By day four, we’ve stopped checking schedules. You just followed the noise and hoped you ended up somewhere good (it’s all fantastic). I caught locals Sweetie at the Heaps Normal pop-up as the sun was going down, walking from Redfern Station into Chippendale. You could hear them before you saw them, echoing down the city block. They sound like punk and rock had a fight and country stepped in to mediate.
Sonic Reducer packed out The Den at Chippo. Sleaze punk from Canberra. The air was heaving, guitars biting at the walls. Raw and scrappy, not overthought, just pure noise and sweat. I first caught them a few years back, and they’ve grown into themselves since.
KyoYoko came in from Beijing and felt like performance art – part punk, part electronic, all tension. Their set moved in waves, swinging between mechanical and chaotic.
I could hear the soundcheck for dust as I was running past The Commons and decided to throw my hat in by jumping in line. Queues are rare at SXSW Sydney, and I wasn’t planning on wasting time standing around, but dust was worth it. They’d just played Phoenix Central Park recently and carried that same energy into something brighter. Post-punk with sharp edges and real space to breathe. The sax cut through the mix like a second voice, not just decoration.
Shanghai Qiutian were all precision. Tight, mathy rock that never lost its pulse and burned with passion. The whole band looked locked in, unshakable. Their songs snapped and twisted, falling apart and snapping back together, exactly how they were built.
OMR took things slow, then very fast. An Eora-based/Sydney trio built on heavy reverb and builds that never rush. People started crowding in from outside, cramming into the tiny hallway above Lord Gladstone just to catch it.
Then Touch Sensitive at The Commons, with the crowd excited and pushing up closer to the stage. Michael Di Francesco doing what he does best – looping grooves, electronic but warm. Perfect time for a boogie.
BOCCE from Nipaluna/Hobart carried that nostalgic surf-tinged indie rock that just feels so good. Like the last day of summer, but the summer in Tasmania – windy, darker skies, something serious in the air.
Serebii from Aotearoa/New Zealand slowed it down again. Callum Mower makes music that moves like water – soft, patient, and calm. The kind of set that could soundtrack both one of those a sunrise cafe raves and the quiet end of a long night at home.
Door Plant from Thailand pulled a huge crowd. Indie rock and alt-pop all tangled together, restless and bright. Everyone on stage looked like they were chasing the next note. It was layered, unpredictable, and so so fun to watch.
I’d been looking forward to Freak Slug – UK artist Xenya Genovese, whose sound sits somewhere between dream and decay. Shoegaze laced with grunge, absolutely hypnotic. She’s got another show tonight in Eora/Sydney, and if it’s not too late, it’s definitely worth catching.
