All work and no play can make Jack a very dull boy and thanks to bands like The Gooch Palms, Tempura Nights and Woodboot. I, like many others, don’t have to be Jack, and judging from how that story turned out I think we can all agree that that’s definitely a good thing. So in order not to make my life turn into ‘The Dullening’ I decided to check out the two top quality bands from Brisbane, and the Newcastle natives in what was sure to be a great night.

Most bands aren’t really punk anymore. I’m not just saying that because I’m a 22 year old who spends his nights drinking wine from a box whilst wishing he could of seen bands like the Cockney Rejects or Crass before they died a little too much inside to play music anymore; it’s just that no one really has the pure and minimalist energy that those classic bands seem to have had. Sure there are loads of bands that have a lot of aspects of punk rock, but it’s usually been mixed with aspects from different genres to make something more original. With that in mind it was so nice to see Woodboot start to play as soon as I walked in the door. Playing to a half-filled room they managed to maintain their simple, yet invigorating buzzed out song structures, with solos that were rough, short, messy and never seeming overzealous. Throughout the set members of the band would swap mics to give everyone a go at shouting and sometimes they would all just shout together. Regardless of who was shouting, these guys were great and overwhelmingly fun to watch because you don’t really see that many bands doing what they do, that well, anymore.

Next up was Tempura Nights, whose laid back, reverb soaked, post-punk tracks washed over the crowd at The Foundry, providing some relaxing relief after the invigorating act before. Throughout this luscious and calming set they played to a pretty full crowd, favourites such as, Mr. Tone and Studville, and even some new tracks if I'm not mistaken. The only possible hiccup was the lead guitar being a little too quiet at the start, which was shortly fixed to ensure the room could hear how swell the tones coming from the guitar really were. In a way, it was perfect to have these guys coming on after Woodboot and before Gooch Palms, as it gave everyone a breather with some great tunes so they could save their energy for the headliner, which, incidentally, everyone definitely needed.

Man I was excited to see Gooch Palms. I’ve been watching these guys since about 2014 and all they do is keep getting better and better. The first time I ever saw them, I think they were supporting a local Sydney band called Palms at The Oxford Art Factory. From that moment I couldn’t believe how full and energetic they sounded for a band containing one guitar and the most minimalist drums you could probably get away with. Since then they’ve done their own headlining tours around Australia and even supported Violent Soho throughout their Waco Tour. In every way these guys deserve their ever continuing and rising fame, not just from the quality of their tracks but also the quality of their live shows which are fucking amazing. Tearing through a bunch of new tracks from their recently released sophomore album as well as playing some of their well known and deeply nostalgic tracks from their first LP, Novos, they tore the foundry apart. From the very first chord that was struck the dance floor was erupting and going absolutely ape-shit for the minimalist, bebop, surf-punk thing they have going on. Even when they played their classic You, the crowd managed to find a groove that could pull off a crowd surf, which even Leroy was ecstatic and surprised by, stating that from his recollection no one had ever done it before.I can tell you about how they played their tracks in an exemplary fashion, but you guys probably already know. What I’d rather tell you is the sheer enjoyment that Kat and Leroy showed throughout it, telling us about how not many would of wanted to hear Get By in their local scene a few years back, and being so overwhelmingly overjoyed that a group of rowdy kids from Brisbane can fill out an entire room for them now. It made them seem sincere, authentic and somewhat inspiring. It’s easy to say that’s how most bands must feel, the difference lies in the fact that these two people only play about 1 1/2 instruments, and managed to celebrate their ten year anniversary as boyfriend and girlfriend by playing us some awesome tunes. With that in mind, it almost seemed perfect that Leroy got naked and shared the love he had for us by stage diving into the crowd. 

- Kacper Majchrowski