…Continued from Volumes 2016: Day 1
The second day of Volumes not only began four hours earlier than Day 1, but it opened up three new rooms across two venues. We began back in the Gallery with Solid Effort and Orb.
Orb
Meanwhile, the OAF main stage was also kicking off, with Good Boy and Rolling Blackouts CF getting the crowd in the mood for a big night ahead.
Good Boy
Rolling Blackouts CF
Brighton Up Bar hosted an outstanding demonstration of the very best that Australian garage and indie has to offer, including Darts, Summer Flake, You Beauty and Scott & Charlene’s Wedding, pictured below.
Wax Witches
Nicholas Allbrook was the highlight of my weekend. It was the first time I’ve finally managed to catch his solo act, and it was everything I could’ve hoped for. Weird as hell, enhanced by wild eyes, distorted facial expressions and spindly jerks of limbs, Allbrook’s one-man show is a performance to behold. He looks a bit like his mind is in a different room, but his guitar is completely on point and his voice is unarmed and brilliant. And let’s be real – anyone who can use a flute both as an instrument as a cane to point and dance with, is doing a good job at live performance.
Mossy
Slum Sociable
Volumes is a really wonderful addition to Sydney’s nightlife, which has been dwindling for so long now. Between the buzzing, bustling audience and the huge variety of artists on display, there was a wonderful atmosphere throughout.
Despite being held across a number of venues, the weekend felt so easy to navigate. On the first night punters were given stamps, and the access was upgraded to plastic wristbands from Saturday afternoon. Each venue had its own feel, from the tropical vibes and minuscule dance floor in Cliff Dive, to the crooked cosiness of the tiny Brighton Up Bar from the sweaty rooms of Oxford Art Factory to the beat-centric Burdekin. The audience were in great spirits and the whole process seemed to run really smoothly. Multi-venue events aren’t easy to pull off, but when they’re done well, they’re done really well. Volumes 2016 was a wonderful weekend event, we can only hope for plenty more like it.
Photos: Danielle Hansen / Howl & Echoes
We caught Twin Peaks live at Sydney’s Oxford Art Factory on May 10, 2016, with support from Wax Witches. This was Twin Peaks’ first ever Australian visit, with Sydney as their final show, having already stormed through Brisbane and Melbourne earlier this month.
All photos copyright Danielle Hansen / Howl & Echoes
Read our 2015 interview with Twin Peaks
Twin Peaks
Australian expat Alex Wall AKA Wax Witches has just released the accompanying video clip for his self-aware track, 27. With lyrics such as “I’m just 27 / Too young to go to heaven“, coupled with a relaxed drawl not unlike The Jesus and Mary Chain, Wall continues to tap into his niche by highlighting just how much he fucking gets this fragment of our generation (more on this later).
The video clip sees Wall fish out an anonymous note threatening “I’M GONNA GETCHA BUDDY!” We then see him hunt down this anonymous person with a rifle, commando crawling and climbing trees.The clip takes a twist at the end where his curiosity gets the better of him, and down he goes!
The clip is funny, and takes away from the song’s lyrics about wanting to die at 27. Wall continues to employ his “too cool” attitude as he has done in this current album, his previous Wax Witches album and BKC. When he signed with one of my favourite labels, Burger Records, I thought perhaps this would have marked a shift in his work. Alas, he still seems to not be able to let the reckless youth vibe go, yet he somehow tries to pretend like he’s not serious. It’s Blink-182 meets the crushing mentality of being “Tumblr famous” or some other bullshit concern only found in the youth of the Internet Age. It’s confusing, and whilst I enjoyed BKC, that was because I was 19. Everyone else has begun to grow up, or at least move forward in ways outside of music taste, yet with Wax Witches I only hear the sounds of someone really not sure of a lot of things.
Center of The Universe is out now on Burger Records.
Wax Witches is a one-man “sci-fi” post-punk act, perhaps better known as Bleeding Knees Club frontman Alex Wall. It began when Wall, bored between BNC tours, taught himself to record his own music, writing a “collection of bratty lo-fi songs that reflective is formative influences of Cali punks The Descendants and Black Flag.”
Following his acclaimed 2013 debut album “Celebrity Ratings” and the more recent “Centre Of Your Universe,” Wall has announced an Aussie tour which includes support slots for Northeast Party House and a set at the highly anticipated Brisbane event BIGSOUND. His first visit since relocating to Brooklyn a year ago, it’s sure to be a compelling and chaotic string of shows.
We wanted to know a little more about what he listens to, so we asked.
1. My favourite track to wake up to is… Living In America, Dom
2. The best track for cooking is… Cooking Up Something Good, Mac DeMarco
3. The best track for spring cleaning is… My Other Man, Gap Dream
4. The ultimate road trip track is…. California Dreamin’, The Mamas & The Papas
5. My favourite love song is… Heart-Shaped Glasses, Marilyn Manson
6. The best track for sweet love makin’ is… Cookie, R. Kelly
7. The track that always gets the party started is… Dying In The Pussy, Antwon
8. The best track to wind down a crowd is… Bette Davis Eyes, Kim Carnes
9. My favourite drunken karaoke track is… All Star, Smash Mouth
10. The best ‘morning after’ tune is…. How Long Have You Known? DIIV
11. A song that always makes me cry is… Plays Pretty For Baby, Saosin or Not Now, Blink-182
12. I love going to sleep listening to….. Isn’t It A Pity, Galaxie 500
13. I can’t stop dancing when I hear…. Lust For Life, Girls
Check it all out right here!
WAX WITCHES ~ “CENTRE OF YOUR UNIVERSE” AUSTRALIAN TOUR
Thurs 11th Sept ~ BRISBANE ~ Rics Bar for BIGSOUND Live, Fortitude Valley
Fri 12th Sept ~ GOLD COAST ~ Elsewhere, Surfers Paradise (w/- Step-Panther + White Lodge)
Sat 13th Sept ~ SYDNEY ~ Wasted Years at Q Bar, Darlinghurst
Thurs 18th Sept ~ MELBOURNE ~ Shebeen (w/- Northeast Party House)
Fri 19th Sept ~ MELBOURNE ~ Ding Dong Lounge (w/- Northeast Party House)
Sat 20th Sept ~ MELBOURNE ~ Northcote Social Club (w/- Northeast Party House) * SOLD OUT *
Sun 21st Sept ~ MELBOURNE ~ The Gasometer, Collingwood (w/- Northeast Party House) (U18’s – 2:30pm)
Sun 21st Sept ~ MELBOURNE ~ The Gasometer, Collingwood (w/- Northeast Party House) (18+ – 7:30pm)
Wed 24th Sept ~ SYDNEY ~ Beach Road Hotel, Bondi
Thurs 25th Sept ~ SYDNEY ~ Hotel Steyne, Manly
Sat 27th Sept ~ WOLLONGONG ~ Rad
Sun 28th Sept ~ SYDNEY ~ Sounds Of The Suburbs Festival, Cronulla
Fri 3rd Oct ~ SYDNEY ~ GoodGod Small Club (w/- Northeast Party House)
Sat 4th Oct ~ BRISBANE ~ Alhambra Lounge, Fortitude Valley (w/- Northeast Party House)
Sun 5th Oct ~ GOLD COAST ~ Sounds Of Sunday, Broadbeach
Sat 11th Oct ~ ADELAIDE ~ Uni Bar (w/- Crooked Colours + Northeast Party House)
Fri 10th Oct ~ MELBOURNE ~ Cherry Bar