Saturday night saw Melbourne garage rock outfit Dumb Punts play the last of their three return Perth shows in the intimate surroundings of The Bird. Touted as a band on the rise, it was good to see a decent audience building from the start of the evening, having seen them the previous night in front of a disappointing crowd at another venue.

Kicking off the evening however were local lo-fi deli meat enthusiasts Hip Priest. With their drummer and lead guitarist resplendent in their signature bright pink band shorts, they delivered an energetic and irreverent set that had the crowd going from the start. Pumping out songs about such things as Domino's Pizza and Italian football legend Roberto Baggio, as well as an interesting take on the classic '80s Ghostbusters theme that they call Ghost Bogger, Hip Priest's fun indie-rock was a great start to the night.

Local favourites Verge Collection were the next band to take to the stage and instantly drew the punters in from the packed beer garden with their catchy, melodic pop tunes that resonated with the audience. Our Place along with Class Of '09 and Postcodes from their 2016 EP Open Plan Living were highlights of their set. They continue to impress with each outing and rumours of a new recording in the pipeline promise more to look forward to later this year.

"Stop smoking darts!" urged Dumb Punts drummer Ciarn 'Seattle' Gallagher as they kicked off their set, taking full advantage of the fact that the live music is piped out to the beer garden at The Bird. Dutifully, the crowd started making their way back in and were not disappointed as the Melbourne three-piece launched into what proved to be a raucous, solid performance.

Not taking themselves too seriously and obviously having a good time, the band joked with the audience and urged them to start dancing as they smashed through their set, with songs such as Put A Sock In It and Goon Sack getting the crowd going.

With a sound described as sitting "somewhere between The Cosmic Psychos and Pavement", Dumb Punts' live show is delivered with energy and musical skill that belies the "slacker rock" label that has been used to describe them. This was evident when drummer Seattle traded places with her guitarist/vocalist brother, Jimmy Gallagher, halfway through the set for a few songs, including Space Waster.

By the time Gallagher announced that it was the last song and "time to get pissed", Dumb Punts had well and truly won over the audience with their own brand of garage punk rock and shown why they have been marked by many as a band to watch in 2017. Hopefully it won't be too long before they cross the Nullarbor again.