It’s the best time of year for indie music in Perth/Boorloo, with RTRFM’s In the Pines. To celebrate, we’re going all out and reviewing every band. It was a marathon day but darn it, it was a hell of a lineup and the bands deserve it.
Tasked with opening the event, Persia brought some luscious R&B. The young band, fronted by Persia herself, played tight and smooth, laid-back tunes reminiscent of 90s and neo-soul. The crowd were steadily descending on the venue as she sang singles released over the last year or so. Butterfly (not the Mariah one), No Hero, and soon to be released Good Thing were highlights, and nice to see original R&B being produced right here in Perth/Boorloo.
Iconyx next, and the Pintupi and Kukatja (Kimberley and NT) 18-year-old is blazing a music trail. The singer, who is also blind, showed off her singing prowess from the first song, sung a cappella with lovely backing harmonies from the band. The setup on stage was simple but effective – samples from the decks, plus live bass and drums. A highlight was her singing the Archie Roach song Mulyawongk, her version approved by the late great himself. Iconyx was clearly enjoying herself up on the big stage, with the set taking on a more hip-hop tone for the second half. Her album, Blak on Trak, provided most of the set material, we highly recommend you check it out.
Time for Symmetrical Dogs to take the stage, and they are one of the city’s most exciting young bands. The band sit somewhere between acoustic folk and punk (think stripped back, early Big Thief) and keep the set interesting with plenty of banter between Claire and the dedicated audience, with some interesting stories coming from Boyd when handed the mic. The other Mike, playing acoustic like no one else, shifts casually between delicate fingerpicking and thrashing along with Boyd’s bashing and Claire’s primal scream. Nowhere is this more evident than in epic set closer Americana.
Cryptids on stage next with their country-tinged Perth/Boorloo sound. The somewhat slacker styling suits a Sunday arvo nicely, and their tunes go a bit further out there with songs like Hunting for Ghosts in Abandoned Buildings. From the flutey, laid back early parts of the set, the band quickly escalated into shoegaze, post-punk, Joy Division-esque territory. A nice mix of that Perth/Boorloo sound and beyond.
Hailing from the Kimberley/Mowanjum region, Kallum Mungulu brought some music from remote WA to the stage. Playing hard rock, full of lyrical depth and including a guest spot from Nick Allbrook on Ngiya Ga Ngiya, the four-piece gave the growing crowd a taste of what’s happening further afield. Kudos to RTR for including these guys.
Clare Perrott is about as country as it gets for someone from Melville. She has a twang to her voice that suits the genre perfectly. With a tight band and great originals, plus throwing in Streets of Your Town for good measure, the band really hit a nice groove. Clare played the banjo for Biting on the Hand and made it clear the band are just as important as its frontwoman, declaring “we’re Clare Perrott and we’re here to bite y’all.” Sounds like fine modern Aussie alt-country.
One of the older bands on the lineup were Showbag! For anyone over 40, their sound slots in perfectly to what you might remember being played at day-festivals like Yak It Up and Mudslinger. For the younger generation — the late 90s are back in fashion, you’ll find plenty to like here. They mixed it up between the just released Waterhouse album and older material. The mini keyboard, loop-driven single Break My Arm was a highlight.
Right in the middle of the day, the program of rock bands was broken up nicely by Tchega. The highly danceable Créole rhythms got the crowd on their feet and moving and set the atmosphere to party. Well done to the RTR event coordinators for timing this perfectly to break up the sound (and this review).
New Phono up next and we are into the second half of the day. These guys are indie at its best, with big, atmospheric synth sounds driving them into post-rock territory. Playing songs mostly from their very good album Troubleshoot the Rain, the band sound like somewhere between 80s post-punk and modern bands like Stereolab.
Well done RTR programmers for adding a bit of variety with Halo of Teeth. The black metal band punished the audience with ridiculously fast drum patterns and guitars to go with. These guys are definitely not easy listening and a good time for the kids to either run away in fear or hang around and learn the ways of the metal lords. These guys will eat any children remaining. Setting aside the horror, the band were tight and relentlessly heavy, despite being down a guitarist they still managed an epic sound.
Kayps next, representing the hip-hop scene, and with just himself and a backing track on stage he grabbed the audience and pulled them in for the ride. With plenty of bouncing from the crowd, encouraged by the rapper, the party vibes went up a notch. He regularly called on people to get involved and have fun, including a call and response ending to make sure the audience didn’t forget what they just saw.
What can we say about Grub? First of all, despite following death metal and hip-hop acts, they held their own as one of the heaviest of the night. The three-guitar band are a perfect mix of catchy, radio-friendly and Sonic Youth-esque thrash. Matilda up front is just oozing personality, and it’s reflected in both her stage presence and songwriting. The band have a quality about them that makes it feel both a little old school Aussie while sounding very much in the now with the wall of guitar noise.
With the sun going down behind the pines, Anna Schneider seemed like a perfect choice to say bye to the light. Her angelic vocals mixed with trip-hoppy sound gave the crowd a dreamy, swaying vibe. Her songs often start off delicate and light, before riffs and beats introduce themselves and the songs build into something bigger. The guitar work was a particular highlight, with Anna producing some dazzling riffs on the acoustic.
Getting towards the home stretch now and veterans of the scene Gunns turn to show us what they’ve got. Another band to boast the triple guitar threat, they blasted the crowd with psych surf sounds, sitting in that 80s/90s post-punk pocket. With new single Peppermint Waves out in the world, the band have a lot to offer the modern Perth/Boorloo scene.
Not to be outdone, RTR pulled another left turn with electro 3-piece Sarco. Playing acid techno, the line was officially drawn and time for the kiddies to get home and let the grownups keep partying. Singer Shinead Ruby, singing/talking live with loops and effects, connected to the audience and gave the band a charismatic stage presence. It makes all the difference to the electro setup having this personality acting as master of ceremonies.
With the giant frog mascot getting warmed up on stage as Sarco had the crowd dancing, New Nausea hit the stage running and got everyone into the indie groove. With catchy, danceable songs aplenty they were perfect for the slot (When ICU, what a track). Their music almost defines the modern Perth/Boorloo indie sound. It’s music that just oozes hanging out with friends and good-time vibes; it almost felt like the good old Big Day Out days and bands like Powderfinger. Even the RTR team were tearing it up, dancing with delight backstage.
It says a lot about both the inclusive nature of RTRFM and the Perth/Boorloo scene in general, when you can have a day of music moving from death metal and acid electro to following up with the grace and excellent songwriting of Emily Barker. Emily gripped the crowd tightly with positive energy nestled in songs like With Small We Start, and the very fitting Wild to be Sharing This Moment. Hear hear.
It was up to Nick Allbrook and his latest band Walrus to close out the east stage. There aren’t many other Perth rock alumni that could be trusted to play such a slot, especially with no recorded music for the brand-new band. Allbrook is a fully fledged performer though and took to the stage like a duck to water. With an outstanding rhythm section to hold things down, the wild frontman pulled out the moves and his lagerstick. The new tunes are the eclectic mix you’d expect from these guys, and I’m sure everyone in the crowd would agree we want to hear more.
Grievous Bodily Calm have become synonymous with the Perth music scene, and if you want to call on someone to get a gig closed out this is the right band for it. The hip-hop / electro fused jazz makes for great late-night crowd fodder (okay it wasn’t that late, but it was a Sunday). The most impressive part of the show is the performers themselves — all are at the top of their game and masters of their instruments. There aren’t many instrumental bands that can do what they do, going beyond just holding the audience’s attention but entertaining them with danceable beats and moments of pure awe.
If there is anything negative to say about the event, it is that the loos were pretty far away. This is not all negative though, as the constant banging of portaloos would have probably killed the vibe closer to the stage. They were nice toilets though. Enough toilet talk. Congratulations RTR for managing to keep this event going for 33 consecutive years. The event is a fantastic showcase of both the local scene, and RTR’s ability to nurture and provide places for the excellent music in this city. Another successful, inclusive, and diverse In the Pines — looking forward to next year already.
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