Open Season has been declared in Brisbane for its fifth edition, a two-month long celebration of live music, curated to bring a diverse range of world-class musicians to the city.
On its opening weekend, the return of Cloud Control was a masterstroke (30 May). Asking locals, Platonic Sex, to support was a great idea as well.This dreamy indie-rock band have been going from strength to strength with every new release and it was on this day that their new track, 'Easy', was released, another great example of shoegaze indie rock from a group who impresses the growing early crowd.
"We're stoked to be supporting Cloud Control," admits lead singer Bridget Brandolini, as the band gleefully perform despite their songs dripping with angst and trepidation. This is where the great bands make their mark, in their formative years, and Platonic Sex have many great years ahead of them.
In what has become a necessary part of the live music landscape, bands are performing classic albums in full and in the case of beloved band, Cloud Control, I'm sure a collective happy sigh was heard around the country when they announced their seminal 2010 album, 'Bliss Release', would get that treatment.
2010 was a great year for Australian music. Sia released her groundbreaking 'We Are Bor' record, Children Collide were giving us 'Jellylegs', and Bag Raiders were 'Shooting Stars'. In amongst it all, a four-piece from the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, released their debut album.
It was an age of eclectic, electronic and experimental music in Australia, which meant the organic sounds of Cloud Control stood out even more. The band have always felt like they've been born in the wrong decade, but they've always managed to feel right for whatever time we've listened.
The retro Princess Theatre in Woolloongabba was the perfect locale to immerse ourselves in their sound once again as 'Dojo Rising' set us up with its warm tones.
"Give it to me easy / Give it to me hard / Just wanna get, get, get lit, yeah," sang out lead singer Alister Wright, and straight away we were back in their clutches with a smile on our face.
A few songs to warm us up and then we were thrown in the "why oh whys" of the 'Bliss Release' record and it was a journey that felt joyous, nostalgic and beautifully raw.
Heidi Lenffer, on keys, tambourine and vocals, appeared to have a smile on her face all night as her and Wright alternated lyrics, harmonised and synchronised beautifully.
Jeremy Kelshaw on bass would spin around the stage with abandon, interacting with the band, the crowd and obviously enjoying himself. Whilst the other Lenffer, Ulrich, on drums held down the beat with aplomb, also contributing the glorious harmonies of the evening.
It's no secret how great this album is. It won the Australian Music Prize in 2011 and has spawned no less than five singles and years of infectious lyrics into the Australian music psyche, and continues to feel relevant and necessary.
"It's good to be back!" declared Wright finally. Never a big talker, but clearly happy to be there, he could be seen smiling, interacting and immersing himself in the chance to be back on stage with his friends. Heidi also shared: "I feel a bit overwhelmed, this is really cool," but was clearly happy to be there.
'Ghost Story' with Kelshaw banging a road case with drum sticks, was one of many opportunities for the band's harmonies to come to the fore, but it's the "la-la-las" of 'This Is What I Said' when the crowd became the fifth voice and the room swelled and our hearts were full. There may be lesser-known tracks on the record, but they are no-less enjoyable.
'The Rolling Stones' with Wright's guitar dripping in Paul Simon-esque tones and harmonies that comes right from the '70s give us the warm fuzzies as we sway and enjoy. The album wrapped with 'Beast Of Love', its acoustic tenderness putting the full stop on a record that holds its own in Australian music folklore and made us feel lucky to have witnessed, but that wasn't the end of course.
The band quickly returned with a selection of bonus tracks taken from their two other records, 'Dream Cave' and 'Zone'. 'Dream Cave', the title and last track from their second album rounded out the evening as beautifully as we could have hoped. The delivery of every track, apart from Wright briefly forgetting the lyrics to 'Hollow Drums', felt perfect and right.
It was a celebration of a timeless band and hopefully – nay – pleadingly a new start for a group that feels like it still has so much more to offer. We sauntered out into the cool autumn Brisbane night with an air of positivity and a deep breath that we had collaboratively caught something special that night and obtained that 'Bliss Release' we craved.
