Gyroscope/ Young And Restless/ Sugar Army
Governor Hindmarsh
Wed 14 May


Despite the fact I must have seen them play a dozen times now, there's no way I'll ever miss the train when the Gyro boys come to town. But, even I, seasoned fan of the Perth rockers that I am, will admit that finally, tonight, I wasn't particularly excited to see them play again. Hitting a massively packed-out Gov as part of an almost completely sold out national tour in support of a number one record, 'Breed Obsession', however, saw Gyroscope quickly put me in my place.

Fellow Perth-ians Sugar Army opened things up, and the young rockers impressed an already burgeoning crowd with a tight set of rhythmic, driven rock. Coming off as something of a sinister, grunge-influenced version of British dance-rockers The Music, they stomped their way through a powerful set, and despite the songs beginning to blend into one another by the time they put down their instruments, the band kicked enough ass to ensure that everyone in the room will be paying close attention to their future endeavours.

Former Triple J Unearthed winners Young And Restless followed them up, and despite having heard a lot of hype about them, nothing could quite prepare me for the post-punk mayhem they delivered. Singer Karina Utomo is a revelation - she spits words and screams out of her mouth with immeasurable intensity, hurling herself around the stage with reckless abandon, while her bandmates fuse dance-rock beats with deservedly angular guitar work to create insane...I'm tiring myself just thinking about it. In fact, it was so tiring, by the end of their half-hour set, I kind of couldn't take it anymore. In a good way. Check 'em out.

Young And Restless got a huge reaction from the brimming crowd, but, of course, there was only one band people were really here to see - and it seems, somehow, they've managed to step their already impressive live show up another notch. Opening with a pulsating trio of Weapon.Enemy.Friend, Dream Vs Scream and a scintillating OK, Gyroscope pulled out all the stops, burying all memories of a lacklustre Big Day Out performance in a wave of distortion. It was all about the rock tonight, and Gyroscope brought it in spades. Old songs delivered well-known joys: Driving For The Storm was mind blowing despite its simplicity, Beware Wolf pulsated like never before, Mistakes & Ladders thundered its way into the back of everyone's skulls - but surprisingly, it was the newer tracks that really won tonight, with 1981 and These Days providing great highlights.

The mix was great, singer Dan Sanders was in amazing form, the crowd was massive and incredibly into it - I've got to say, despite 'Breed Obsession' being nowhere near as good as 'Are You Involved?', Gyroscope live just keeps on getting better - this was almost as good as Enigma Bar back in 2004.

Matt Vesely

Pic: Fiona Stafford