The rock band Famous In Vegas welcomed the long awaited Trial Kennedy onto stage. The four piece band resembled Trial Kennedy with a set up of drums, bass, guitar and vocals. They warmed up the dance floor as one couple twirled each other around. They had an energetic stage presence and loyal fans singing to their songs. One of the bands favourite songs “Eternal Madness” was played, followed by their first ever song. You can check out their music at http://www.facebook.com/famousinvegas.

For Mornington Peninsula fans of Trial Kennedy having one of their favourite bands play at the Pelly Bar in Frankston is something rare and special. Seeing good live music is usually something that involves a much longer car or train trip. If you look through Trial Kennedy's national tour throughout May, you can see that they have made the executive decision to reach fans in regional areas. This choice is a luxury that comes with being a independent band.

The appreciation for considering the fans down south of Melbourne was expressed on Facebook as they wrote about how much they were looking forward to the night. One fan going so far to say, that they had actually bought the physical copy of the new album Living Undesigned! Which is actually pretty saying considering that the whole thing can be listened to on Facebook for free.

I follow the motto that all decisions are made for the right reasons, even if they are not realised initially. This faith in decision making was proven to me once again after seeing Trial Kennedy live on Saturday. Over the last two years they have said goodbye to the old manager, label and bass player, bringing together something bigger and better for themselves, and for their fans.

The show was a mix of old and new material, with the lead singer Tim Morrison warning the crowd that their new stuff may sound different but “you will grow to like it”. The year 2011 presents Trial Kennedy with a optimistic chapter in their bands history, a result of the new Buxton brothers and moving on from past hurdles.

That sense of making it across to the other side was represented when the band first took to the stage on Saturday. The gig erupted with “Sally” one of their new releases from the album Living Undesigned. The whole band broke into a sweat as they exerted full capacity of their energy into this first song. This level of energy and enthusiasm remained true for the rest of the gig.

It was evident that fans made the most of the free preview of “Sally” on Facebook, as many knew the words already. Speaking of all things new, the presence of Dave Buxton and his brother Haydn Buxton was something that Trial Kennedy revelled with on stage. Saturday was the second time the five of them presented to the public what Living Undesigned was all about, and you could see that they were enjoying the jam. Likewise, I was mesmerised by Dave Buxton's bass playing. I was fixated on his fingers as they moved along the bass guitar so perfectly. Just as effortlessly as Dave plays the bass, he managed to manoeuvre his body around the cord leads which were twisting up around him as he moved to face Shaun on the drums.

The crowd was told that “you're a bunch of fucking great people”, and if Trial Kennedy could have heard, the same feelings were being expressed towards them from the crowd. I personally loved the lead into the new song “Living Undesigned”. Shaun drummed out an extra long solo beat which I liked better than the recorded version. It is definitely worth your while to get tickets to a live show to see what I am talking about! With Haydn doing extra sound engineering there are added layers of production throughout the live version. In “Living Undesigned” Tim's voice has a element of echo against it which is symbolic of the underlying meaning behind the record, leaving the past behind and moving forward with a positive outlook.

There seemed to be a few issues with the sound levels as the venues sound engineer jumped up onto the stage, but the crowd was oblivious to any problems. The crowds enthusiasm was inspirational to Trial Kennedy, as Tim expressed “that's what i'm talking about!” while everyone jumped up and down and threw their fists into the air. In a systematic loop the songs played from older tracks from New Manic Art to fresh new tracks from Living Undesigned. When the new track “Breath A Dime” started playing Stacey grinned from the left side of the stage. I felt the same grin on my face, as the speed and drum beat of the song makes your heart race like you are on a mission to do something exciting.

Reveling in the freedom to make the decisions as a independent band, Stacey said they “don't usually get to play this”. It was one of my favourite songs with only Stacey on the guitar and Tim on the vocals with a slower paced tempo and deep lyrics about heart break. It was an altered version of “Mississippi Burn” from New Manic Art and it was amazing! I also say that I prefer this song simply because my ears are usually attuned to softer folk and indie music. This song was a true showcase of Tim's vocal abilities.

The speed and energy was brought back with “Colour Days Tour”, which was the crowd's favourite. Tim selflessly let the crowd take over his role as lead singer and gave the microphone to the crowd as we all sun “Da da da da da dum!”. This song became an anthem in 2008 thanks to the high rotation played on Triple J. I expect the same will happen with “Best Of Tomorrow” a track from Living Undesigned which has already gained lots of air time on Triple J. We will be hearing this song in the top 100 for sure!

“Sunday Warning” from the album New Manic Art was presented to the crowd with a new twist. With Haydn's extra sound engineering it felt like the Trial Kennedy were taking us into an electronic beat, but then gradually the guitar started playing, the vocals kicked in, the bass, and then finally the drums. The layering of instruments built up the suspense, making the audience second guess what was coming next. Initially the crowd was unsure of the electronic sound that was coming from the speakers, until the familiar lyrics of “Sunday Warning” filled their ears, and their enthusiasm was back on track. Tim left his microphone and clapped along with the audience as Stacey improvised with the spontaneity that playing live music creates and took over the vocals.

Following the pattern of old song, new song, “Exology” from Living Undesignedwas sung with a fierce look on Tim's face. A song which Tim had written entirely himself, inspired by Stacey's broken relationship with his girlfriend of eight years. “War King” was then played which is an older track from New Manic Art. A song which I did not personally like, I believe his vocal capabilities are too good to waste on screaming. In saying this though, he does do it very well. Just not my personal preference. This song ended the set, with Stacey planting his guitar on top of the roof lights and as they all walked off the stage and reached to tap it. Back on they came though, strategically providing the crowd with one last track from the older album New Manic Art. A song that most fans have been listening to since 2008. From the reaction, it is clear to see that time has only made the fans grow hungrier for more of Trial Kennedy.

The album Living Undesigned only became available to the public last week. Since the release on Itunes, fans of Trial Kennedy are already rating the album 5 out of 5 stars. You could still be one of the first round of people to purchase the 10 track release on iTunes for $16.99. A must buy for Trial Kennedy fans, if you hurry you may still be able to get tickets to see their mix of old and new played live on stage.