Parades, Little Scout @ TheGaelic Hotel, Sydney(08/04/2011)

Mon 11th Apr, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Brisbane band Little Scout opened for Parades with a collision of varying influences, their music was heart-felt with intricate melodies weaving in between their songs and at times lashing out with a ferocity that you didn’t quite expect. They played a great set, though the crowd was scarce to the front of stage, that isn’t always an indication of quality musicianship. They describe themselves as “a bunch of friends dedicated to crafting perfect indie pop music” and they’ve been doing a good job of it.

From the moment Parades began to play, you could tell they knew their set inside-out. Not going overboard with effects and things, they created the perfect ambiance through a mixture of reverberating chords, cascading drum fills and intermittent guitar licks, all fitting together to create a truly mesmerising experience. The crowd were enthralled from that moment forth. It got quite cramped in the Gaelic, so much so that even the regulars knew that this was a special gig. A band like this doesn’t come and play every day, and to top it off they aren’t from Melbourne.

The stand-out songs? Difficult to narrow down. Whether it was the breakneck pace of Dead Nationale, the ethereal harmonies of Hunters or the erratic time signatures of Loserspeak in New Tongue, each track comes at you from a different angle. The constant shifts in direction, with a plethora of different themes managing to work together so cohesively was a pleasure to watch live. They also introduced a new single Water Stories which the crowd really got into, the guitar sounding eerily like something Johnny Greenwood would play on OK Computer or Hail To The Thief.

All in all, it was short and sweet, setting off a great night at the Gaelic. An incredibly forward-thinking band, who I’ve been listening to all day today. Definitely a sign of quality.