Blue Evening - Gig Preview
The brains behind the event share all the important ins and outs ahead of what's tipped to be somewhat of a high school reunion at The Tote
MOM & Cease and Desist bring you the second iteration of Blue Evening.
11 Hours of music, two band rooms and 13 acts.
Sat Jan 25th, The Tote 4pm - 3am
Noah chats to Oscar (MOM) and Yasmine (Cease and Desist) about all things ‘Blue Evening’, an event showcasing some of the very finest from the Australian underground, with a summary of each of the artists to follow.
Can you tell us how the concept for Blue Evening came about?
This is the second iteration of the same event that we did in summer last year. Blue Evening came about originally after a bit of a joke to "uncurse" The Tote, after it finally reopened with new ownership last year. The Tote was once a really special venue for us both, and we had watched it slide into a bit of a sad state, so we wanted to see if we could breathe some life back into the old girl. It ended up feeling almost like a high school reunion, bringing back so many people who used to be Tote front bar stalwarts.
Is there a special connection with The Tote for this event? The two band room venue is ideal.
We have both been going to the Tote for almost 10 years and Yasmine used to work there. It's changed and gone through many hands in that time but structurally hasn't changed heaps and remains a great space to put on multiple bands at once. Two beer gardens in late Jan also isn't bad!
It’s a great selection of artists with a focus on underground music, variety and Melbourne-based bands this year. Solder and Amanda Roff are also returning for the second year. Talk us through your curation process?
It's very collaborative, we both spend all year booking and seeing bands so coming together to book something is very fun. Our taste in music is similar in a lot of ways but I think our shared love for spotlighting underground acts and trying to make it a different experience for punters each time is where we connect the most, that's the shared goal. Nice to have some returning acts too! Amanda was crucial in our attempt to “uncurse” The Tote. Her poem summed the ghosts of pints past, to make sure the night ran smoothly. We couldn't do it without her magic again and then Solder opened last year as a duo, so it will be great for them to take the main stage later in the evening as a 6 piece!
What were the highlights from the first event in 2024 and any learnings you’ve taken into this year’s event?
I think for us it was one of the first events we really got to see a bunch of different scenes come together and just have heaps of fun. Having heavy rock acts as well as electronic and ambient acts all together is becoming more and more regular but this time last year it was more of a rarity, so the event as a whole felt really great, guess that's why we're doing it again! Also booking a few acts we'd never seen before, like Carnations and Kidskins (first Melb show) was so exciting!
How many attendees did you have for 2024 and how many are you hoping for this year?
Last year we had about 400 people I think? Hoping for a similar amount this year if not more!
What are you most looking forward to for the event?
Seeing a packed room of people watching good music.
Are there plans underway for 2026?
MORE SHOWS!
Blue Evening II features exquisite vision from:
EXEK who are a mesmerising, dub infused, post punk, kraut rock deconstructed enchantment.
Music: EXEK ~ The Plot // Media: Guy Harris / IG ~ Winternationale
Station Model Violence (SYD) is a brand new project involving DX of Total Control and The UV Race, Buz from R.M.F.C and Yuta Matsumura from The Lewers & Th Blisks, and much more, who’ve so far have only shared one demo online.
Bodies of Divine Infinite & Eternal Spirit (AKA Bodies) is an experimental queer post-punk outfit. With a proclivity for lengthy, intuitive cuts guided by a desire and search for transcendental states of experience, the group have never played the same set live twice and believe in songs that have the potential for both monotonous repetition and abrupt change.
Cloud Ice 9 make music that’s hard to define with the intention of staying genre-less. They are all about bringing spooky energy in their live shows so I’m sure we are in for a real treat.
G.U.N (SYD) stands for GALVANIC. UNAPOLIGETIC. NOISE. Their live performances display a unique and energetic array of honest personal inquisition with both vulnerability and improvisation at its core, with intent to offer a safe platform for all present to contribute and explore their own human nature.
Program is the made up of platonic childhood sweethearts Rory Heane and Jonathan Ross-Brewin who have put together a fresh batch of catchy, hook- laden rock’n’roll tracks (It’s a Sign, 2024) to sing along to supported by James Tyrrell on the tubs and new member Charlotte Stewart holding it down on bass.
Vanessa Worm is a singer, songwriter, producer and DJ. As described by Optimo Music, who released her debut Vanessa 77: “her music fits in with no genre and no scene – it is its own genre and its own scene.
Palm Springs quietly strums pensive songs on a nylon string guitar and is the outsider folk identity of Erica Dunn (MOD CON/ Tropical Fuck Storm/ Harmony).
Solder - are a loud and loving experimental punk two-piece.
Equal Parts is a new post-punk band from Melbourne featuring members of established local acts CLAMM and Floodlights.
Who Cares? it’s so hard to find anything on them online. It’s super chill experimental folk sounds, which feels like it comes from another era. Warm lo- fi fuzziness.
TGM is so underground I couldn’t find anything on them online.
Amanda Roff is a member of post-punk gallows-gospel outfit Harmony and is principal lyricist and vocalist for shadowy pop group Time For Dreams. Her current focus is on developing forms of poetic investigation that bypass elements of conventional research.
I hear that a YL Hooi DJ set is not to be missed. Outsider dub? Minimal pop? RNB with sax? Only one way to find out...
See you there!
