LIVE REVIEW: THE KITE MACHINE @ MAX WATTS 16/09/2022
It is rare you see a band who sound exactly like their recordings, and even less common to believe they sound that good live - The Kite Machine are the exception. As second act of the night, wedged between 'Stealing Moss and Kings of the North, supporting headliners MAMMAL The Kite Machine were the sole reason I braved the cold, wet Melbourne weather on Friday night. I heard rumour of the Geelong based rockers stellar live performance and needed to see it for myself.
The Kite Machine played to a quiet room, those who arrived early stood at the back, sipping beers as they observed. The sparse crowd didn’t dampen the bands’ spirits, the set was one of the tightest I have seen as they breezed through hits including ‘Top of the Hill’ and my personal favourite ‘Charlotte’. The infectious energy was quick to win over the crowd, with girls dancing and one guy with a mohawk, raising one arm high and rocking the sign of the horns.
Throughout the set I kept asking “How are these guys not bigger?!”. The exact kind of band you would want to see mid-afternoon at a festival, surrounded by your friends, five drinks deep and in that mood where you think “life can’t get better than this”. Not limited to positive, cheeky banter, lead singer, Levi pulled on the heartstrings with his vocals during the breakdown of ‘Instant Pretty’. Levi’s voice was pitch perfect and despite being a room of people, the words felt intimate.
Finishing up with their latest release ‘Dagger in the dark’ the band bounced around with a heavy guitar solo to wrap up the impeccable set. They are soon to be completing a regional tour in Victoria, I highly recommend checking out one of the upcoming shows!
