Following on from the late afternoon parties, the rest of the day saw me jump from venue to venue trying to catch as much music as possible. First up, I caught the end of Wooster, a solid rock band from Santa Cruz, California. That's about six hours North of LA for those playing at home. The band were as tight as they come, and the music they were producing would please any ear that fancies some good rock and roll. Definitely will be listening to them on record - and stay tuned for my interview with the band!
Nearby, Sweden's Melpo Mene was producing a beautiful track, though seemed to be a bit frustrated with some technical problems. Still, he pushed through and the music that was produced by the three piece - with keys, guitars and drums - was layered and impressive indeed, with elements reminiscent of another great Swedish band, the Shout Out Louds.
An early highlight for the festival came in the form of Tiny Ruins from New Zealand, performing in the United Methodist Church, where we've been lucky enough to see artists like The Trouble With Templeton and Patrick Wolf in past years. Tiny Ruins, whose real name is Hollie Fullbrook, is performing here solo; comparisons to Laura Marling are probably a little too easy, though she's less folk oriented and certainly has a beautiful voice to call her own. A great guitar player, too - sans pick!
Her lyrical inspiration seems to come from just about anywhere - this isn't someone who sings solely of heartbreak and long lost loves - wherever she can find it. The unreleased track "Me at the Museum, You at the Winter Gardens", which was about the time she was looking for work at the museum, is one such example. A highlight from the set was a track called "Reasonable Man", and "White Sheet Lightning" was the newest track she'd written. "She'll be Coming Round" ended things up, and was a stunning way to finish the set. You can watch a live performance of that song above, though it still doesn't do it justice...
With one of the most internationally eclectic mixes of bands you'll find at any event, you never know what you're going to get at Culture Collide. No exception to this were The Great Wilderness from Costa Rica. The four piece are made up of two female guitarists and vocalists accompanied by a two guys on the bass and drums, all working together to perform some unique rock and roll. Their stylings could easily find their place amongst the bands of Soundwave, though I find it difficult to compare them to anyone in particular - there's influences from the worlds of punk rock, dream pop, hard rock, classic rock and much more going on there... Then there are their vocal stylings, which aren't something you hear everyday. Check out a track from them below, and make your own judgements!
Headlining the Converse Rubber Tracks party at The Echo were Denmark's Iceage. Opening with "Awake", the band's lead singer Elias Bender Rønnenfelt - hand glove and all - exploded with energy as he moved around the stage in a way that would make a young Iggy Pop proud. Their music was fast paced and just about everything you could ask for from a punk rock band like this. But the thrill of seeing this band live disappeared quickly when the experience became one of the most awkward in recent memory.
Battling sound problems, and with a lead singer clearly inebriated, the band did not look like they want to be there. I've seen punk rock bands play the whole disinterested card before, and that's fine, but these guys were pissed off - and rather than let that come out in the music, they let it get in the way of it all. They finished their set about halfway through after the sound cut out, with Elias literally walking off stage and out the front door. If punk rock is acting like a five year old who's not getting his way, then I guess these guys have it in droves.
Don't get me wrong, I know it sucks when there are technical problems and I'm sure there's more to the story. But I've seen a lot of bands with a lot less talent than these guys push through it professionally and pull out an impressive set. Ultimately, it just left a disappointed crowd, though for the short period of time things did run smoothly, it would be hard to argue that we didn't have a fun time.
As much of the crowd made tracks for the same door, Australia's own Plastic Plates pumped out a DJ set about half an hour later, getting the floor dancing with a mix of Adele, Van She and much more. Miami Horror also graced us with a DJ set, closing out the Converse Party on the first night of Culture Collide. Stay tuned for more reviews, photo galleries and more as the weekend continues!
