Showcasing some of Australia’s best with a few international slots, Come Together at Luna Park’s Big Top is fast becoming a Queens Birthday long weekend tradition.

The Big Top always reminds me of the Horden Pavilion. A large tin shed that sometimes make a band sound fantastic or truly horrible. I don’t know if that was the reason why I didn’t like Circle Pit or whether it was the fact the songs are mid paced bad grunge rock which felt out of place on today’s line up, which resembled a mini Soundwave being punk and hardcore dominate. But sadly the band’s 20 minute set was not the best way to start of the day.

That was soon eradicated by Melbourne’s Jericco. The prog rock act delivered a hard and heavy set full of Tool inspired songs. The guys played with energy and vigor and drew the crowd out of the bar and down to the stage which is tough to do when you play at a early time.

Sydney’s answer to New Found Glory, pop punkers Heroes For Hire hit the stage and ripped through their set comprising of tracks from their new album Life Of The Party and crowd favourite Teenage Dirtbag (yes, that Wheatus song!). If you like your pop punk full of melody and harmony played at a breakneck speed and with humorous song titles ( I Can’t Change The Past, I Locked My Keys In The Delorean ) definitely check these guys out.

Adelaide hardcore outfit Deez Nuts provided a brutal assault of hip hop flavored hardcore punk with punchy anthems to get the pit moving. Playing their first show in Australia in six months, the band played mostly older tracks with only a couple of cuts from the new album getting a play Don’t Call It A Comeback and DTD (Drunk Till Death).

They were immediately followed by Aussie hardcore legends Toe To Toe. For me, it brought me back to the late ’90s being a Toe To Toe fan. Seeing the guys still play as hard, as fast and as brutal now as they did 13 years ago was amazing. A good turn out that responded when front man Scott demanded “everyone on the dance floor to fucking move!”, cause let’s face it, he’s a big dude and you don’t want to upset the man!

The Loved Ones had to follow the frenzy that was Toe To Toe and I felt sorry for them. Most of the audience felt this was their chance to go out for a breath of fresh air and hop on the free rides at Luna Park because the Big Top became a ghost town with only dedicated fans up the front to sing along to the Americans catchy punk rock. If you’ve never heard of The Loved Ones all I need to say is they are signed to Fat Mike’s Fat Wreck Chords, so that should give you a strong indication of how they sound. A good set despite the lack of enthusiasm from the crowd.

The other international artist out for this year’s festival was another Fat Wreck Chord band, the brilliant Strung Out. Rarely a year goes by when Strung Out doesn’t tour Australia and the loyal fans packed the Big Top to sing along to every word. With leadman Jason Cruz spending as much time in the crowd as he did on stage, the band stretched their time slot out to perform for almost an hour and no one minded. Still concentrating on last years Agents Of The Underground album, the biggest response came when they tore through classics The Exhumation Of Virginia Madison, Velvet Alley and traditional set closer Matchbook. Strung Out know how to keep a crowd happy, with over 20 years of performing, they’ve got it down to a fine art.

While I can’t fault Frenzal Rhomb’s set, it did feel a little flat. Playing a handful of shows a year now means at times the songs sound sloppy and the chemistry and banter between the guys didn’t seem to be there. Mixing it up with old classics like Cones and Genius with newer songs Forever Malcolm Young and Johnny Ramone Was In A Fucken Good Band But He Was A Cunt the long wait to see them live didn’t quite live up to expectation.

Leading The Butterfly Effect Clint Boge’s voice was in fine form and resonated around the Big Top and probably sound wise, the best band on stage all day, proving my earlier point that sometimes a band can make the sound work well for them in the Big Top.

Perth’s Gyroscope took headliner honors for day one and right from the start set out to provide the crowd with a rock show. Taking up the whole stage the boys cut through tracks of new album Cohesion plus fan favourite tracks like Snakeskin and Australia ending a very fine first day of the festival.

Check out the photos from the gig here