Live music is a funny thing: It can all go either really great or horribly awry.
And sometimes, there are moments when things don’t go quite according to plan and still manage to turn out just as good as originally planned, if not better.
Exhibit A: Kris Schroeder, the bassist and vocalist of The Basics.
Opening the night for The Familiars, Schroeder is settling in for an acoustic set.He is expecting a guest to join him on stage, who has unfortunately been delayed.This duo has now turned into a solo act.
Schroeder starts strongly with ‘All Or Nothing’, a song about unrequited love from 2009’s Keep Your Friends Close.
He follows this up with ‘What Do You See In Me?’, ‘I Don’t Feel Safe’ and new Basics song ‘To Think Of You’ with his alternating soothing and melancholic vocals.
Schroeder’s appearance at The Grace Darling is a precursor to The Basic’s Ingredients And Leftovers Tour which the trio will embark on this September after a three year hiatus.
Recently returned from Kenya, Schroeder happily intersperses tales of his adventures abroad to which laughter is the general response. The guy is affable, honest and easy going, which makes his set highly entertaining.
Soon he is asking the audience for song requests, to which he good-naturedly complies with a special rendition of the Spice Girl’s ‘Wannabe’.
However, the highlight is his finale: After googling the lyrics and enlisting the help of The Familiars’ drummer, he gives a fair crack at ‘Gangsta’s Paradise’. Unexpected, it is true, but it has the whole room jumping nevertheless.
Next up is the brainchild of Ryan Dodson; Colourwaves, an electronic outfit based in Melbourne.
Having already released two EPs, Distractions and Thought Forms Dodson is showing tremendous potential in his chosen genre.
You can see him immerse himself in the music while he is on stage and it’s easy to see why The Familiars have asked Colourwaves to join their tour.
It is a front row seat view into the inner workings of Dodson’s creative world and you can’t help but be caught up in the beautiful and complex layers.
Stand out efforts of his set include ‘Waking Life’ and his closing number ‘Holograms’.
The initial impression The Familiars give is that they are a fun group of lads with really nice hair and a truckload of spunk.
The foursome from Byron Bay is here in Melbourne as part of their debut Ampersan EP tour.
They are: Matthew Collins (vocals, guitar), Michael Hardy (drums, vocals), Michael Watson (guitar) and Scott Finch (bass).
Getting straight into it they play ‘All These Things (Part II)’ from their latest release.
The song sets the pace for the night; fast, loud and high energy indie rock.
Next comes their new single ‘Time’ which has a catchy guitar-driven hook that will most likely get stuck in your head all day long.
The Familiars work well together and it shows in their live performance with each member holding his own as not a weak link stands amongst them.
Vocals are shared between guitarist Matthew Collins, whose voice control compliments the more upbeat and ballady tunes like ‘Start It Up’, and drummer Michael Hardy, whose voice is ideal for the edgier numbers. When they sing together, their harmonies are spot on.
Thrown into the mix of their set are three standout covers that have the intimate audience up and grooving.
First up is the Duran Duran classic ‘Hungry Like The Wolf’ which sees a small group of punters up front and centre dancing to their heart’s content.
After some light hearted ribbing from self-appointed MC for the night, Kris Schroeder, asking them to “impress their audience”, The Familiars then belt out a rendition of Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Foxy Lady’.
For their closing number the four-piece pull out the big guns as the opening bars of ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ fill the room and Hardy’s drums and vocals get a massive workout playing homage to Nirvana in the perfect ending to an entertaining night.
The Familiars have the knack of appealing to the fun-loving side of their audience.
Their loud upbeat tunes vibrate through the floors and get people’s feet moving.
If you haven’t heard The Familiars yet, do yourself a favour and acquaint yourself with the young band that is sure to do amazing things in the Australian indie rock scene.
