The revamped Rosemount Hotel played host to a who’s-who of the WA music scene on Saturday evening to see ex-Sydneysiders Howling Bells play. Now based in London and receiving huge critical acclaim from the likes of NME, Howling Bells were finishing off their national tour before departing back ‘home’. On what was a very brisk evening, not surprisingly, the majority of the crowd spent most of the night huddled inside the cosy venue.

Apologies to Faith in Plastics, the only Perth band on the lineup, as I missed their opening set on the evening. However, going on past performances I’m sure they upheld our fine city’s proud musical reputation. Sandwiched between Faith in Plastics and headliners, Howling Bells were Temper Trap. Hailing from Melbourne, the quartet played a bunch of punchy indie-pop/rock numbers which got some great responses from a willing audience. Dougy (vocals) has one of those voices that you either love or hate – like Caleb Followill (Kings of Leon) but you could not fault his or his band’s enthusiasm. By the time their set drew to a close, with an atmospheric, electro tinged epic – where even drummer Toby, found the time to jump up from his kit and make some guitar noise – the audience had really warmed to this band. In turn Temper Trap were gracious in their departure from the stage and remarked how much they had enjoyed this, their first visit to Perth.

After an agonising wait, the full house exploded into raucous applause when Howling Bells made their way onto the stage. Amidst smoke and fairy lights, the brother and sister combination of Juanita Stein (vocals/guitar) and Joel Stein (lead guitar) instantly permeated the distance between band and audience. The rhythm section of Glen Moule (drums) and Brendan Picchio (bass) provided the much needed drive in the songs, which sometimes seemed to get a bit lost amongst one another. If Juanita’s sultry croon and seductive hip-swinging wasn’t enough to have your jaw dropping to the ground then a leather jacket-clad Joel, with flash stage moves to boot had most of the female punters swooning too. Despite the frontwoman’s warmth, some punters still managed to find enough agro to bring out their insecurities and turn the front couple of rows into a human pinball machine. But the anger quickly subsided as a couple of patrons were ejected and the show went on.

In between songs one punter congratulated Juanita on her appearance on ABC talkshow Spicks and Specks and Juanita graciously replied, engaging the audience member in conversation. Juanita then introduced the next song, Setting Sun, with the story of a man who proposed to his girlfriend at one of the band’s shows in Bristol.

The band finished with hit single Low Happening, which by far got the best audience reaction of the night. It was a clear standout in a set of swirling tunes that, at times just seemed delay what most of the audience was hanging out for – one punter calling for it to be played earlier with Juanita replying, “It’s coming…” Still, Howling Bells pleased most punters with what was also their first ‘proper’ show in Perth. It was the first time they had played here since several members played in the now-defunct Waikiki. And so, despite a rather chilly evening, the mutual respect shown between the bands who played and the punters alike was enough to warm everyone up a little on this magical night.