Something for Kate @ Badlands
w/ Adam Said Galore, Calmly and Kaitlin Keegan
Saturday, February 16, 2019
Something for Kate were as integral to Australia’s 90s alternative scene as butter is to bread. With 17 Hottest 100 features up their sleeve and a throng of passionate devotees to boot, it wasn’t a surprise to arrive to a packed audience at their Badlands Bar gig last night, and they sure as hell satisfied each and every one of us.
Upon arrival, food and drink trucks were abuzz with activity and fans were rapidly packing into the carpark setup, scrambling for the prime position in which to see a rare show from Perth heavyweights Adam Said Galore. Unfortunately this reviewer’s job requirements meant missing the wonderful supports that were Kaitlin Keegan and Calmly, but by all reports they each put on a stellar show.
Adam Said Galore have had a bunch of WAMi wins and even a featured on Recovery back in the day – a testament to their craft. Frontman Andrew Ryan coaxed the crowd forwards with a bit of banter – “It smells like chicken back there… if you don’t like chicken come up here and you’ll smell it less” – and then launched into the set. Their sound was immediately impressive. Reminiscent of Sydney band Glide and even SFK’s earlier work, it was clear to see why they were such an apt choice for support. Though the view from the back wasn’t the best, it was easy to settle into their vibe and simply enjoy it all for what it was. Emotion was rife and pleasant, and gripped even the unfamiliar with a tight but welcoming fist. The pairing of Ryan’s voice with his frequent clean guitar was a match made in heaven. They even had a few proggy, post rock-like moments, with the fourth song being instrumental and a slow jam of sorts. The band were clearly enjoying being back together as a unit, and they earned themselves at least one new fan through their prowess and passion.
Something for Kate didn’t take long to follow, hitting the stage almost right on time to the dulcet tones of Frank Sinatra. A new track kicked things off, followed by Three Dimensions from 2001’s Echolalia, much to the excitement of the audience – ‘excitement’, meaning a few audible singing voices and a few people jumping around here and there; the relative introversion of SFK’s music combined with the slightly older average age of fans attesting to this. In general, the crowd’s enthusiastic voice was not lost on anyone when older favourites were played, with an expected hush falling over the venue when less familiar ones began.
The Kids Will Get The Money, Survival Expert and Before Butterfly’s Wings were to follow, the craft of Paul Dempsey on vocals and guitar being as potent and polished as ever, as was that of bassist Stephanie Ashworth and Clint Hyndman on drums.
Banter was limited in their set, but it didn’t seem to be an issue to many seeing as they managed to belt out 19 songs including an encore. A notable moment of humour arose when Dempsey played a couple of solo acoustic tracks and proclaimed “that one was about my car keys” following his rendition of You Only Hide.
Towards the tail end of the set we were treated to classics like Monsters and a couple of Dempsey’s famed covers like Ship of Fools by World Party and Sweet Nothing by Florence Welch and Calvin Harris. The final song before the encore was Captain (Million Miles an Hour) much to the delight of, well, literally everyone. The encore brought the likes of Deja Vu and Electricity which again got everyone well and truly going.
One small gripe fellow concert-goers mentioned to me was the acoustics; the speakers were located at the front with seemingly none further back, which caused a slight issue due to the length of the general admission area. This, of course, was no fault of any bands, but rather something the venue could modify in future.
Although visuals were limited, the enthusiasm of Something for Kate was palpable from wherever you stood. After 25 years it’s evident that the love remains and is stronger than ever, and they did a wonderful job selecting quality talent to lead us into their set. This reviewer grew up on their music and it was a pleasure to finally see the group doing what they do best.
ELOISE PARKS
