Everyone needs a bit of musical inspiration from time to time – aspiring musicians possibly most of all.
Alana Wilkinson and The Moody Spooks are two emerging Aussie musicians who are currently taking part in the GRID Series 2016 artist development program, which has selected eight acts from Melbourne’s South East to play a series of showcases running from August 18 – 27 at The Village Green and The Pelly Bar.
We’ve had a chat with these emerging artists about the iconic live performances that showed them how they wanted to play whenever they took to the stage.
Alana Wilkinson
“Alana Wilkinson is a singer/songwriter. Capturing life’s roller coaster moments and cleverly crafting them through song Alana’s unique story telling captivates audiences far and wide.
As a multi instrumentalist, Al showcases her musical storytelling through honesty… and a little over sharing!”
Kimbra – Settle Down – Live for Spotify sessions
A friend showed me this clip a couple of years ago and it just stuck with me. She’s doing the craziest shit, looping it up with a harmonies and totally kills it.
I love Kimbra’s quirk and her voice and how clever she is, but my favourite part of this clip is hearing her at the very end when she says ‘it’s so scary doing it all on your own’. Cause it is. It’s freakin terrifying, but it’s good to know that if she feels that way, it’s gotta be normal, right?
Sia – Soon We’ll be Found – Live on Letterman
This was a performance that really made me stop what I was doing and pay attention.
I used to work at a massive toy store and amongst all the songs about how to use your manners and learning the alphabet, this song would play… And I’d just ballerina the fuck out of those aisles. Sia is just one of those people for me, I have all the time in the world for her magic.
Queen – Somebody to Love – Live in Montreal
We always had queen playing in the house growing up but I remember seeing footage of this as a kid and completely falling in love with the idea of playing a grand piano with beers on it. And Freddie Mercury really quickly became my all time favourite performer after that.
A YouTube tunnel of live Freddie is something I highly recommend getting lost in. (And… any old Spice Girls videos)
The Moody Spooks
“The Moody Spooks are five-piece experimental rock band. Not subscribing to any one particular sound, their most recent EP, titled “Lasso Lounge” draws influences from psych, jazz and garage records, all the while maintaining a new and innovative edge.
Their live shows are legendary amongst the Mornington Peninsula scene, weaving a captivating web of sonic madness.”
Tame Impala- Half Full Glass Of Wine Live at Glastonbury
What really draws us to this live video as a band is the combination of a really groovy tune that’s one of our favourites with an improvised jam in the middle that’s not featured in the recording.
The jam starts off with a relatively simple musical idea by Kevin and the rest of the band follows and add their own ideas in such an instinctive way that there’s probably a lot of people in the crowd that don’t know it’s improvised. Watching the band build the jam from a small 3 note riff to a really heavy groove with such intensity is quite amazing to watch and being that tight as a band is quite important to us.
The Rolling Stones – Jumpin’ Jack Flash
The Rolling Stones Rock n Roll circus is such a great watch, Jumpin’ Jack Flash is a particular favourite of mine. The set design in this TV special that never went to air, plus the theatrical side to it makes for something truly unique.
I have always been a big fan of the Stones from an early age, drawing heavy influence from Keith’s guitar playing and Mick’s vocal sound.
Primus – Jerry Was A Race Car Driver
Although the band may feel small or empty at some points, Primus has resonated with us time and time again with it’s weird sound and hyper attitude that just keeps pushing the boundaries of their music.
Originally an Acid Metal band, Primus inspires the rhythmic grooves which The Moody Spooks emulates in it’s own form. Tunes such as Jerry Was a Racecar Driver have driven the rhythm section of the band to keep that high intensity of drive at maximum capacity.
The song is a pretty standard jam but the whole performance reflects a groove that we as a band strive to maintain.
