Wind & Brackets, Stature:Statue, D'arcy @ The Zoo (27.7.07)

Hey readers, sorry about the lack of recent posts but we've had a few extra-curricular activities occurring here (Uni for me, touring for Cam). I'm off to Splendour In The Grass this weekend but hopefully I can squeeze of a few more posts before then. But now to the review.

D'arcy are a member of a crop of similar sounding, but very talented, up and coming southern bands (I was mainly reminded of The Temper Trap). Hailing from Sydney and with indie rock as their weapon of choice they played a tight set comprising of melodic verses and abrupt choruses. Jordy Lane's vocal skills came out the most on 'Great Day', but the set highlight was most definitely the shouty, fast paced 'Abercrombie St.'

Next up were one of my favourite band at the moment, Stature::Statue, who kicked off with the explosive 'Forum Of Wolves'. Trying to photograph the ever-moving proved frustrating so I gave up and just danced after the second song. And that, for me, is the beauty of the band; they have the ability to combine a rhythm section, courtesy of Damien and Ross, that would but Gang Of Four to shame, with the hyperactive, incomprehensible vocals of Luke (Cam's comparison to At The Drive-In is quite apt for the singing), and the heroic guitar work of Dion. I have trouble describing Dion's guitar style, due to the fact that it varies so wildly, but I decided it came down to three things; lots of punk, lots of post-punk and lots of pedals. All of these factors came together perfectly on set-closer 'Make Haste Roman' which got the crowd at The Zoo dancing uncontrollably. Definitely a band to see live if you haven't already.

Finally came Wind & Brackets, a band I hadn't seen live before, and I was immediately struck by how odd the band looked (I was going to say Odd Couple, but there's five of them, Odd Quintet maybe?). Vocalist Tommy looks like a member of a goth or industrial band, lead guitarist Andru rocked a Tupac tee, drummer Wil would have looked more at home playing for Jet, and guitarist and bass players Seagull (That's his name apparently) and Clark come off as run of the mill indie-types. All reservations were put aside as they launched into an energetic set however. The band exuded a very British style of rock, and while the numerous comparisons to The Libertines i'd previously heard were definitely close to the mark, I was reminded of the hardcore influenced sounds of ¡Forward, Russia! and Test-Icicles. Tommy's stage presence and vocal skills, as well as the excellent drumming of Wil, prevent Wind & Brackets from being one of the average indie/post-punk revivalist bands that seem to be flooding Brisbane at the moment. They also have an excellent array of material, with songs such as 'Nu Nu Za Za' and 'Hospitality' certain to stand the test of time. All that said though, the main reason I love these guys is because they closed with an excellent cover of Daft Punk's 'Da Funk'. Enough said.