Doh!! The Narwhals are lugging gear offstage when I arrive, but there’s quite a buzz happening at The Troubadour this Friday night. I run into a stack of familiar faces, none of whom can come to a consensus on how the Narwhals set sounded. My apologies.

Ah, the outspoken Spencer P Jones. The Melbourne troublemaker begins playing a sombre tune on lone distorted electric guitar, his gravelly voice slowly drawling in a way that does nothing for the crowd’s collective attention span. Whilst not not-enthused, those in attendance are chatting as loud as the man and his axe. The lull doesn’t last long however, as the steep incline in decibels and pace early into his set give us no choice but to listen.

Mr P Jones is more memorable tonight for the trash he’s talking, not the music he’s making. “Watch out Tommy Emmanuel…. And as for that motherfucker Lee Kernaghan, nominated as Australian Of The Year a couple of years ago… Well I don’t know bout you but when I heard Boys From The Bush it sounded like (sings) “Im gonna tell you how it’s gonna be” by Buddy Holly…”

When he’s not making viscious yet empty threats to other guitarists, he’s doing a damn fine job of churning out tracks When I’m No Longer Poor, Top Of The World and Clementine that blatantly reference Creedence Clearwater Revival, Bush, Bob Dylan and a whiney Bruce Springsteen.

Thirty seconds into an early Beck-like ditty, Spencer barks at us to shut up – tuning – and lays down Hot & Cold in full band mode before heading to the bar and making way for The Horrortones.

By this point, I am done with intellectualising, reviewing, recording for future recall all the minutiae of an event that, let’s face it, makes no significant impact on the world. I’m in the mood for something visceral, and what I really want to do is dance around like a drunken loon. The Horrortones provide the perfect soundtrack to said activity.

Simply put, The Horrortones kick ass, big band style. Vocalist Pete Vegas leads this motley crew of Brisbane band allsorts through an upbeat rock and soul set that makes me deliriously happy! Must be the horn section – it’s impossible to not be happy when shiny horn stabs reminiscent of The Commitments litter Detroit style rock. Highlight of the set is the Dirtbombs cover Your Love Belongs Under A Rock. This outfit is gritty garage soul rock at its finest and not just on a local level. Do yourself a favour; attend a Horrortones show if you haven’t already.

Even by Brisbane’s zero degrees standards, Sixfthick shows are an unusually close knit affair. Lucky then that these support acts hold their own in the way of genre variety that by the time the headliners hit the stage our ears aren’t weary.

After the feel good party vibe of the Horrortones septacular (!), Sixfthick assault us with a live show that sounds like sweat and looks like violence. The band is firing on all cylinders tonight, with drummer Fred and Tony Giacca on bass in particularly fine form.
I’m certain the Brothers Corbett ( Geoffro and Gentle Ben on vocals) would find rehearsing in a confined jam room akin to wearing a straight jacket; it’s as though the music they make can’t exist independently of their raucous stage antics. The Troubadour isn’t much bigger than a jam room, but a liquor licence and general public are two magic ingredients that really bring the best out of Sixfthick’s music.

Renditions of Beat Myself and White Light Wet Heat are superb and their testosterone-fuelled swamp rock doesn’t wither when the crowd does. Rock solid entertainment.