Live Review: The Big Splash Heat #2 - Cool Band, Hindley, Mugwump, The Wheelers Of Oz

The sheepish collection of young men herded onto the stage to accept both the (metaphorical) crown and the (literal) sweaty handshake of the exuberant Magnus D Magnus could have been any band tonight, but after their glitzed-out performance garage punks Cool Band were all the more embarrassed to win.

The swollen group (flushed with two drummers, staple Will Langdale and outside contractor Tom Cahill) took to the stage with fuzzy VHS piped to two tricked-out TVs supplied by Perth artist Joe Langale, as well as a queasy backdrop, engraved bananas and an ambient scent of tomato sauce sachets, and — once scraggly lead Andy Campbell had dispensed with the “camp doogs/your boobs” rhymes — go-go dancers in glitter and crop tops, beckoned to the stage with a bleary yell, “We got some chicks to dance for us. Come on, chicks!” This band of the usual suspects, featuring members of previous winners Hideous Sun Demon, stole the crowd with their cheeky, crass and dumb lyrics (audience favourite: “Fuck You, You’re Not Even Cops!”) and otherwise sharp, bass-driven garage rock.

Hindley, representing the oft-neglected hip hop faction of the Perth scene, sidled politely onto the stage stooped over a soundboard, hidden in his long hair, jacket and beanie. His rhymes popped over samples buzzing with distortion and oppressive, gurning bass slumping into new age bliss electronica. By closer, Weak, a weird rap over avant pops and cracks with a punchy bass, the beanie and jacket were gone. As he relaxed into a set, Hindley pulled out the stops to reveal a bright, talented and charismatic performer — one to keep your eye on.

The next two bands stood for the psychedelic tradition of new and old, with Mugwump — as handsome a collective of boys William S Burroughs would love to be ‘acquainted’ with as any — pulling up a strong set of contemporary distortion psych. The Wheelers Of Oz (is there a band in Perth Tom Cahill doesn’t drum for?) requested more reverb on a 12-string guitar and crammed seven people onto the stage before pulling into pulsating old-school psych rock with reedy, Doors-esque vocals and a custom looped semi-religious backdrop projection, which added to a fully immersive experience for a writhing audience.

Magnus D Magnus, against the advice of those collected, finished off one of Cool Band’s custom bananas and then announced the winners, dragging guitarist Alec Thomas up for a speech: “Thanks.” Time will tell if these guys can out-do their performance in the next round.