Apr
10
The Drones - Cambridge Hotel
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Triple J favourites and Australian Music Award winners, The Drones rolled into Newcastle’s Cambridge Hotel for a night of good ol’ gritty Australian rock, with support by local boys Head Of State and French imports Dimi Dero Inc….
Opening proceedings was local act Head of State who punched out a very tight and solid set of post grunge rock and roll. If I had to draw comparisons, bands such as Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam and even Gomez come to mind but the same time they have there own style going on and their politically spiced lyrics give them a nice edge. Singer Murray Dickinson has a strong vocal range and he can belt out a rock tune with the best of them as well as being able to mellow it down with an emotive ballad. The rest of the band are talented musicians and never missed a beat, evidence of a well rehearsed and experienced live act. Given the right exposure they could well be another Newcastle success story.
Next up were French band Dimi Dero Inc who make no secret that they are big fans of 70’s and 80’s underground Australian rock. Think the Scientists meets the Birthday Party and you get the picture. They opened with just their guitarist and a female vocalist - no mention of her on the band’s website, so I have no idea who she was but she had the voice of an angel and I could have watched her for a lot longer. After one song the rest of the band got on stage and she stuck around for backups for another tune and then she was gone. The band then went on to play a big noisy and dirty rock set wearing their influences proudly on their sleeves. No one was up the front for them but that did not stop them from putting in their all and frontman Dimi rocked out like there was no tomorrow whilst seemingly channelling Nick Cave, Kim Salmon and Blixa Bargeld. It was a very entertaining set of art rock and hopefully they’ll get more attention at their Sydney and Melbourne shows.
The Drones are one of those bands that I heard many times on the radio or whilst out and about and I have really liked what I have heard but I have never gotten around to buying their albums. They have earned a lot of attention since winning the Australian Music Award last year and after seeing them tonight, it was well deserved. The Cambridge was only about a third full which was a bit of a surprise considering their recent surge in popularity but that did not seem to deter them from putting on a great show. Whilst the band are all talented and accomplished musicians, they may as well not have been there for all eyes were focused on vocalist Gareth Liddiard. He spews forth his lyrics that are charged with anger and laced with mourning in a sincere manner that is totally captivating and when he isn’t partially devouring the microphone, he swaggers around the stage like a puppet wresting demons from his guitar. I haven’t seen such a emotive and enigmatic frontman in Australian rock since witnessing Ron Peno of Died Pretty on the same stage many years ago (showing my age now).
The Drones play gritty and epic rock tunes that could easily become a wall of sound if their tunes were not reigned in by their blues and folk influences. Their songs are fierce and beautiful at the same time and they have a very Australian edge to them. JJJ favourite’s I Don’t Ever Want to Change and Sharkfin Blues were highlights but the rest of the set was no less mesmerizing. They are heading over the UK and Europe from April to June playing nearly every night and hopefully they’ll leave a lasting impresson. It would be great to see such a unique Aussie band who are not a Jet clone get the recognition that they deserve. Highly recommended should they play in Newie again.
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