Nucleus @ The Espy Basement,Melbourne (23/08/2008)

Mon 25th Aug, 2008 in Gig Reviews

Because Anniah pulled out at the last-minute, the set for the night was a tad messed up. The starting time was pushed back and An Easier Question were brought in to play first.

Despite their late call up An Easier Question still managed to be thoroughly annoying as they thrashed about the stage. The singer was flinging the microphone-stand around, in absolute disregard for the venue and the audience; the guitarist was shoving the singer on the floor, causing both guys to fall onto the ground. The fallback speakers were being kicked around like empty glasses, and ice was thrown on the floor. And if that wasn’t enough, the singer also poured Coke down his back, and hence onto the stage. Not cool. If you’re not the headlining act, and you were only called in at the last minute to replace a band that pulled out, please keep your act together and behave yourselves. They did not fit on the bill either, with their hardcore sound.

Thankfully Geamala was up next to soothe nerves. If you saw Luke Wood off stage, you would never guess that this very metal-looking dude with a tuft of hair on his bald head styled to look like a feather, played the Shakuhachi, a Japanese flute. The sound of Geamala is one that you would hear deep in the mountains of China. The traditional non-lyrical singing of Luke Wood with the soft, longing tunes of the flute were complemented with the furious strumming of a 7-string accoustic guitar by Anthony Connelly. The drums was a main feature of the three-piece as well, with Jesse Bates’s quirky but unfaltering beats, and the occasional clink of the metal wheel and the seraphic tinkles of the mark tree, or bar chimes. To sum it all up, Geamala is folk music with a modern twist. They’re sensational.

Sydney-siders Nucleus again had their trusty gothic candlesticks with them. The enigmatic atmosphere of the room did not obscure the jolly nature of the band. With the frequent cheerful banter between the members and callouts to the crowd, it was difficult not to see the distinct tightness of the group. This was inevidently visible in Nineight when the drumming exchange between Dylan Mitrovich and Mark Tyson hit its peak, as each player took off where the other left it with no hesitance whatsoever. Orion is probably the highlight of their set. The harmony in the voices of Matt Quayle and Dylan Mitrovich arresting never fails to rob me of my breath. The tribal element in Nucleus is brought about not only by the drums, but also by Ayden Mitrovich’s pumping bass rhythms. Just watching Ayden bounce on the balls of his feet in time to the notes his fingers are playing is riveting. The crowd, on the other hand, wasn’t very active sadly. There were only a couple of people bobbing their heads, and no one was really rocking out to the music. But then again, it was rather late because of the lineup correction.

The next time Nucleus will be coming down to Melbourne is November, so be sure not to miss them!