It’s a common belief that there must be something in the water over in Perth, with the city having produced top-notch acts like Tame Impala and their sister band, POND. However, it’s evident that the psychedelic, lo-fi contents of the waters of the west have also established themselves well in Port Phillip Bay in the form of five-piece The Frowning Clouds.
Hosting a sweet album party at The Workers Club in Fitzroy, it was a strong turnout given that a number of local and international acts were performing elsewhere on the same night.
There was amiable support from upcoming acts Velcro and Contrast. For Contrast, the mix was out of whack, leaving many people in the crowd with ringing ears from an uncomfortably high registered guitar – an unfortunate circumstance, as the band had a solid set with a number of well-written tracks.
When The Frowning Clouds took to the little stage, the Geelong-based act powered through a set that involved a lot of twisting and shaking from an intoxicated audience, who were carried away by the band’s ability to craft extremely well-structured melodies and transport one back to the 60s in a heartbeat.
Influenced by “the search for eternal sunshine” (according to their Facebook), it seems the band may have in fact been successful in their endeavour; the set was completely void of melancholy. Each song was bright, upbeat, and didn’t particularly break the four-minute mark.
A significant number of songs performed were from their latest LP Whereabouts, an album that certainly proves to be as delightful on stage as it is on mp3 or vinyl.
A new song was thrown into the mix and was well received by the audience – particularly by the punters in the front row, who danced as much as they could in the space of approximately two-and-a-half minutes.
The set was a lot shorter than expected. Whether they were running on a tight schedule or not is unknown, but for a band headlining and hosting an album party, they could have played a couple more songs.
Set time aside, the whole night was a blast and accompanied by some well-dressed individuals who looked like they had travelled direct the 60s London era.
On a damp and overcast Saturday night, the cosy den of The Workers Club seemed to be a fitting choice for an event like this, and a perfect choice for a band like The Frowning Clouds.
