Live Review: Lionizer, Axe Girl, Rag N' Bone, Flowermouth, Yian Solo

The night commenced with the satirical, punkish antics presented by local solo performer Yian Solo, who provided stripped-back instrumentation through the provision of a punkish beat that came from his acoustic guitar. The tracks he played were songs from his recently released EP The Great Australian Cliché, which seemed to reiterate and satirise the Australian stereotype in lyrical form. With a punchy backbeat and rapid strumming of open progressions, a raw, almost DIY mantra was created to homage Yian Solo's punk routes. Local rock band Flowermouth followed Yian Solo's performance and played a '90s punk, grunge-infused set featuring tracks from their 2013 EP Nostalgia. A highlight of the performance was when the band played Make Your Mind, where a combination of the lead singer's clamorous vocals and lively, driven riffs from the bass guitar allowed the band to propagate their musical worth. The track Said And Done evoked a sound that was reminiscent of the early Foo Fighters, the guitar's distortion permeating an almost tragic, unsteady atmosphere throughout the venue. The band overall provided the crowd with a strong, loud punk sound – only emphasised by the sound guy's complaints that their volume was too loud.

Rag N' Bone brought the gig into a different direction from the previous two bands. Departing ever so slightly from the punk rock antics of Yian Solo and Flowermouth, the foursome evoked an almost subtle bluesy sound. Led by the husky vocals of Kiera Owen and supporting vocals from lead guitarist Axel Carrington, the songs lyrically portray trouble, and when they performed the song Bag Of Nails, with its raw drum beat and emotionally charged vocals, the crowd began to move in earnest. Rag N' Bone's set was followed by indie-rock band Axe Girl, where members Addison Axe, Vanessa Thornton and Brett Mitchell produced a pleasing precursor to Lionizer's performance. With a performance of their recently released single Silence, it allowed the band to demonstrate their eclectic pop-rock driven ability to impress and humour the audience. Lionizer closed the performance with a selection of songs from their newly launched EP. With a consistent, established backbeat from drummer Bailey Lions, undulating chords and evocative vocals from Vez Litten, they created a sound that, like Flowermouth, was reminiscent of the '90s punk scene. Concluding their performance with a final song request from the easily impressed crowd, Lionizer and the preceding performers showed the true versatility of the Perth rock scene.