Live Review: Mother's Cake, AlithiA, Tony Font Show, Overview Effect

Mother's Cake returned triumphantly to Adelaide three years after their debut visit and, bearing tunes from their brand new album No Rhyme No Reason proved why they are one of Europe's best kept secrets in underground rock'n'roll.

Opening the show were local post-rock outfit Overview Effect, who delivered one of their best performances to date. A band that will have you transfixed, their live presence is spellbinding, thought-provoking and emotionally captivating.

Following were Tony Font Show, a funk-fusion delight in the vein of Psychostick and System Of A Down, whose onstage energy and tight musicianship complemented a fervent and unyielding vocal presence. Slap-tastic bass lines, slick guitar licks and snappy drum grooves kept the party popping.

Melbourne's AlithiA showcased some songs from their upcoming record amid a set of their live staples. The new material further integrates the band's additional percussion and presents a clear shift in direction toward floaty grooves and softer, more colourful vibes. A glimpse at best, it will be intriguing to hear the rest of the goods when it is finally released.

Mother's Cake are an ingeniously dark and twisted rock'n'roll band. Reinventing themselves creatively across each of their three records, their latest output represents their most concise and self-assured. Yves Krismer's eccentric voice and carefree guitar style melds perfectly with master drummer Jan Haubels' explosive, syncopated grooves and Benedikt Trenkwalder's classy yet technical work on the bass. Many cuts from No Rhyme No Reason were performed for the audience: The Killer proved a great example of the new layer of polish and urgency the band have added to their sound, each tense build-up unleashing into a chaotic and energetic chorus. H8 was another thumper, with a juicy hook that got the audience jumping, while Black Roses was a slower, sexier number, led by a jangly blues riff and a rim shot beat. From their back catalogue the band played crowd favourites The Road, Soul Prison I and Realitricked Me, some of their finest and most psychedelic cuts. Mother's Cake are a band worth discovering, and hopefully there is a much shorter period between their next visit.