After a not-so-wintery Melbourne day of blue skies and sunshine, the fifth annual Wash Winter’s Willies Away With Whiskey event at The Tote was all the warmer with a good mix of people and country blues that did indeed assuage the winter solstice.

Clinkerfield, Tom Budge Band, Cash Savage & The Last Drinks, Silver City Highway, Van & Cal Walker, The Holy Sea, Miserable Little Bastards, Steph Brett & The Dreamland Band treated the crowd to a night of soothing, playful, gritty and wholesome music.

I arrived to see Steph Brett & The Dreamland Band serenading the crowd with soft, milk-and-honey vocals and the jazzy butterings of a ukulele. They projected a carefree, lazy ambiance into the grungy Tote band room and as I watched a couple slow dancing in front of me I was glad I had arrived early to see them and definitely remember them as a highlight of the evening.

Upstairs Miserable Little Bastards combined six-part vocal harmonies and violin into a Pogues-esque twangy blues. Their jangling textures, sing-along-with-us musical style and rolling revelry was met with amused appreciation, particularly during their cover of the famous drunken sailor ballad. These hip-flask-in-your jeans-pocket kind of performers were fun to listen to and a joy to watch.

Back downstairs again The Holy Sea had a mellow Ben Folds Five feel. Their seven-member act moved from fragile male and female vocal harmonies to uplifting moments filtered nicely by keyboard and cello. As I sat taking in their own blend of folk harmony I noticed the singer from Miserable Little Bastards milling about with soup-serving paraphernalia and I decided to check out upstairs before tucking into it.

I left the soft sweeping symphonies of The Holy Sea trailing behind me as I ascended the stairs. There I greeted the acoustic licks and tightly delivered lyrics of the self-proclaimed “ol’ timey country chickenpickin’ from da now timey” two-piece act Van & Cal Walker. It was shoulder-to-shoulder in front of the stage now and I stood crammed in next to an irritatingly positioned pot-plant, but its tickling leaves couldn’t drive me away from the simple and honest country tones from these relaxed musicians.

After their set I ventured out into the courtyard for a cup of soup and was disappointed to find the outdoor gas heater was out of action. I gulped it down before heading back inside for Silver City Highway, wishing I had savoured the tasty broth, but relieved to be warm again. SCH’s steady, drifting melodies were sewn together with deep vocals and the engaging whirr of a theremin. They had a lonesome vulnerability and hard-hitting edge all at the same time.

Upstairs Cash Savage & The Last Drinks broke a string at the beginning of their set and had me guessing what the missing instrument would have added to their slow, undulating sound with deep, mature vocal grit and strong lead guitar riffs. I moved back downstairs after only a few songs to see Tom Budge Band. They played with a contained energy that rose to the surface at times, generating the approving sway of bodies in the audience with their rolling drum beat. It was a star performance by the violinist who stood out over the other seven band members, perhaps it had something to do with her bright red dress. It was also good to hear some subtly aussie-accented vocal stylings from the lead singer in a genre other than hip-hop.

Clinkerfield finished the night off with their own brand of laid back, unpretentious folky rock littered with organic riffs that conjured an overriding sense of woeful nonchalance and musical maturity. Lead singer Jimmy was the same multi-tasker from Miserable Little Bastards and the chef behind the – œtop notch’ soup as I had overheard it dubbed someone. As if I wasn’t already impressed by this individual, he gave a theatrical performance with an impassioned, truthful storyteller’s style that wooed the crowd.

Quality music, an appreciative, relaxed crowd and tasty homemade soup: what better way would there be to while away a winter’s evening. I’ll be going back again next year.