Last year’s St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival at Brisbane’s RNA Showgrounds was a day of live music marred with sound and technical problems throughout almost every band’s set.
Partly due to the bout of sodden weather (who could forget Girls frontman Christopher Owens stopping the entire band mid-song to ask what the hell the noise was – it was rain pounding the tin roof of the shed), it resulted in a day of delayed start times (50 minutes later than scheduled and punters were granted M83’s hit single “Midnight City”, and not much more); or else musicians in danger of injury – as poor Feist discovered from her electric-shocking microphone.
So it’s safe to say festival-goers to 2013’s Laneway Festival, which kicked off its Australian leg of the tour in Brisbane on Friday, were more than a little wary (and the sight of SAE staff was not exactly comforting in knowing the sound will be kept in check).
However, with only a few tickets shy of being sold out and the sun staving off the threatening grey clouds, it certainly feels as if Brisbane is in its element this year.
Jeremy Neale and band are the local Triple J Unearthed winners to kick off the day at the Zoo Stage, and their sharp suits and sharper tunes gather a welcoming crowd. With music that gets the stiffest attendees grooving, the only unfortunate part was missing out on hearing the majority of Neale’s superb saxophonist.
Coming all the way from Norway, Kings of Convenience are playing for the first time in Australia today. The duo of Eirik Glambek Bøe and Erlend Øye (known also from The Whitest Boy Alive) officially open the festival shortly after midday and they end up putting on what will end up being one of the highlights of the day. Those who turn out early to see them are lucky enough to witness their pure, simple acoustic magic.
They play a great stretch from all over their albums, a perfect mix to premiere to their waiting fans Down Under. “You In Me”, “24-25” and “Mrs Cold” are played by the two in absolute flawless harmony – both on guitar and vocally. The mass of people are certainly glad they played first, before other bands’ fuzz could drown them out, just as the Øye and Bøe explain earlier.
There’s literally not one fault and before you think it was impossible to fall in love with the Norwegian men any further, they introduce a three-piece band for the remainder of the set.
An extended “Boat Behind” is the pinnacle of the hour. The crowd crouches and leaps on Øye’s command as the charismatic performer dances with no inhibition. Closing with “I’d Rather Dance with You”, the smiles are endless and impossible to wipe way.
Meanwhile, over at the Zoo Stage, Henry Wagons and his band The Unwelcome Company have well and truly started a party. With his breed of wayward, outlaw rock ‘n roll, Wagons is a true showman and such an early timeslot seems almost blasphemy.
Covering Wanda Jackson was keyboardist and backing vocalist Kel Day’s brilliant moment to shine, while guitarist John Guscott slays it. There’s also a slew of local guests in Little Scout’s Mel Tickle, for “Give Me A Kiss”, and The Grates’ Patience Hodgson for closing song, “A Hangman’s Work is Never Done”.
Wagons winds his mic chord around and around his throat to give blood curdling screams, before running through the crowd to give others a go. A showman indeed.
It’s a different story back at the Carpark Stage, as Real Estate play their slowly building seven-minute track “All The Same” to a sea of people. With more focus on the music, it’s easy to lose the adrenaline gained from the beginning of the day. A new song in “Matt’s Day” was exciting for fans, and a lovely cover of Feist’s “Look at What the Light Did Now” was another nice addition.
Their tight performance and instrumental restraint is often beautiful but, as is the beauty of Real Estate, it tends to blend as if their 40 minute set is one song.
Joining a throng of people back to the Zoo Stage to catch the enigmatic New York-based, Australian duo High Highs’ first show on their home soil.
Jack Milas and Oli Chang – along with their drummer – are playing to a crowd who seem half interested in what they have to offer and the other half waiting to hear that song: “Open Season” is played well towards the end and the shed empties rather quickly once it’s over.
High Highs are a perfect example of being on the losing side of a hyped band. The pair have just released their debut album the other week and it already seems all too samey. Whether or not the nuances from the album are lost in translation, the fairy lights wrapped around their equipment is the highlight of their forgettable, lacklustre set.
A band who is, on the other hand, enjoying the rapid rise of their career is The Rubens. Holding their own at the Carpark Stage, it’s packed from beginning to end and they have a strong crowd of backing vocalists for the entirety of their set. Smashing through all the favourites, “My Gun”, “Lay It Down”, “Elvis” and “I’ll Surely Die”, their soulful rock is hard to disagree with.
Once again returning to the Zoo stage, this time for Perfume Genius, their sound check was worrisome, including hearing a couple of loud pops that surely meant no good for equipment.
Indeed, Mike Hadreas – the man behind Perfume Genius – plays a set stained and soiled with feedback, monitor and reverb problems.
With music that’s already heart wrenching enough, coupled with Hadreas’ pained face and his bandmate’s struggles to maintain pace, all the devoted fans could do was offer their utmost support in huge amounts of applause and cheers. It’s the biggest shame of the day.
The award for biggest crowd pleasers probably goes to Of Monsters and Men. The newly five-strong Icelandic lineup draws in the majority of the festival it seems, and they reward the punters with ample energy and hit singles, “Little Talk” and “Mountain Sound” amongst what is otherwise a fairly beige sounding set.
Co-singer Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdótti has an odd and irritating way of cutting her vocals in half but their trumpet and keys player is brilliant to watch.
Alt-J is one of the most anticipated sets of the day and they don’t fail to impress. Their brand of geometric, glitchy art rock has captivated and caught on very quickly. The four-piece is tight and their oddly minstrel-like chanting heard in many songs is creepily awesome live.
Again another band whose fans aren’t shy of bellowing along the lyrics, “Tessellate”, “Something Good” and “Breezeblocks” are simply huge and the English musicians finish as the sun begins to set in their eyes.
The thick, hazy nature of Pond is almost tangible during their set at the Eat Your Own Ears Stage in the early evening. This band of mates carries the best chemistry seen in a long time; everything they do onstage is natural and dazzling.
Jay Watson is seriously excellent leading the sonic riffs on guitar, Cameron Avery smashes up a tight storm at the back on drums, and Nick Allbrook is nothing less than a star as Pond’s loose frontman.
“Moth’s Wings” was a highlight amongst many, as was brand new single “Giant Tortoise”. It’s such an enjoyable, non-stope set for both the band and the crowd. Extended, lazy jams are played mid-way through most songs under flooding lights and they would have happily been seen to play for another 3 hours.
Alas, the day soon draws to a close but the crowd hasn’t given up yet. It appears they all want to see Melbourne soultronica star, Chet Faker (aka Nick Murphy), bring the goods, to the point that security stops people entering once the Future Classic Stage hit capacity – long before the man himself stepped onstage.
Unfortunately, with a late start due to stage issues, Chet Faker’s set was easily 20 minutes shorter. Explaining they’d just returned from New York (and a 25 hour flight), the band were still ready to go – until sound issues flooded them to the point where they started “Terms and Conditions” again.
Murphy looks visibly pissed as stage managers try to communicate with him and it’s as if he lets it all go and tells his band to have free reign. Or at least he tells that to his drummer, who begins to beat out of time, overlapping and changing pace with unnecessary flourishes and multiple shrugs to his bandmates.
The packed room still laps up “I’m Into You”, “Love and Feeling”, a scratchy “Solo Sunrise” and the closing cover “No Diggity”. And that’s all.
Murphy sincerely and apologetically thanks the crowd regardless, but no doubt there’ll be a few tech people in the line of fire for not turning around such a messy, coagulated set.
Never mind, as there is a more pressing decision to make. Once again, Laneway has made it very difficult indeed in whom to see last: Bat for Lashes, Twerps, Divine Fits or Nicolas Jaar.
Divine Fits is the new group consisting of Britt Daniel, frontman of Spoon, Dan Boeckner, of Handsome Furs and Wolf Parade fame, and Sam Brown from New Bomb Turks.
Having released their debut album in mid-2012, the combination of these musicians is thrilling. From the beginning, it appears they’re unafraid of anything. They cover each other, pull out jams, swap instruments, and share frontman duties. It’s just magical.
Much to the crowd’s delight, the quarte plays almost the entirety of A Thing Called Divine Fits. From the grooving “Neopolitans” to the punchy “Flaggin’ a Ride”, it’s tough as nails the whole set. Boeckner croons away in true rock ‘n roll style for “My Love is Real”, even eschewing the guitar.
That’s when it becomes obvious. These guys, particular Daniel and Boeckner, are total rock stars. The crowd is enthralled; they know they’re experiencing something special.
Keyboardist Alex Fischel hops on guitar for “Like Ice Cream” and Divine Fits close the set with their cover of “our favourite Australian musician” as Daniel states, Rowland S. Howard’s “Shivers”.
After an almost perfect day, it’s hard to predict the future of this glorious festival. How promoters Danny Rogers and Jerome Borazio will top it in terms of bands and musicians next year isn’t really the question. It’s more a hope that, with such improvement on last year’s somewhat train wreck of a day, logistic and technical aspects will only continue to move forward.
