The Drones @ the Forum,Melbourne (18/10/2008)

Wed 22nd Oct, 2008 in Gig Reviews

On Saturday 18th, the always impressive forum held home to one of Australia’s most exciting bands, The Drones, for a one-night only gig to celebrate the release of their new album Havilah. After leaving overseas in 2005 to share their atonal blues rock with European markets, The Drones have finally come home to give their ever-swelling home fan base a taste of the action. Like many bands born in Perth, The Drones offer a refreshingly alternative take on standard rock sounds and comparisons with other great alternative artists like Tom Waits are warranted. They are also a renowned live band, having played some of the best festivals worldwide, so the build-up to the night for fans was immense and The Drones certainly did not disappoint.

Opening up with the first two singles off the new album, Nail it Down and Minotaur, the crowd was instantly hooked, with both tracks being two of the strongest off the release. Gareth Liddiard’s powerful Australian accent and unique voice melded perfectly with the blues-rock inspired riffs, backed by his impressive stage presence. Nail it Down has a great thumping drum line and because of this, Gareth’s amazing vocal timing was really noticeable, eliciting a true feeling of passion in his singing. This timing was also reminiscent of other Australian story-teller type artists, a la Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Minotaur continued to show off the gruff and potent nature of Gareth’s unique voice and further injected intensity into the show’s start. Once this intensity was established, they moved onto I am the Supercargo, a slower gem that was received very well and was one of the songs of the night. The undulating rolling build-ups and distortion effects used perfectly ensured the crowd hung off every word and note. The only thing detracting from the performance to this point was Fiona Kitschin, the bass guitarist still not having faced the crowd since getting on stage. (In fact it was not until halfway through the set she decided to face the right way)

The fourth song, Oh My saw the introduction of band friend Dan Kelly (of Dan Kelly and the Alphamales fame) and he joined them on stage to play one of the acoustic guitar parts. Coincidently, this welcome surprise worked well with the song which had Gareth’s voice reaching the lofty heights of Dan’s hair. The set then continued with the longer but classic Jezebel, the first non-_Havilah_ song of the night. A heavier distortion fuelled number, Jezebel spawned the first crowd scream-along of the night and showed why the band is so renowned internationally for their raw atonal sound. Gareth’s forced breaking off of notes created a darker vibe than usually found in blues-rock and can be likened to older Kings Of Leon, minus the southern drawl. Jezebel was followed by a return to Havilah tracks including The Drifting Housewife, Cold and Sober and, the band’s self-proclaimed favourite, Luck in Odd Numbers. All three are slower numbers that cover rather depressing topics, showing off the diversity of the band to offer both heavier alt-rock sounds and folksier ballads, albeit dark ones.

After the bulk of Havilah had been torn through, crowd favourite Shark Fin Blues was attacked with a blistering gusto that gave the effects pedals a solid workout. Despite a bit of feedback, this was probably the song of the night. The final two songs were I Don’t Ever Want to Change, a no frills rock song and Your Acting’s Like the End of the World showing off again the Australian storyteller inspiration. The latter was actually not dissimilar to something you might hear from Paul Kelly and was only marred by a small technical glitch of a set of speakers switching off momentarily.

The Drones displayed their consummate professionalism with an infectious and unique sound that deserves the critical acclaim they have received. It is clear, however, to see that the bands’ talents mainly stem from the only long-standing member Gareth Liddiard’s influence. They offer great diversity between their slower acoustic numbers and heavier distortion furnished ones and all their material works spectacularly live. It is certainly great to have The Drones back on home soil and hopefully they don’t feel the need to leave us again too soon.

CHECK OUT THE PIX FROM THE NIGHT HERE