Live Review: Some Jerks, Gravel Samwidge, Marville

Taking the stage for the first time together tonight, Ashleigh Kerley and Doug Palmer – Marville – take the chill off this wintery evening with their bold, indie-grunge dynamic. If they hadn't told us this was Marville's first performance with Palmer on drums, you could easily be forgiven for believing they'd been playing together for years, as the pair appear incredibly in tune with one another; feeding off each other's energy with a quality of seasoned professionals. While their musical connection is evident, Kerley's fierce stage presence, Kim Gordon-esque vocals and incredible guitar work manage to shine slightly brighter than Palmer's percussive efforts, with the only negative that can be drawn from the set coming in the form of an imbalance in sound levels. Despite Kerley's pleas for more volume in the vocals, this is unfortunately never corrected, which is disappointing as it could have elevated the performance to another level. 


You never know exactly what you're going to get with Gravel Samwidge, which is actually part of the thrill of witnessing this band live. Tonight they're performing as a trio, with founding member Mark Spinks joined by bassist Ash Jenkins and drummer Alex “Sleepy” Morrison. The group opt for a sludgy, grungy and droning form of post-punk with this set, where Spinks dazzles with the bizarre yet beguiling sounds he's able to manipulate out of his guitar, Jenkins commands with a forceful, all-pervading and soul-depraving bass line and Morrison simply astounds with the way he is able to make his lazy, off-kilter style of drumming sound so impressive. For the final song of their set they're joined by a mysterious, leather-gloved individual who wails provocative punk poetry into his mic while throwing himself to the floor, into audience members and hanging off the stage's railing.


The cosy little venue is packed out with devoted friends and fans by the time surfy grunge-rock trio Some Jerks take the stage, and the electricity in the room is palpable. They're here to launch their banging new double A-sided single into the wild – Dark And Dead Of Night and Nancy – recently self-released as a 7”. The former is a shimmying and shaking little number that showcases Victoria Wilson's flawless vocals balanced nicely by the signature surfy twang of Will O'Brien's guitar. The latter boasts a faster tempo, and even though Wilson relinquishes primary vocal duties, she still steals the show with her absolutely pumping bass line and super sweet harmonies. Favourites such as Barry Rich Made Me Cry and Never Know help fill the remainder of what is a totally fun, loose and wild set – such good times!