Osaka Punch – Gig Review 28th October @ The Factory Floor, Sydney NSW

Posted on October 29, 2017 by Paul 'Browny' Brown

Osaka Punch
The Factory Floor, Sydney NSW
28th October 2017
Supported by: Lese Majesty & Genetics

It’s been a while since I’ve gone to the Factory and I must admit, it’s one of my favourite venues, it’s quickly becoming the home of original and heavy music all of Sydney.

Welcoming the crowd into the small, atmospheric room was Sydney based rock outfit Lese Majesty. Sounding like a more rock influenced Metric, I was pleasantly satisfied to see vocalist Jodie Lee Gibson jiving around the stage as her throaty and confident voice soared above the instruments, driving the show forward. So it was a bit of a tonal shift when she picked up a guitar, reducing her movement quite a bit and reducing the overall stage present quite a lot; I mean unless you’re Cult of Luna, you don’t need three guitarists. Song ‘Not Interested’ was a massive high note though. That riff is catchier than most diseases and the chorus, when it doubles up on the vocals, is absolutely captivating.

Next was the brainchild of Samuel Joseph and Shane Leadbeater, a journey through all of the splinters of instrumental prog. Genetics fall somewhere on the spectrum between Exivious and Pomegranate Tiger; that is they’re jazzy and technical, but they still have some of that heaviness that makes them something you can headbang to. The two guitarists are a wonder to watch as their fingers glide up and over and around (and any other direction, they’ve got it all) the frets of their guitars, fingers moving so smoothly you could swear they were covered in oil. Though the band really grew on me during a song that was pure Animals as Leaders worship; Samuel Joseph’s fingers picking and tapping on every string within reach to create a sound that was so intoxicating to not just hear, but see too.

Another thing that is literally intoxicating to see is Osaka Punch. After a short instrumental introduction and ‘Eat Red Carpet’, I felt drunk on the experience. Vocalist Jack Muzak is continually in motion, be it singing, playing the keyboard, rapping, or even scatting on a distorted mic. The guy is a nut, but it makes all the weirdness of their music really work. The jazz and funk influence are stretched to the breaking point in their music, older track ‘Actibreeze’ being a personal favourite that ended up being an absolute mishmash of keyboards and Salt N Pepa. It’s astounding to watch.

The tour is called the ‘How We Operate’ tour, and I must say the single so named was quite an experience live. I don’t know why I had any doubts, but it really came together when played live. The deft drumming and thumping bass shone in all of it’s groovy glory making me want to jump around the entire room, yet alas I had generated a massive contact high being in the same room as the band, so I was unable to move, let alone dance. That is until ‘Electric Jam on Boogie’ came on, which is the apotheosis of funk and rock in its purest form. No one can resist that.

As always, I’m amazed and impressed by how tight Osaka Punch are as a unit and can’t wait until their next album, which I will gladly break into little pieces and absorb through my skin. They’re that good.

Review by Dylonov Tomasivich