Marking the middle of the Flaneur album tour with Wollongong band White Blanks, and Sydney band The Vitriots, Verge Collection took on the very nearly sold out Factory Floor in Sydney.
Up first were The Vitriots, Sydney four piece offering a mix of 70s punk rock and the 90s grunge movement. A cover of Blondie’s ‘Call Me’ offered the early crowd a recognisable tune, with thrashing drums and grungie vocals. Song ‘Train Track Party’ and ‘Long Way Down’ showed off the band’s pure skill and brit rock influence, accompanied by David Sayah’s striking guitar solos and Brandon Jack’s strong vocals.
At about 9:30, Wollongong three piece White Blanks erupted with energy from the stage, thrashing and jumping about. Single ‘Get Better’ with punchy drum patterns and vocals to fill the room, gave off a sleazy lo-fi quality. With more tech issues that began during The Vitriots’ set becoming noticable, after a switch between three guitars, White Blanks slung into ‘Step Outside’ and ‘Slide’, swinging the early crowd into movement. .
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Verge Collection started off at about 10:30 with ‘Class of ’09’ and ‘Black Dog’, drawing a bleak outlook, juxtaposed by upbeat vocals and the band’s constant energy.
‘Feel Bad Songs’ and its relatable lyrics pushed the nearly sold out crowd to the front of the stage, with beers and bodies jumping about. ‘Too Much About You’ from the debut EP and ‘Long List’ were next up, with emotive lyrics contrasted by a twinkling guitar and energetic drum pattern.
‘So Vain’ seemed to be a crowd favourite with jazz influence and the repetition of
“It’s all the same, we’re all so vain”.
‘Stop Think About It’ with a recognisable tune, clear as day lyrics throughout the bridge and chorus, and whining riffs, saw punters dancing and falling about, an fun atmosphere enveloped the Factory Floor, before flowing into ‘The Ladies’.
‘For The Story’ carried the dancing funky haze throughout, with the crowd screaming back the lyrics,
“I just did it for the story”.
Afterwards ‘Postcodes’ calmed the crowd for a brief 3 minutes, a cheery acoustic guitar coupled with the relatable trials and tribulations of love, “two suburbs across”. Soon after, ‘Our Place’ broke the short lived calm, a crowd favourite with catchy guitar licks and lyrics speaking all to well of situations riddled by youth.
The second last song was a cover of ‘Bad Kids’ by Black Lips. Verge Collection were joined onstage by White Blanks, for a loud and boisterous few minutes, ending with White Blanks member Oli Critchley crowd surfing, with beers flying aside.
‘Feelin’ Old’ wrapped up the Sydney show, starting with a crash and consequently ending with one. Although frontman Ben had mentioned during the set (referring to music reviewers) that
“you can’t come to a Verge Collection show and expect anything good”,
well I did, and my expectations were exceeded by a fun show with a dedicated crowd, making the atmosphere memorable of sorts.
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