Sparkadia kicked off their Australian ‘Great Impressions Tour’ at ANU Bar, supported by Alpine and Operator Please on Thursday night. The young, hip crowd filled the bar early, and it was apparent everyone was really excited for the three talented Australian bands.
The last time I saw Operator Please was at Stonefest, and I was a little underwhelmed by their performance, so I was looking forward to seeing them in a more intimate venue. The smaller stage and crowd allowed the energetic young band to connect more with the audience, who lapped up their fun pop tunes like ‘Leave It Alone’. ‘Just A Song About Ping Pong’ was the crowd’s favourite of their set, and bassist Ashley McConnell and violinist Taylor Henderson deserve special mention for their enthusiasm, getting the crowd excited and providing the perfect warm up for Sparkadia.
The band appeared on a heavily back-lit stage dressed all in black, looking like a group of very attractive, new-age priests. Frontman Alex Burnett basically had to find a whole new band to continue with Sparkadia for this album, and the new members bring additional energy and talent to make a brighter band. They started off quietly with ‘Kiss Of Death’ before moving on to ‘Too Much To Do’, which the crowd loved, all squishing close to the stage.
Their sound was fantastic on the night, with clear, soothing vocals and the use of an array of instruments like Asian gongs and glocks which created a really different, interesting feel to their songs. Alex said ‘Mary’ was his favourite song on the album and his live rendition had everyone singing along, making the crowd his gospel choir, signing his praises.
They played a range of songs from both albums over the 90 minute set, with current single ‘China’ and haunting ballad ‘Ghost’ displaying their versatility. An epic extended version of ‘Jealousy’ closed the night, and I left with a new-found respect for the seriously talented boys and very happy that Alex pushed through adversity to make sure Spakadia’s flame didn’t fizzle out.
