Morning After Girls, ChildrenCollide, The Golden Age @ TheFactory, Sydney (12/01/2006)

Mon 15th Jan, 2007 in Gig Reviews

I rocked up to The Factory at around sundown. This relatively new venue (just two months old) on the edge of Victoria Park, Marrickville, resembles a cross between a traditional theatre and a small aircraft hangar. Comfy, plush lounges are scattered here and there, and heavy red curtains line the walls and stage. I was curious to see how the Morning After Girls, freshly returned from a year of hectic overseas touring, would make the space their own (the band is here to promote LP Shadows Evolve, released June last year).

The Golden Age fronted up first, with a brand of chugging-guitar, vocal-centric, indie-punk. Yes, you’ve most likely heard it all before. That doesn’t make them bad, however – they sound like the kind of band you’d have a barbeque to on a hot, late afternoon, sipping bourbon and coke and chilling out. In particular, their song Dirty Bird possesses a kind of laid-back charm. But to really get people to sit up and take notice, these guys need to find their own distinct sound that sets them apart.

Children Collide are up next. Not a band known for their easily defined sound, they have a dirty, fun vibe to them, matched with odd lyrics. Of course, the relentlessly JJJ flogged track, Amphibious, got a look in, the quirky tune no doubt already stuck in your brain like hot fudge. A highlight was when singer/guitarist Jonny Collide lifted his guitar to his lips and used his pick-up as a kind of crude mic. I know Jonny left one photographer I spoke to wishing she’d been there for their last song, as he proceeded to appear to have some sort of rock-induced fit onstage. Either that or he was momentarily possessed by Kurt Cobain. In a blender.

Before too long, the lights dimmed on the scarlet-curtained stage. A projected image of slowly rotating circles on the backing screen, the music slowly built to a crescendo. Morning After Girls made their triumphant return to healthy applause, diving headfirst into a muscular version of the instrumental piece, Fireworks. They keep the pace for another track or two, before slipping into something a little more laid-back – namely, the spacy atmospherics of Lazy Greys, the languorous tambourine and harmonica lending a distinctly hippy vibe, with the simplistic, Ringo-esque heartbeat of drummer Anton Jakovljevic holding the whole thing together. Another glorious moment of quiet intensity came with track Hidden Spaces. The band really shines on their quieter moments, producing evocative, yet elegantly fragile ballads.

Without skipping a beat, The Girls kicked into a jam, keys/tambourine player Aimee Nash taking on electric guitar to join in on the action. From there, the five-piece decided to ramp it up a notch – the ragged, yowling chorus of Hi-Skies taking me by surprise. Who knew these guys could do grunge so well? By contrast, there’s something delightfully nostalgic about Slowdown, with Sacha’s lush vocals and lonely, country-esque guitar sound. In fact, their set only produced one disappointment: its finish. It was abrupt, and felt leading. The end-music droned on for several minutes, inviting, tantalising, then: nothing. The crowd obviously didn’t cheer loud enough. I suppose it’s better than one of those fake encores, but personally, I felt a little gypped. However, let’s not end on a bung note here – the band held the audience more or less in thrall from go to woe. And the crowd were clearly glad to welcome their lost heroes back to the fold, as am I.

Check out  the gig pics here