St Jerome's Laneway Festival
Footscray Community Arts Centre and the River’s Edge
Saturday 1 February 2014
Savages image courtesy of artsfuse.org
Years ago a good buddy and I used to meet at a little bar in Caledonian Lane, in Melbourne’s CBD to catch up over post work drinks. The bar was St Jerome’s and we liked it because a) they played great music on the stereo and sometimes had equally good DJs playing in the courtyard; b) it had an interesting feel about it and a crowd to match; PLUS c) we could catch up whilst sharing longnecks and eating cheese toasties with artichokes.
Ten-plus years on, what started simply as a bar in Melbourne’s CBD has grown into a music juggernaut with festivals running in five Australian cities as well as Auckland and Singapore, plus their entry into the US last year with the first Laneway Festival in Detroit.
Ten-plus years on, what started simply as a bar in Melbourne’s CBD has grown into a music juggernaut with festivals running in five Australian cities as well as Auckland and Singapore, plus their entry into the US last year with the first Laneway Festival in Detroit.
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With 36 degrees forecast for the Melbourne leg of St Jerome’s Laneway Festival, organisers were onto it more than most, offering the 12,000 punters free sunscreen and hydrolytes on entry and throughout the day, plus free water and plenty of food stalls. Cues were pretty short and you could even buy earplugs if needed.
The music was impeccably curated and with so many good acts on the bill, clashes were inevitable. I was able to resolve my biggest dilemma by buying a ticket to one of Kurt Vile’s sideshows after seeing the Jagwar Ma/Kurt Vile clash on the program. Then it was a matter of good planning and some just bearable sacrifices. Here are my edited highlights of Laneway 2014. Cass McCombs An impressive number of people braved the sun in the heat of the day to catch Cass McCombs on the River Stage. The band had a much more driving sound than I’d anticipated, and played fewer tracks from 2013’s Big Wheel and Others than I would have predicted. That said, I was pleased to hear “There Can Be Only One” and “Big Wheel”, the latter getting a ‘proper’ ending as opposed to the fade out that ends the rollicking groove of the song prematurely on the album. My other favourite from their set was “Robin Blue Egg” from Humour Risk (2011). |
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Run The Jewels
Run The Jewels were a pleasant surprise for me. The American hip hop duo of El-P and Killer Mike entered to Queen’s “We Are the Champions” followed by Killer Mike’s trademark call and response to the audience “Let me hear you say Run the Jewels” (Run the Jewels!).
I’m a massive hip hop fan, but their style isn’t really my thing. The lyrical themes don’t resonate with me (too many references to “bitches” for my liking) and I tend to like my hip hop more melodic than the Run the Jewels sound. That said, it didn’t take me long to realise I’d mis-read them when listening to their album. On record they sound totally serious but nothing prepared me for what a good vibe their show would have and how funny it would be! My first laugh came from Killer Mike’s t-shirt which bared the slogan “Do Dope, Fuck Hope” (a reference to their track “DDFH” I now realise).
Run The Jewels were a pleasant surprise for me. The American hip hop duo of El-P and Killer Mike entered to Queen’s “We Are the Champions” followed by Killer Mike’s trademark call and response to the audience “Let me hear you say Run the Jewels” (Run the Jewels!).
I’m a massive hip hop fan, but their style isn’t really my thing. The lyrical themes don’t resonate with me (too many references to “bitches” for my liking) and I tend to like my hip hop more melodic than the Run the Jewels sound. That said, it didn’t take me long to realise I’d mis-read them when listening to their album. On record they sound totally serious but nothing prepared me for what a good vibe their show would have and how funny it would be! My first laugh came from Killer Mike’s t-shirt which bared the slogan “Do Dope, Fuck Hope” (a reference to their track “DDFH” I now realise).
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Prior to “36 inch chain”, El-P said to the crowd, “You’ve probably got 2 questions running through your mind right now. The first is probably “Who am I?” That doesn’t matter. The second is probably “How can I be more like those guys up on stage?” First you’ve got to earn lots of money. Then you’ve got to buy an invisible 36 inch chain. Then every time your boss or anyone else gives you a hard time, just think Fuck you, I’ve got a 36 inch invisible chain around my neck.” This spiel went on for some time, getting more and more ridiculous, and eventually they played the song. |
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Having given their album away for free, they thanked the crowd for buying their merchandise. There were certainly some passionate Run The Jewels fans in the audience and they knew all the words, but there weren’t enough of them for the call and response parts to have the impact they deserved, so I was left to imagine what a whole room full of Run The Jewels fans might have sounded like, filling in all the gaps left by the 2 MCs on the stage. My favourite track of the set was “Pew Pew Pew”.
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Savages London all female four piece Savages delivered a cracking set of post punk tracks from their 2013 album Husbands. They kicked it off with “City’s Full” and vocalist Jehnny Beth’s desperate cry of “I’m going back home” provided the first hook of their set. “Shut Up” followed, and then “She Will” (which strangely reminds me simultaneously of U2 and God’s “My Pal” every time I hear it). Jehnny prowled around the stage with a sort of contained intensity throughout, and current single “Strife” was particularly good due to the guitar being so high in the mix. They’re a serious band, and they pull if off largely due to the strength of their material and the cohesion between their sound and performance style. They were definitely one of my favourite acts of the festival. |
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Unknown Mortal Orchestra
Having fallen in love with Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s 2013 album II, and then been interstate on the day of their Corner Hotel show last year despite having bought a ticket, I was really keen to catch their whole set this time around. Their unusual mix of swirling, psychedelic, wonky pop translates better in recorded form than live due to the layers of complexity that are lost in the live setting, but it was still a really fun set to get engrossed in. My highlights? “The Opposite of Afternoon”, “From the Sun”, “Ffunny Ffrends” and the short bit of jazzed out guitar noodling which closed out “So Good at Being in Trouble”, my favourite cut from II. |
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Parquet Courts
Brooklyn four piece Parquet Courts delivered a punchy set which perfectly replicated the feeling you get from listening to their 2013 album Light Up Gold. Ideal for listeners with a short attention span, their tracks are pithy and rarely longer than 2 and a half minutes. Regular drummer Max Savage was absent but a stand in drummer joined Andrew Savage, Sean Yeaton and Austin Brown, the latter giving a shout out to Dick Diver who had obviously impressed him. My favourite tracks of their set were “Master of My Craft”, “Yr No Stoner”, “Borrowed Time” and “Stoned and Starving”. 
Jagwar Ma image courtesy of indieobsession.blogspot.com
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Jagwar Ma
Sydney outfit Jagwar Ma entered the stage to the sound of bird calls before dropping into a set of high energy retro/dance/pop/acid house/psychedelic/Madchester crossover. Founding members Jono Ma and Gabriel Winterfield are joined by Jack Freeman on bass these days, and with the group being based overseas and not often returning to Australia, I had a feeling this might be a rare chance to see them live and it was likely to be a show worth catching. On debut album Howlin’ (2013) it’s evident that theirs is a rare sound – it’s undeniably dance music but also has anthemic sing-alongs and hooks aplenty without being cheesy. No mean feat, I’m sure you’ll agree.
Attending the festival on my own, the times where I was immersed in the music and surrounded by others who were equally enthralled stick in my mind, and this was certainly the case with Jagwar Ma’s set, making it one of my favourites of the day. Highlights were the Oasis-influenced “Let Her Go” and psychedelic retro track “Come Save Me” in addition to the dance/singalong numbers “Uncertainty” and “Man I Need”.
Sydney outfit Jagwar Ma entered the stage to the sound of bird calls before dropping into a set of high energy retro/dance/pop/acid house/psychedelic/Madchester crossover. Founding members Jono Ma and Gabriel Winterfield are joined by Jack Freeman on bass these days, and with the group being based overseas and not often returning to Australia, I had a feeling this might be a rare chance to see them live and it was likely to be a show worth catching. On debut album Howlin’ (2013) it’s evident that theirs is a rare sound – it’s undeniably dance music but also has anthemic sing-alongs and hooks aplenty without being cheesy. No mean feat, I’m sure you’ll agree.
Attending the festival on my own, the times where I was immersed in the music and surrounded by others who were equally enthralled stick in my mind, and this was certainly the case with Jagwar Ma’s set, making it one of my favourites of the day. Highlights were the Oasis-influenced “Let Her Go” and psychedelic retro track “Come Save Me” in addition to the dance/singalong numbers “Uncertainty” and “Man I Need”.
Image courtesy of nowtoronto.com
King Krule
My one misstep of the day was skipping the start of King Krule’s set in the hope of catching any of the three tracks from 17 year old Lorde’s Pure Heroine that I’m enamoured with (“Team”, “Tennis Court” and “Royals”). As it turned out, the stage she was on was running a bit behind and was in a long narrow space, making a quick exit unlikely. It was also a 10 minute walk to the River Stage so after watching one song on a video screen towards the back of the crowd I cut my losses and headed for the sounds of fellow teenager Archy Marshall, a.k.a. King Krule. Marshall and his 3 band mates launched into “A Lizard State” not long after I got there and from prime position near the front of the crowd, I was again surrounded by punters who knew every word coming from the baby-faced Brit’s mouth. Marshall played guitar on probably half the tracks, but was equally comfortable just with the microphone in his hand on others. They did a great version of the mellow album track “Baby Blue” and showcased a song from their next album, which had jazzy inflections over an infectious groove. First single from his debut album 6 Feet Beneath the Moon, “Easy Easy” had the crowd singing along and they finished the set with the first song released under the King Krule moniker, “Out Getting Ribs”. Having already expected big things from Marshall after hearing 6 Feet Beneath the Moon, now that I’ve seen him live I’m even more confident that he might be one of his generation’s musical geniuses.
My one misstep of the day was skipping the start of King Krule’s set in the hope of catching any of the three tracks from 17 year old Lorde’s Pure Heroine that I’m enamoured with (“Team”, “Tennis Court” and “Royals”). As it turned out, the stage she was on was running a bit behind and was in a long narrow space, making a quick exit unlikely. It was also a 10 minute walk to the River Stage so after watching one song on a video screen towards the back of the crowd I cut my losses and headed for the sounds of fellow teenager Archy Marshall, a.k.a. King Krule. Marshall and his 3 band mates launched into “A Lizard State” not long after I got there and from prime position near the front of the crowd, I was again surrounded by punters who knew every word coming from the baby-faced Brit’s mouth. Marshall played guitar on probably half the tracks, but was equally comfortable just with the microphone in his hand on others. They did a great version of the mellow album track “Baby Blue” and showcased a song from their next album, which had jazzy inflections over an infectious groove. First single from his debut album 6 Feet Beneath the Moon, “Easy Easy” had the crowd singing along and they finished the set with the first song released under the King Krule moniker, “Out Getting Ribs”. Having already expected big things from Marshall after hearing 6 Feet Beneath the Moon, now that I’ve seen him live I’m even more confident that he might be one of his generation’s musical geniuses.
Warpaint
Last stop for me was LA’s all girl outfit Warpaint. They kicked off their set with “Keep it Healthy”, one of my favourite tracks from their recently released self-titled album. Highlights were the first single from the new album “Love is to Die” and the undeniable pop gem “Undertow” from The Fool (2010). “Biggy” and the unusually danceable “Disco//Very” also went down well. Warpaint were one of few acts with decent lighting (most acts having played during daylight) and their tight performance was the perfect end to a stunning day of music at a seriously well-run music festival.
By the end of the day I was astounded by the number of quality overseas acts I saw who were in Australia having only released one album, reinforcing my theory that the crew behind Laneway festival are great barometers of what’s happening in music. My only regret was that I couldn’t attend the festival a second day to see all the acts I missed! Bring on next year’s festival!
Lex Cran
Last stop for me was LA’s all girl outfit Warpaint. They kicked off their set with “Keep it Healthy”, one of my favourite tracks from their recently released self-titled album. Highlights were the first single from the new album “Love is to Die” and the undeniable pop gem “Undertow” from The Fool (2010). “Biggy” and the unusually danceable “Disco//Very” also went down well. Warpaint were one of few acts with decent lighting (most acts having played during daylight) and their tight performance was the perfect end to a stunning day of music at a seriously well-run music festival.
By the end of the day I was astounded by the number of quality overseas acts I saw who were in Australia having only released one album, reinforcing my theory that the crew behind Laneway festival are great barometers of what’s happening in music. My only regret was that I couldn’t attend the festival a second day to see all the acts I missed! Bring on next year’s festival!
Lex Cran