Live Review: Garden Party

Like every other University of Wollongong Garden Party, the Uni Bar opened the adjacent Uni Hall to accommodate the many acts playing early in the night. Hey Geronimo provided one of the most energetic performances of the evening, and although Pete Kilroy's vocals sounded a little shaky at first, after the initial hiccups his high-pitched, high intensity screams were nothing short of amazing. A kick arse drum and keys solo during closer Why Don't We Do Something? was the highlight.

Jeremy Neale's set was similar to Hey Geronimo's, with high energy, toe-tapping, upbeat indie-pop tunes, great vocals and a huge crowd reaction. Neale breezed through Swing Left, Do Do Do, Darlin' and brought ten crowd members on stage to enhance the fun of finisher In Stranger Times.

Elizabeth Rose seems to have expanded her live set since last year. By the time she walked on stage in a flowing white dress and tiara her keyboard player/DJ had already built a wall of sound and a heavy atmosphere. Her vocals were superb and, technically, the set was flawless, her tracks a subtle mixture between '90s synth-pop, chilled deep house and outright bangers. The audience didn't seem to dance as much as they did for the out and out positivity of Neale or Hey Geronimo, but there was an appreciation for the quality of music being produced.

Sticky Fingers have played and owned the Uni Bar before; this time in the much bigger Uni Hall they cemented their spot as a firm favourite. The hall was full and the bucket hats were on. With a new album due out in July a few of the upcoming tracks were scattered throughout a set of favourites like Caress Your Soul and These Girls. One ambitious fan jumped onstage during Gold Snafu and had a solid 30 seconds of fun before she was politely escorted off. An encore was always going to happen when the set finished – Australia Street hadn't been played – but that didn't stop deafening chants and ground-stomping. The encore topped off a night UOW won't soon forget, and Sticky Fingers will be welcome back any time.