Locals The Rude Heads kicked things off early with a few amateur tracks and a few covers. The crowd got to dancing and their set was tight, but a few of their songs sound the same as their cited influences Kings Of Leon and The Strokes – like, exactly the same.
Brother Speed – the new musical project of Darius Navidzadeh and Tom O'Dell of Underlights fame – were next on the bill. Navidzadeh poured out simple, catchy vocal melodies, '60s style, whilst O'Dell and the rest of the band pumped out '90s-sounding dance infused psychedelic pieces. Fragile strings proved a problem for Navidzadeh; he broke two of the bastards. But The Rude Heads' Dale Schoon came to the rescue, lending his guitar for the remainder of the set.
Loon Lake are three brothers and two mates, who say they play music because it's fun. It's hard to argue with their motives and if you've ever seen a Loon Lake set you'll know they're not kidding about having fun. It was one of those magical nights when the whole crowd becomes best friends, and the music is everything you want it to be. A few short days before debut album Gloamer was set to be released the boys exploded into their 13-song set with On Fire, a typically upbeat indie pop screamer. Spurred on by the enthusiastic audience and unbothered by a few technical issues, they smashed through the rest of their set. Oldies Bad To Me and The Week inspired a few women to flash, whilst what will be their next single City Lights got a huge reaction for a new track.
A cover song was one of the highlights; it can't be named due to a vow of secrecy the band made the crowd take, though it can be said it's a smash hit from 1998 that is perfectly suited to Sam Nolan's voice.
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They closed with In The Summer and blew the roof off the place. If the rest of the tour is anything like the opening night, Loon Lake should not be missed.
