A few good things have come from the Victorian town of Ballarat: the annual beer festival, gold, more gold and that old castle people joust in (Seriously. That’s a thing.). And despite this sounding like Ballarat has time-travelled back into the medieval days, I’m here to tell you that there is something modern and fresh coming out of this foreign land. Apes.
I’m sorry Donkey Kong, you just don’t pull a crowd any more. Make way for Victoria’s Apes – appearing at a BIGSOUND near you.
Whilst actual, live, raging apes might finally liven up the place, sadly it’s not the animal I’m here to write about. Apes are a high energy four-piece who have been spotted around town lately on lineups such as Brisbane’s upcoming BigSound, supporting Manchester Orchestra and their own single launch tour.
You might know Apes from the song that launched their career – Seven. For those of you who don’t know, Seven is the type of song that lights a fire deep within you which you can only extinguish by relentlessly headbanging in your mates garage. Probably while wearing some sort of tartan. Probably while downing beers. Their surf-punk anthem soon became a favourite of the likes of Triple J and Radio BBC1. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Briefly parting from their punk roots, Apes latest hit Pull the Trigger is equal parts rock-n-roll and catchy-as-hell. Lead singer, Ben Dowd, holds nothing back and injects a serious amount of volume to compliment the heavy pop melody overriding the track. It’s a classic example of the band’s key sound of ‘scrappy, rough and ready melodies with strong hooks.’
Pull The Trigger is an interesting evolution from Seven but great nevertheless. I love seeing bands grow and explore different sounds, which is exactly what you will get from Apes. Their music varies from alternative rock to garage to heavy pop without faltering.
To sum it up, Apes are insane live. Basically a burst of much needed energy to a) combat the typical chilled EDM acts that Aussies are currently overtaking the world with and b) part ways with Ballarat’s dreary scene. You can catch them in all their glory this month at Karova Lounge in Ballarat on September 18, as well as at BigSound on September 10th at Oh Hello!
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