The Scare recently put out their second effort oozevoodoo, and
after receiving a decent amount of airplay it would have been fair to
suggest that decent sized crowds were to be expected. Embarking on the
national tour with The Scare were up and coming band Cabins and Jack
Ladder. 

I’ve seen Cabins several times, they’ve been receiving their
fair share of support slots travelling across the country. They impress
me time and time again with their no nonsense form of rock and roll.
It’s jam packed with catchy riffs, repeated until they are engraved
on your mind for the days to follow… at least. In particular is “Catcher
In The Rye,” which utilises the keyboard on top of a awesome guitar
riff. I look forward to seeing Cabins once again, hopefully in not to
distant future.

Following up from Cabins were Jack Ladder, an artist I have had
interest in since the release of his second album “Love is Gone”.
Not too long ago, Kirin J Callinan of Mercy Arms fame joined him as
the guitarist and chief noisemaker. Since the inclusion of Callinan,
the songs have transformed slightly, alongside the bands image. Callinan
wearing female floral pants left some of the crowd slightly confused
and bewildered; lucky for them he wasn’t wearing a dress.

Personally, the songs still sound great
in their new, slightly more reverb soaked sound. Through the use of
the slower tempos, Jack Ladders voice is allowed to shine and be more
soulful. A particular favourite from the set was introduced as, “Here’s
a song from a scummy part of Sydney called Hurstville.” Jack Ladder
didn’t change the way he sang, crooning his way into the consciousness
of the otherwise unaware of his distinct singing style. Before starting
the last song he exclaimed “Thanks for coming tonight, I heard The
Scare are playing at the after party”.

The Scare took to the stage around ten-thirty to a near capacity
Annandale Hotel. “No Money,” the first single released off oozevoodoo
was played fairly early in the set, coming some what as a surprise.
I’m not sure if it was from the crowd throwing money at the band to
keep the restless crowd quiet, or if it was planned, but it did help
the crowd settle down somewhat.

When I first saw The Scare, the first
thing that grabbed me was the energy provided by front man Kiss Reid.
He sings like a man possessed - arms flailing and faces being pulled
as if he was trying to exorcise himself of the demons within. Entering
the crowd at various stages singing into the faces of those who dared
to be within the first few rows, throwing himself at anyone who cared
to shimmy. Seeing Bridezilla front woman Holiday Sidewinder in the audience
made me wish that she was going to come on stage and sing “Charger”,
but it was not forth coming.

At the end of the night the set had provided everything that one would
come to expect from a show from The Scare. Solid riffs, hard hitting
drums and Kiss joining the members of the crowd for a song or two, despite
one over zealous member of the crowd who wanted to rip his already safety
pinned shirt.

Photo taken by Daniel Boud at a gig in 2006 - check out his website, boudist.com