Sunset Sounds 2010 Day 2

Yesterday I stayed away from the Main Stage and today I was there for all but 1 band.

The John Steele Singers started the day with a upbeat set that had the crowd bouncing around. Loved the horses heads but didn't understand them at all. A great lead in to King Kahn.

King Kahn & The Shrines killed it. Just brilliant stuff. Even did a cover of 'Know Your Product' in honor of Brisbane i guess. Had the JSS horses on stage for that one as well. King Kahn was magnificent in his blue robe, underwear and the arse end of a bird stuck to his head. And of course shoeless, because Indians always remove their shoes before they do anything sacred.

The Editors were a bit of a comedown after that but next to The Bloc Party they are probably my favourite current English guitar band. The crowd went wild enough.

Meanwhile over at the other stage Grizzly Bear also sent the crowd wild though I'm physically unmoved by them. I enjoyed it but jeez, maybe they could take a minute halfway through to crank it up a bit? One speed gets a bit monotonous. They need more.

Karen O has the crowd in her hands. I'm down the front and there's lots of crowd noise but I had a good time thanks for asking.

Day 2 Verdict: 5 out of 5, half point off for Grizzly Bear [they need it] but half a point extra for King Kahn [he doesn't need it]. Got sunburned but some people bought me a beer. Hello to the Corner Crew from Splendour. I have many more stories for August.

John Steele Singers - Live @ Sunset Sounds - 07 Jan 2010

King Kahn & The Shrines - Live @ Sunset Sounds - 07 Jan 2010

The Editors - Live @ Sunset Sounds - 07 Jan 2010

Grizzly Bear - Live @ Sunset Sounds - 07 Jan 2010

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Live @ Sunset Sounds - 07 Jan 2010

The Grates at The Arena

The Grates were wonderful as always. If you listen closely you can hear them through the murk that passes as air in the Arena. The new songs fit perfectly and a couple are already sing along favourites.
The Grates - Live @ The Arena - 03 Oct 2008
Another copy if there are problems with the megaupload link above

The Vasco Era

Never seen before and was more than happy with their take on the blues as a basis for rock. Looking forward to seeing them again.
The Vasco Era - Live @ The Arena - 03 Oct 2008

The John Steele Singers
I hope they are received as enthusiastically down south as they were at home. They deserve it. A great live act.

The John Steele Singers - Live @ The Arena - 03 Oct 2008

The Valley Fiesta 2008

Friday Night
Off to Kim Salmon but have time to catch the very wonderful John Steele Singers before I go.
The John Steele Singers - Live @ The Valley Fiesta - 12 Sept 2008 [43.95MB]

Saturday
Amazing Voice? Check. Riffs Galore? Check. Hit it.
Little Vegas & The Fuzz Parade - Live @ The Valley Fiesta - 13 Sept 2008 [49.18MB]
Blinding set from this local trio. At about 13min there is a couple of recording glitches and one of them cuts out about 1 min of the start of the track. The MiniDisc involved has been retired with extreme prejudice.
Side Effects - Live @ The Valley Fiesta - 13 Sep 2008 [54.84MB]
The Boat People - Live @ The Valley Fiesta - 13 Sep 2008 [55.43MB]
Crowd favourite Ups & Downs bring out the older punters. For some reason I feel odd in a crowd where I'm not the oldest person. I also agree with Ben Salter that a Big Heavy Stuff reunion would be very nice.
Ups & Downs - Live @ The Valley Fiesta - 13 Sept 2008 [68.83MB]
It appears there are now 28 permanent members of the Gin Club. A random selection of them performed some of their hits for us.
The Gin Club - Live @ The Valley Fiesta - 13 Sep 2008 [68.07MB]

Sunday
Australia's finest exponents of country rock and roll. no really he said so. and he's probably right.
The Re-Mains - Live @ The Valley Fiesta - 14 Sep 2008 [63.76 MB]

A rain shortened set by the lovely Kate and the err.. handsome, Ben.
Texas Tea - Live @ The Valley Fiesta - 14 Sept 2008 [37.96MB]

Unless I wear a sign, someone is often going to talk to me at these shows and unless there is strong swearing involved [which I admit I am prone to occasionally] I usually can't take it out without damaging the integrity of the recording which I prefer not to do. It is a audience recording after all so I apologize in advance to any purists out there.