Alternative Rock Bands the Gooch Palms, Skeggs and Dune Rats take over the Gov
words by Tiahni Adamson
On Sunday night, three groups of alternative rock bands head banged their way through one of the most incredible gigs The Gov has seen yet.
Newcastle’s own gonzo-punk sweethearts, The Gooch Palms set the evening on fire with a mix of both their own originals and geed-up covers; including a fabulous rendition of ‘Tomorrow’ by Silverchair. The duo rocked the stage with some serious head-banging/cut loose tunes and thrilled the crowd with ‘Newcastle handshakes’ (sculling beer through a pin hole of a beer can) between songs.
Skegss were next to enter stage, and again took fans for a ride of grungy beer sculling and mashed it with diehard tunes. The lads generated a blazing set which set the tone for a peachy mix of intense punk and calmer surf vibes. Skegss produced super catchy rock-bangers, and elevated the crowd to an undeniable haze of good times; reminding us of a mixture of 90s grunge crossed with a hint of The Strokes.
Dune Rats were last to hit the stage, turning the crowd into a frenzy of head-banging, fist pumping, mosh-rocking, shaka legends. The Dunies played their crispest songs from both ‘The Kids Will Know It’s Bullshit’ and ‘Dune Rats’. The music was often ceased so the boys could have a yarn, scull a shoey or smoke a bong in front of the stage; where they took their role of carefree rockers seriously.
Beneath the turmoil of guitar, drums and boozy haze of vocals, The Dunies portrayed real-life messages about living in a suburban wasteland. The long haired lads were entertaining, hard-core and cynical; while still providing many of the laughs.
Décor was minimal but effective, where two joints hung above the stage, filled with real broccoli to imitate that of marijuana. Fans were elevated from the very beginning when Gooch Palms set the evening off. A circle pit was formed in the mosh and a wasteland of Dunies, Skegss and Gooch Palms groupies rocked out to the music without care or hesitation.
The carefree, obstinate attitude of each band was a great refreshment from the conservative nature of today’s society. The gig was an all-ages show which, provided the hype around alcoholism and drug abuse, is totally inappropriate.
In essence, for the right audience, the three bands could easily be described as the most entertaining trio this side of Jupiter.
Be sure to see any of these absolute dream boats live, just please don’t bring your kiddos.
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