The ‘Farewell Monkey Tour’ kicked off at the East Brunswick Club in Melbourne bringing three of the most promising Australian acts of the year. In a month long tour in support of his debut album Day One, Snob Scrilla, an alias for Sean Ray, an American expat turned Aussie, was accompanied by Victorian wunderkinds, Dash and Will and Sydney sensation, Amy Meredith.

To initiate the tour, Amy Meredith ascended the stage albeit unfortunately, to an undeservingly small audience. This fact however, did not dampen the raw energy and excitement the band brought to the evening. After the self titled release of their EP in early 2008, Amy Meredith scored support slots alongside such international artists as Hard-Fi, Silversun Pickup’s as well as a month long co-headlining residency alongside Melbourne rock n roll revivalists, Little Red. Front man Christian Lo Russo’s impressive vocals were the driving force behind the band’s set list, giving each track as individual a feel as the next. Evident from the opener Closer the as well as other tracks, Young At Heart and Lying, demonstrated the versatility of their sound. New material such as Porn Star, Violent, Carry On and Kiss Me Quick gave the progressively swelling crowd an insight into the sound of the future debut album sound. Their final song for the night Black Eyes is perhaps their most popular and most successful single and was the only track played from their EP. With an album release scheduled for some time in the near future, this five piece are worth keeping an eye on, as success is sure to follow behind.

Alternative singer/songwriter duo from Melbourne, Dash and Will, gained many fans from the success of their debut EP. This became apparent from the very first song, Pick You Up, their debut single, which had the crowd singing along. As the set list continued, so did the recognisable tunes. Backed by a three piece band, Too Young, Too Dumb, Fighting Over Nothing, Error Error and Out Of Control , not only had the crowd enchanted by the vocal stylings and catchy alternative pop tunes but also expressed the group’s diversity. Their new single Painful was an instant crowd hit, and again, another familiarity. With the airplay they are beginning to receive on more commercial stations and an album very close to being released, this band is one with an exciting future.

With a diverse mix of rock, pop, hip hop and electronica, it seems the only possible way of placing Snob Scrilla into a genre, would be to define him as genre blurring. He is contemporary without being restricted to a paradigm. His EP release The Day Before and his most recent Day One debut album release, show him constantly experimenting with his sound. When the time had arrived for Snob Scrilla to take the stage, a now packed East Brunswick Club waited in anticipation. Backed by a three piece band consisting of CSK OK (Electro DJ/Producer) on keyboards, Ardie Worsley (drummer for punk band Seven Steady) on drums and on the decks DJ Wax Motif , to bring his album across to a live performance, was ultimately a success. And from the very first song, Alienation , it was clear the crowd were in for an exciting night.

Snob Scrilla conversed with the crowd, telling he loved to “vibe” with the crowd at his shows, before descending into what became a mosh pit with his mere presence. While performing Chasing Ghosts, predominantly from the audience, he jumped around like most other fans around him. What is already such a rare event to see artist to crowd interaction, this physical interaction along with the constant laughing and conversing with the audience throughout the show, is paramount not only to Snob Scrilla as a live act, but also to his down to earth personality and his honest music.

In continuing the show, Mr Officer came at the crowd with a relentless energy that they were more than happy to return. It was obvious that Snob Scrilla was feeding off the energy of the crowd and registered a complete command over it. Perhaps his largest hit, There You Go Again which achieved initial success from triple j’s Unearthed Competition, took the show to its most special place yet. The crowd sung along every word while the band backing Snob Scrilla played with as much energy as they had all evening. Their dedication became apparent at the completion of the song when Snob Scrilla declared to the crowd that the keyboardist needed to replace his fallback and that the drummer had literally ripped through his snare drum. In a show of professionalism, while the necessary instruments were being replaced, Snob Scrilla and DJ Wax Motif remained on stage, announcing they were going ‘electronic’ and added an extra song, Space Man, to the set list.

After the minor interruption, the show continued with Mr Whatever, Gasoline Dreams and It’s On You, which continued the crowd jumping and dancing, bursting with the energy coming from the music. But it was the final track Heartbreak Scorsese, another successful single for Snob Scrilla, that had the band and the crowd at their absolute best. After many chantings of ‘SCRILLA SCRILLA’, he returned onto the stage to perform the encore of King John, once again, using this opportunity to descend into the crowd, this time, crowd surfing. A noticeable absence from the set list, ......... (The Song With No Title) , achieved much success and recognition from the use of the track on the TV advertisements for the Australian show Rush. Whether it was emitted due to its contrasting ballad form in such an energetic set, or whether it was more of a personal decision on the artists’ part, the set overall was filled with more than enough crowd favourites to keep the crowd consistently entertained and involved.

The success of Snob Scrilla is not undeserving nor is the recognition and praise, misplaced. His obvious talent for song writing, relentless energy and on stage presence, kept the crowd consistently involved in the show from start to finish and indicating by their reactions, did not want the set to end. Snob Scrilla will continue to experiment and reinvent his sound, produce excellent music and his dynamic live shows will ensure his success does not wain. It is this simple fact which makes him such an individual artist, and one whose presence is critical to the Australian music scene.

CHECK OUT THE PHOTOS FROM THE GIG HERE