Playing their particular brand of indie pop, The Protectors opened the night to a hometown crowd. A fun band that put a groove in your step, the Sydney lads are an unsigned act to keep your eye on. They are taking their tunes around the east coast in coming months on some pretty nice little supports.
If you haven’t gotten on The Holidays bandwagon yet, it’s time to find your passport, because this is one trip you’re not going to need photos to remember. Seemingly heavily moulded by Brit Pop, this Sydney four-piece mix their influences with some Aussie indie stylings to create some ‘Colonial Pop’ that’s as catchy as it is tight. Their dancefloor tunes not only make you want to shake your booty, but there’s also the possibility that they are going to be threatening airwave saturation in coming months. In three words, ‘they’re pretty dope’.
Adelaide’s finest Wolf & Cub took the stage around ten thirty, and they had pulled a pretty sweet crowd. Punters eager to see them after such a long hiatus were packed in the Annandale like tiny fish in tins. Playing for an hour, the set was new-song-heavy, throwing four old tracks in with six new, driving tunes. Old favourites Thousand Cuts, This Mess and Steal Their Gold had new life breathed into them, with the double drummer band’s signature live urgency and passion. Recorded four-minute songs were funked up with instrumental breakdowns and wolf howls and barks courtesy of frontman Joel Byrne.
New songs included single One To The Other, which rocked the socks off the crowd. With a hooky chorus and bassline that made your heart race, the single is destined to be a fan favourite. It’s also a great first offering from the forthcoming sophomore album. With new drummer Marvin Hammond whipping out the saxophone, Wolf & Cub were temporarily playing with only one drummer, but the dynamics of the group didn’t seem to change and the wall of sound didn’t falter.
Byrne’s drive to concentrate on songwriting seems evident in the tracks, particularly on Relief, the b-side on the new single and a highlight of the set. Sounding even better live than on CD, hearing Relief as a B-side makes you pretty amped up for the tracks that actually made it to the final album.
The set was tight, driving and most importantly entertaining. Wolf & Cub haven’t lost their edge since we last saw them onstage. If anything, they seem to have gotten hungrier. Yes, hungry like the wolf.
