Sorry About That, We're From Melbourne

A few of us took a rock'n'roll roadtrip to Sydney to see The Shins play on the weekend. The last time I was in Sydney was when I flew up to see The Cult play Selina's way back in the mid 1990's.

Here's some highlights....

Cheap, traditional pub meals. $12 for a Fisherman's Basket. $15 for steak. That's almost half what you pay in Melbourne and not one drop of juniper berry jus finds its way anywhere near the $9 Bangers and Mash.

$10 jugs.

The Metro. Awesome 700-ish seater theatre venue where everyone gets to see the band.

Mad taxi drivers.

Driver: I from Hong Kong six years ago. I like knowing how to be getting people there fast. How long did did it take you to drive to Sydney to Melbourne?
Me: Seven and a half hours.
Driver: You must be speeding!
Me: No, we took a shortcut.
Driver: Ah! I see. I understand!

The Shins. Strangely enough, considering Oh Inverted World is one of my fave records in the past decade, this was the first time I've seen them play. They were brilliant. I was elated. Perhaps too elated?

Sydney cops. After the show a scrag fight erupted in an alley next to the venue. A police car pulls up in the main street 30 metres away. Both police jump out of the car, bolt to the fracas and violently cuff the angry ladies. For the next half hour the police car is abandoned in the street, lights flashing.

My mates' reaction? Man-boobs-draped-over-police-car-photo-shoot time.

Gig fashion. Nobody wears collars, dark clothes or leather. A Sydney-sider gigster even asked me why I was wearing a Miller shirt. I advised him it was actually a Miller looking shirt made by the Converse corporation and that he had a bit of last week's chicken stuck in his hair. Glad we both saw the funny side....

Activity. Sydney people run around and play sport in parks. Melbourne people sit around and do bugger all.

Bad arse pun action. After the show we had a six hour shit talk fest at the mosquito riddled house we were staying at. It was a funny bastard called Dave who took out the title when he argued, while holding some mosquito repellent, "Aerogard-less of what you may think...."

The Sydney Opera House, Harbour Bridge and fireworks. Saw none of 'em. So there.

Painting by Ken Done.