Project Description
THE BIG PINEAPPLE MUSIC FESTIVAL
@ The Big Pineapple
(Live Review)
26/05/18
Reviewer: Alexandra Ainsworth
.
.
.
Having just been crowned Queensland’s best festival at QMAs, there are some big expectations surrounding this year’s Big Pineapple Festival. With the sold-out event boasting a huge line-up stacked with some of the best Australian acts, we make our way to Woombye’s Big Pineapple to see what all the fuss is about.
.
The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
Tasmania’s Maddy Jane is the first act we catch for the day. The 22-year-old, backed by a full band, has no trouble filling one of the two main stages. Having been on a string of national tours as a support act, Jane has been slowly carving out a name for herself as one to keep an eye out for in 2018. A decent crowd has sprawled out across the natural amphitheatre to soak in her powerful vocals and refreshing candour in tracks such as Not Human At All and 2016 release, Drown It Out.
.
Kim Churchill @ The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
A dual stage set up means that next act, Kim Churchill, is only a 5-minute wait after Jane’s final song. With a setlist filled mostly with tracks from latest record Weighted Falls, Churchill presents a solid set, pulling out crowd favourites Secondhand Car and Window To The Sky towards the end.
.
Sophie Hopes of Tired Lion at The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
His set feels a little short as he is replaced by Western Australia’s Tired Lion. The four-piece, however, waste no time in getting a decently sized crowd dancing in the mid-afternoon sun with set-opener Japan. There’s an undeniable passion that flows throughout the entire band, but it’s particularly pertinent in lead singer Sophie Hopes’ raw vocals. While some raise their eyebrows at her reckless abandon, it’s impossible not to admire Hopes’ ability to display both a confidence and a fragility in her music.
.
The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
Across the festival, E^ST is flexing her pop vocals in front of a buzzing crowd. While it takes her a couple of songs before being able to find her stride, E^ST’s talents as both a singer and a songwriter are clear to even those just passing by. We cut her set short to see Melbourne festival favourites Northeast Party House during their sunset slot. The five-piece are no strangers to the festival circuit, their setlist a tight-knit mix of party favourites, primarily from latest record Dare, with a cover of Blur’s Song 2 sparking a string of shoey attempts in the rowdy mosh. It’s a quick set that ends with a blast of confetti to the delight of the full crowd.
.
Northeast Party House at The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
The next set is announced by the glowing fluorescent lights that read Cub Sport on the neighbouring stage. Despite having just come home from a huge American and European tour, the four show no signs of wear throughout their set as slow openers O Lord and Hawaiian Party give lead Tim Nelson the perfect opportunity to show off his stunning vocals. The band’s cover of Kanye West’s Ultralight Beam is an undisputed highlight, with guitarists Zoe Davis’ electric guitar solo only outshined by the pyrotechnics shooting up from the front of the stage. The set ends on Come On Mess Me Up, the final track spurring a singalong that spreads across the entire crowd.
.
Tim Nelson of Cub Sport – By Mike Wotton
.
The next set, courtesy of The Preatures, isn’t without a few technical difficulties. It’s an unfortunately anticlimactic start to the Sydney-sider’s slot, but once lead Isabella Manfredi is able to take to the mic, she holds nothing back. As they run through the setlist, there is a slight frustration felt by the band at how far back the crowd is, the barrier between the mosh and the stage a decent 4 or so metres apart. It’s a gap that has been mentioned by other bands, but it’s The Preatures who feel particularly frustrated by their inability to really connect with the crowd because of it. That could be why The Preatures’ feel like they’re really giving their set their all tonight, the setlist a non-stop mix of hits across their two albums. Final track Yanada provides both a poignant and celebratory mood, the song being the product of a two-year collaboration between the band and the local indigenous people of Sydney. It’s an oddly touching moment that is soon cut short but the start of Dune Rats‘ set on the next stage.
.
Isabella Manfredi of The Preatures at The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
It’s no secret that Dune Rats have one of the most highly anticipated sets of the night. Their stage has been adorned with huge props: from giant devil-horn hands to a large arch that reads the bands name, Dune Rats have wasted no expense in announcing their presence. The Dunies hype has been building all day, which makes their lacklustre set a slight disappointment. While it’s in the band’s slacker vibe to not care too much, tonight it feels like Dune Rats really don’t care at all, so we cut the set short to see Psychedelic Porn Crumpets.
.
Dune Rats at The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
There’s been a decent amount of buzz surrounding the Perth four, and once they start the intro to their first song, it’s not hard to see why: Psychedelic Porn Crumpets shred. Despite the cold and the rain, it’s impossible to focus on any other than the prodigious guitar. One of the punters explains it best when they say “they should be headlining”. It’s undoubtedly a bold statement, but the band definitely deserve a bigger stage.
.
Violent Soho at The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
The night’s final set comes from local legends Violent Soho. Their set has amassed a crowd that sprawls across the entirety of the amphitheatre. The opening riff to Like Soda is enough to turn the crowd into an instant frenzy. It’s been a few months since the Brisbane boys have played a gig and their presence has obviously been missed. Amongst the crowd favourites is a new track, Pick It Up Again. It features all the classic Soho ingredients, heavy riffs and a catchy chorus make it a hopefully soon-to-be-released track to look forward to.
.
The Big Pineapple Music Festival – By Mike Wotton
.
Despite many mixed feelings about the festival’s strict new bus policy that saw most punters arrive via shuttle, organisers managed to effectively transport punters throughout the coast throughout the day. Organisation across the entire festival was seemingly flawless. Two dual stages meant that wait time between sets was never longer than 10 minutes with natural amphitheatres making for easy vantage points across the entire venue. Having just been crowned Queensland’s best festival, it’s not hard to see Big Pineapple Festival continuing to grow over the next few years.
.
Leave A Comment