The Lucksmiths @ Baybeats 30Aug2008

On 30 Aug 2008 went to Esplanade to catch The Oddfellows (still my favourite local band after all these years!) at Baybeats 2008. Their gigs are rather rare these days with drummer Johnny based in Taiwan and the other three having their own commitments as age catches on but they still remain intact as a band. They were the local indie rock pioneers way back then and although there were no more new records or new songs, they still remain true to their love of simply playing together as a band and that is good enough for a die-hard fan like me. They played twice that day - one an accoustic set at the Observation Deck at 3pm in a meet-the-band session and another set at the new Nokia Arena outdoor stage at 9pm. I was hoping against hope that they will play the Substation-version of "Over Again" but it did not happen, a slight disappointment after all these years. That Substation-version in my own opinion was their best piece of work. Still it was such nostalgia to hear those familiar own tunes again, some of which brought back much memories of years gone by. I wonder if they will ever record as a band again but such one-off get-together is as soon as it gets I suppose.Also at the Observation Deck sessions was a band called The Lucksmiths from Melbourne, Australia and what a pleasant discovery that was! I had never heard of them but the crowd turnout surprised me. Even more surprising was after the set a lady took out a 7-inch record single (YES! good old vinyl record!) for the band to sign! I thought to myself, how long have these guys been around? I guessed most of the people who turned up must have studied or lived in Melbourne at some point in time to be fans of The Lucksmiths.They were simply amazing, reminds me of The Housemartins from UK. I was mesmerised by two songs which they played that day - "A Downside to the Upstairs" & "Great Lengths":

A Downside to the Upstairs - The Lucksmiths @ Baybeats2008

Great Lengths - The Lucksmiths @ Baybeats2008

The Lucksmiths played an outdoor set later that evening at the Nokia Arena and the place was packed to the brim! I had went over to catch Electrico at the Nokia Powerstage and by the time I made it back to the Nokia Arena, it was already impossible to get a decent place to watch them and they had already started their set. Managed to catch a glimpse from the side of the stage and it was the first time I had seen a stand-up drummer that was also the lead singer (Way to go Tali!). If not for Baybeats I might never heard of the Lucksmiths at all and what a great brand they are! Now I'm a fan.