Live Review: Sticky Fingers, Underlights, Callithump

Walking into The Standard was like stepping into the music video for AC/DC's Thunderstruck, with wire fences, balconies and sweat. And with 400 pre-sale tickets sold, 100 people on the guest list and a whole bunch more sold on the door, it was shaping up to be a full re-creation.

Callithump pulled a decent crowd considering they were the first band. Their reggae/psych grasped the crowd with their fresh-out-of-high school enthusiasm. The way they took the stage and presented themselves mirrored that of an early Pixies with their complete focus and drive. Finishing with crowd favourite Heaven Sent, Callithump deserve a nice Sunday roast dinner from mum and a hug from dad.

Underlights have a huge sound; very Oasis-y. They took the stage like animals and relentlessly, track after track, threw waves of hypnotic psych rock at the increasingly ruthless crowd. The drummer snaked his way around the groove, looking like he was running on the spot, shoulders pulsating. Now That You're In Love and Remnants were favourites as the crowd gathered and the Thunderstruck re-creation started to become a reality.

We're reaching the Angus Young solo now and the crowd is out of control. Sticky Fingers took the stage and the room nearly broke. Their very accessible brand of reggae/rock turned the crowd from respectable 18- to 25-year-olds to a dangerous mass of young heartbreak that very nearly collapsed the floor as the PA shook and shuttered, turning the mosh into a hardwood trampoline. There were people being thrown on stage looking like drowning cats in the Sticky sea forcing security guards to take the stage and get their hands dirty, as bassist Patrick Cornwall cheekily pointed out, “I think they want to rap or something”.

Juicy Ones, Headlock, Happy Endings and of course the recent triple J hit Caress Your Soul and their version of Fleetwood Mac's Rhiannon played out like a graduation, or a celebration in front of a full room as the boys lived out their childhood dreams. Playing new tracks like Clouds And Cream showed that freshness isn't a problem for the band.

The underdogs from Newtown seem to be finally cracking it – and good on them. They're crazy bastards, but it's contagious.