Live Review: Hot Freaks

You really can't help but fall in love with Suburban & Coke and their pop punk that comes straight outta the suburbs. Singer Christian Hancock delivered a passionate vocal, perhaps born of frustration, but enjoyable throughout.

Leeches! are a band that waste absolutely no time getting to the point of their short, fast, catchy-as-hell '80s-influenced punk rock'n'roll. With a tonne of shows under their belt, Leeches! delivered a mixed-bag set, taking punters on a nostalgic trip laced with nods to greats like Minor Threat. Influences aside, the busy dancefloor was given an unmistakably Leeches! show as only the lads can pull off.

Over from Sydney, Hannahband had a curious buzz about them as they elegantly graced the stage. Unashamedly emotion-driven, they captivated the audience, floating in and out of well-harmonised melodies and brutal glimpses of heavy emo-punk. The set was also nicely split by clever use of the duo's male and female vocalists. Hannahband definitely gained some Perth fans with a beautifully cathartic set.

Indie, anthem, emo — you get it all from Oslow, another band who trekked over from Sydney. They engaged the crowd well, shelling out emotional anthems that have seen them completely shed their early hardcore influences, opting now to build songs instead of smashing them in your face.

Local drone legends PUCK were a nice change of pace for the 10-hour event. Heavy as a thunderclap from an ancient god, the three-piece know exactly who they are, unleashing devastating doom on a full floor of well-oiled and unsuspecting punters. It was great to see a bunch of young indie-punk kids nodding their heads like seasoned doom stoner rockers by the end - there may have even been a few converts!

Self proclaimed 'puke punks' The Sinking Teeth injected a bit of tempo and a lot of funny banter into the festival. Hailing from Melbourne, with a tasty mix of hard-hitting punk rock tunes and catchy singalongs, The Sinking Teeth turned more than a few heads as the sun went down and the devil horns went up.

Adelaide's Horror My Friend were next to hit Soggybones' now well-worn stage and they did it with pure class, everyone in the room left buzzing from their tight set. There's a lot of chatter surrounding them and with their recent signing to Poison City it's easy to see Horror My Friend have a big, bright future ahead.

You could be forgiven for thinking that Gunns, a quintet from right here in P-town, were an odd fit for the night, setting up the stage with the first keyboard of the day. This was far from the case and they embarked on a dreamy set bursting with flowing melodies, harmonies and crafty lyrics.

Pat Chow would have been a perfect headliner if the actual headliner wasn't so perfect. Churning out catchy, rapid-fire tunes, Pat Chow's mix of grunge and indie-punk left nothing on stage (except maybe some runaway threads from a  scruffy jumper or two). The set was completely lapped up by an audience that had spent the whole day eagerly awaiting the indie-punk singalong that Chow so graciously delivered.

A long ten hours of punk rock needs a great headliner, and we definitely got one in Adelaide's Grenadiers. Smashing into their punk rock'n'roll set like a jack hammer, it is easy to see why Grenadiers' reputation has them on a seemingly never-ending Australian tour. Menacing Bronx-like riffs are at the core of Grenadiers' sound, forged from years of touring, honing their rock'n'roll attitude with a tightness that can only come from three mates who love making music together.