Alhambra Lounge - Thur Apr 17

Their droning soundscapes dominate the room, but the noise-rock of Secret Birds seems to serve as a background annoyance for much of the crowd. The impressive twelve-string electric wielded by one of the guitarists suits their style well. A seated drummer provides a more deft touch, allowing a second percussionist to thrash away on tom and snare. Their lengthy pieces progress with a nod and a yell from lead guitarist Damon Black, who contorts amid the apocalyptic squall of sound. Though their doom-rock is slightly out of place in this environment, the delivery is mature and exhilarating.

Sydney three-piece Talons seem to borrow their loud Hawaiian shirts from the previous act; if the absence of tonality is their goal, they surely succeed. Where Secret Birds were sonically-dominating, the uninspiring and abrasive punk on offer here sounds shallow and dull. Their performance marks a rare blotch on the copybook of tonight’s organisers, whose choice of bands is regularly impeccable. At this point half of the Wolfgang foursome appear on stage to thank their devotees for making their first year in operation a success; their thanks are returned in kind.

Hard-working New Zealanders Die! Die! Die! seem to be forever touring the world. Singer and sometimes-guitarist Andrew Wilson plays the occasional chord, but is mostly happy to let feedback loop through his pedals and meet Brisbane locals up close and personal. He joins the crowd to palm them in the chest, and fleetingly incites what might be the first Wolfgang moshpit. Michael Prain and Lachlan Anderson provide an extremely tight rhythm section on spiky punk numbers like Maybe Definitely and Britomart Sunset, while Wilson stalks the stage with crazed eyes, and spills my beer. Hmph. The band seem to take some pleasure in neglecting their most melodic song, Sideways Here We Come, from recent release Promises Promises. Their short, sweet set tonight marks a welcome return to Brisbane. Now, Andrew, about that beer ...

ANDREW MCMILLEN

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