Even with the front bar teeming with punters distracted by the finals footy and many more indie kids dragged towards Ararat for the inaugural Blueprint festivities the turn out at the East for – œThe Devoted Daughter’ tour was miniscule.

A head count of early arrivals revealed an even dozen bodies lurking in the corners of the room for The Tantrums set. Their laptop led instrumental noodling was the sort of stuff that usually comes accompanied by films of freeways at night and science documentaries from the 60s. Sadly it was also about as memorable and interesting as footage of freeways at night and science documentaries from the 60s.

The Devoted Few were next up, with their name offering a far to apt a description of the crowd size. They enticed the small crowd forward with tunes reminiscent of Augie March and Something for Kate and politely self deprecating quips -jokingly refereeing to one tune of heartache as – œa bit emo’ and recounting the – œpoopy’ reception they’d received when supporting the Fiery Furnaces which inspired the track Frosty Furnaces. Don’t Listen to Us lifted the volume and interest, while the Miranda July referencing You & Me & Everyone Else We Know rose to great heights on a Coldplay like piano riff.

Their sole female member, Skye Knight, may have broken the monochrome colour scheme on stage with her bright green dress, but she looked furiously bored and contributed nothing of note to the band’s sound. In an unintentional moment of comedy the one time the band required the use of the keyboard she’d spent the set nonchalantly prodding, she sulked away to the back of stage to let the one of the groups’ guitar players actually play the keys.

A song about Kerouac closed the set and while the turn out can’t have done much for the band’s confidence, but the new album Baby, You’re A Vampire is filled with hopefully they’ll continue to make the road trip to Melbourne town.

Choice support slots with the Temper Trap and School of Seven Bells have brought Sydney’s Sherlock’s Daughter down to Melbourne this year and generated a deserved buzz around the group. If they were a Melbourne based band the East would surely have been sold out for their EP launch, but even with fifty odd punters seated on the sticky carpet Sherlock’s Daughter played a glorious set.

With a superb self titled debut EP produced by the Lost Valentinos’ Jono Ma, a setlist of stunning tunes and the captivating presence of leadsinger Tanya Horo up front they’re undoubtably one of the most promising acts on the Australian scene in 2009. It certainly won’t hurt that Horo gives Natasha Khan of Bat For Lashes serious competition in the indie pin up stakes.

They’ve been likened to the Howling Bells, but luckily for punters Sherlock’s Daughter actually have have songs and lyrical hooks to back their good looks. Every track in their set is rich with magnified detail and filled with playful diversions without ever losing their way in tangled experimentation. Their use of instruments such as sand paper percussion and video game beats, which would be mere novelty in the hands of a lesser group, adds to the excitement of their experiments as lullabies moved to waltzes and bowed guitar without ever sounding forced or technical.

Though the small crowd remained seated crossed legged on the floor, Horo danced her way through the manta like lyrics of Kids, Sons and Daughters and the single Song For Old People. Her bandmates are less eyecatching, but they certainly catch the ear.

There was only a small crowd at the East, but surely more punters will be clued into Sherlock’s Daughter on their next visit. With a trip to New York to play several dates on the horizon the next time we see them in Melbourne they could well be huge – they deserve to be.

CHECK OUT THE PHOTOS FROM THE GIG HERE