BIGSOUND 2017: Day 3 Roundup (Part 3)
Tuesday at BIGSOUND 2017, I’d seen Evan Klar play at The Brightside outdoor stage in blinding sunshine. He told me to wait until the rest of his live band arrived in Brisbane for a better experience watching him. He wasn’t wrong. The addition of a string section to his nighttime appearances at BIGSOUND, including Thursday night at the Mane Stage of the Woolly Mammoth, made for a unique performance.
Listening to Evan Klar live, you get the sense that when he’s writing songs, he really thinks about how his voice can be used as a rhythmic element and alongside whatever other sounds he’s going to put in. We’re in an era where doing that is becoming less unusual, as the lines between pop and r&b and soul get further blurred. While most music in this category tends to land on the r&b side in America, Evan Klar’s seems comfortably on the pop side, which suits my ears just fine.
Heading downstairs to the Alehouse stage and after a brief set change, it was time for Mammals. Guy Brown is living the dream: formerly worked in doing music for advertising and film, one day he decided he was going to make music for himself. Like fellow BIGSOUND showcasing artist Willaris K., he’s impossible to class in a single genre. Electronic would be simplifying it way too much. There’s a sunny, summery feel to his and his live band’s performance, whether he’s wailing on his guitar or hitting drum pads.
You’d have to be a rock to not get swept up in Mammals’ bouncy beats and catchy melodies. ‘Chase Your Bliss’ sums up Mammals, as well as the BIGSOUND experience, perfectly: wrap your brain and ears around good music and moments are short-lived, so savour this moment.
I contemplated leaving the Mammoth. Maybe I should have braved the claustrophobia of sleepmakeswaves at The Brightside outdoor stage to end my night. But having already landed at synthesiser cloud nine after Mammals’ set, my ears wanted to continue the electronic party in my head. Yoste and Mansionair appeared for a second night in a row, this time upstairs on the Mane stage. As I’d already photographed them in the night before, I took advantage of videotaping both acts, plus Mammals as seen above for good measure.
I will leave you with this photo of Jack Froggatt of Mansionair, as it encapsulates my experience at BIGSOUND 2017 and how music discovery makes me feel. It’s an emotional thing, to feel a connection to music someone else has made that meant something to *them*. We’re living in an age where bad people seek to divide us for their purposes. Let’s keep music as a language and medium for love and understanding, and support musicians and bands so they can keep on making music. Open minds, open hearts. Over and out.
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