Witness Festival feat. AngelasDish @ The Metro Theatre(28/11/08)

Tue 2nd Dec, 2008 in Gig Reviews

There is something that has to be said. Christian kids are delightful. No pushing, no vomiting, no scenesters staring at you because you don’t comply with their strict fashion rules – completely unusual and utterly refreshing for an all ages show.

“But why?” I hear you asking. “Why were all these bands and all these delicious Jesus freaks out on a Friday night in the debaucherous city of Sydney?” Witness Festival was an event aimed to raise funds for the Civil War torn children of Rwanda. The mini-festival was organised through the – œHands For Hope’ project, an initiative of Bible Society NSW.
With seven bands on the bill, it was a tasty little treat for Sydneysiders. It was headlined by the hardworking Angelas Dish, and also featured MusicOz artist Nikki Kummerow, a band that’s been kicking around for a while, Lukas, and hip-hop dynamos El Shaddai Crew.

When New Empire took the stage, the dancefloor in the Metro was crowded and the drinks line was empty. The Sutherland boys brought their punk-pop to the stage for a 45 minute set. At times New Empire seemed to channel Angels and Airwaves and at other times they recreated the tones of Cute Is What We Aim For. With a newly pressed album Come With Me Tonight and an enthusiastic fan following, the band seems on the up and up. It doesn’t hurt that they are very 16 year-old-girl crush friendly either…

With a change of pace, Playjerise (its like the Beatles of modern word-play), brought on their stools and their acoustics and combined coastal chill with surfer punk in a stripped back set that left the audience gagging for more. Playing with both a half and a full band, Playjerise (who were fresh as daisies to me) enchanted the already fan heavy audience. Positivity seemed to flow freely from the stage. Uplifting to say the least.

One of the hardest working bands in Australian music, Angelas Dish never get the recognition they deserve. Not commercially or critically and, as Witness Festival pointed out, not in crowd numbers either. The floor, which resembled a sardine tin earlier in the night, cleared out and the Dish opened to a scattered crowd that seemed to be heavily friend and long-time fan based. It just doesn’t add up. With three EPs and a debut album under their belts, you would expect the central coast boys to pull a larger crowd. What’s wrong with the world today?

Crowd aside, the Dish put on a bitching, dance-tastic show. Pulling out tunes from their new album War On Time, including new track Yeah…But Not Tonight, fan favourite Piano Song and the LP’s lead single, Soft November. Splicing with some old school songs for the faithful like Save Me, On A Sign and the kick-arse indie-pop piece Televise, there were even a few moments of rock stardom when guitarist Josh Harris climbed the Metro’s PA system to rock out from a height.

I’ve been down on the Sydney scene for a while. But Witness Festival seemed to restore some hope. These were just kids and bands that were there for the music, no pretence, no hype. And let’s be honest, Angelas Dish always make me smile.