Wolf & Cub

I wasn’t quite sure what I had just walked into. I was expecting the launch for Wolf and Cub’s new single, but was greeted with what appeared to be a rehearsal for a high-school talent show. When I asked around, I was informed that onstage was Downtown, the first support act for the evening.

The group’s sound was echoey, loud and furthermore unpleasant. Their songs were unstructured and appeared under-practiced. Nothing at all similar to the bands they were in support of. The apparent carelessness left me feeling frustrated to say the least. Hard to determine if they were a three piece or four, with a novelty member onstage for his dancing joining the guitarist, bassist and drummer. Downtown lost my interest from the beginning, due to my particular disdain for anyone who wears sunglasses after daylight hours. Not to mention the female guitarist adorned in facial stripes that were somewhat reminiscent of Nelly. They departed the stage, leaving me with nothing but a feeling of confusion. Perhaps I missed the joke.

Sydney-siders The Holidays were second on the bill for tonight. Having toured with the likes of Jamie T, The Wombats and Ben Kweller, the four-piece have paved a name for themselves with their very own down-under take on Brit-pop. What has best been described as ‘good natured rock’, The Holidays greeted all in the buoyant spirits that many have become accustomed to from their shows. The boys have performed in old Melbourne town over a dozen times, so it’s not surprising that they are more than comfortable with tonight’s crowd. For those who have been living in a radio-free bubble of late, their tunes are sweetened with a pleasant veneer that makes them instantly likeable. The group’s theme song Holiday is no exception to this - an oh-so-sunny number that gets those toes-a-tapping - whilst the slightly moodier The Werewolf You Become offers a reprieve from their typically happy-go-lucky melodies.

The remaining few spots in front of the stage filled up in anticipation of what was about to ensue. The pack of wolves entered the stage in an explosion of lights and noise, the dramatics setting the precedent for the remainder of the set. A meandering jam leads into their first song for the night, Vessels. With forceful rock performances at Big Day Out, Homebake, Meredith and the Laneway festivals, Wolf and Cub are evidently in their comfort zone onstage. Touring in support of their latest single One To The Other, their new material was unveiled tonight with much pride and conviction.

Refusing to acknowledge any musical boundaries, the quartet break those limitations often adhered to by a four-piece ensemble trading two guitars for a second drum kit. Some critics argue that two drummers is a rather unnecessary composition for a band, but that very argument is overpowered in an instant by the first inexorable thumps of their two drums. What results is brutality in musical four-on-the-floor form, with a richness added to the rhythms section that just a single kit would not suffice. Anyone keen on a beat strong sound is won over by Wolf and Cub’scontagious March of Clouds. I must say, the unrelenting vigour of both drummers is commendable. At no point does either sacrifice persistence, playing with utmost conviction from start to finish.

Beats aside, the psychedelic guitar and bass lines sound to be channeling the great Led Zeppelin, which coalesces in one hypnotic soundscape. When these sounds flowed into the opening notes of This Mess, the boys were briefly drowned out by the crowd’s over-audible excitement. And just when I thought Wolf and Cub had pulled all tricks out of the hat, new member Marvin Hammond forgoes the drums to add a saxophone to the repertoire. The multi-instrumentalist saxes it up mid-way into their second last song right through to the stellar conclusion. Tonight Wolf and Cub have demonstrated a need for music today to push the boundaries and venture fourth into new territories rather than re-enforcing the old.

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