Sydney-based record label Yes Please celebrated their second birthday with a little help from their extremely talented extended family.
The mini-festival of sorts encompassed the entirety of Melbourne’s Workers Club, and the adoration and respect that exists for the label was obvious across the night.
Melbourne’s own Leigh Hannah, a.k.a. The Townhouses, opened the night, cutting a solitary figure on stage, surrounded by a multitude of instruments, The sound created by Hannah, however, was expansive and sizeable, featuring mostly material from the LP Diaspora as well as some new songs.
The set including a stripped back version of the LP’s title track with just a restrained keyboard backing, allowing the strength of Hannah’s voice to be on full display.
The intriguing Wintercoats graced the bandroom next, and proved to be a mesmerising figure on stage, with James Wallace becoming completely immersed in his own creations. After being crouched down on stage offering delicate vocals to the mix for the entire first song, the set really picked up with the inclusion of Wallace’s masterful violin playing.
Adding layer upon layer of loops, and using the violin in almost every way possible, the quietly-spoken Wintercoats created a mysterious and infectious sound that was almost as enjoyable to watch as it was to listen.
With an abundance of DJs keeping those in the front-room entertained, the act that started it all for Yes Please back in June 2011 took to the stage. Guerre’s debut EP was the first thing released by the label, and by now the bandroom was packed to the point of overflowing.
The Sydney-based artist produced a stunning array of eclectic beats, constantly hunched over the various knobs and switches used to create them. Guerre slowly built up cascading walls of noise, and his small-stature definitely didn’t reflect the immensity of the sounds he produced.
At times adding his own haunting vocals to the mix, Guerre is mostly completely lost in his own sounds, barely giving the audience a chance to applaud and show appreciation for the skillful and entrancing set.
Fellow Sydney locals Fishing certainly know how to have fun. The duo are obviously having such a good time on stage that it’s impossible not to be drawn into this energetic and blissful world.
The duo bounced enthusiastically over their various electronic equipment across the set, and almost become one entity through their creation of diverse beats, covers, and samples. At times entering the crowd to rap with the sweaty masses, the duo hardly give the crowd a chance to breath until the set is nearly at its end.
After announcing that they “said we wouldn’t do this again”, the pair proceeded to introduce the adoring Workers’ crowd to the “dance-move of 2k14”, dubbed the ‘turt’. With the move seemingly involving putting your head in your shirt, the conclusion is a perfect reflection of the set as a whole: it’s energetic, it’s carefree, it’s a bit silly, and most of all, it’s just damn fun.
Melbourne three-piece I’lls have come a long way since the release of their debut EP Thread back in 2011. With the recent release of their second, A Warm Reception, this party provided the opportunity to launch the band’s more polished and refined sound.
Having now expanded to a five-piece live act that includes drums and bass, the band creates a sound that is, at the same time, both expansive and delicate.
Opener ‘To: All The Blurred’ set the scene for the entire night, with frontman Simon Lam’s ethereal vocals somehow managing to emerge from the complicated backing when needed.
“When I Know’ slowly built up, with Lam looping his own harmonies and transforming them into a melody, before reaching the euphoric and explosive finish where he retreated behind the drumkit.
Dan Rutman’s guitar works stands out across the night, adding a brilliant other dimension to the band’s sound, while Hamish Mitchell, while not being visible to most of the crowd hunched over the keyboard, created a diverse and constantly interesting array of sounds.
I’lls managed to meld nearly every song into the next, turning the set into an atmospheric and cohesive whole. Lam remark that “it’s kinda late but we’re flattered” in reaction to the packed-out crowd, before stating that “there’s so many people here and we’re so scared”. Nerves were nowhere to be seen in the band though, with the faultless set displaying the band’s full potential.
Finishing with ‘Plans Only Drawn’, it’s easy to see the band’s progression in the two years since their creation, and there’s only bigger and better things to come in their future.
It was a night that not only showcased the huge and overwhelming array of talents that Yes Please has collected over it’s short life, but also the clear love that exists for the Sydney-based label.
