Live Review: Mountain Goat Valley Crawl

Once a year, crowds arrive in force to flood Fortitude Valley for the Mountain Goat Valley Crawl - one of the biggest nights of all that is music in Brisbane.

Coming up from the south, Gold Coast's Peach Fur take over Crowbar first with their fusion of surf-rock and psych-pop and it takes only a few minutes before the venue is full to capacity with punters dancing and crashing into each other. It's only 6.15pm and the crowd’s already singing along to Days Go By.

Running across the road and down a street to The Brightside, we catch Gold Coast/Brisbane local heroes Electric Zebra. Beginning with their track Anything You Ignore, it seems criminal that they've been so constantly underappreciated throughout the music industry, and with powerful anthems like Serpico and Escalator they quickly draw a crowd of headbangers and sweaty dancers. They close with You’re Sinking, the whole venue lighting up - there’s even a group to the right of the stage that have formed a line, kicking their legs out in unison.

Running back to Crowbar, we find The Bonnie Doons playing a groovy, fun set. The crowd moves along with their energy, whether they pull it back to first gear or kick things into overdrive. 

Making it into Blute's Bar, Being Jane Lane frontwoman Teigan Le Plastrier calls for the crowd to move in close. The venue's not full by any means but the punks that are there pack in tight and it’s pure brutality.

After a few minutes' delay at Black Bear Lodge, local electronic outfit WARCRIES storm out in full force. They leap all around the stage, delivering a powerful performance of Runaway. There's also an array of brief covers in the mix, the band providing something for almost everyone lining the venue.

There’s a fair crowd back at Crowbar for Flowermouth. Hailing all the way from Perth’s southern suburbs, the band are a welcome addition of blissful alt-rock. They’re comparable to the likes of Basement – you can’t help but feel emotionally fulfilled at every dreamy vocal strain or guitar note.

Heading along to The Brightside, an enormous crowd has amassed – it’s almost hard to get in and out of the venue - and anticipation is strong for local talent Felivand, aka Felicity Vanderveen, and her accompanying band. It’s a set to remember. The crowd gets down to their mixture of synths, guitar, and jazzy drums and cheer at each of Vanderveen’s powerful high notes, especially when they're accompanied by vocal harmonies from bassist Alice Mikkelsen. They run overtime, but no one's complaining - it would have been a true shame if they had cut the show before Hot Headed and crowd favourite Same Old. 

Crowbar seems to be a crowd favourite tonight – with many people and familiar faces throughout the night constantly reappearing here. Cry Club take the venue's stage and deliver a loud, powerful performance. A crowd has filled half the venue and judging from the number of sweaty headbangers madly trying to keep up with the two-piece's increasing tempos it’s clear that this was another highly anticipated act. There's no time to catch a breath though, and it’s already time to make it towards the next venues.

Bloom Parade usually draw fans from both the hardcore and the indie spectrums. It’s unfortunate that The Brightside isn’t nearly as full as it should be for their sweet yet powerful tones tonight, but there’s a clear passion within the crowd for closing track Recurring Dream.

The Flying Cock is the place to be at 10pm. This is pure fact - The Jensens know how to build a vibrant atmosphere and they're sporting new material from an upcoming album. Serious groovers find their window in the band's psych-tinted indie-rock and any unfamiliar crowd-goers here fill in time between acts quickly realise they've made the best decision possible.

Arriving back at Black Bear Lodge, we’re greeted by a late-starting Keeskea. It's must be frustrating to have so many sound issues throughout the mix, and upsettingly we see people leave during the set, but Vanessa Marousopoulos and Olivia Bolin humbly take it in stride and still manage to create an intimate and authentic experience.

Newcastle’s RAAVE TAPES always - ALWAYS - pack out shows in Brisbane and it's a real struggle to get into The Zoo. They're one of the best noise-punk acts in the country and the crowd is baked in the overheated venue and basted in the sweat of crowd surfers and moshers. As well as members of Sydney outfit Stumps, they bring up friends from Grain Magazine and Bugs, the crowd loving their camaraderie with the Brisbane scene. They play Suds and K Bye, but soon it comes time to call it a night. As the burnt-out crowds push out of the venues, it’s safe to say that once again the Mountain Goat Valley Crawl has been a huge success.