A spontaneous trip to the Northcote Social Club last night went down a treat.I caught Brisbane 5-piece The John Steel Singers, and their support act Baptism of Uzi, and was completely swept up in the midst of Baptism’s spectacular long, grinding guitar riffs and the energetic bursts of eclectic mixes of brass-funk, jammy guitars and quick catchy melodies from The John Steel boys.
The John Steel Slingers look fantastic on stage. That’s the first thing you notice. Tim, Scott, Pete and Luke stand adjacent to each other along the front of the stage creating the same kind of quirky quartet appearance that Momford and Sons pull off. (Don’t worry, the drummer still had my full attention too!)
As the crowd piled in out of nowhere, the guys had the audience kicking on with high spirits playing tracks from their funky, fun-pop filled record Tangalooma, and of course their classic track ‘Strawberry Wine’ from The Beagle and The Dove, which had every audience member swinging their hips, chanting “woo-hoo hoo!”.
We also got a taste of a few newbies from their upcoming album Everything’s a thread due November 8.
If any band ‘has it’, then it’s definitely The John Steel Singers. These boys not only look great on stage, they have a charisma that is indescribable. Tim has that perfect smooth indie-rhythmic voice which carries each song with a light hearted joy, and he brings an unbeatable enthusiasm to every song, throwing himself into it, as though he is one with his guitar and the band. Pete, with his beautiful red, rock star locks and fantastic trumpet/ trombone skills adds the unique twist to this band, making them hard to forget. Likewise, Scott and Luke with their harmonising contribution to vocals, provide The John Steel Singers with an echoing, modern Beach Boys-esque sound.
A stand out of the night was ‘Rainbow Kraut’ with its fast paced, celebratory brass rhythms, catchy guitar melody, chime-like keys and harmonising falsettos. They brought this song to the stage like it was one big rejoicing party.
Another standout was their quite differing track ‘State of Unrest’, the first single release from their forthcoming album. They ended the night with a bang with this track, as its long, jagged psych-rock guitar riffs and spacey synth effects took us out of this world and into an extraterrestrial territory, forcing our bodies to do nothing else but jump along to the compelling guitar rhythms and beat of the song. Tim commended our dancing at the end of this one, saying with a smile that it “warmed his cold heart”.
Keep an eye out for these guys, they are a band not to miss.
Chelsea Olle 