Live Review: Big Splash Band Competition, Heat #4

Any competition that promises a cool $10,000 first prize has to generate excitement and The Bird was sizzling and burning with it on Thursday night. The fourth heat of the Big Splash Band Competition, described as the “beginning of a legendary path to glory, rock wonder” and the aforementioned $10,000, saw the four bands — Agamous Betty & The Gothic Circus, Figurehead, Shit Narnia and The Methamphetaqueens — showing no signs of nerves as they took to the stage, giving us a night of music heat and excitement that made the cold of a Perth winter’s night a distant memory.

The brainchild of businesswoman Maria Florides, who since 2013 has donated $10,000 annually to the Big Splash with the intention of supporting and promoting local talent, 207 bands entered the comp this year with 32 qualifying. The heats are held in a series of great venues across Perth with the judges reading like a who’s who of the Perth music scene. 

Kicking off the night with his trademark flamboyance and hilarity, MC Magnus introduced and farewelled each act, making for seamless transitions and keeping us all grinning and groaning. 

First cab off the rank with the unenviable task of breaking the musical ice was Agamous Betty & The Gothic Circus with their moody, atmospheric sound. Immediately arresting was the sight of no guitars; simply a violin, keyboard and drums and the stark, mesmerising figure of Agamous Betty himself. The lovely Cherry Tree was a particular highlight with the violin soaring, swooping and gliding around Betty’s voice — sweet and smooth and raggedly beautiful, the keyboards and drums providing subtle grounding. The undoubted highlight of the set was the final song, Eating Pussy. The climax of the set, the nine-minute epic began as a lyrical rock slide of words that gathered momentum until it was an avalanche of sound from the band mixed with yells of encouragement from the crowd who didn’t want to let them go.

Next up, Figurehead, an indie rock/pop band with an average age of 15 years formed last year, impressively taking out the Rock Scholars Band of the Year for 2014 and earning themselves second place in this year’s Sound Overload Battle of the Bands. Sure, there’s the initial impact of their youth but it’s soon forgotten when they start playing. They were into their second song when bass and drums really hit their stride and from then on they were an unstoppable force. High points were the gorgeous Blind, with lead singer and guitarist Matt Murphy’s voice finding its sweet spot and a riff that’s guaranteed to be one of the best earworms you’ve heard in a while. The song of the set though was Blue Tongues, with its evocative word pictures, the sort of melody that brings your heart up into your throat, and Figurehead’s cohesive musicianship. 

Third act, Shit Narnia was introduced by Magnus as a “torrential sweat machine” and “Turkish delight, out of the wardrobe,” but words never seem to prepare anyone for the impact of Shit Narnia’s live shows. Powerfully opening their set with This Is How They Kill Us, it was in their second song, New L.A., that lead singer Hugh Manning whipped off his glasses and T-shirt and transformed from a gentle giant into half naked, thundering, raw energy. The third song saw the crowd was swept up into the musical maelstrom and it didn’t let up — the gritty, unflinching lyricism as much a part of Shit Narnia’s powerful craft as their punk rock wall of sound. They finished their set with the wonderfully scathing Claremont Boys and the aptly nicknamed “torrential sweat machine” made way for the final act of the night.

The Methamphetaqueens, the genre-defying four-piece band, had the challenging task of following three acts that were very different but together had raised a very high bar. A work/school night, the crowd began to thin after 11pm and given part of the criteria for judging was crowd response, The Methamphetaqueens had their work cut out for them. However they seemed oblivious to anything other than bringing a tight, high-energy performance that had even the tiredest feet moving in time. Proving their versatility, the drummer and guitarist swapped positions part way through the set but they didn’t miss a beat. Standout song was All My Friends, with its richly layered, textured, swirling sound and underpinned by dirty, smudgy blues rock. Best of all, The Methamphetaqueens kept us on our toes — never knowing what to expect but digging everything they threw at us. 

Finally the judges of the night, Roy Martinez, Jamie Terry, Brett Walsh, Chris Wright and Ben Young retired to deliberate, leaving MC Magnus to do the honours, announcing who was to go through to the semi-finals. Only three votes separating first from second, Shit Narnia elbowed out Figurehead by the narrowest margin to date, followed by The Methamphetaqueens and Agamous Betty. 

Whatever you do, don’t miss this competition and the opportunity to support and enjoy our local music.