Great Gable @ Mojo’s Bar
w/ Mal De Mer, Dulcie, Lady Wine (solo)
Friday, August 24, 2018
Frontwoman Madeline Hoole from Lady Wine stood on stage. She had a long scarf draped across her neck which was running along the edge of her keyboard. She was on stage as I walked into Mojo’s on Friday night. Given the gig was sold out, I was expecting a hefty wait to get inside so I snuck down as early as I could to avoid the throng of people standing in the rain. I was glad I’d snuck down early as I watched the solo set from Hoole, who delicately worked through her set list, providing stripped back and acoustic songs in nature as she shared the stage with the lead guitarist from Dulcie.
Between bands, we had flavours from Ocean Alley, Vance Joy and early Arctic Monkeys blasting through the speakers creating an intimate atmosphere. The local four-piece Dulcie set up to a small crowd and commenced their set. The highlight was a song called Small Fish which led with a 20 second intro of stripped backed keyboard and guitars followed by a punchy pick-up from the bass and percussion. After the chorus, the chord progression slows right down leaving room for the group’s incredibly complimentary voices.
The next band sent my head turning. Mal De Mer have only released one song so far but don’t let that fool you. Their entire set had me feeling excited about this five-piece who had snagged a set at Fairbridge Festival earlier this year. Their lyrics have the kind of cynicism that characterises Gen Y with a lyric delivery that felt close to the way that Missy Higgins lets the words drawl from her mouth. Through their set they covered tracks called Goon, Brendan, Ban Jovi and a personal favourite, Wet Socks. Wet Socks leads with the grooviest bass line then uses language in the lyrics that’s confronting yet gentle. There’s the perfect amount of saxophone to get excited about and the lead guitarist feels like he’s making his guitar talk. With no talk of an EP release on the cards yet, you’ll just have to catch this act at J.F.K’s EP Launch on September 8.
After a quick intermission, Great Gable jumped up to a crowd pushing against the stage. It’s no surprise they were so excited. Great Gable play with a tightness reminiscent of a band that have been playing together for decades. They kicked off with one of their first ever singles called Only For You then went into some newer stuff which ground their sound into rock and roll roots. Their setlist was orchestrated so cleverly, with Early Morning introducing Geordie Bay onstage to give us a saxophone element to the track. The highlight had to be when they took Shine and stripped it right back to just Matt Preen on guitar and Alex Whiteman on lead vocals. It drew the crowd in, breaking our hearts when the boys left the stage only to be refused access to their dressing room. After that, they climbed back on stage to finish the set with All Day Long and Drift, their biggest track to date. Another highlight had to be when Taste made room for the tastiest bass solo from Chris Bye.
There is something almost lazy about the way this band plays which makes it so easy to consume. From the lyrics to the riffs, each beat is dragged out causing the listener to melt into the sound. One of WA’s premier upcoming bands, their music is simple yet layered so cleverly that it punches you in the throat whilst still holding your hand. The lyricism is honest and vulnerable with the delivery so careful and raw with moments where you’d be forgiven for closing your eyes and just rocking gently in the mosh pit. They built their set list to create a narrative playing on the punters’ emotions, to capitalise on the live performance aspect of their music. From start to end, their set was orchestrated phenomenally. It’s unfortunate that Geordie Bay and Mal De Mer won’t be going with them on the east coast leg of their tour, but with acts such as Velvet Bloom and Mantashade meeting them over there, they’ll be fine.
ANNIE MUNROE
