The Dead Scene opened the evening and was a bit of a strange experience. One guy standing alone onstage with only his laptop propped up on a stool and a microphone in his hand; he faced away from his laptop and the audience to the side corner. By not really acknowledging the audience was there, he put himself in a slightly awkward position and it wasn’t at first apparent that he was actually a performer, rather than a technician. He seemed slightly clumsy and inexperienced, and the audience was almost put in the position of a voyeur peeking out from behind a window outside into his bedroom where he was absorbed in his computing. Using a program such as Fruity Loops with pre-programmed backing music, it was nearly like a karaoke performance, but he did nevertheless do a good overall job and you could tell that he had put a lot of effort into it.
Tight black pants, matching haircuts and psychedelic rock sounds announced the entrance of Canberra band Hancock Basement. On stage were two loud guitars, husky vocals, a keyboard and drums. At first glance it appeared something was missing in their sound. That gap would normally have been filled with a bass guitar, but in this case the void was filled by lead singer/guitarist Nick Beresford who at times swapped the axe for a sax. People got dancing and head-bouncing, and the three boys played a tight set, perfectly matching their tight pants. Their style had a bit of a been-there/seen-that vibe, yet they managed to present it with an air of freshness.
Operator Please bounced on stage full of colour and energy. The endearingly young bunch played an impressive set and ploughed through their set list with great enthusiasm. You could tell that they were still very young and unblemished by the negativities that often embitter musicians in the music scene, and it was refreshing to feel their energy and to see the enjoyment they were expressing for their music. Their instrumental combination clearly shined, especially the sweeping hooks created by the lovely violin talent from Taylor Henderson and Amandah Wilkinson’s vocals that came with a confident coolness, while their indie/alternative/rock sound had a slight quirkiness about it that could almost put them in a bubble gum pop category. They projected a rather modest stage presence that was a delightful change to the constant cockiness and over-confidence in so many musicians’ performances.
