Engine Three Seven @ Victoria Star (boat!), 02/01/12

So, Simon Wright, brother of Engine Three Seven's Jed, had a birthday. How did he decide to celebrate? By getting Engine Three Seven and a few other bands (including his own) to play a gig. On a boat. Though this isn't exactly a new concept, it was the first boat gig I've been to and holy shit, this sort of thing should happen so much more often. The fact that Engine Three Seven have become one of my favourite bands since moving to Melbourne meant that this gig was always going to be amazing, and it was. The boat ROCKED. So much fun was had; what a way to kick off the year. Beers, beautiful weather, a BOAT and Engine Three Seven rocking out like always.

The recording itself isn't that great. I suppose that's not surprising, given that boats are not exactly designed for loud rock bands to play in them. The space was pretty enclosed and you know, lots of people, lots of booze, lots of singing. But I'm uploading it anyway, pretty much entirely unedited. It was so much fun, and I think that's been captured quite well.

SETLIST:
Lady Luck (I didn't record this with my iRiver, but I extracted the audio from this video that a friend of mine shot. Acoustic songs turn out alright with iPhones. Listen closely for the ahh, extra verse.)
The Town
Have it All
Atmosphere
Cops
Jam/Narayan (The Prodigy cover)
Erasure
Easy Graceful Descent
Happy Birthday to Simon
Hysterical Hysteria

DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

Creepshow Festival 2011 @ the Espy, 29/10/2011

Well, Saltar Hype did it again. I won't say too much review-y stuff about this since I already wrote a blog about it on my other page, but yeah. Here we go.

Anna Salen (AKA "The Super Anna Salen Brothers")
After getting a good response last year for their "Mario" theme, Daiv Morgan, Paul Risso and Shaun Scott decided to do it again this year, once again to great effect. It's great to have a recording of this - you'll hear plenty of Mario sound effects in the middle of their own songs, care of Shaun's triggers, and there's a couple of good covers of the theme music between songs. Also, watch out for a special guest drummer in Karate (Shaun played guitar). Dinner's On is fast becoming one of my favourite Anna songs, although I should say that the new (and amusingly titled) one they opened with at this show and the night before is IMMENSE.
SETLIST:
Tit Dirt
-Mario Theme 1-
Communist Rocket
-Mario Theme 2-
Dinner's On
Karate (featuring Matt Crute, hence Daiv renaming the song Karutey)
Vehicles

DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

The Khyber BeltSo for the uninitiated, The Khyber Belt are basically the closest thing Melbourne has to a supergroup. Vocals, Forbes McKail, formerly of Rook. Guitar, Tyson Fish, formerly of Rook. Guitar, Guy Shenfield, formerly of Bushido. Bass, James Livesy, formerly of Sleep Parade. Drums, Alex Dinic, formerly of Bushido. Rook and Bushido have broken up, and James isn't in Sleep Parade now, so it's great to see all these musicians still doing their thing in this band, and this was only their fifth show in total, due to the fact that Forbes lives in Brisbane so they can't play together very often. Anyway. The first time I saw them it was a bit like, "FUCK YEAH! ALL THESE GUYS, AND FORBES IS SINGING, HOW GOOD IS THIS!" But now... it's like the honeymoon is over. Don't get me wrong, they're still a very good band. And it is fucking awesome that Forbes is still using THAT VOICE. But... this band isn't Rook. I know it's wrong to compare a band to the bands that their members came from, but when you've got Forbes singing, and Tyson playing guitar, you can't help but make the comparison. Pretty much what I'm saying is that in terms of the songs, SO FAR, this band isn't living up to my expectations. But it was actually a pretty good performance on the night, and the EP, on sale for the first time on this evening, isn't bad. I definitely think there's some potential here, and if they can get their shit together, they could definitely be as good as Rook in the future.
SETLIST:
(Intro on recording)
Sun
In Time You'll See
London
(unknown)
Don't Look to the Sky
We the PeopleDOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

Full Scale Revolution(recording to follow)

Engine Three SevenAnother high quality set, really the only way the Engine boys know how to play I think. Good to hear a BRAND newie in there (although it definitely sounds a bit rough; I think Casey's not even singing real words half the time) and Erasure getting its third consecutive airing. I think it's safe to say that one's back for good. Thank God! Anyway yeah, not much to say here. The recording starts straight away into their set because I was busy talking to mates and didn't realise they were so close to starting. Ah well. Also, contains lots of singing. My singing. I think I need to invest in my own magic hat or something, but goddammit I love Engine Three Seven!
SETLIST:
Hysterical Hysteria
Automatic Everything
Over Capacity
Erasure
Atmosphere
Cops
Velociraptor (BRAND NEW SONG!)
Have it All
Easy Graceful Descent

DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

JericcoSo it's been quite some time now since this performance actually took place, but I do remember it quite well, because it was Jericco, and thus, it was awesome. Brent made a pretty awesome bearded lady and I don't know many other bands that could have kept the energy going at this time of night/morning (they were onstage at 1am). And Brent's solo acoustic song was cool. That's about all I've got to say really. Again, excessive singing/general excitement warning.
SETLIST:
Dahab (Remix) (not sure if that's what this is "officially" called, but yeah, it's got the Oud and the intro sounds like the recorded version, so that's how I'm gonna label it)
Rujm (Pile of Stones)
Sun
Cause and Effect
Always
No Solution No Problem
Nice to See You
Moonlight Highlights
Safe to Say
B-Song
Promises Made of Glass
Chilli
Monsters

DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

Engine Three Seven and Twelve Foot Ninja @ Esplanade Hotel (2011-04-23)

A free Saturday night in the front bar at St Kilda’s famous Esplanade Hotel always gets quite a big turnout, but when the two headlining bands are Twelve Foot Ninja and Engine Three Seven, there’s guaranteed to be good times ahead for all concerned! These acts have found their way into the hearts of many Melbournians since they released their first EPs in 2008, first appearing at live shows alongside other more established acts, and then gradually making their way to the point they’re at today, where they can easily hold their own at small-medium sized venues. Hell, if this gig had have had an actual price tag, I’m sure they still would have got just as many punters through the door!

Here’s a unique oddity in the history of my recordings (and I’m assuming probably in FMR’s history) – a recording of a gig where I wasn’t actually present! To cut a long story short, I was actually at the Arthouse watching Frenzal Rhomb while Engine Three Seven’s set was taking place; I’d planned to hopefully be back in time for E37 but this turned out not to be the case. Luckily, I’d given my magic box to a friend so he could record the set anyway, and he was actually very lucky on this evening to have permission to plug into the mixing desk! Thus, this is quite a good quality recording. Listening back, I can tell I missed quite an awesome show, although this band never put on any other kind! I can’t really say much more about a gig I wasn’t even at, however, there’s something VERY special at the end of this set. During the St Kilda Festival earlier in the year, the guys put on a special acoustic show in the Gershwin Room. In the leadup to the show, drummer Shane Evans broke his foot, I’m not sure when exactly, but it was obviously close to the show and he was of course unable to play. So what did the guys do? They brought in a large couch, sat down in suits, and played the acoustic set, including the first live performance I have ever seen of Retrospect, a Pearl Jam cover featuring Tim McMillan, and at the end, frontman Casey Dean delivered a song by himself, saying he was hoping to do a solo album in the future. It was quite a special moment and one that I thought would never be repeated, at least in the near future, as I assume his commitments to E37 are quite strenuous these days. However, when I arrived at the Espy about five minutes before Twelve Foot Ninja were due on and got a quick rundown from my mate about E37’s set, I was delighted to hear that Casey had done the song again! Anyway. Here it all is. Enjoy.

SETLIST
(Intro on recording)
Easy Graceful Descent
Automatic Everything
Over Capacity
Adults Only
Atmosphere
Cops
Have it All
Hysterical Hysteria
Lady Luck (Casey Dean solo)

DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

Well, luckily I had arrived with just a few minutes to spare before Twelve Foot Ninja got onstage and did their usual. I realised it’s actually been a bit longer than usual since I’ve seen the guys in action (about five months between shows actually can be considered a long time for a band that gigs with such frequency) and I was looking forward to see what they’d deliver. Turns out the answer to that was, “A DAMN GOOD SHOW!” They managed to play everything they’ve recorded and even a couple of songs that they haven’t. However, I was a little bit turned off at the whole “heavy” thing – I really enjoy them as a band that balances out their rock with the odd reggae verse and all that, but with the crazy strobe lighting, the relentless crashy-cymbal pounding beat thing and the crowd behaving the way they were, they just seemed to lean a little too far toward the “metal” side of things on this occasion. I like metal, but Twelve Foot Ninja are better off when they keep things balanced. Anyway, the crowd loved them and the band were getting into the spirit of things so I guess that’s the important thing. It was still enjoyable. The sound on this one could be better, despite the fact that it's a desk recording! Could use a little less vox and more guitar. But oh well.

SETLIST:

Mother Sky
War
Molotov Brother
Apocolypstik
Beneath the Smiles
Child With No Enemy
Manufacture of Consent
Portrait #1
Endless
Clarion
F.E.A.R.
Portrait #2
----Encore----
Dark Passenger

DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

Rock The Bay 2011 @ Esplanade Hotel (2011-03-12)

Another great day out at the Espy, thanks to Crutey and Saltar Hype for delivering the goods once again. Now in its third year, Rock the Bay has provided us with some great up-and-coming local acts taking to the three stages in the Espy, at a very reasonable price. I hope to see this return next year; the event certainly looked like a success from a punter's point of view.

I'll admit I was a little more focused on just making sure I had a good day and not recording everything I saw. I think this is always going to be a bit of an issue with me, sorry Chris :) Nevertheless, I have a full set of Anna Salen, most of The Khyber Belt's awesome first performance ever, about half of Engine Three Seven and of course a full Sydonia set!

Anna SalenI've repeatedly sung the praises of this excellent young prog-math-heavy-rock (a little verbose on the genre but I feel that's the only accurate way to describe them) trio and this performance was just as great as the others. I'm a little bit disappointed that they've skipped over my personal favourite song Vacuous in recent sets, but it was bass player Paul Risso's birthday on the night and therefore he got to pick the setlist. Most of the usual favourites are in there and some of the band's newer material gets an airing as well. They certainly seem to be getting a bit heavier. Thanks to drummer Shaun Scott for helping out me out with the names of the new songs, and for giving me "official" permission to put this set online :)
SETLIST:
Falsified
Vehicles
Winter
How to Be a Man
Karate
Dinner's On
DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

The Khyber BeltThis was the first ever performance from this new Melbourne five-piece, and the band hadn't released any studio material prior to this gig, yet the Gershwin Room was pretty damn full. The reason for such a large turn-out? The lineup of the band is ex-Rook vocalist Forbes McKail and guitarist Tyson Fish, ex-Sleep Parade bassist James Livesy, and ex-Bushido guitarist Guy Shenfield and drummer Alex Dinic. Well! There was certainly a lot of expectation in the room with fans of the members' previous bands curious to hear what the mixed bunch would sound like. Well, there were really no surprises in store for us; The Khyber Belt sound pretty much like you'd expect them to. There were some unfortunate technical difficulties which meant that Shenfield's guitar was non-existent for a large part of the set. You'll hear them trying to fix it after Seed; I was going to removed this bit but then I thought I'd leave it in for authenticity. Other than that, for the most part, it was a really impressive debut performance from the band. They've obviously rehearsed quite a bit and the chemistry between them was good. It's also great to hear McKail singing in a band again. That voice should not be left unused. I left toward the end of the set because I wanted to make sure I didn't miss any of Tim McMillan, who was playing in the front bar. Oh, and there's a bit of mic crackle in this.
SETLIST:
(intro on recording)
Sun
London
Plant the Seed
Don't Look to the Sky

DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

Engine Three SevenHaven't really got a lot to say about this one; I've seen them a fair bit over the past year or so and their set isn't really changing all that much. That's not to say I didn't enjoy them; they're a bloody talented kit and there was quite a lot of appreciation in the room. Frontman Casey Dean introduces the first song by saying "Feel free to sing along at any point - or at all points", which you can certainly hear throughout the majority of the recording. The ever-present Melbournian muso extraordinaire Ezekiel Ox got onstage to help out with Have it All too, which was pretty cool. Again, I leave a bit early to go and catch the next front bar band. (THE BEARDS! Wish I had've recorded them but Shaun and I were just too drunk and having way too good a time by that point!)
SETLIST:
(intro on recording)
Atmosphere
Cops
Have it All (with Ezekiel Ox)
Hysterical Hysteria (extended intro version, woo!)
(and here the recording dies at the end, I think the rest of the setlist was a few older tunes)
DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

SydoniaWell, what can I say about Sydonia that I haven't said already? They've rapidly become one of my favourite Melbourne bands, actually, make that favourite bands of any country, and they put on another good set this time around, but I didn't enjoy it quite as much as their recent East Brunswick show, or the previous Espy gig before that. I'm going to chalk that up to a solid day of awesome bands resulting in me being pretty exhausted by the time they got onstage, and also this setlist wasn't as enjoyable as the last few times. It's disappointing that Adornment came back and then got dropped again so quickly. But then again, it was nice to hear Sorry. Seems like it's been a while since that got an airing. On another note, from memory this is the only Sydonia gig I've been to that they didn't play Incoming. I can imagine that is a pretty rare occasion.
SETLIST:
1. Ocean of Storms
2. 3 Tongues
3. (unknown) (I initially thought this was a song called Nobodies, as it was on a setlist at a show prior to this one so I thought it would be logical for them to play that song again, and a friend of mine agreed. However, I've since heard (and recorded) that song, and it isn't this one. So I have no idea what this song is called.)4. Here
5. Bateria (guest drummers Zack Murray and Rod Whitfield) (with a Happy Birthday to Zack at the end)
6. Shame
7. No Woman's Land
8. Elbow
9. Sorry
Download MP3 here