Three-piece Strychnine commence proceedings tonight underneath the Brunswick St strip club strip, delivering some speedy thrash punk with feeling to the small early evening Crowbar crowd. It's a tight abrasive set, the lead singer channelling serious disconnect as he loiters around the stage's right side, ably backed up by his tight bassless rhythm section.
Brissy five-piece Yoghurt Blood soon take up the reins and inject an anarchic vibe with their unique brand of Fall-esque dirges. Their layered sound builds a solid foundation throughout as the eccentricities take hold, and the fact they all seem to be having a helluva loose time onstage grows infectiously throughout the slightly larger crowd. A slacker cover of Great Southern Land is received well before the band leaves the stage midway through what turns out to be their final track on the insistence of Seany the lead singer. The reason why is never quite determined but the abrupt end to their largely enjoyable set makes for good theatre nonetheless.
Three-piece Daylight Robbery are touring Australia for the first time since their emergence from the mid-noughties DIY Chicago scene and from the get-go their razor-sharp chops are evident for all to see. Bassist Christine Wolf's Carrie Brownstein-esque wail interweaves tightly with David Wolf's pulsing guitar lines that push the gig along at a frenetic yet melodious pace. It's all enough to get the burgeoning Crowbar crowd a little hot and sweaty and even hot-doggy thanks to the meaty waft from the Hellhound Hotdogs stand over near the bar. Drummer Jeff Rice is bang on throughout as they deliver a kinetic set of proper garage punk, joined at one stage by two back-up singers plucked from the nearby crowd who bring healthy lashings of joie de vivre to the small ground-level stage.
Blank Realm are fast capturing plaudits overseas with recent album Go Easy and their status as one of Brisbane's best kept secrets has to be in danger of evaporating soon. Their beguiling mix of psych rock laced with twisted pop sensibilities is as transfixing as ever, covering terrain from super-charged garage assault to '80s Petty-esque anthems all in their joyful stride. Keyboardist/drummer/vocalist Sarah Spencer's constant headbanging adds to the ecstatic vibe throughout their set as the band loosen up and channel their freewheeling jam band past. A busted synth causes a bit of confusion and a slightly underwhelming conclusion to the night as music brimming with this much invention demands more onstage time, but minor quibbles aside, this has been a super-impressive short set from a band that are fast becoming local legends and deservedly so.
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