Getaway Plan @ Rosemount Hotel

Fri 12th Sep, 2008 in Gig Reviews

Gallery by shanebutler

There were great expectations for Melbourne band The Getaway Plan on the last leg of the Where the City Meets the Sea tour. After hitting the road nonstop for almost two years, the boys have added to their already solid fan base, to judge by the number of people at the Rosemount fifteen minutes after it opened. Surprisingly, a barrier had been set up at the front of the stage.

Up first were indie rockers, Kill Teen Angst. These guys are pegged as a hot act in WA music, but their performance seemed generic and done before. Scott Tomlinson definitely has the vocals to back up the agro/indie sound they have going for them but perhaps the sound tech was failing them, as the lyrics were muffled by the volume of the instruments. Through their whole set they were unable to engage the audience. Even when they played their ambitious and catchy single, The World or Nothing early on in the set, there was just a single line of people against the barrier.

Calling All Cars are known for the onstage antics of front man Haydn Ing The boys started playing to a lukewarm crowd and it wasn’t until they played Knock – œem Down that the crowd started to react. In particular, to Haydn jumping off his brother James’** bass drum and repeated visits to the barrier for some interaction. What some may see as an ambitious act at a pub gig, was actually entertaining and refreshing compared to the stagnancy of the previous performance. Unsatisfied with the level of audience participation during All the Lucky Ones Haydn climbed the barrier only to jump off again, tearing into a guitar riff on landing, with Matt Lonergan watching on with smiles. Finishing with Animal which demanded movement, Haydn leapt into the crowd, ripping off his guitar and handing it to the eager punters. Others looked on in amazement, that he had actually given someone his guitar. Sadly for them, he returned to retrieve his property.

Along for the ride from the beginning of the tour were fellow Melbourne band Closure in Moscow. “What the hell is this?” was heard nearby in response to their choral introductory piece. Bounding on stage, they immediately hit play. In a flurry of hair, lead singer Chris De Cinque belted out lyrics to the well known, Breathing Underwater with the audience singing along to every word and pointing towards the stage. We Want Guarantees, Not Hunger Pains saw De Cinque dancing in a disjointed cross between crumping and a Michael Jackson tribute. This carried on throughout their set with Mansur “Manny” Zennelli (guitar) singing barely audible backing vocals and Brad Kimber (a shaggy mop of red hair) braced on the stage enthusiastically thrashing his bass. Together with rolling beats from Beau McKee and Michael Barrett’s additional guitar, they form a well oiled machine that could pave the way for Australian post-hardcore rock. If you missed them this time, it’s too late because they are moving to America to record an album.

By now the “pit” was tight and getting tighter. You could feel every movement from your neighbour. No…really. EVERY movement. This is what to expect from a sold out show, as is chanting of the name of the headlining band.

A feeling of déjà vu ensued as the headliners were also introduced by the choral piece Entr’acte taken from their album Other Voices, Other Rooms. Even when rolling onto the stage, you would have sworn The Getaway Plan’s lead singer Matthew Wright was Closure in Moscow’s lead singer, with the same Zelda (yes, the video game) tri-force triangle on his right hand scribbled in black marker, the just-got-out-of-bed hair and the skinny jeans. Starting with The Tempest the avid fans broke through the crowd, set apart from new fans because they knew the lyrics.

They bounced between songs from the current album and their debut EP Hold Conversation with one of the most notable tracks being If the Suspense Doesn’t Kill Us, Something Else Will where the roadie tackled a crowd surfer for getting too close. When the audience chanted for The New Year their chants were answered, provoking a heavy response of cheers and screams. When Wright came close to the barrier, their attempts to reach him failed for he would never come closer than half a metre. To lighten things up a little they played New Medicine where Wright, showed his musical ability both in vocals and on keys, while band mates Clint Splattering (guitar), Aaron Barnett (drums) and Dave Anderson (bass) took a break before joining him again for an all out jam. Finishing their set with the single that started it all, Where the City Meets the Sea, the crowd was rowdier than ever, with the crush becoming unbearable for some.

After they had left the stage, people still didn’t budge from their positions as an encore was imminent. The flickering of the stage lighting was enough of a sign for all to begin a rapturous applause to welcome back the four members. For real, they capped the night off with Rhapsody on a Windy Night sending fans home with contented smiles on their faces.

Gallery by shanebutler