The Basics and The Bawdies @The Annandale Hotel, Sydney(27/11/08)

Mon 1st Dec, 2008 in Gig Reviews

CHECK OUT ALL THE PHOTOS FROM THE SHOW HERE.

It has taken me 22 years to realise that not many things get you through the lengthy wait for the weekend like a gig on Thursday night. On Friday morning, you are so knackered from getting your feet off the sticky floors and into your bed, you miss the bus and you don’t really wake up till about 11am. By then it’s almost lunch and you have a few tunes in your head that get you through till the lunchtime commute. Then, after lunch, you realise the weekend starts in a few hours. Last night was no different, with The Bawdies and The Basics co-headlining my run into the weekend.

The night started with a mad rush to get there in time for the Bawdies, and it was worth the rush. When the Ballad of John and Yoko spoke of the week in bed at the Amsterdam Hilton, they forgot to mention the lovechild they created. Ballsy merchants of – œ60s rock and roll revival The Bawdies were a little kitschy, but got the night off to a great start.

The hippy-hippy-shake and foot tap came out, but after 45 minutes you had seen enough. That is not a slate by any stretch, but the Japanese outfit did seem to lose their way at times. However, they charmed the crowd, building a great rapport despite language barriers and the enigmatic frontman’s strained voice.

The Basics then began their set with the clear confidence of a band that’s well-versed in touring. However, it seemed as if the group was a little nonplussed about the performance and it was more talk than music for the first half. They could easily back up the talk, though, with some great harmonies and diversity in vocals.

Wally De Backer, the clear rock star of the group (as self proclaimed halfway through the set), is just full of talent. His talent is unquestionable and his clean drum fills were awesome to watch. However, he is not by any means the only talent in the group.

It seemed The Basics could have played in a mate’s backyard and had as much enjoyment. They seemed disinterested in putting on a – œshow’, opting for more of a muck-around performance. Despite these small issues, the new songs sounded magnificent and Just Hold On is still one of the best bits of revival pop seen in a long while.

In the band’s own words to the crowd at the end of the performance, “It wasn’t that good, but it wasn’t that shit either.” They said that would be the review for the night, and they were right.