Live Review: The Music/Chugg Music ARIA Week Showcase: Lime Cordiale, Deep Sea Arcade, Sheppard, Bonjah

To kick off the night Melbourne four-piece Bonjah rocked and rolled on stage to a small but growing crowd. Frontman Glenn Mossop's vocals gave their alternative/blues tracks momentum, while the driving bass lines from David Morgan added an almost sensual element. They were possibly the most commanding performance of the night, exhibiting a showmanship unparalleled by later acts as they half-thrusted into their guitars and stumbled about.

Sheppard. Pic by Cole Bennetts.

Up next was Sheppard, a six-piece from Brisbane, whose polished brand of anthemic acoustic pop delighted the crowd pretty much instantly. On show were lush four-part harmonies, massive drums and instrumentation that evolved through the set, keeping things fresh by integrating keys and harmonica in later tracks. With lead vocal duty shared between siblings George and Amy Sheppard, whose voices compliment each other like, well, family, the band's uber-catchy, feel-good set caught the crowd's attention and didn't let go.

Deep Sea Arcade. Pic by Cole Bennetts.

Deep Sea Arcade owned the stage with their reverb-soaked, blissed-out psych-pop jams. The band spent much of their set in silhouette, the Beresford's lights doing much of the work for them, but it paid off: all smoke and strobes, the band ushered the crowd in with cool, spacey vibes. New single, Black Cat, is a rollicking, '60s psych-lite tune with a powerful guitar hook, while Steam, a more straightforward indie-rock number, left room for frontman Nic McKenzie's commanding stage presence. And commanding it was - sashaying from left to right, encouraging crowd participation and belting his lungs out on crowd-pleasers like Keep On Walking.

Lime Cordiale. Pic by Cole Bennetts.

Closing the night was Northern Beaches five-piece Lime Cordiale, who've steadily been making a name for themselves as a must-see local live band. With sunny radio-friendly melodies, playful lyrics and jangly guitars in place, what really sets the band apart from their contemporaries is the integration of brass instruments. As such, the title track from the band's new EP, Falling Up The Stairs, was the set's highlight, with a slow-jam intro that featured a gorgeous bass line and smooth trombone backing. Perhaps the real star, though, was singer Oliver Leimbach's soulful melodies, which seemed to fit the slow grooves just as well as the up-tempo pop-rock of tracks like new tune, Bullshit Aside.

All photos by Cole Bennetts were taken with Nokia Lumia 1020.