Lowrider
The Corner Hotel, 21/05/11

They may be from Adelaide *insert collective national moan/jokes here*, but that doesn’t make them shit. Stop hatin’ already!

First of all, there’s something you should know about me: I’m South Australian. Yes, I’ve called Melbourne my home since 1997, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that I’m one of “those people”, the ex-pat with the slight English accent who advocates anything that comes out of our state, just to make ourselves feel better about being…well…South Australian.

So for me, seeing Adelaide homies, Lowrider, at the Corner Hotel was always going to be good. And it was…for EVERYONE present (and judging by the fact that I was probably the most bogan person there, I’m pretty sure that meant there weren’t many other Adelaidians there…).

It’s hard to pinpoint their genre of music: blues, hip-hop, soul, funk…it’s all mixed into one and they have their obvious musical influences, but at the same time, their own sound and identity is clear from the beginning. The boys mixed up their tracks from their last release Round the World and its predecessor Diamond Amongst The Thieves, the latter being a bit more bluesy and the former being somewhat more upbeat – both releases being just awesome and making a sick playlist for a live show. And any band who can lace JJ Cale’s Cocaine, Bomfunk MC’s Freestyler and Run DMC’s Walk This Way into their own songs MUST be rad.

I’ve seen Lowrider a countless number of times and every gig just gets better and better – they’re high energy, engaging and work the crowd into a participatory frenzy of jumping, dancing and sing-a-longs. You know how you get those lead vocalists who just hog the stage and pretty much act like they’re ‘the face’ of the band? Joe Braithwaite’s not like that by a long shot – if you go to see Lowrider, you see Lowrider, not just the one dude front and centre. Their stage presence always amazes me: their incredible connection to the crowd is incomparable. One of my friends described them as ‘smiley’ which is absolutely true…and it’s nice to go to a gig where it’s obvious the band are having a great time and love what they do.

So the next time they roll into town, make sure you catch them – fan or not, the live show in itself is completely worth it.

Lowrider are touring nationally – if you missed out on their Melbourne gig…that’s too bad for you. Also what the hell’s wrong with you? Go next time OR ELSE!! Find out more, hear their tunes and buy their records’n'stuff via their webby.