable realities of audio hiccups. After spending more than five minutes trying to fix issues with Arno Faraji’s production, the artist keeps the crowd entertained by speaking to them and even convincing them to sing, “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands.” Finally, as his equipment is fixed, the crowd uproars as the Perth artist begins to jump around delivering such a humble exhibition of wavy hip hop.

"Only a few years ago, I was in a super dark place. I'm so grateful to be in this space with you all." Adrian Eagle is humble and very talented, delivering a unique vocal of soul music along with a talented backing band. Singing his refrain from his collab with Hilltop Hoods, Clark Griswold, he grabbed the crowd and held them tight, making us feel at home in the confines of the sacred Brightside stage. There's something special about the Adelaidean and hopefully, with some more music, we'll get to see how far he is able to go. Tonight was a good start as he won over a huge group of new fans.

Adrian Eagle

Up-and-coming indie superstar Tyne James Organ gathered a considerable crowd for his performance at The Elephant Hotel. His performance was a cathartic experience, both for him and the audience. Emotional tune Watch You Go, written about his late father, had the crowd swaying, hugging and wiping away the odd tear. Organ’s raw vocals and profound honesty are both refreshing and heartbreaking to experience live.

There's a little ol' concept of going viral in our technological world; something The Chats are no stranger to after their video for Smoko took the world by storm. They're already on tour with Queens Of the Stone Age and Josh Homme has sung their praises to Iggy Pop after Dave Grohl turned him onto it. You know just a couple of small-time musicians, no big deal. It was therefore no shock to see The Valley Drive In jam packed, thrashing along with the Sunny Coast boys. The verdict? They can fucking play. We're not talking about a one hit viral wonder here. Frontman Eamon Sandwith and his glorious mullet tells the crowd to "feel free to chuck your record deals on the stage because I'm not going to read them," and we're sure there will be a few of them coming their way. 

There’s a fair few in show for singer-songwriter Imogen Clark playing down at Ric's Big Backyard. Playing a strong mixture of blues and country, the young Sydney artist shows a sincere level of enjoyment simply for being at BIGSOUND and having a few people watch her set.

Wow, KAIIT can draw a crowd. Jill Scott Insta hype will certainly get people to a BIGSOUND set. Natural Woman is easily the highlight, with the crowd dancing and singing along. KAIIT, you’re great and we love you. Every bit of success you've had so far, and will continue to get, is totally 100% deserved.

KAIIT

Even with so many other amazing artists clashing with Slowly Slowly, there’s still a great turnout over at Famous nightclub. The Melbourne band don’t even hesitate to begin an energetic and vibrant set of rock – if there were ever a time to sneak in a skateboard and do a kickflip at the venue, it would be right now. Whether it’s their upbeat music or their dreary mope-rock tracks, there’s something for everyone and every mood.

Closing night two of BIGSOUND at Heya Bar is whimsical pop princess Hachiku. Though not a particularly showy entertainer, what she may lack in performance style, she makes up for in sound. Her set is filled with crooning electric guitar and layered vocal harmonies that beg to narrate an indie teen film.

Hachiku