It comes as sad news to a lot of us in hearing that Justin Hemmes has purchased the Excelsior Hotel in Surry Hills. For over 30 years live music has had a home here. Most recent owner Mark Chapman continued this tradition with live music 7 nights a week. They gave young up and coming bands a place to play a short set and gather and mix with others of similar vein. There is no surprise that the night time crowd at the Excelsior varied quite a bit. A place where locals may go to hear some music, though mostly band members and their friends made up the crowd most nights, many bands would have formed from meeting like-minded souls there and its a kick in the guts for the local live music scene.

Tonight a long list of artists were lined up to show their thanks and make the most of a venue willing to give them a go. I slipped in the door just in time to catch Bears with Guns. A folk rock group with some nice melodies, a good rhythm and a very smooth sound. The drum box was an interesting addition to the band, and I enjoyed what I saw. To me they were a gratifying start to the evening, and if the band quality was set to improve from here I was expecting a good night.

This expectation exploded when Liam Gale and The Ponytails boarded the stage, soaking up much valuable time with some "cheesey" jokes was the least of their worries. The band really struggled to find balance vocally for the start of their set. They brought out a sitar which really suited their whole indian/hindu influences, though such a beautiful sitar seemed wasted to be used in only one song. And perhaps that girl with the sitar was the only talented singer in the band. Musically they were ok, with some nice moments as the set got on, though overall rather disappointing.

Chloe Harrison filled in some time with a beautiful acoustic ballad showing an amazing vocal range until Shady May completed their preparations. And so there I was, kicking back on a couch waiting for them to start when all of a sudden this gorgeous voice begs me to stand and watch. A wonderful opening song. I was a little saddened when the vocals later turned to sound like Gwen Stefani. That was a shame. Another interesting thing for this band is the guitarist. I swear he looks like he missed his calling by not being in a metal band, but his metal hair, stance, licks and riffs played without distortion bring an interesting sound to this group.

Jade and the Stone City provide the next acoustic fill in. A sweet duet though soon departed for The Spoon Collectors to make their mark. Initially I was unsure how to take this band, it didn't take long for their rhythm to catch my foots attention. Their sound was good, front man charismatic, and good straight rock greeted us in the crowd. Perhaps lacking some quality material, their new song showed some growth and perhaps some light. Horegeous came and went in a violent flash that left the crowd begging for more and booing the night organiser for not letting them have a second song. Hard fast punk rock fun. Not influential or incredible, just good downright fun.

And then to finish my night I grab one last beer and settle ready for Spangled Mistress and their psychedelic rock show. The crowd seemed a little smaller with everyone drunk and talking out at the front bar, and perhaps some people going home due to work the following day. This did not seem to sway the band. Miles Devine is a talented and vibrant front man. It's certainly not easy to pull of a Jimi Hendrix cover in style and look comfortable and not out of place. Spangled Mistress manage this, have a strong stage presence and good energy on stage and in their sound.

It is sad to see this night come to an end. I cannot say tonight as a farewell show for the Excelsior was full of regulars with sad faces. It wasn't. It was your typical night, packed out with band members of those acts playing and their friends, all getting drunk and mingling with each other and it was a great enjoyable night to be part of just for that reason. The loss of live music nights at the excelsior will surely be missed and we can only hope in future that they return.