LIVE REVIEW: OTISFEST. 14/04/24, San Fran, Wellington.

 

LIVE REVIEW: OTISFEST. 14/04/24, San Fran, Wellington.

  

 

THE PRELUDE

i walk into sanfran dead on four, and there’s already a crowd standing ready by the stage. cameramen scurry around stressing over technical details while various band members glue themselves to the bar, trying to find the balance between drunk enough to ignore the pressure and not drunk enough to keep yourself upright. they’ve got good reason to be stressed, Otisfest is one of the only concerts this year that actually matter. 

tickets were completely sold out online, and there were still people trying to get in when the first band went on. i don’t know if it was my outfit or my notebook i was furiously scribbling in, but security kept sending these people to me to help them. i guess they thought i was staff and i had to point many panicked indie rock fans in the right direction. 

people took to drinking early and hard. there was a genuine atmosphere of movement here, the idea of one last hurrah. Bleeding Star frontman Jude Savage said to me later “i can’t tell if it’s the end of something, or a beginning”. an apt quote, considering his position as man of the evening. if you’re not aware of the backstory, Otisfest was organised in honour of former Bleeding Star guitarist Otis Hill, who passed away early this year. the whole thing was a celebration of his life, and all the bands that played were bands that played with or served as inspirations to Bleeding Star over the years.

the money from tickets and beer all went to the hill family, which i thought was a nice touch. there was even a big Bleeding Star banner for guests to leave their messages for the deceased on. from the start it was understood that this was Bleeding Stars moment. while the venue was entirely full the whole time, the only time everyone’s undivided attention was on the stage during their set. as for the other bands, there was consistent talking from those in the back, drowning out the quiet bits.

it was a bit of an odd audience, truth be told. i got the sense it was mostly a family affair, most of the kids in there couldn’t have been older than like, 17, complete with faux faded cotton on and hallensteins band shirts, but the die hard indie rock contingent was there in full force, so it wasn’t a complete downer. 

the whole thing was filmed and multitracked, so i’m sure there’ll be a tie in video/album of the bands at some point. everyone understood that and made sure to keep the onstage visuals at 110%. rare is it to see a show where everyone gets sweaty. all the performances were worthy of their own, in depth examinations, but below i’ve included a handy guide on the bands, in running order, complete with my thoughts.

 

 

The Bands, or, How I learned to Stop Worrying and love Rickenbackers. 

FIRST RESERVE: 

in profile:

Weezerish power pop love ballads exclusively from the jilted perspective. 

my thoughts?

they’ve shed some members since i last saw them and the stripped-down sound works in their favour for lending authenticity to their music.

best part?

they’re one of the only indie bands who can pull off the 80s style, slow. emotional guitar solo. I felt like rending my shirt in heartbreak, but i was wearing a thick sweater, so for practical reasons this couldn’t be done. 

JEREMY TAYLOR (AND HIS ALL-STAR BAND):

in profile: 

ex-nineties songwriter and guitarist in the same vein as the JPS experience. Current owner and chief cause of me running out of beer money, slowboat records.

my thoughts?

an unfairly forgotten songwriter (Throw) backed with an all star band (Phoenix Foundation, Mutton Birds and Trinity Roots) makes for a good time regardless of how old the men on stage appear to be.

best part?

(hopefully) this will set a precedent for more NZ band reunions.  

MUDGOOSE:

in profile:

singer songwriter mining the sparklehorse style of lofi indie rawk. oft featured on this blog with good reason.

my thoughts?

with a fully amplified backing band, the soft folk ballads we’re used to seeing become raging noise rockers worth losing your hearing too. closer to The Venus Trail than The Soft Bulletin.

best part?

watching fletcher get so drunk over the course of the night he starts to walk “like a lego man” (my words)

MACHO MACHO:

in profile:

math rock new wavers defying, consistently one of the greatest live acts in the country.

my thoughts?

they played a reprise of their previous camp a low hum setlist so they were ludicrously tonight the whole gig. they played everything a good 20 bpm higher than the last time i saw them which turned the whole crowd into one big, sweaty, frantic mosh.

best part?

synchronised. karate. kicks.

BALDLEAF:

in profile: 

newly formed shoegazing indie act with secret emo leanings.

my thoughts?

i was correct in assuming the potential i heard on their demo recordings would be better realised live. i like them, and i’ll like them more in a few months.

best part?

a cover of Big Star’s Thirteen, which they seemed to think was an Elliot Smith song (yes i know he did a cover of it, shut up, it’s not his song and the original is better), which had the superfluous drummer on his cell-phone.

THERE’S A TUESDAY:

in profile: 

disposable, gentle indie pop good for soundtracking picnics and coffee dates.

my thoughts? 

i’m not blown away but i understand why they’re popular, and i’d see them again when they’re next in town.

best part?

the singer asking the crowd for a lozenge and me actually having one. how’s that for supporting the arts?

DAFFODILS: 

in profile:

alt rock heartbreak band, with added synth stylings. very Pixies.

my thoughts? 

interesting but left little impact on me. i couldn’t hear the keyboard at all during their set so i think their lacklusterness could have been down to a mixing issue.

best part?

using the word “Stash” in two separate songs. now that’s thinking with nouns!

BLEEDING STAR:  

in profile: 

dynamic alternative rock/emo thing… most of the audience were there to see them and them alone. you should know who Bleeding Star is by now.

my thoughts?

they were operating at top form that night, lots of new songs unfamiliar with the crowd but plenty of old favourites. everything erupted into a rather messy mosh pit during the faster ones and the slow ones had everyone singing along. capped the night off with two encores and there were still shouts for more. 

best part?

well, i mean. they organised it, so, all of it? 

(second best part was that drum solo half way through one of the new songs)

THE POSTSCRIPT

backstage was a big party scene, lots of hugging and congratulating. out front, most of the teenagers and parents of teenagers fled the scene pretty quick once the bands were over, so it was mainly just the usual hard drinking crowd left behind. it was nice seeing people in bands, both those performing and the ones who just came to support, meeting up to discuss their trade. topics of discussion include the reality of flying from auckland, the blues brothers and the lack of late night food in wellington. slightly drunk, i stumble back home with the pleasant ringing in the ears of a job well done. tomorrow, i’ll have to get up early to attend class with less than 5 hours of sleep, and figure out how to justify the 40$ ticket price among the rest of my living expenses, but for tonight, i’m happy.

 

 

~ O.