Reviewed on Friday June 26
It’s been said that the key to a great song is to write what you feel, and then put a beat to it. In the same way, a touch of sincerity can make a whole lot of difference in a live performance, transforming what could be a by-the-numbers tribute band into something worth seeing. Amid the rosy lights of The Vanguard, a collection of musicians give us their takes on the blues, ranging from the sincere to the generic.
Skyscraper Stan whistles over the track as his bowler-hat-wearing drummer accompanies him on the snare. Their stripped-back instrumentation gives them the impression of a jug band as they play lilting guitar riffs with a dash of melancholy. Talking about the girls they’ve known and the songs they’ve struggled to write, lead singer Stan Woodhouse’s interactions with the crowd are endearing. His singing is more akin to an ocker Lou Reed, and he mumbles a love song dedication to the audience mid-track. A walking bassline sends the fans into a hoedown and Stan bows out after a solid display of country and blues.
In stark contrast to Stan’s easygoing demeanour, Papa Pilko and The Binrats are about as reserved as you would expect from a group called The Binrats. Pumping his fist and staggering around the stage, Papa Pilko is the loosest unit. Shedding clothing throughout the set, he ends up conducting his rhythm-and-blues band in a wife-beater and akubra, while the horn section reminds us why there need to be more horns in songs.
Coupling reverb with soulful blues choruses, Frank Sultana and The Sinister Kids have chops. That’s resoundingly obvious, even when they’re working with the simple chords of the 12-bar blues. Joey Panucci shreds on the lead guitar and Sultana growls over the riffs, but the real standout is Alcye Schulte, whose soaring vocals match the high-pitched refrain of the guitar. The band’s gospel and blues repertoire is finely tuned but eventually the songs begin to sound a little overdone. Rather than writing what they feel, they’re writing for the genre, and feeding a little too regularly into the clichés of blues and roots.
