BIGSOUND was an absolute blast, which is safe to say at the very least. As the international delegates fly home and we all nurse our hangovers it’s time to take a look back at the bands we saw and the new talent we discovered. As an avid heavy metal writer Happy’s own Jonty Czuchwicki is usually blown away by flawless riffs and catastrophic drumming, but for the humble Adelaidian it was the vocalists at BIGSOUND that really caught his attention. Here are his picks for the top vocalists at the industry’s biggest event.
BIGSOUND 2015 was a whirlwind of a good time, made all the better by some flooring vocal performances. Here are our picks for the best set of pipes at BIGSOUND.
Cosima Jaala – Mangelwurzel
Mangelwurzel is an explosion of quirky song writing, indecisive meters and untapped expression. Their unpredictability keeps the viewer in total awe of what might happen next, and there is honestly not quite another band like them. A packed out Wooly Mammoth was filled from front to back as we watched Cosi Jaala, a truly expressive performer I can only really liken to David Byrne and Anthony Keidis stuffed inside Gwen Stefani, simultaneously capture and pulverise the hearts of everyone in the room. Cute, crazy and completely out of this world. Everyone just wanted more.
Karina Utomo – High Tension
High Tension are undoubtedly careening towards greatness. The band sounded fantastic at Crowbar for the Deathproof PR party. The grimy underground club aesthetic and superb sound system really accentuated the pounding hardcore sound perfectly. What’s special about Karina is her ability to snap her vocal range from one extreme to the other within a split second. Esoteric cleans can spike into the fear inducing screams of a harpie and back in just one line. It’s really exciting to think how much further Karina is going to develop. She will certainly be looked back on as a pioneer of her own vocal sound.
Marie De Vita – WAAX
Whereas initially Marie De Vita’s vocals may invoke easy comparisons to Tonight Alive’s Jenna McDougall or and Paramore’s Hayley Williams respectively, De Vita immediately sheds the pop innocence that renders those two artists insufferable to some. It’s clear that De Vita just wants to scream, and her onstage presence is enthralling, wide eyed and powerfully capable she can appear as if she is staring right into the souls of her spectators. WAAX performed to an insanely packed outdoor crowd at the Elephant on Wednesday evening. Another act to look out for.
What do you think of Jonty’s top picks for best vocalists at BIGSOUND? Who were your picks? Sound off in the comment section. Let’s get the conversation started!
