CHECK OUT THE FUN, FASHION, BANDS AND DEBAUCHERY!

If you wondered where all the Scene Kids were Saturday afternoon they headed en force to Trackside 2008 to take advantage of Canberra’s only all-ages music festival. Despite shocking weather, Trackside managed to maintain the festival vibe delivering some of the best Australian bands to the capital. Highlights of the day included Sparkadia, Bliss n Eso, a ripping set from Cut Copy and of course Aussie rock stalwarts The Living End.

On cue at 11am, Triple J Unearthed winners opened Trackside for 2008. They showcased their improvisation skills when they suffered a power failure during Hey Kids upon which drummer Tom Spira commenced a solo and frontman Nick Craven began dancing. This didn’t dampen their set as some punters began dancing the macarina to their next song We Don’t Need Nothing. Next up fellow Canberran’s Los Capitanes unleashed on the crowd with their surprisingly happy and fun music despite their dark and goth like appearance.

Before anyone could brace themselves for what was about to come, Melbourne hardcore favourites Carpathian emerged, instantly attracting their ‘running-in-a-circle mosh-pitting fans’. Vocalist Martin Kirby encouraged his fans to continue this oh-so-lovely behaviour for the duration of their set, which didn’t impress security prompting them to divert every guard to the Landspeed stage.

There was a sudden change in the wind and in the timetable as the hardcore/metal draft had blown away and a new pop rock theme blew in. Cue Little Red, the renown modern day incarnation of the Beach Boys and Bee Gees! Unfortunately by the third song mother nature came to unsettle us, at which point a poncho or umbrella was all that could be seen through the crowd. But the attraction of Little Red’s music was too much to resist and despite the rain, that turned into hail, punters stayed put and shaked their hips and jumped about to all their hits including Jackie Cooper and Coca Cola.

For a short period the rain decided to behave itself and crowds were beginning to notice the arcade attractions like the PMA wrestling, outdoor movies, bumper cars, rollercoaster and the slingshot!

It was then time for the deliciousness that is Sparkadia. Having dominated on their Australian tour and less than a month after playing at ANU, frontman Alex Burnett’s quiff at least withstood the treacherous weather. The band thrilled the crowd from start to finish with everyone singing along to hits Morning Light, Too Much To Do, Kiss of Death and of course Jealousy. This is a band that is going places and was a standout performance of the festival.

There was a change in wind once again but this time it blew in a DJ, a MC and a drummer. What could that mean?, Muph & Plutonic of course! The band played an interactive set with the crowd responding positively. Not long after the the smell of whiskey and beer indicated we were ready for the dirtiest performance seen so far, the most unpredictable and endearing boys of Australian rock Bluejuice. They did not waste a second of their set time; bouncing around the stage, swinging microphones around and verbally abusing everyone in sight. They even accused the security guards of being on ecstasy and Stav hideously tore apart the sound guy for not setting up the drums properly.

Unfortunately before the ever-popular Bliss n Eso could delight everyone on-stage the rain kicked back in again which ultimately created technical difficulties for the rest of the day for the outside stage. Despite this, Bliss n Eso managed to be at ease, energising and pleasing the crowd with their Aussie style of hip hop.

It was around this time that the timetable began to present some clashes and difficult choices for punters: Do you wanna get down and dirty (literally) or remain dry, and kind of sensible inside at the Triple J stage. For those that opted for the later, they were treated to an ethereal show from The Panics. Playing most of the tracks from Cruel Guards they charmed the audience throughout the set and whether the punters were there to hide from the rain or not they all sung along to favourites Don’t Fight It and Get Us Home.

Meanwhile some punters just wanted to have a laugh, so they headed into the 18+ Bar and cacked themselves with a range of comics including Matt Kenneally, Justin Heazlewood and Triple J’s Sam Simmons for something a little different.

Meanwhile outside, due to sound problems and the atrocious rain British India were delayed on the Landspeed stage, resulting in the band playing for just 20 minutes. But in that 20 mins they energised their loyal legion of fans and rocked out their hits including I Said I’m Sorry and Tie Up My Hands.

Perth rockers Gyroscope pulled one of the biggest crowds of the festival and rocked the crowd in true Gyroscope style. During the course of their hour long set, punters jumped up and down, moshing and dancing the whole time. Their solos were rock n roll at its deadliest as they jumped around, swung their guitars, knocked over the microphone stand a few times with frontman Daniel Sanders jumping off the drum kit during a solo and stumbling back to his feet all without missing a beat. Hit song Fast Girl was a true festival highlight, morphing mid-song into Midnight Oil’s Beds Are Burning with a couple of thousand punters singing along and then reverting back to Fast Girl.

The timetable at this point worked out well because you could either dance the night away to Funktrust DJ Will Styles in the Sidetracked arena, indulge in emo rockers Something With Numbers at the Landspeed stage or wait in anticipation for Cut Copy.

After a short delay Cut Copy made their way on stage and the inside arena was in a complete haze of jumping fits and electro dance moves. There were a few vocal problems at the start which improved by the second song. All credits should go to the lighting guy who made Cut Copy look animated and electrifying onstage, especially when singer Dan Whitford jumped up and down during their big hits including Hearts on Fire and Lights and Music. They were a true highlight of Trackside and had the crowd in the palm of their hands.

At the Landspeed stage The Getaway Plan had taken over the reigns from Something With Numbers and kept everyone rocking despite the inclement weather. Unfortunately due to the technical problems their set was cut short as half way into The New Year a sound guy came out on stage and told them to cut because a speaker had blown up. So they regrettably had to say their goodbyes right then and there while the techies helped fix the problem and set up for Grafton Primary.

Decisions, decisions! This was the real decider and the biggest set clash of the day… Grafton Primary vs The Living End! This really dug into people’s hearts and souls and truly showed who people were as all the true rock n rollers were at the Triple J stage for The Living End and all the dance/electro kids headed to Grafton Primary.

Once the The Living End made their way onstage past a crew of insistent and perfectionist sound nazi’s, they treated everyone to one of the best rock n roll experiences of 2008! Old school baby, OLD SCHOOL! They had picked a unique mix of their old and new songs, so there was no way that anyone would get disappointed. Their set ranged from Prisoner of Society and All Torn Down era to the Who’s Gonna Save Us phase and the recent White Noise spectacular. Chris Cheney is a man who loves his guitar solos and there were sure plenty of ‘em. A majority of their songs had an extended guitar solo and experimental stage, but no-one was complaining except when Chris was halfway through his experimental on All Torn Down and a punter (you know who you are) threw a bottle at him.

Those who opted for the electro grooves of Grafton Primary were surely not disappointed with the band belting out hit after hit after hit off their recent album EON and their EP Relativity. The weather was kind to them for their set, so much so that a few of the male punters had stripped off their shirts and the girls had stripped back to their underlayers. It was like Grafton Primary had created an outdoor nightclub.

So once the dancers had worn themselves out at Grafton Primary and the rockers had passed out or had settled down at The Living End, Trackside was over for 2008.

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