The Zoo is the venue for loud bands. Every time I go I’m immediately overcome by a roaring wall of sound. This is especially true for Cannon and Cloud Nothings over the weekend. When I arrive at about eight-o’clock the crowd is thin, which is probably in part due to the unfortunate Sunday night timeslot. Regardless, I’m excited to finally see the American indie-rockers live.

The first thing I notice about Cannon is the strong surf rock drumbeat behind every track. The group fit right squarely into the Brisbane indie scene with their laid back persona and lively pop-rock tunes. The music sounds decent enough but it’s difficult to appreciate as it’s so loud. I’m not saying that in a Grandma way – it’s painfully, ear-splittingly loud. I’m ok with noise – Dinosaur Jr are one of the best bands I have seen live and they definitely know how to bring the volume. To me though, Cannon are needlessly loud. The mix is rather unfortunate with the set coming across like a deafening blur. This is especially so when compared to the clean, crisp and distinctive sound of Cloud Nothings.

Mixing issues aside, it has to be said that Cannon are patchy and inconsistent in places. The audience are largely disinterested – unfortunately in this instance Cannon failed to hold the room’s attention. The group just don’t sound as polished as I’d like, though to be fair, flawless execution probably isn’t their priority or focus. It’s not all bad; the front man is energetic and their cover of The Human League’s ‘Don’t You Want Me’ is certainly a set highlight.

Halfway through the night the venue finally started to fill up. By the time Cloud Nothings take the stage at nine-thirty the place is packed. Once they start to play, a crazy, haphazard mosh forms and I’m glad to have escaped the epicentre. It’s a sweaty mess; people are stage diving, hair is flying and the crowd is relentlessly pushing forward.

Cloud Nothings sound tight. They operate like a well-oiled machine. Everything is on point and perfect. Drummer Jayson Gerycz is insane. He’s the perfect combination of precision and speed, and pretty much the anchor to Cloud Nothing’s dynamic, angsty, pop-punk sound.

Singer/songwriter/guitarist Dylan Baldi is incredible. His emotive lyrics and raspy vocals are underpinned by powerful riffs and frantic, gritty, guitar playing. When the group perform the poignant, ‘No future/no past’ I am in awe. I can honestly feel the story and gut-wrenching emotion behind the song. As the band play some of the darker material, the stage is drenched in a deep red hue that heightens the devastating subject matter.

The set closes on my favourite song, ‘Wasted Days’. The tempo is considerably faster when compared to the recorded version, but the throws of dancing fans did not seem to mind. Midway through the track a saxophone player appears for an epic, instrumental interlude. Though it’s cool, the mix is less than ideal for this kind of execution – the sax is buried underneath the guitar and bass. I strained to make it out.

It’s at this point in the show that suddenly, hyped up crowd members try to climb on stage. Though it’s great to get involved in a gig and show support, the band were visibly frustrated every time someone jumped up for their five seconds. From the perspective of a more reserved crowd member, I found that this behaviour broke my focus on the music, and made the experience less immersive. Cloud Nothings should not need to compete for the already limited stage space.

The set went way too quickly, which is a sign of a great band. There is often a point in most gigs where a song starts to drag, or the sound becomes repetitive. This is not so for Cloud Nothings – the night echoed their albums in that both are short, sweet and leave me wanting more. Cloud Nothings really strengthened their reputation as an epic live act not to be missed. I will definitely see them again next tour, which fingers crossed won’t be too far away.