When the Falls Festival announcement is made every August, residents from anywhere north of Coffs Harbour ponder the trek south. For some it’s a no brainer and plans immediately commence. For others, strategy for the trek gets the better of them. So the news of a two-day mini ‘Falls’ of our very own sent pleasant tingles of shockwaves through the Brisbane music industry. Set among the tried and tested Brisbane Botanical Gardens and Riverstage, the inaugural Sunset Sounds Festival was a firm sell-out. A late afternoon start to the days’ acts put a few festival regulars out of synch with their traditional festival warm-up. However given it was a ‘school day’ for many, it also meant that one could satisfy the boss before dashing across to the Botanic Gardens to catch the best Sunset Sounds had to offer.

I arrived in a timely fashion for Faker who were encouraging a large crowd to launch their evening watching them – although many seemed to be warming to the new festival and its’ ideas. Nonetheless the eclectic gathering loosened up to Lazybones, Hurricane and sure-fire hit This Heart Attack. Perhaps by underestimating the success of the event, organisers found that facilities were stretched, but the priceless sunset and the endless flow of grog put punter concerns immediately at bay. Over on The Hibiscus Stage, local indie band Rocketsmiths was entertaining a dedicated crowd. Using a Spanish influence on their tracks certainly makes for a pleasant alternative with Boy Who Cried Misery and Modern Life. A stroll around the grounds to take in the layout before dark and it was to The Riverstage for Brighton foursome The Kooks. The screens of focused mobile phones indicated the stardom that Luke Pritchard and co had achieved in their three-year existence. Their effortless and charismatic hold on the crowd had fans singing each lyric to Do You Wanna before the band moved on to Always Where I Need to Be, Naïve and closing with She Moves In Her Own Way.

From the outset, The Cat Empire was the highlight of my program. The worldly sound captured by the seven piece from having toured almost every corner of the globe in their 10 years is always an audible delight. The vocal dynamics of their front men Felix Riebl and Harry James Angus coupled with Angus’ scatting and three octave trumpet solos vacuumed my interest. The Empire was a staple artist for the bill and on the appropriately named Garden Stage: Fishies, So Many Nights, Sly, Two Shoes and The Chariot were perfect selections for the appreciative and committed proud. At the main stage, the onslaught of Swedish export The Hives were unmistakable in their pure white blazers as they rocked hard with Tick, Tick Boom. Shortly after You’ve Got It All Wrong the microphone unfortunately cut out. Upon its return, and with delightful Pelle Almqvist arrogance, The Hive’s frontliner strutted to the front of the stage to declare that “no-one cuts the power on The Hives.” And with those words the backbone to their day one headlining slot, The Hives continued with Try It Again and Hate To Say I Told You So while closing the day with Main Offender.

Day 2 began in earnest as people had familiarised themselves with Sunset Sounds and its modus operandi. The usual mellow atmosphere that accompanies the second day to a festival was present and no more than during I Heart Hiroshima. On the Riverstage, punters secured their piece of grass for a leisurely lounge during the threesome’s set. Their bass-less line-up meant front-woman Susan Patten on drums had to hammer the bass drum to simulate that sound. Doing so tended to drown the guitars thus providing a seemingly unfinished sound yet it succeeded in entertaining existing local fans. The highly anticipated attendance by Philadelphia’s multi-genre queen Santogold created a huge crowd at dusk. Her DJ entered the stage initially to spin hits spanning from Blondie to The Police before the entrance of the woman herself. Dressed in a blue leather jumpsuit and accompanied by two dancers in gold ponchos, she oozed charisma and her cheeky smiles captured the crowd instantly. Peaking with L.E.S Artistes, she encouraged a group of fans on to the stage to share the moment resulting in a flawless and energetic set. A packed crowd had now formed for hometown ‘co-ed’ band The Grates. Front woman Patience Hodgsen, donning a fairytale ball gown hobbled on with crutches having broken her leg jumping off the drum kit at Sunset’s Mother Festival. It was appropriate therefore, that she took centre stage on a throne where she cleverly and effectively engaged and enthused the crowd. Kicking off with Aw-Yeah before moving on to Inside Outside, it was clear the crowd embraced the band with open arms. 19-20-20 and Science Is Golden rounded out the set complimented by costumed cow, lion and chicken dancers.

Inevitably, the festival climaxed at the end of day two with Scottish alternative rockers, Franz Ferdinand. The expectation for the group was immense as the stage filled with instruments, guitar racks and Orange speaker stacks during the change over. With a backdrop featuring caricatures of the band members’ faces, Alex Kapranos lead the band onstage with each member threaded out in a different brightly coloured shirt. They began with Come on Home followed by Dark of the Matinee complete with Kapranos playing the guitar behind his head in Hendrix-like fashion. Do You Want To, This Fire and Walk Away ticked ‘The Hits’ boxes before playing the first release Ulysses from their latest album Tonight. After finishing with an epic rendition of Take Me Out, drummer Paul Thomson launched his sticks into the crowd before Kapronos himself launched his body in the same direction.

The setting of the sun during a traditional festival is often the pinnacle of the day and it was apt that Falls should exploit this feeling in a brand new offspring. The sell-out mid-week and evident success of the event indicates that Brisbane may have secured a ‘Falls’ of its’ very own. Well done Sunset Sounds – Brisbane can only dream for what comes in 2010.