Young & Restless, LightsOut,Young & Restless DJ's vs.Cheese @ Transit Bar,Canberra, 19/09/08

Sat 20th Sep, 2008 in Gig Reviews

It be International Talk Like A Pirate Day and a fine evenin’ in t’ capital, perfect for a night on t’ town. But as soon as me hearties got into t’ Transit Bar t’ degrees doubled an’ hot an’ sweaty became t’ order o’ the night. Arr!!!

After a late cancellation by The Fighting League (due to illness), their replacements – Sydneysiders LightsOut started playing just after 9 pm. The already huge crowd including a few pirates, were lining the walls and all round the bar, with most of the floor space cleared for maximum numbers. On the eve of the release of their self-titled EP debut LightsOut played the catchy An Hours Indecision and the standout Lights Out, to the crowd who didn’t join them on the dancefloor. It may have been the intimidating presence of the camera crew (TV Production students from Charles Sturt University there to film Y & R) or the random oldie bopping along upfront that kept them at bay, either way the foursome were lively despite the heat.

For someone who loves to wake up with a bit of Young & Restless in the morning, this was one eagerly anticipated gig. The ex-locals now based in Melbourne started playing just after 10 pm with frontwoman Karina gracing the cosy stage in white lame leggings (now who else could honestly pull them off?). Playing a host of new tracks Young & Restless weren’t as loud as expected and the crowd who started filling the dance floor, didn’t start getting into it until Karina joined them on ground level and formed a mini mosh to Kapow. Feeling just like the boiler room, the band, already dripping in sweat said they didn’t blame the crowd for not moving because of the heat and later added “We need maximum crowd participation!” The crowd rose to the occasion and responded to the furious strumming of Satan with a fan up the front lending his vocals to the chorus’s “Listen to satan, Listen to him!” The mini mosh gave Karina a leg up, where she made the ballsy move to hang from the ceiling’s lighting rig with both feet and her free hand, still er singing and not even missing a beat. The riff to No Vibe, No Strobe got the crowd going, but at this stage the heat was so stifling the windows began steaming up with the band even starting to mop their brows with towels, stating they were “deliciously cooked”. The crowd seemed to thin, probably to get some air outside or in the loos where it was significantly cooler. Followed by I Pointed To You and You Burst Into Flames, Young & Restless closed with Police Police with Karina screeching and roaring through, ending it suspended upside down from the ceiling – in true rock style.

Does their album’s intensity translate on stage? Arr!!! Ye bet yer pirate arse – œt does.

After a long break, just after 1 am Ross (bassist from Young & Restless) kicked it off with a mix of Dizzee Rascal’s Fix Up, Look Sharp, MGMT’s Electric Feel, Dr Dre’s The Next Episode and everything in between. Although the crowd had thinned out, some still got up and danced. Followed by awesome Cheese DJ Jemist who played more MGMT and Prince’s When Dove’s Cry, his skills shone through and were far from cheesy.

Arr at almost 2 am it be time t’ be swaggerin’ off homeport…