City Limits Fest – Festival Review & Photo Gallery 3rd March @ Badlands Bar, Perth WA

Posted on March 4, 2018 by walladmin

City Limits Festival
Badlands Bar, Perth
March 3rd 2018
Featuring: The Bennies, British India, Frenzal Rhomb, Hideous Sun Demon, Luca Brasi, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Lionizer, Spacey Jane, Hussy and more…

After the success of the inaugural City Limits Festival last year, it was with much excitement that the second City Limits outing was announced a few months ago. Festivals are about a few things; seeing bands you love, discovering new bands, drinking beers with your mates and discovering something about yourself.

Opening the day, out in the heat were local five piece Hussy. By the time the ladies and gent arrived on stage, there were so few people that the girls joked about playing to Badlands staff and their parents, but as their set progressed more people started to arrive at the venue. It’s always great to see women on stage and the band played their indie girl rock with precision, although it was a little difficult to hear vocalist Shin at times.

Moving from the carpark stage to the Badlands bar stage, we were greeted by Spacey Jane playing. Maybe, an extra 30 minutes made a difference, or the fact that we were inside a cool room, but there were a sizeable crowd to watch Spacey Jane compared to Hussy. A small, dedicated group were bopping away throughout the band’s set. The crowd were certainly appreciative of the band’s indie rock sound which was delivered adeptly and confidently.

By now the sun was beating down hard on the carpark stage, but that did not stop a loyal crowd from standing at the barrier to watch local pop punk’s Lionizer, a little akin to The Bombpops, but with an Aussie drawl. The trio rocked out and interacted well with fans, showing their appreciation for those that were standing out in the heat. The best dad joke of the day definitely went to drummer Bailey Lions who introduced their song as “that song about the Irish band we love; I love you too.”

Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are a band whose name reveals more about their sound than any review can. With their long hair and psychedelic sounds, the Perth lads are a throwback to the hard rock of the 1970’s (a decade the guys weren’t even alive), with a dash of indie and surf rock thrown in for good measure. By now a decent crowd had formed, and PPC were rocking out with some incredibly intricate and catchy songs that segued nicely from one to the other. Many in the crowd were jumping, dancing and just generally enjoying themselves. A special shout out to the two girls at the front who were synchronised dancing and the two guys with glitter beards, which really didn’t seem out of place considering the music Psychedelic Porn Crumpets play.

After a beer break and some interesting conversations with the mates, Luca Brasi played. Luca Brasi had many fans waiting patiently for them to begin, and filling up the carpark stage quickly as soon as they started. Darkness had descended, so this was the first time we got to see the lighting which bathed the stage in blue light as they opened with ‘Got To Give’ before launching into the punk rock opening of ‘Aeroplane’. The crowd sang along, joining in with some organised clapping and crowd surfing, with a small, but hectic and enthusiastic mosh pit forming. Ploughing through around 10 or so songs, including playing ‘Let It Slip’ for the first time, the fans were satisfied and thoroughly enjoying themselves.

Moving inside to watch local band Hideous Sun Demon play, the crowds were progressively getting bigger and bigger. The band’s alternative rock was appreciated by the crowd, in particular a small group at the front of the stage who were very receptive and loving every minute of Hideous Sun Demon’s set. The enthusiasm and energy displayed by the band, particularly lead singer Vincent Buchanan-Simpson, definitely had an infectious effect on the crowd.

After battling to the bar to buy some beer, it was time for Frenzal Rhomb. If you have ever seen Frenzal, you know what you are going to get: short, fast, loud punk, with a heavy dose of humour and banter, and tonight was no different. Frenzal came onto the carpark stage to the strains of ‘I Wanna Know What Love Is’ (yep, that cheesy 80’s love ballad), before launching into ‘Classic Pervert’. Tonight’s set heavily featured songs from their most recent album Hi-Viz High Tea, with guitarist Lindsay McDougall even wearing some hi-viz. Sprinkled throughout the set were classics such as ‘Bird Attack’, ‘Russell Crowe’s Band’ and ‘Never Had So Much Fun’. The crowd was huge, with it being a little difficult for us shorties to see everything on the stage; but the banter, the songs and the general atmosphere was intoxicating and great fun was had by all. ‘Punch In The Face’ rounded off the set, and the crowd just witnessed another solid Frenzal Rhomb performance.

British India arrived on the car park stage thirty minutes or so after Frenzal and opened with ‘Black and White Radio’ to an appreciative crowd. The crowd sang and grooved along throughout the entire set as British India played ‘Safari’, ‘Plastic Souvenirs’ and even a cover of ‘The Impression That I Get’. The crowd constantly moved along to the indie, alternative rock sounds of the band, even when the sound was a little muffled. The fans were happy and left satisfied.

Quickly moving inside, everyone at the venue seemed to be eagerly awaiting The Bennies, who did not disappoint. Walking onto the stage to the Kiss classic ‘I Wanna Rock and Roll All Night‘ and asking the crowd “you wanna get weird?” the band segued into ‘Heavy Disco’, and the crowd went wild. The Bennies are one of those bands who don’t just play music, but perform for the audience, encouraging audience participation by asking everyone to “make some noise” and to sing along. At times you could just hear the crowd singing and not the band, that’s how pumped up everyone was. The boys introduced the songs from their new album Natural Born Chillers, and played an array of tunes from their back catalogue including ‘Party Machine’ and ‘My Bike’ before launching into ‘Knights Forever’ in which the crowd chanted and clapped along with great zeal. The Bennies came and conquered the crowd inside Badlands Bar, so much so that once they finished, the fans kept chanting their name to show just how much they loved the performance; which was crazy, hectic, entertaining and pure fun.

With voices hoarse, heads a little sore and bodies aching, the festival did everything it was supposed to; I saw bands I loved, discovered new bands, had fun drinking some beers with my mates and discovered something about myself. Like me, I’m sure many are looking forward in anticipation to the 2019 edition of the City Limits Festival.

Review by Carys Hurcom

Photo Gallery by Kim Anderson – Please credit Kim Anderson and Wall of Sound if you repost.
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The Bennies