When Robert sends me an invite to something it’s usually a smart move to pay attention.
When the something is a house gig in the Inner North being headlined by a band from China who’ve played supports for Sonic Youth how could I resist?
For the record the band is CarSick Cars and they even have a Wikipedia page, which is more than can be said for me.
The organisers had cunningly put the main act on in the middle of the lineup just to make sure the band could play before the police arrived.
And with the loud music crashing through O’Connor’s leafy streets and hundreds of hipsters crammed into the backyard this was wise thinking.
The lyrics were incomprehensible, the sound was fuzzy, the music was the distortion laden affair you’d expect from a Sonic Youth support (although two loads of distortion heavy ambient indie rock would be a bit much for most), but nothing mattered, because the crowd was loving it.
There was crowd surfing going on for god’s sake. At a house gig!
The crowd danced, drunks knocked over the indoor lamps serving as stage lighting, large numbers of men peed on the shed despite beer being in short supply.
For a $5 cover charge it was ludicrously good value.
I mean who wouldn’t pay $5 just to see people climbing on a hills hoist to try and get a view of the band?
My only regret was that I didn’t take a better camera to the show.
House gigs seem to be taking off at the moment. We’ll have to hope that Canberra’s suburbia can cope with the ruckus.
As for how you get to find out about these things? It was listed in the DIY wotz on guide and the Culturazi Gig Guide.