The Cairos, The Dead Leaves,Glass Towers, The Belligerents@ The Zoo, Brisbane(05/08/2011)

Mon 29th Aug, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Starting off the night was 5 piece band The Dead Leaves; bringing their special brand of indie pop from Melbourne for just two days. Unfortunately the floor was empty even by The Zoo standards, which was a shame because the band performed genuinely well despite their lack of crowd support. Their set included Never Had a Lover, Everybody’s Lost Somebody, and Shoe Fits; clearly underlining the theme of heart break and love lost that defined their set.

After a speedy stage set up, Byron Bay teen rockers “Glass Towers” hit the stage. Despite having only formed in 2008 and having an average age of 18 they produce a polished performance beyond their years, leaving punters at no loss to work out why triple j chose them as the 2010 unearthed high winners. Lino The Lion and Paint from their soon to be released EP were real crowd pleasers.

Brisbane five piece The Belligerants produced a set rife with upbeat pop rock tunes and smart well timed indie beats. Continuing on after the recent release of their debut album Less Arty, More Party, the band were electric, with heavy FX and synth layering. Most notable was Bye Bye Bye early on in their set, to which over half the dance floor was singing along. As the album name suggests this band are more interested in keeping the crowd entertained and having fun than trying to enter into anything too overtly complex; and it works well for them.

Coming to the tail end of a well-received national tour showcasing their Summer Catalogue album; well established indie rockers The Cairos came ready to show Brisbane they still call us home. Despite their whirlwind tour and a heavy work load of late, it’s good to see they still bring their A-game. Having managed to fill The Zoo, they brought a set list filled with fine-tuned rock melodies, and front man Alistair Richardson sings and plays with an infectious passion that the crowd can’t help but catch. It was good to see the band debut some new material destined for their upcoming third release. Popular with the crowd were old favourites Nothing At All, but also new material such as Whales and Listening Party. A pleasant surprise was the cover of Bette Davis Eyes late in the set. All in all a ferocious performance, highlighting what a bright future this group has; something which has clearly not gone un-noticed by the Australian music fraternity.