New Candys and Friends Beautifully Turn The Vanguard Into A Psych Rock Den

New Candys and Friends Beautifully Turn The Vanguard Into A Psych Rock Den is a review by Sean Cerexhe-McIntyre.

I love a venue that can wear different hats. I was at the Vanguard three weeks ago seeing Mick Harvey from the Bad Seeds perform in front of what appeared to be a burlesque-y jazz bar. Tables and chairs were lined out in columns, as a large contingent sipped on their red wine throughout.

You walk into the Vanguard tonight and the tables and chairs in front of the stage have relocated elsewhere, with ample space revealed for a dancefloor.

We’re all here to see Italian psych rock band the New Candys, who are back in Australia for the first time in 7 years. Singing in English, they’ve found appreciation from Anton Newcombe of the Brian Jonestown Massacre and Iggy Pop, the latter describing them as “kinky” on his BBC Radio program.

They’re supported by Sydney locals Grinding Eyes and The Wednesday Night.

Admittedly I hadn’t heard of The Wednesday Night before seeing them advertised for this show, but watching them perform live tonight I’m blown away. The five-piece band look and sound so effortlessly cool. Their music is groovy and jangly, with a hazy aura around them. They also give off this space-y feel in their music, reminding me of parts of Bowie or Dark Side of the Moon in the themes and sounds.

Grinding Eyes are a band I’ve heard of but never really given the time to listen to before. This is my first chance to take them in, and the first thing you notice is the volume kicking up a few notches. We’re all swept away in the whirlwind of their shoegazey wall of sound. If we were in any other venue you’d have people bumping shoulders and moshing, but here you can only stand back and appreciate the music. The sound is just so clean and balanced. Their music is dark and fuzzy, and they’re heavily backlit so you can barely make out their faces.

New Candys emerge and you have to notice how slick and sharp they look. The lead guitarist and drummer are sporting black Fred Perry and Carhartt branding, while the lead singer adorns a black leather jacket with ‘Lucifer’ in rainbow lettering on the back. He’s also got this long, dark fringe concealing half of his face. 

They’re dramatically backlit with purples and greens shining through, as it’s not just the fringe obscuring the singer’s face throughout the set.

They sound very true to their recorded output. Dark, bluesy, psych-y. You can hear influences from bands like Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Ride and other shoegazey outfits. The lead singer’s voice is filtered through so many reverb effects it makes the already abstract lyrics even more difficult to decipher. The chiming lead guitar cuts through the dense fuzz of the rhythm section to create a beautiful contrast.

After their encore they stick around to pack up their gear and chat with any remaining fans hanging around the bar area.

Each band put on a great set and the venue’s newly renovated soundsystem really performed in this environment. I’d highly recommend seeing any of the three bands perform live if you’re a fan of groovy or dark psych rock. The Vanguard is also rapidly becoming my favourite small venue in Sydney, and its versatility was definitely on show tonight.