The Waiting Room Never Saw It Coming From Iowa

Next week Brisbane is going to be invaded by Iowa. Not by the state of the USA; not by Mitt Romney; not by obscure Russian divas; not by fanatical Slipknot acolytes. No, Brisbane is going to be destroyed by the Melbourne trio whose debut LP Never Saw It Coming is a head mixture of all the best alternative/noise rock conventions of the 1990s, including adherence to hook and melody behind all the feedback. They are playing X&Y on the Friday August 17 (with able supports from Tape/Off and Sleepwalks), an afternoon sesh at Tyms Guitars on the Saturday, and then - drumroll - at The Waiting Room as headliners for this month's Sonic Masala Presents. They are bringing their new album in tow (including some on sexy yellow vinyl!) and a new single in the form of 'Love Song'. This is one not to be missed, including as it does support from the resurgent Seaplane, the destructive El Motel (who are promising something special for this show) and the debaucherous Crass Creatures. It's all for a tenner, with BYO, and I PROMISE YOU that this will be one of the strongest shows you will see this year. If not, Ill drink some beer - that'll teach me!

Here's the streamed Iowa album:


...and here is a little mixtape of tracks from the bands...

El Motel - Black RiderCrass Creatures - Cement
El Motel - Carnival Kid
Iowa - Panic Attack
Crass Creatures - Snake Hole
El Motel - Crazy Love
Iowa - Complete Control

...and because I don't have any Seaplane mp3's at work, here is a live version of 'Soiree'.



Get keen!

Sonic Masala Presents Number 5 Is Alive!

In two days' time, the fifth instalment of Sonic Masala Presents at the Waiting Room will take place. Its exciting on a whole bunch of levels. Let's break those levels down...


1) It features my first interstate band! Yes, Franco Cozzo (the musical spazznuts, not the furniture magnate and crazy commercial guy) hail from Melbourne - you may remember me talking about them here - and whilst I haven't heard anything new from them since this pretty dirty EP of 2010, I'm envisioning an incredibly loud and raucous affair. Specialties abound.

2) We have two celebrities coming! Actually that isn't true. But we do have two bands that have appropriated celebs' names into their monikers. Firstly we have Fred Savage Beasts, whose Method Is A Just Cause demos release (freely downloadable too!) offers some cool lo-fi meanderings. The band is essentially Nathan from local slacker behemoths Tape/Off, and if this is what's possible from some half-baked afternoons in the bedroom, imagine what some invested time will produce. This will be their first show - highly anticipated...



Then of course there is the man with the gravitas and one of the most iconic calming voices in movie history, Morgan Freeman. He is also the epitome of cool, thus - Motherfucking Morgan Freeman. This two-piece is a love affair with all that is rambunctious and shambolic in the world. Expect an ever-shifting morass of noise. Some covers will be unearthed, including one or two of their own from their past band, Librarians/We Are Librarians/Ex-Librarians (I never know what their name is/was/will be...) You may remember we spoke about em some time ago also - check that out here.

3) We certainly can't leave out new skids on the jocks Crass Creatures either! I saw them support Fucked Up last year in what has to be one of the coolest debut support slots ever picked up, and they certainly stepped up to the plate. There are exciting elements here - even a trace of Murder City Devils, which is soooooooooo good - and whilst the rust on the edges still shows from a fledgling act, they are only going to get better. Check these guys out before they are blowing up like DZ.



4) There isn't really a part four, I'm just really excited about this one! It's, as always, all for a tenner, and with takeaway bottle shops all around West End there is an endless supply of cheap drinks, enough to have moolah in the pocket to burn on merch (or probably booze on Boundary St later).

See you there chumps!

Watch Out For The Witch Hats Tonight...

Melbourne's Witch Hats might have started out as purveyors of dark, loud noise, but with the arrival of the excellent Pleasure Syndrome last year it's clear the boys have much more to their palate than shouts and moans. See how they marry this more melodic material with the visceral older stuff in Brisbane tonight at the Alhambra Lounge. Support goes out to enigmatic six piece Crass Creatures and dark surfers Feathers. It's around $12, so nice and cheap (even if the drinks aren't...bring a flask).