Live Review: Boomgates, Cannon, Tight Slip

There's something about these supercool southern bands that must attract testosterone, because tonight, similar to the recent Brisbane shows of both Twerps and Royal Headache, The Primitive Room is looking a bit Dude City, population: bros. Tight Slip start us out, and anyone who's seen their other band, the freewheeling hardcore explosion Loose Grip, might be a little surprised to see them doing this kind of plaintive and open (though still rough as hell) pop music. Singer Kieren Lavering is slightly unconvincing delivering sappy, lovesick-by-the-numbers lyrics, but solid melodies and some great punkier songs stop the set from dragging.

This might be the gig Cannon were born to play, the room is as sweaty and sleazy as a swingers' party and the crowd are ready for anything. The band seems to know it too, and play one of their tightest and most coherent sets in recent memory. A couple of new songs are debuted, but mostly the set consists of tracks from their self-titled album, grimy hysterical vignettes that are always short and sour. Towards the end of the set comes a life changing (seriously) and completely left-field cover of Fleetwood Mac's Everywhere. Callan Murray, in his torn up jacket that looks like a homeless man's cape, screaming out “AAAAAAAHHH-AAAAAAAHHHHRRRRRGGGG I WANNA BE WITH YOU EV-RY-WHERE” is truly heart-warming.

About halfway through Boomgates' set, a guy in the audience yells out, “We've been waiting for you for so long!” That's the pervasive mood of tonight's show; there's plenty of back slapping and high fiving to go around, and people seem genuinely stoked to be witnessing a band at the top of their game, pushing the boundaries of a genre they've perfected. Brendan Huntley and Steph Hughes share lead singing duties and provide the charisma onstage, though in very different styles. Huntley paces across the front manically, spitting out lyrics that cover the mundanities of everyday life with wide eyes and a sharp tongue. Hughes on the other hand is rock solid and still, a strong centre for these songs where impeccably tight and instantly infectious melodies rise and fall over a smart rhythm section that keeps everyone on their toes. Mic problems hit halfway through single Whispering Or Singing, and the band turns the song into an instrumental jam when they get fixed, which really only builds the tension and anticipation for the final chorus's climax, which hits like a freight train. Late highlight Cows Came Home is dedicated to Kitchens Floor's Matt Kennedy, “Because he can empathise with the depressed farm animals in it”, getting a big chuckle from the crowd. By the end of tonight there's no doubt at all that Boomgates have made a room full of fans very happy.