Walking in just behind the usual Saturday markets, coffees and baked goods in hand; a steady stream of folks made their way into the historic halls of the Carriageworks for the inaugural At First Sight event.

The brainchild of one of Sydney music’s “go-to” men, FBi Radio host Marty Doyle, this was a chance to witness and enjoy the culmination of music presented in its two most wonderful formats: played live, and pressed onto vinyl.

The record fair filled most of the large industrial hall, and was a wonderful blend of established and independent merchants.  It must be said that the quality on offer was very decent, from bin bargains through to rare original pressings across almost any genre you’d care to imagine.

With terrific tunes being provided by a rotation of DJs, it proved a strong attraction to a mix of festival-goers and dedicated crate diggers from midday through until the early evening.

The good folks at the resident Cornerstone Bar & Food were run off their feet for most of the event, they were dealt a heavy load of thirsty punters to contend with all throughout the event.

The live room was a cavernous, concrete warehouse with very high ceilings; and whilst a comfortable and strikingly good venue visually, it did seem to prove a struggle for the sound technicians to tame at times.

If Sydney’s Day Ravies were to be described as a drink, they’d be a highball of pop with a psych back, served cool over ice.  It’d likely be a brightly coloured beverage.  They opened proceedings in style; and if their performance was anything to go by then their forthcoming record will be well worth your attention.   Holy Balm then brought their twist on synth-heavy dance music.  With the depth provided by live percussion on stage, it was fun and organic without being offensively unpolished.

The room seemed to lend itself well to the cleaner, brighter tones of the pop groups; though the sound became rather muddy in the middle and bottom, particularly as the crowd grew steadily throughout the evening.

For this reason the wonderful sets from groups the likes of Songs and Super Wild Horses shone through; beautifully bright guitar tones and just some of the loveliest female vocals benefiting from the natural reverb.

Conversely, the heavier textures and layers of noise provided by The Laurels, a wonderful live group, were slightly lost in the mix on this occasion.   The exception to the rule was probably delivered courtesy of Straight Arrows, whose brand of messy fuzz-pop seemed to cut through the very well and delight the now full room.

Sound was but small gripe on an otherwise outstanding event.  Melbourne groups Twerps who closed out their set with a good ol’ fashioned ‘get ya mates on stage’ sing-a-long, and the terrifically talented HTRK rounded out what can only be described as a wonderful cross-section of local music.

Overall the day was a well curated, well run, and well attended event; take a bow Mr Doyle et al.  A lot of folks will be hoping that they get a second chance to attend At First Sight.