Live Review: The Cannanes, School Damage, Calamari Girls

With a (presumably empty) beer keg in place of a kick drum, local foursome Calamari Girls kick off the arvo. Once your head adjusts to their lo-fi sweetness, the band's simple yet hypnotic rhythms are easy to enjoy and they peak with the self-titled Calamari Girls and All The Celebrities.

Launching their fresh from the press 7" Phone Drone/Something New, School Damage could easily be headlining this afternoon. Playing as many songs as they have fingers and toes, the band show off an incredible amount of diversity ranging from tracks centred on up-tempo, frantic, lo-fi indie-punk numbers (featuring incredible drumming and guitar playing) to cruisy 'ballads' about online shopping addiction. The disjointed Addams Family-style pop of Phone Drone is an easy highlight as is the hip love song Something New. Really, it's just a solid set by one of Melbourne's underground gems.

I Woke Up - as its name suggests - is like a shock to the system and sees a mass migration from the smoking area into the bandroom. On that glorious stage we are greeted by the one and only The Cannanes in full flight. This special performance sees the band playing their classic A Love Affair With Nature album, which has been out of print since the mid '90s but was recently reissued by Chapter Music, in full for the first time. This set also sees original member David Nichols rejoin the band on drums/vocals plus a slew of guests including Chapter Music honcho Guy Blackman, as well as a few familiar faces from the band's past.

To say there's an atmosphere of anticipation among the crowd would be an understatement. From beginning to end, the audience watches the stage, googly-eyed, and erupts in uncontrollable applause at each song's conclusion; the band themselves come across as equally ecstatic to be here.

These songs are just shy of being 30 years old and there are too many highlights to list. Take Me To The Hotel Johanna (And Let's Trash The Joint), Nuisance, Paper Bag - ugh, the list goes on! Oh, also Vivienne and 52 Linthorpe Street. The whole set is total fan service and really beautiful. Even though the band's voices have unavoidably aged and they fumble through a few sections, the fact that we are all still here and get to hear these songs again is heartwarming. A Love Affair With Nature is still as relevant (both musically and lyrically) today as when it came out. And Gareth Liddiard playing for free in the front bar is the cherry on top.