The crowds were teeming on AC/DC Lane Sunday afternoon for the fifth annual rock and roll street party that is Cherry Rock. People that you thought you’d never see outside of a murky bar roamed around the laneway en masse in a sea of pulsating black, and likewise, bands that you thought you’d never see playing outside of the night’s dark, velvety cloak took to the stage, putting on performances you’d have been wise not to take your mother along to.
Kicking off the day was Attack of the Mannequins. Fronted by the sons of Models front man James Freud, slight echoes of his influence could be heard in their music, but theirs is a distinctive style that stood firmly on its own. Their industrial punk madness was a firecracker kickstart to the day, and those in attendance that weren’t too hung over from the night before and managed to be there in time for their set enjoyed it as they cracked open the first bourbon and coke of the day.
Australian rock n’ roll legend Spencer P. Jones took to the stage with his stalwart backing band of crack local musos, The Escape Committee. His years and years of experience become obvious when you see him play. Despite not looking quite as youthful as he did back in his heyday with The Johnnys and Beasts of Bourbon, he plays with an intensity that one can’t simply learn – it has to be lived. Summoning an enigmatic, melancholic stage presence harking back to the Australian underground rock scene of the 80’s, he played a mezmerising set thatwas disappointing to see finish.
Eventually dear Spencer’s set had to come to an end though, and who better to follow than the Dave Larkin Band? More people were cramming in to the laneway at this point as they began to get past their hangovers, and Melbourne rock stalwart Dave Larkin blasted their eardrums as he treated the crowd to his heartfelt bluesy rock n’ roll as well as some rockin’ tunes by his former band Dallas Crane which were given a more than welcoming reception.
Hot to trot newcomers Stonefield definitely provided a large contrast to the other performers looks-wise. You shouldn’t take their pretty young faces and bohemian threads as a sign of them being anything less that 100% rawwwk. These girls can rock no end, and had the crowd cheering en masse as they blasted through their beefy cover of ‘Whole Lotta Love’. While some people may perhaps put these girls down as a colourful gimmick, once they see them live there’s no questioning that they are divining the hammer of the gods that not only bows down at the altar of Led Zeppelin and Frank Zappa, but completely eclipses most bands that have bowed before the same rock gods in the past.
America’s first representative of the day, Jesse Hughes, was a highlight of the festival, having travelled halfway across the world solely to play Cherry Rock. Despite being jetlagged, in true rock n’ roll style, he took to the stage all fired up on something or other (coffee, no-doz, red cordial???), Jesse put on a show that would prove very difficult to follow. Accompanying him on guitar playing bass lines was his porn star girlfriend Tuesday Cross, and together this team of dirty rock n’ roll monkeys were joined by Cherry co-owner Bill Walsh on drums to rip through a set consisting of everyone’s Eagles of Death Metal favourites, as well as a slew of his newer solo Electric Boots stuff. The phrase ‘Can Ya Dig It?’ will take on new currency in Melbourne’s rock circles after Hughes’ frequent use of it throughout the set.
The difficult job of following Jesse’s set went to Melbourne’s very own Electric Mary. Despite having to follow arguably one of the best acts of the arvo, Electric Mary held their own. Playing an incendiary set of good old fashioned rock n’ roll, these guys proved that it’s never too late to start a rock band.
The rowdy boys of SixFtHick took to the Cherry Rock stage for the third time since the festival began, and proceeded to take things up yet another notch. It was clear that Gentle Ben did not bring his sensitive side to this event, immediately dominating the stage in the barbaric way he always seems to employ. The crowds were getting down and dirty in the rain as they hammered through their raw and primal set, and a shirtless Gentle Ben momentarily joined the triumphant audience before he took his new position up a wall to the side. Despite being a band that relies heavily on its live antics, the music was far from an antidote to the boys’ antics – rather it egged them on, and SixFtHick managed to finish off the set with another addition to their collection of onstage injuries – a fractured cheekbone for Ben Corbett.
SixFtHick may have been a difficult performance to follow, but Barrence Whitfield & The Savages managed to turn up the heat and overshadow them almost completely. The Little Richard of our generation, Barrence really knows how to rock and put on a ripper show. Only having just gotten back together with The Savages, their long break has obviously re-lit the flame, and there was no shortage of fire in this performance. Barrence’s golden tonsils roared down the alleyway at full throttle, and the same could be said for his band. If the music wasn’t enough, they bought Cherry’s bar manager up on stage to dance with them, her shimmying across the stage eliciting wild cheers from the punters down the front.
With Barrence having whipped the crowd in to a frenzy and the anticipation for Died Pretty’s headline performance at fever pitch, the drizzle had become quite constant. This didn’t scare off punters though. Rather than thinning, the crowds just seemed to get thicker and thicker as Died Pretty ripped up the stage. A mid set rendition of ‘Out In The Rain’ was entirely appropriate, while reforming for the sole purpose of playing Cherry Rock, Died Pretty demonstrated just how missed they are in Australian music. Ron Peno’s hair was thinning, but aside from that, nothing about his performance hinted that it was indeed almost 30 years on since they first began playing. Their songs are timeless and many leading Australian bands would murder to have just a handful of their songs in their back catalogue, let alone to be able to perform them with a passion that you don’t often see in artists that have been around as long as they have. ‘Wonderland’ left many jaws agape , while a final, final encore came to a close with ‘Twist Again’ providing a brilliant ending to the evening; the only downer being that the fans who had turned out in force may never get to see the band again.
– Ella Jackson
