Once again The Hopetoun Hotel was a great location Saturday Night for good local music. 4 bands for $10, hard to go wrong there. This night served as the launch for "Meet Horace and Clyde" the new EP from Brisbane's The Rocketsmiths. However my primary reason for attending this night was to see the first band (more later) and due to other commitments I wasn't able to stay for the headliner. But I did catch The Saturns, whose high energy set was kinda fun but the songs didn't make much of an impact on him. However an impact was most definitely made by the second band, who I was seeing for the first time. Walrus (pictured above) was the name of the band and I was most definitely impressed. It is really refreshing to see a young band be able to totally rock out, yet never sacrifice the ability to write interesting songs with good melodies and great hooks. With a great drummer behind them Walrus were an unstoppable force playing their catchy concoction of garage rock and blues. Sporting 3 singers, I was really knocked by the central singer (Roland Smith, I believe), whose distinctive stance and voice was quite compelling. Playing mostly a set of comprised of tunes from their recent EP "The End of the Earth Show" this band is both inventive and highly exciting. Absolutely a must see live act. "War" and "Corn Coloured Vomit" were probably the stand out tracks on the night.
MP3: War

Now, as mentioned previously around these parts, make sure you see Dead Letter Chorus soon. Very soon, for this band is quickly becoming my favourite Sydney band. Playing a short set (they had a later engagement in Caringbah), they once again impressed with their broad range of talents and bucket loads of pure emotional power. To state the case quite simply, they play an honest brand of music devoid of all affectations. In the manner of all good rock bands there is an honesty and integrity that is self evident when you see them live. It's pure traditional rock songs with a little bit of folk and country tossed into the mix. Their debut EP "Listen Carefully" has just been released and although it is very, very enjoyable the best part is that my favourite songs by the band are not recorded yet. These include "Magnolia Farm", "11th Dream About Planes" and the perfect closer "Fathers & Daughters". They have a show coming up this Friday at MuM @ World Bar before heading to Melbourne for 3 engagements. Make sure you do not miss them if you have the chance.
MP3: Fred Astaire