Sofar Sounds Sydney: 18th February 2015
Words by Sara Tamin from Music In Retrospect
Photos by Megan Carew Photography & Design
As I walked into Sydney Sofar Sounds at Batch Brewing Co. in Marrickville on the 18th of February the atmosphere was instantly magnetic. The sea of bodies in the venue proved to be the perfect audience for a night of wonder.
The opening act Manu Pozzi (all the way from Argentina) blew us away with his heavenly tone and his soothing, acoustic Spanish melodies.
He progressed dynamically through his set from warming and gentle to strong anddefinite as his projections boomed through the echoing venue. His between songbanter was shy and endearing and he appeared very sweet as he tipped his “lucky hat”. As he began to play a song in English his lyrics were almost like a melodic and rhythmic story, filled with catchy lines like “you make my days better” directly reflecting to the feel of his music, which at this point seemed calming and constant like a flowing wave.
As he arrived at his last few songs he effortlessly transitioned into a more upbeat tune, covering ‘Don’t Worry’ and encouraged the audience to sing along. The audience did this willingly, getting lost in the moment of magic. For his last song, Manu hypnotised his listeners by playing a tune in which he used the guitar percussively, sliding, banging, picking and plucking the guitar to create unusual sounds and resonating contours. Manu Pozzi was a real experience, which was uniquely and ultimately charming for all involved.
When Gazele strutted onto the stage with a guitarist and a box drummer they demanded attention from the get go. Gazele, with her smile beaming from ear to ear and her on stage sassiness instantly enchanted the audience. Her woozy, raw and untapped RnB tunes credited large applause and soft grooving sways and clicks.
As she ploughed through her set of all originals, she captivated us with her soulful tunes and embellished melodies filled with trills and runs. Her lyrics seemed to be bursting with motivational morals and self-love, which was refreshing and enlightening to hear. The guitarist used a lot of muting and strumming to create the dynamics that the simple and uplifting songs needed. The drummer mimicked this with syncopation yet steady pop-sensiblity. As their set continued she spat out memorable melodic jumps with even more powerhouse vocal qualities mixed with skittish guitar and spine-tingling vibrato. Gazele was extremely entertaining and beyond pastiche with their soul glow.
The already electric atmosphere became even more buzzy when Betty and Oswald drifted onto the small stage filling it to the brim with a drum kit, bass, guitar, three vocalists, a megaphone and an accordion. The four-piece band instantly astonished the crowd with their layered, catchy collection of mind-expanding melodies and jazzy scats, working at an alternative angle. The megaphone as a response to the vocalists call created a change in the sound quality to a more distant low and distorted response, capturing the audience’s attention completely.
Their music almost creates a traditional sound mixed with indie folk/jazz and blues. Their songs told stories in colloquial language with polished musical accompaniment and breathtaking male/female harmonies. Vocal embellishments like slides, scatting and crooning were used as if they were almost effortless, as they harmonised together so perfectly it was as if they were brother and sister. Tempo changes and excitement vibrating from the stage was used to get the audience up and dancing to their last song and bang of a finish. Betty and Oswald were utterly enthralling to watch and moved the audience to their feet with their ever-changing dynamic set of tunes and utterly energetic performance.
To end a wondrous night Flowertruck commenced with a psychedelic set filled with dreamy guitar fills, airy female backing vocals and strong and alluring male vocals, channelling the likes of The Cure. Flowertruck’s sound is distinctive with a basement grunge 90’s feel as well as shades of mid-to late 80’s with an explosive stage performance from the lead male vocalist, not unlike that of Peter Garrett in his ‘Midnight Oil’ days. The bands physical performance intensity worked as a remarkable stage centrepiece encouraged the audience to stay on their feet and dance for the rest of the night.
The lead male’s banter was impossible not to laugh at, as if he had no gate between mind and mouth. Their tunes appeared as if they were laser aimed to keep cool heads swaying and limbs throbbing. The guitar played bubbly scribbles of riffs as the synth sustained constant chord combinations trailing underneath, as the drums remained mostly continual. All instruments seemed to follow the melody contour perfectly. The lyrics mostly appeared with casual teenage angst although the music appearing mostly cheerfully, especially in their song “I want to be with you” which is what makes their music so magnetic.
Overall Sofar Sounds Sydney yet again was able to shake up the inner city nightlife.