Kadavar + Child
The Manning Bar, Sydney
29 April 2016
Review by Derek Huckel
Photos by James O’Conner
Kadavar have more fans than I thought, sometimes you can fall into the ‘this is my band’ trap and just assume people won’t know or like them. But surprisingly when I mentioned this gig to people in the last week, many of them knew the band, and some were even big fans. Their support slot with Tumbleweed two years ago had done them well, and now on their own headline tour, that fan base will grow even more.
Aver were first on with their psych rock sound followed by Mt. Mountain. Both we’re akin to a more mellow version of Janes Addiction. Aver seemed to get enthusiastic in their last tune but were otherwise glued to their positions and were not visually engaging to witness, but their tunes got many interested. Mt. Mountain, from Perth, added to their laid back 60’s psych sound with cool vintage keyboard. Both bands had managed to make some new fans in the now filling Manning Bar.
Melbourne’s Child were quite intriguing but were more for the blues rock enthusiasts in the venue.
Kadavar hit the stage after it was warmed by an intro soundtrack by 1960’s pioneer Lee Hazelwood’s tune, The Nights. The sexual imagery set the nights tone for the primal sound that is Kadavar.
The three piece German warriors owned the stage from their first chord. All of their ‘60s and ‘70s tinged psychedelic rock tunes were winners. Tracks such as Black Sun, Last Living Dinosaur, and Doomsday Machine stole the show. Hearing Pale Blue Eyes, live, added a new dimension and became a whole new song. Stolen Dreams was another gem.
Later in the set the band’s bass amp troubles stopped the show for a small amount of time. Some of the crowd pleaded for a drum solo as they waited, the vocalist Lupus quipped “they’re for Americans, we’re a band.” Minutes later the issue was fixed and the band rolled on.
When the trio finally left the stage, the crowd erupted for a few minutes in hope of an encore or two. Kadavar obliged the hungry crowd with a three song encore, and they closed with the epic, Come Back Life.
