Owl Eyes, Split Seconds,Charlie Mayfair @ Transit Bar, Canberra (3/9/11)

Mon 5th Sep, 2011 in Gig Reviews

It could never be claimed that Saturday night at Transit Bar was anything less than eventful. Besides the expected stage show, dancing, drinking, drink spilling and fight picking there were many unexpected events before the cold and eager crowd had even made it through the door. After a very unexpected and unexplained fire alarm and evacuation, the fire fighters came rolling in with sirens roaring. After a quick trip through the bar they gave the crowd the heads up that the night would go on. Soon after, whilst waiting in line an unsuspecting ticket holder was thumped in the head, “By what?” you may ask, nothing less than some high school grade homework, a couple of disposable cameras and various other school bag type objects. What had appeared, to many as falling from the sky, in fact came from the youth hostel just upstairs from Transit Bar. The police came to take statements and finally the night began.

The real party kicked off with the first indie pop group, hailing from Brisbane, Charlie Mayfair. The pure sound of the six-piece was refreshing, although if you were to cram another vocalist on that tiny stage, there is no doubt that someone’s head would have popped! The three vocalists seemed to be fighting it out for the spotlight. Transit may want to consider an expansion of their stage area, with all members itching to dance and there being very little room to do as much as play their instruments. Highlights of their set were, If I Fell Down from their first EP, Watch My Hands and recently released single, Tell Her. The Triple J Unearthed band definitely finished on a high note with an obvious crowd favourite, the percussion filled track, Blue Water. Overall their set made a solid support act that definitely suited the vibe of the night.

Triple J Unearthed is full of indie pop bands aching for some attention and screaming fans, and next on the bill was, Perth band Split Seconds. Quite obviously on the other end of the indie pop spectrum, the wide genre leaving room for just about anybody it seems. Not quite the upbeat pop that was heard from Charlie Mayfair, Split Seconds’ sound was much more dense and cluttered. The focus here was not on the vocals, although the song writing does shine through in songs like, Top Floor. It was hard to focus on this group, there was little to really pull a listener in, besides a punchy or witty lyric from time to time. Too many things were happening in their sound to find a focus on what they were trying to produce.

What the crowd had waited for was now just around the corner, and it was a set that could have been enjoyed by all, even the bratty kids from the youth hostel upstairs. The indie pop sensation of the evening and headline act, Owl Eyes aka Brooke Addamo brought back memories from the Year 7 disco with a glittery disposition and dance moves to put us all to shame.

Opening up with Faces, Addamo got the crowd dancing and hypnotized with some moves of her own. Her sound is light, airy and upbeat. After an entire set though, it seemed to mould into one. Not a lot of light and shade but all in all a thorough selection of songs were played. Keeping the best for last, the final three tracks set the crowd alight. 1+1, a cover of Phoenix’s Long Distance Call was the start of the end. Followed by clear crowd favourite, Triple J’s Like a Version cover of Foster the People’s Pumped Up Kicks, this got the crowd screaming along and warmed up for title track to Addamo’s debut EP, and title of this pretty little tour, Raiders.

All in all a wide array of that genre, indie pop, that needs to be followed by five sub-genres to know what you are really in for. The line-up showed the variety that was needed when the individual groups stuck to what they knew.