Bringing together a lineup of three immensely talented and engaging bands at Keystone Festival Bar, Sydney Festival provided punters with a wonderful night of music. Starting out with the astounding psychedelic rock of Sydney’s very own The Laurels and ending with the thrilling, pounding set played by Scotland’s much loved band Sons and Daughters, the night cannot be faulted.

Delivering what could be described as intensely dramatic and entrancing psychedelic shoe gaze rock, The Laurels certainly started the night off nicely. Having released their EP Mesozoic mid last year, the band’s name is sure to keep on getting bigger due to their epic, absorbing sound and powerful stage presence. While the band’s recordings feature melodic vocals to a great extent, on stage the singers’ voices were barely audible against the heavy instrumentals. It was an arresting set regardless, as their mix of rumbling guitars and intense drumming held the crowd’s attention. Showing off their flair for playing interesting and far from mundane music, The Laurels delivered an impressive set.

Next up were Songs. Far more melody driven and playful than The Laurels, Songs’ music has an easily likeable charisma to it. Playing upbeat guitar rock, the five piece kept us entertained with material from their self-titled album and EP. What makes this band most enticing is their ability to sound both dark and upbeat simultaneously. Indeed, it is against heavy syncopated beats and deep guitar notes that the singers provide their catchy and at times fast paced tunes. Getting the audience to bounce along to the more pop influenced numbers, Songs proved themselves to be a band that can put on an entertaining, lively show.

While first and second supports were great, there is no doubt that Sons and Daughters stood as the highlight of the night. Having been making music as a band since 2001, with just a few lineup changes along the way, Sons and Daughters have landed upon a brilliant and entirely professional sound. Delivering punchy and extremely infectious rock music, the four piece put on a thrilling performance that had the crowd dancing along to every song. Throughout the show, it seemed that all eyes were on the sprightly and very charming lead singer, Adele Bethel. Wearing a bright green dress and a generous quantity of glittering eye-makeup as she twirled about with her tambourine, Bethel gained the crowd’s adoration with ease.

Playing an assortment of numbers from their three albums, particularly from their latest release Mirror, Mirror, it was clear that Sons and Daughters have an impressive catalogue of songs to choose from. Opening with “The Nest” from the 2003 album This Gift, the band instantly showed off their flair for playing infectious, punctuated tunes.

One of the greatest crowd pleasers of the night was “Rama Lama”, a pulsating song that would fit perfectly into the soundtrack for a modern cowboy film. With fellow singer Scott Paterson’s voice easily alternating from a low growl to high yelps, up against Bethel’s soaring vocal range, they make for a formidable pairing.

Other highlights of the night were the band’s performances of their latest singles, “Breaking Fun” and “Rose Red”, with both numbers brimming with energy. Indeed, while Sons and Daughters’ recordings feature slower, darker moments, their live performance remained very much upbeat.

Ending the night with a rocking and intense delivery of “Blood” and “Dance Me In”, it was clear that the crowd had no desire for the set to come to a close. Delivering a powerful and extremely enjoyable set, here’s hoping that we don’t have to wait too long before Sons and Daughters come back to Sydney to do it all over again.