Live Review: WAM Festival Sunday Best

Newport Hotel

With demented guitar harmonies and subtle lifts in dynamics until they just reach breaking point, The Limbs possess the ability to be monotonous at times yet still retain your interest. They are alternative rock kids with a hint of Sonic Youth and Radiohead, with the class of You Am I.

Their filthy bass lines and crunchy guitar cleans reveal your inner ape if you're in the same room as this barrel of monkeys. Filthy Apes' eloquent writing style and innovative jungle western punk are a prime example of evolution in the making.

Using auto-tune for effect and succeeding at playing smallest stages with the largest number of members in any Perth band, Salary are particularly good at working collectively. They are a dynamic tornado of sounds and puzzle pieces that rely each other to complete their songs. Exuberant vocalist Sean Gorman started out as a solo project and from that came nine others. The urban myth goes that this trans-generational band are the sons of saxophonist Alan Holbrook.

Moana hide nothing from the public eye, producing ethereal and psychedelic sounds, manic screams included. Moana Lutton's stage presence is comparatively on par with her offstage personality — otherworldly. Led by five well-acquainted musicians who don't bow down to others and just do their thing, the band's originality has paid off and they are gathering a pleasing amount of support from Perthian show-goers.

Rebecca Orchard and Rupert Thomas perform under the name of Erasers. Their Jack Ladder-style organ riffs and psychedelic electronica create an eerie, monotonous vibe. They have an authentic means to emphasise the musical depth, textural and dynamic qualities as opposed to the lyrical content. You could say Thomas mans the whole ship with beat machines, synths and guitars, while Orchard steers it with the lyrics and melodies.

Six-piece Dream Rimmy has been quickly embraced as one of Perth's solid acts. The psychedelic dream pop act's strategic sounds and commitment to music have scored them spots in a series of cool line-ups including SOTA Fest, RTRFM Winter Music Fest and now the WAM Fest.

The bewildering guitar riffs and vocal yarls of Benjamin Protasiewicz send you flying into the back wall; Pat Chow are a raging, full-frontal garage rock band. The new album Are You Okay? is more instrumentally dynamic and allows Protasiewicz's lyrics to shine through live and on the album. Their melodies and riffs get inside your head and can't be forgotten very easily. The trio is writing some really hooky tunes that are like a canon aiming at the sky.

Fremantle Arts Centre

Nine-piece dub/reggae act The Weapon Is Sound are a great addition to the Perth scene and they are one of the few that have expanded on the reggae sound and incorporated psychedelic elements and synth sections into their style. The sax sounds live immerse you in their waves, and the vocal tone is much like that of Bob Marley. Their liberation-style lyrics are motivating and very true to the genre's values.

Odette Mercy & Her Soul Atomics are breaking through to Triple J with their smooth funk/soul grooves. The six, sometimes seven-piece have been showing up around Perth venues on a regular occasion and every time you hear them you just feel like dancing. They transition between very uplifting, gallant funk all the way down to soulful gospel swells where the emphasis is on Odette Mercy's melodies and lyrics.

Abrasive synth and soft guitar trembles are characteristic of Felicity Groom. Her song Higher, Higher, Taller, Taller speaks truths of urbanisation and capitalisation. Mike Jelinek, Andrew Ryan and Steve Summerlin all play various roles in the live four-piece as they create the universe of mechanical and organic sounds.

Showing off both sincere dance moves that have the crowd letting go and the fashion sense of a '90s pop star, Kucka goes solo with her incredibly insightful electronica sounds that linger between dark and light organically and gracefully. Her jungle beats are great to dance to and she has a really pop-friendly vocal and Eastern-sounding harmonies. The soft pads and odd time signatures sound reminiscent of Radiohead's Thom Yorke and his work on the Kid A album.

More sarcasm, less care factor, same passion; The Love Junkies put on their first show with a fourth member, Harley Barnaby, who came from playing bass in Perth act Foam. They played through some really heavy songs including Black Sheep Blues, Oxymoron and A Fool's Errand. Their quick wit between songs and consistent musical and lyrical output is what makes these guys a top tier Perth band.