If only the walls of the front bar at Melbourne’s iconic ‘Espy’ could talk. What tales of intrigue, talent, romance, violence, insanity and eccentricity they could tell! Saturday night’s performance by iconic band Icehouse added another entry into the Espy’s substantial history books, and from all accounts the write-up could be nothing but favourable.

It was a laid back night of acoustic bliss as a sizeable crowd braved the wind and rain to seek refuge in the Northcote band room and help young upstart Kate Vigo celebrate the release of her new single “You’re Haunting Me”.

Aleks & The Ramps are one of the many local artists who have been kicking around for years and have never managed to do more than gain an eccentric mix of fans to match the quirky nature of their sound. It was a bold move getting Teeth & Tongue to open for them, as the majority of punters were there to see Jess Cornelius play.

It was lucky that Joshua Radin was keen to come back to Australia with his The Rock and The Tide tour. In 2009, his Simple Times Melbourne show was taken hostage by tonsillitis. This time around he was determined to make up for it.

Swarms of people began to edge their way into the Northcote Social Club from an early hour on Saturday night, eagerly awaiting a performance from The Vaudeville Smash on the final leg of their national EP launch tour. Those who arrived early enough were treated to some fine support acts from local artists Rosie and George and the Box Rockets – although neither slightly resemble the sound of The Vaudeville Smash.

Time flies by. It feels like yesterday that I was treated to The Storm In A Teacup. A collaboration of six different bands who interconnect in all different ways. Let me start from the end of the night with each musician together at once. From then on, I can describe how your favourite songs were tuned and tinkered with throughout the two hour set.

Jazz gigs are a touchy affair sometimes. You can get enamoured with the music that comes from the stage, but at the same time, once it goes too far it can all become a wank. On the audience side of things, you can either get a crowd that is responsive to a small degree, or a bunch of middle-aged men talking about business deal s rather than enjoying the jazz.

There was a touch of trepidation going to The Heart of St Kilda concert at The Palais. Many of the acts weren’t really musicians that I would go out of my way to see a full concert over. It was a slightly odd feeling in all honesty, in that we were supporting a good cause by listening but I went in with the feeling that we were going to listen to songs which have grown tired through via plays on Gold FM 3 times a day.