Homebake 2009

I wandered into Homebake 2010 somewhat dolefully after discovering that ex-Birthday-Party-member-come-my-personal-musical-savior Rowland S Howard had to withdraw from the lineup due to illness, serving merely as a mirage in an otherwise desert of never-ending beer lines and wife-beater clad, southern-cross-tattooed Jet fans 'pinging' off their 'tits'. However, the day was about to take a turn for the better, as these under-the-radar highlights attest. 

The first act I checked out was The Scare, who gave a nod to the hair metal bands of the mid eighties with their dirty guitars and wailing vocals. With lyrical references to vampires, signature scissor kicks and shapes pulled straight out of The Horrors'book (particularly in the leg silhouette department – the guitarist wore the tightest pair of drainpipes this reviewer has ever witnessed), they oozed rock star charisma and sleaziness. They played songs from their new offering OozeVoodoo like 'No Money'and'I Saw Destruction', as well as pulling out tunes from their debut, 'Ghetto Psalms' and 'She's Sleeping In A Strangers Bed'. By the time the final chords of 'Cry' had rung out, The Scare had hurtled through a solid set.

Next up, over at the Hopetoun Stage, was Townsville's The Middle East, a band whoplay gorgeous folk songs that have you lulled, before waking you up with an assault of a gloriously harmonised wail session. 'Blood' is one such number, which closed The Middle East's set in crescendoing cavalcade of drums, trumpet, banjo and foot-stomping. Unfortunately the emotive power of their music was somewhat lost over the chitter chatter of the clientele (the guy standing next to me intermittedly yelling "more cowbell!"' did not provide the most mood-conducive commentary).

Having shed the electro-pop stylings of 2005's Fractions on their latest double-disc of sprawling Mogwai-esque post-rock,Decoder Ring seemed like an odd choice for the Big Top Stage. Once the DJ playing the generic doof ejected his CD, Sydney's finest emerged and went about flooring the sparse crowd with their heart-shuddering bass, shimmering atmospheres and equally impressive lighting and big screen visuals.

To finish the night I immersed myself in the sweaty confines of being front and centre-stage for Melbourne garage-boogie messiahs Eddy Current Suppression Ring. Their feverish stage presence was exhilarating. Paced like a caged lion, vocalist Brendan Suppression gripped the microphone with his black golf gloves, twitched his leg in a such a way that even the most Ritalin-deprived ADD child could not imitate and pulled out his idiosyncratic dance moves (think Joy Division's Ian Curtis crossed with Seinfeld's Elaine Benis). Guitarist Mikey, emerging wearing a t-shirt that somewhat aptly read "Piggly Wiggly", bounced with giddy excitement the entire set.

The crowd went mental for 'Cool Icecream', jumping up and down and demanding their dessert like spoiled children. "Chocolate, vanilla, whatever – I deeeesssserve my dessert!" Brendan billowed. Other highlights included 'Colour Television' and 'Which Way To Go', where Brendan, to the dismay of security guards, told the crowd to "Jump over the barrier and come up here. You're all a bit far away". Security tackled the few punters who tried and the crowd booed, before Die Die Die!'s guitarist, watching from side of stage, ran across the stage and jumped into the crowd, resulting in an uproar of cheers and the party ensuing. 'Wrapped Up' was an equally wild number, with the Eddy Current bassist writhing on the floor and a roadie donning a sombrero taking the stage and twirling around with a beer in tow. Perhaps as an ironic nod to the disgruntled security, Eddy Current closed what was a truly stellar rock n roll set with ‘I Admit My Faults'. Joanna Lowry

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