Pushover 2010

Push Over is an annual festival that displays an array of amazing local talent every year, and this year was no exception. There are your few bigger bands to draw in the crowd of course, but the majority of bands on the bill are lower profile who always acquire a huge benefit from the audience that Push Over draws.

I have no idea how it happened, but we made our way to Push Over under the impression that doors didn’t open until 1 pm, when in actual fact they opened at 12 pm. So we took our sweet time and that meant that we missed the first few bands.

Sydney band, Heroes For Hire, was someone I wanted to see that we missed out on. There’s been a lot of hype surrounding them and I have heard a few tracks here and there, but I’m not too keen on them. It’s just too pop-punk for me. However, they did manage to score the local support slot for Soundwave Sydney, so I’m willing to keep an open mind until I see them live. Oh well, I guess they’ll play at some gig that I’m going to sooner or later.

So, the first band we saw for the day was Wherewolves. These guys used to be called A Year To Remember, but changed their name due to continuous confusion with A Day To Remember, and I’ve seen them three or four times before. They’ve opened for bands such as Anberlin, MC Lars and The Getaway Plan. The last time I saw them, I didn’t walk away too impressed by their live show and there was a long list of things that I criticised. We only watched them for a couple of songs, but they were definitely better than last time. Some of the more technical things, such as harmonies and rhythm, were tighter and that contributed to the overall product of their live show. I wouldn’t say that I was too keen on their music, but they are a band whose music is enjoyable live and they are very good with the crowd.

After this, we managed to get to the Red Stage in time to catch the last couple of songs of I Explode Like’s set. I’m pretty big on synths and breakdowns, and this band had both going for them, so I did enjoy their songs. This band definitely has a lot of potential, but I think that they need to find themselves and refine their own sound because right now they just sound like all their favourite bands mashed together. Also, in a scene where everyone is becoming increasingly fond of using synths and breakdowns, these guys will have to offer some sort of originality to differ from the rest of the pack. As for their live show, the guys were running around and jumping up and down throughout all their songs, which made for a good show and I was definitely getting Enter Shikari vibes from the front man. However, there was one song that sounded quite pitchy and off key to me, but hey who knows, it could be “experimental”, and this makes it acceptable.

Next band to take to the Red Stage was City Escape, who once again proved themselves a solid live band. This is the third time I’ve seen them in about four weeks and I still continue to be impressed every time. The room should definitely be more packed for a band this solid, hopefully more people catch on soon. There was nothing really surprising about their set list, it was the usual EP and demo tracks. Personally, I’ve still got my fingers crossed that one day the song that they play off their demo is “Dying In Your Own Arms” rather than “The Wake Up Call” (not that I don’t like that song). So if anyone knows anyone who can make that happen, that’d be great, thanks. The drummer/screamer has such a quality timbre to his screams, it sounds just as good live as on their recordings. Whenever a song gets to his screaming part, he definitely draws all the attention in the room. The bass player is seriously one of my favourite performers, stage presence wise. I love his energy when performing live and that he’s not just legs-outstretched-head-banging all the time. He’s leaping back and forth and getting into it in a unique kind of way. The singer has a great voice, and as always, is solid live. The only thing I’d like to see more from him is interaction with the crowd between songs, but I guess when you only have a 30 minute set you want to play as many songs as possible. This was actually the first time I’d ever really paid attention to the guitarist, other than listening to his vocal harmonies. I think it’s because I’m usually on the bass player side of the stage, but since I was taking photos I was moving back and forth. With a lot of guitarists, they write these beautiful running guitar lines that sound amazing on record, but when it comes to playing them live, they’re too sloppy and can’t pull it off. For the guitarist of City Escape, this is not the case. He is very accurate and he nails all of his lines. He seems confident and relaxed, aware that he is technical enough to pull them off. The harmonies, once again, are amazing. The guitarist really holds his own up against the main singer. Overall, City Escape deliver yet another solid live show and I hope more people discover this band and go see them live.

We headed outside to the Blue Stage after this to catch The Mission In Motion. I’ve seen these guys once before about a year ago at the Evelyn and was very impressed, but the environment of playing at Evelyn, which is a small venue, compared to playing outdoors on the Blue Stage is significantly different. Maybe I just built it up too much in my mind, but I wasn’t as blown away as I was the first time. That’s not to say that they weren’t good though, because they were. The Mission In Motion played a handful of new songs, which were very fun and feel good, the crowd were definitely digging it. I didn’t get any overwhelming impression from any of the guys as individuals, but as a whole, they clicked together very well. I look forward to getting their album, which is due to drop sometime this year.

Heading back inside I caught a little bit of In Trenches’ set. In Trenches is that band who has played at a ridiculous number of shows that you have been to, but you have never actually seen. I’ve heard different opinions on these guys, but the most common comment being that on record they sound generic, but as a live band they are pretty good. They do have an impressive list of bands that they have toured with, including Misery Signals and Between The Buried and Me. I have to admit that I didn’t stay long enough, because the room was packed and it was hot and I couldn’t see anything, to form a definite opinion on them but they sounded promising. Their music was full of breakdowns and to an extent, was predictable, but they didn’t sound bad doing what they did, so give it a few years and see what they progress to.

The Green Stage is where the FReeZA Push Start competition (like a battle of the bands final) was held.  The only band we saw in this competition was 8 Bit Love and I was very impressed with them. They offered an electronica/indie rock kind of thing and it was very fun and feel good. Musically, they were pretty average but their sound as a whole clicked well. I wasn’t too big on the tonality of the singer’s voice, but it worked with the sound 8 Bit Love were trying to achieve. I don’t see why there was a need for TWO Macbooks, but hey, whatever, they made good sounds. You could feel the synth going through you in a couple of songs and that was great. By the time they reached their last song, everyone in the room was on their feet and dancing, and there was even a guy running around with a cow bell which was insane, yet awesome. I never found out who ended up winning the FReeZA Push Start competition, but 8 Bit Love definitely have my vote.

The next band to play, Built On Secrets, I was pretty psyched to see. These guys have quickly built up a very good reputation for themselves, but I have never heard any of their music or seen them live. They’ve supported the likes of All Time Low, Set Your Goals, Haste The Day and 3OH!3, which is a very notable list. As soon as they burst into their first song though, I was mesmerised. No wonder they had scored the local support slot for all those gigs. The five guys were very energetic and animated in their performances. I was particularly drawn to the bass player and I was definitely getting Craig Mabbit vibes from him. He looked way too young to be that tattooed, but he was an impressive musician and I especially loved his stage presence. The singer had a great quality to his voice and you wouldn’t have guessed a voice like that would come out of guy like that. It was very clean and he had a good range, and since they’re often compared to Saosin, my thoughts were that he sounded more Anthony Green than Cove Reber. The guitarist/vocalist was very accurate with his playing, and he had some incredible guitar lines. His vocals weren’t bad either. Collectively, Built On Secrets, is a very impressive band, with solid songs that translate extremely well into a live show. Their songs manage to be tinged with the flavour of bands who have influenced them, but still have their own unique twist too. Their EP also happened to be released on this same day (which I didn’t actually get it) but I’ll be seeing them this Friday at their EP launch, so I’ll probably pick up a copy then. A fun part of their set was when they decided to do a short cover of Ke$ha’s “Tik Tok”. I had the biggest urge to dance like an idiot, because despite what you may think of the song, it’s a lot of fun. Definitely jealous of all the kids in the crowd who could dance around like idiots because they were surrounded by other people. Built On Secrets should definitely play this cover at all their shows and play the entire song next time!

Behind Crimson Eyes was a last minute addition to the line up due to Break Even pulling out of the festival, and these Push Over veterans were more than comfortable and happy to fill in. Behind Crimson Eyes was my “8^th-grade-band,” as I like to call it, and I used to listen to them religiously and love their music. But after their first album came out, it was just different to what I was into at the moment and I gradually listened to them less and less. I was very happy with their set list, because the fact that I recognised every song except one meant that it was made up of songs from their demo/EP/debut album. And it wasn’t just me that was appreciating this, the kids were going nuts! Everyone seemed to be really stoked on the set list and there were some epic sing alongs and moshing. I couldn’t help but smile and sing along also. Josh was a charming and entertaining front man as usual, but guitarist Aaron stole the show in my opinion. He nailed all the guitar parts and his technique is just so accurate and tight. The experience he has from performing on a large scale for so many years really showed compared to any other guitarist I saw during the day. When it was his turn to do something that sounded ridiculous or looked insane, he wouldn’t hide where he stood, he’d stand up front and centre and made sure that people were watching him. Showmanship like that only comes with years of experience and the confidence that is built up from playing so many shows. Garth, the bassist, was laid back and cool and just getting into his bass lines. The drummer didn’t leave an impression on me. I’m not sure whether he’s a permanent member or just a touring member, but this was the first time I had seen BCE with their new drummer and he just didn’t win me over. There were a few moments during their set where Josh went down to the crowd for some mic garbs and people were very keen on this idea and near the end of their set, Josh went and crowd surfed over everyone in a very God-like fashion. Thank god for big security dudes who were able to rescue him back from the hands of his adoring fans. I definitely walked away from this BCE set a lot happier than the last few times I had seen them, and am definitely looking forward to seeing them at Sounds Loud in April.

Unfortunately, after Behind Crimson Eyes we had to leave so I missed out on 50 Lions and Carpathian which I was pretty shattered about. I guess the plus side is that we didn’t get caught in the massive downpour. Another year, another Push Over, another Sunday well spent. Push Over continues to cement itself as a rock solid all ages festival that is a great opportunity for kids to be exposed to the local music scene, as well as a great opportunity for local bands to bring their music to a wider and more diverse audience. I’ll definitely be back next year.

CHECK OUT PHOTOS FROM PUSHOVER HERE.