Live Review: Goon Wizarrd, Astro Dad, Goonbomb

While trendy pop-up bars and ex-Australian Idol DJ sets might be the 'it' thing of winter, nothing beats a cosy night of carafes and pub-rock bands at ye olde faithful, The Exeter. 

Presented by Umbrella: Winter City Sounds Festival this night was aiming a bit higher than your usual Saturday fare. The event featured three unique, under-the-radar, up-and-coming bands who performed passionately to a somewhat interested goon-guzzling, chain-smoking crowd. Of course there were friends bought in for moral support (these were the ones who led the applause in between songs) but the rest of the pub didn't seem to mind the noise.

Four-piece Goonbomb kicked off the shenanigans a little before 9.30 and dished out about half an hour's worth of dirty-sounding drums/guitar/bass, during which they played their latest offering, Young Love Demo. Goonbomb sound a bit like a sad version of Dune Rats or angry Courtney Barnett and they list their influences as "lots of alcohol". The whole set, to be frank, felt like a rehearsal in their mum and dad's garage, which is kinda edgy for those of us watching. The opening set was tight enough, forecasting the 'too cool to care' tone for the night ahead.

Next up were Astro Dad (who temporarily changed their name to 'Astro Cask' for the night, in keeping with the theme), a punk-rock quartet who weren't afraid to give it a red-hot go. The vocals were commendable and the chorus hooks were catchy; who knew singing about lobster could be so upbeat and memorable? 

The strength of the decibels travelling through the speakers didn't seem to trouble the sound engineers or the bands. Lastly, Goon Wizarrd from The Swirl Records collective (definitely keep a close eye on these guys) wrapped up the night on a high. Dare we say they were the most palatable of the three? And seemed like a fun group of guys just wanting to have a good time thrashing it out. Most young bands write songs about the mundane and Goon Wizarrd are no exception to this rule, but their song titles are something else. The band played through songs from their demo and had us hooked from beginning to end with their awkward stage presence and strange, lo-fi, grungy brand of pub-rock, which was a welcome addition in The Ex's dimly lit front room.

South Australia can be proud of many things, namely its pubs, DIY music scene and invention of the goon sack. All of these have, no doubt, inspired the next wave of cool, edgy bands before us tonight.