A review from backstage - Bird's Robe Records 5th Birthday (aka Mikefest), Sat Dec 5 at Manning Bar

It's been an amazing week. Thank you so much to everyone who came out and supported the Mew tour & of course the incredible experience that was Saturday's birthday show for The Bird's Robe Collective. I can hardly express how humbled, flattered and blown away I was by your kind words and support. More importantly, it was so immensely gratifying to see every single artist put on an amazing show and help make the day and night what it was. I sometime find it hard to truly express how amazed and happy I am when moments like this occur. Normally I keep it to a few words on social media (and some choice texting or emails). But I thought that if a younger Mike was at this show, making his first foray into the underground music scene, then he might enjoy reading something like this. So here goes ? a gushing review from backstage for the Bird?s Robe Records 5^th birthday show (aka Mikefest ? happy now, guys?)  Saturday December 5. My day starts by dropping off Danish band Mew and their crew at their hotel around 1.30am, after the final show of their Australian tour in Brisbane. Despite only a few days with these guys, they have become familiar mates due to their openness, professional and good vibes. There is none of the ego that sometimes comes with experiencing relatively significant success in other parts of the world ? and it has been both surprising and gratifying to work with them. It?s a mark of how far things have come that this tour just happened ? this is a band way out of left field with a loyal and dedicated following. It?s an honour to have brought them here to Australia for the first time ? and I am thankful I managed to fit it all in at such a busy time of year. So, after parking and packing, I snatch 2 hours sleep and then have a 4.30am wake up to meet my good friend (and crew member for this tour) Brett Tollis downstairs, where we pick up the vehicles and head to Brisbane airport for our 6.45am flight to Sydney. Normally we are chatty and talking about future plans and logistics on these flights, but this is a rare exception where we catch up on sleep as best we can before the epic day ahead. I think I may have even missed the snack service(!). We land, cab it to his place, pick up our cars and head straight to Manning Bar for load in (I stop at a Newtown supermarket on the way to pick up popcorn kernels, chips and other snacks for the bands & crew). The sleepmakeswaves boys are already there ? it is going to be an emotional day for all of us for many reasons, some personal and some public. Tim's father passed away recently and he has bravely decided to forge ahead. Warwick was a legend of a guy -?always a pleasure to talk to and his support for this group was immense. He was present at all their biggest moments at home to celebrate with us?and his pride and love for their music was always apparent. Fittingly, this show is being played in his honour.??It is also Kid?s last hometown show with the band after he decided to move on to focus on other priorities (see his announcement here) and the guys fully intend to send him off with a show worthy of his massive contribution to the band. I'm extremely proud of both of them for different reasons and it means a lot to have them both here. Everyone is in relatively good shape so far, though Otto injured his back at a rehearsal last night and needs to be taped up. I call Solkyri guitarist Adam Mostek who generously offers to pick up some tape & give Otto a back rub too. Not sure if the second thing ever happened. Amongst all this, the mood is initially a bit fraught ? I set an ambitiously tight schedule and we?re running a bit behind with getting gear in and set up. I?ve got heaps of last minute things to do ? updating the guest list for all 12 artists and all my industry guests, friends and family, confirming the riders with the venue manager Chris and setting up the copious amounts of merch from all the acts on the label. While I?m doing this, Dan from Meniscus arrives and kindly helps put together all the AAA passes for artists with lanyards. I?m glad by now I can multi-task so we have a good chat about how their recent set at Jungle Love Festival went and a mysterious cover track they will be playing, which apparently went down well. I asked him not to tell me what it is so I?ll be surprised. sleepmakeswaves manage to swiftly nail down their sound check at precisely the moment Toehider arrive (their flight from Melbourne having been delayed). So I rush on stage with their sampler and my in-ears and drum sticks to get things sorted. Today I?m drumming for Toehider again and as always I?m a bit nervous about making sure it all goes smoothly ? Mike Mills (singer/guitarist) and bandmates Lachlan (guitar) and Amy (bass) are such good musicians and friends that I don?t want to let them down. Tim Adderley from sleepmakeswaves is being super helpful and professional, along with our tech for the day Mark Tyson (another long-time legend of our crew). They help with the changeover easily and as I start testing my set up I realize that my regular in-ears aren?t generating enough volume for me to hear the click track and backing samples at all above the monitors and sound on stage. I am the first to admit I am a loud drummer, but even holding back I can?t hear anything. It?s the first time we have tried anything like this with the band and although a rehearsal earlier in the week went well, we haven?t gigged with this set up before. I tell Mike Mills and he?s understanding of the situation, but I try another set of in-ears (that he lent me) and it?s much better. Game on, tracks saved. It?s a relief. I stay on stage to then sound check with my brother Alex and friend Andrej for the Dream Cities set. While waiting for them to get their sounds, I text the venue manager Chris to push door times back 15 minutes which allows us to check stage levels. It sounds fine and Brett is happy out front, so we?re good to go. Whilst all this has been happening, Amy Campbell from Toehider has been a legend and started setting up all the merch, which not only saved me time, but made it look even better than I would have done. The Dumbsaint boys are here too, helping set up merch and making me feel good that people are here on time. By the time doors open and Mike Mills takes the stage for his acoustic set, we?re only 10 minutes behind, which is pretty good considering how much had to get done. The Troldhaugen guys arrived earlier with their popcorn machine and enthusiastically go about setting it up. Not long after, Jariss comes up and rather ominously asks me about whether the venue has a smoke machine. Apparently the popcorn machine is emitting a bit of smoke ? which as it turns out is fine, since the venue has been isolated for us to use a smoke machine on stage. However, Chris the venue manager takes one look at our little kernel of an operation and promptly offers the use of the venue?s popcorn machine: which is four times the size! Awesome. So whilst Troldhaugen ply the early crowd with free popcorn offerings, I ensure the early catering we?ve arranged is available for all ? and that the late arriving bands and crew have their AAA passes to get around the venue. With merch under control and a small early audience in attendance I head back in to the band room just as Mike Mills is saying something very nice about me and launches into ?The Mike Solo Appreciation Song.? Early last year, Mike ran a crowd funding campaign to fund the new Toehider album ?What Kind of Creature Am I?? which included offering to write a song. Apparently Kid from sleepmakeswaves purchased that reward and asked him to write a song about me. When it came out I was blown away, not only by the gesture, but the fact that the song is pretty damn awesome (it sounds a bit like The Police too, one of my favourite bands, which I?m sure was rather deliberate, thanks to Mike?s chameleonic abilities). So it was super flattering to hear it played live, though equal parts surreal hearing your name in a song whilst people look and point at you. All smiles though, haha. Thanks Mike. Mike?s acoustic sets are usually peppered with requests from fans and are an amazing showcase for his considerable vocal range. This one was no different, featuring fan-favourite tracks like ?Gridlines? and was the perfect warmup for the day. As soon as he finished it was my turn to sit behind the kit for the first time today with Dream Cities. We played three new tracks and one from our demo recorded last year. It was really nice to see some people showed up early for our set and were getting into it ? glimpsing into the room I saw Mike Mills giving me a grin so it must have sounded alright. It?s always fun playing with my brother who jams the bass seamlessly in synch with me and has carefully constructed our electronics set up, while Andrej our guitarist is a wonderfully talented player who has a real feel for the instrument. Halfway through the set I?m keenly aware of the time so I opt to drop a track and instead launch into a shorter improvised outro to ?Angel?s Lust? which allows Andrej to showcase his soloing skills (which he would have done in the aforementioned dropped track). The kind applause at the end of our set suggests we didn?t crash and burn ? and amongst such an audience of discerning listeners, accustomed to the finest prog the city can offer, I take it as a win. Although we?ve played our allotted time to the minute, the show overall is still running 10 minutes late. Enter: Pirate. Led by Tim Adderley, they somehow engineer what feels like a negative time changeover and single-handedly put the entire show back on schedule by starting at their original playing time. Not only that, they deliver a raucous yet tight monster of a set. These guys have not played that often over the past few years ? starting back in 2011 they suffered a series of mishaps with injuries and such, before tag-teaming each other on successive overseas holidays around the world which severely limited their availability to write and play. Tim joined sleepmakeswaves in that time and Shan spent some time living in Byron Bay which tightened things up even further. However today, none of that showed ? it was like watching them back in 2009 and 2010 when they nailed huge sets on stages like Billboard (now 170 Russell) and the Annandale in Sydney. Throwing in an older one for me, they captivated the early punters and made more than a few new fans. I went over to Alex O?Toole (Captain Kickarse and the Awesomes/Meniscus) more than once to share in the mutual admiration we have for this band. Pirate have been with us right from the start ? I successfully booked them for our third ever Bird?s Robe show ? and they were the first band to ask me to manage them. They?ve been family ever since. I haven?t seen Joel (saxophone) quite as much as the other guys but today he is inspiring, his sax soaring over Tim, Shan & Ben?s complicated and shifting rhythms and shattering ears with insane squeals of distorted sound at spine-tingling moments of prog fury. There is one moment of perfect noise around 1:50 in their track ?Time Minus Five? which gets me every time and today it was immense. Shan is on form too ? his totally unique and zany guitar sounds dictate the flow of the tracks as Tim and Ben take their prog drum and bass excursions into loose, free-flowing territory. It?s just so good. Mish were up next. Another band from the early days of Bird?s Robe, they?ve had a few lineup changes over the years, but are still led by frontman/guitarist Rowls Hines and backed by drummer Mark Johnstone. Rowls was kind enough to say many nice things about me on a radio interview earlier in the week and repeated them on stage tonight. We met through Phil from Captain Kickarse and the Awesomes originally ? another great example of how this community evolved over time. They played a blistering set, including a personal favourite ?A Fire Inside? from their debut ?The Entrance?. Despite the early set time, they converted a load of new fans ? it was nice to see a crowd around the merch desk afterwards. Tolmie?s visuals as always set the tone for their dark and heavy metallic prog, whilst Rowls shredded the mic with some epic screams. Stu Marks mixed them with his classic deep bass and clarity on the kit, showcasing Mark?s even and impressive drum solos. I really can?t wait for their new album next year ? ?The Entrance? was a cathartic and brilliantly produced record and Rowls reckons they?re going to top it (with the help again of producer Clayton Segelov). I trust both those guys to make something special so it?s exciting to hear. At this point I felt the need to get up and say something to the assembled punters ? mostly as a thank you to the early audience for coming out to see these bands, who are really important to me. They?ve been there from the start and it?s because of the community of fans and friends who keep coming to shows and listening to their music that these bands have been able to continue playing shows and sharing their music with people. Likewise, having Brett Tollis & Stu Marks mixing, the two guys who most enthusiastically supported us by helping make these bands sound great from the beginning, means a lot. In addition to being a fantastic sound engineer, Brett in particular has been instrumental in helping to make so many of these wonderful things work, I doubt many of our recent tours would have even happened without his support. It?s also mind-blowing for me to find out that a fan Giampaolo has flown all the way from Italy for this show. He is a lovely guy too and we meet and take some photos as the day progresses. I introduce him to my friend Laurence (guitarist from super FLORENCE jam) who promptly launches into a stream of Italian conversation, much to my amusement. THIS GUY. Captain Kickarse and the Awesomes were next. These guys are basically the reason we started Bird?s Robe. When I was playing a lot around Sydney with super FLORENCE jam, they were the first band we met who shared our love of progressive weird music and with whom we connected personally and musically. I remember playing a gig with them at the Civic Hotel, then being so impressed that I spent an hour following them driving north to see them play again at Mona Vale Hotel at midnight. We?ve shared stages together, jammed together, plotted and planned together and this year I was overjoyed to finally release their album ?Grim Repercussions.? During this period of gestation they too have had lineup changes & tonight it was Alex Wilson (sleepmakeswaves) who joined them on stage playing bass. It was super cool however to see Simeon, their other bassist, watching and enjoying the set down front. Both players bring their distinctive characters to the band and push drummer Alex O?Toole and guitarist Phil McCourt in their own way. Where Sim brings a funkiness and slaps their angular riffs into a frenzy, Alex brings a driving punk rock energy to their complex riffs. Either way, if there?s one thing I?ve learned all these years ? Alex and Phil play best when they are pushed. Which means the set they play today is packed with rock energy and totally enthralls people ? especially those who have never seen them. It also brings out the good vibes in those who have ? like my old friend Todd (Where?s Jerome/Altona/Hotcakes) and Adrian and Jed from Space Project, whom I haven?t seen in ages. They make a beeline to the main room to see these guys dominate. I?ve seen Captain K play some incredible sets over the years ? a two hour Lansdowne Hotel set that ran from midnight to 2am?their set on this very stage at DayDream Festival?a crazy Gaelic Theatre set supporting The Crooked Fiddle Band?this one is right up there with the best. Maybe I?m a little caught up in the occasion of it all ? but I always felt this band had the goods and they have never failed to deliver. I take a moment to think about their old bassist Hugh Munro and all the good times we shared during those performances too. Hopefully we?ll get to catch up soon. On stage the guys inject plenty of ?Mike? shouts in amongst the prog and Alex Wilson tells the story of one time we had lunch and he thought I ate slowly. Funny because it?s true. The Solkyri boys are up next, still on form after a huge tour supporting Mew all this week. Where they were crammed front of stage on Wednesday night, today they get the full stage to power through their big instrumentals. One of the things I really wanted for today was to make sure every band got the chance to use the full stage and own it. Usually on multi-band bills or supporting other acts, the supports play on the floor in front of the drum riser and other gear. Which is fine, but limits stage space to move around and feel comfortable. However, the development and experience of every single band on this lineup deserves a thorough showing. While not every band might have the following to headline a venue like this, they certainly have the musicality and stage presence to deliver on a stage this big. So it?s wonderful to see every single act totally smash it when given the opportunity. It shows they are all capable of doing it. Solkyri have honed their craft writing great melodic instrumental riffs that rely on a pulsating and heavy-hitting groove and they have worked hard on their stage presence too ? touring Europe earlier this year for the first time gave them the stamina to maintain their hectic energy for a full set night after night and they entertain the growing crowd with a powerful display drawn from both new album ?Sad Boys Club? and their debut ?Are You My Brother??. Dark ambient instrumental outfit Dumbsaint are up next. I was so happy this year when after years of lineup changes, slow-burn writing phases and sonic experimentation, they finally delivered on their potential to produce a unique and special piece of art. ?Panorama, in ten pieces.? is in many ways a continuation of their instrumental ambient rock sound, but it?s a much more refined piece of work with layers that reveal themselves on repeat listens and importantly, a closely-tied set of visuals which will form part of a full length film to be released next year. They have done several shows this year but none more impressive than their album launch at the Factory Floor, which, mixed by producer Dax Liniere, was their best set to date, impeccably mixed and executed. Tonight is close to that perfection ? Dax is again mixing and the band are finally comfortable performing their new material across the 30-minute set. They are building a die-hard following for their ominous sound and captivating visuals which is evidenced by solid business at the merch desk for their varied collection of CDs, tapes, DVDs, vinyl and shirts. Drummer Nick Andrews and bassist James Thomas have been there from the start and have formed a deeply symbiotic rhythmic relationship (I?m sure they will laugh at this prose). In guitarists Michael Tokar and Brendan Sloan they seemed to have finally found a combination of super nice dudes who also revel in layering washes of hypnotic soundscapes across dark subject matter. It?s definitely a group that is much more than the sum of its parts and who produce truly evocative music. Anubis follow on stage ? the first band to feature vocals today so far! I am such a fan of these guys ? not just for their independent and brilliant approach to writing classic progressive rock albums (note: albums, not just tracks) but also for being such a genuine and friendly bunch of guys. This year was a big one for them, as they finally fulfilled a dream to perform in Europe and the UK, playing Prog The Castle Festival in Heidelberg as well as shows in the Netherlands and London. Their third album ?Hitchhiking to Byzantium? (2014) marked yet another development in their sound and the guys are already onto the next. Stu Marks again pulls a crystal clear mix for Anubis, following on from where he left off. Every player in this band brings their character to the music, though today it?s the ending of their set that gets me, with a goosebump-inducing guitar solo from Dean Bennison that cascades across the room and earns them sustained applause. The past 12 months have finally seen their considerable talents earn further recognition at home and abroad with shows alongside Anathema and Uriah Heep and I?m super pumped for a new album in 2016. Now it?s time for Meniscus. They are sporting new drummer Alex O?Toole who marks just over 12 months in the band after picking up from my good friend Cam Brennan, who decided to depart the group last year. Today they are fresh from performing at Jungle Love Festival last week and in the midst of recording a follow-up to 2011?s full-length ?War of Currents.? Meniscus promptly steal the show. Stu Marks is behind the desk again and I always felt that mixing Meniscus was his signature band. Today is just so epic, I can hardly describe it. By the time they hit their mammoth cover of PVT?s ?O Soundtrack My Heart? just about everyone in the venue is in the band room. My jaw struggles to close as I pace around the room making eye contact with Alex Tulett (Bird?s Robe co-founder), Tom Binetter (ex-sleepmakeswaves), Alex Wilson, Otto Wicks-green & Kid (sleepmakeswaves). The room is literally shaking with Alison?s massive bass sound and Dan Oreskovic is going completely mental on stage. The post-rock fans amongst us widely regard Dan as one of the best live guitarists around and this is proof. I?ll be talking about this set for years, I still can?t get over how amazing it was. If you were there, you know exactly what I?m talking about! It?s kind of fortuitous too that they have chosen to play PVT ? a band that many of us love and have been inspired by, with a track from the album that years ago saw them play Manning Bar for the first time themselves. At the time we saw that happening, it really gave us the drive to know that an Australian instrumental band could actually get there. Though they?ve since gone on to experiment with different sounds and adding vocals, their early work remains highly respected amongst this little group of musicians. Meniscus have done a killer job with their version and really amped up the ferocity. To top it off, Meniscus? visuals maestro Marty has edited their projection to include a tagline that says ?Mikefest 2015? which scrolls across the massive screen. It?s a bit of an in-joke between the bands but it?s just as amusing to the assembled crowd. Haha. Good one. Frightfully, it?s now my task to hop on stage after that insane performance to follow with Toehider. There?s no point in trying to match it, so we don?t ? Toehider has always been something completely different and off-the-wall ? and Mike Mills has a knack for engaging people in a way unlike anyone else. From introducing himself to the stage, to off-the-cuff banter, it?s a set that puts a smile on everyone?s face. As we kick into album opener ?5 Wins? everything seems right ? the sampler is ticking along and I?m keeping up with the hectic pace on the drums. But about 60 seconds into the track I lose the click and panic for about one second ? until I realize it?s not my fault ? the sampler has actually gone bonkers and switched itself off. I?m playing prog at break-neck speed whilst watching it reset itself. I try to communicate with my eyes and weird lip movements to Lee the monitors guy to cut off the sampler just in case, to no avail. Thankfully it doesn?t restart and we close out the song fine enough. We somehow manage to cram in quite a bit into the set, including a personal favourite track of mine ?The Most Popular Girl In School? which includes a killer guitar solo duel between Mike Mills and Lachlan Barclay, as well as a fun little rhythmic groove Amy & I lock in together. The next few tracks don?t need click, so I can relax and just settle into them ? ?I Must Say Yes? is a Queen-esque favourite, ?Lay Down Mara? usually allows me to jump around the kit and bash it as hard as I can; and ?On and On? from the new EP ?Mainly Songs About Robots? is full of odd time fills and grooves underlaying a classic Mike Mills melody. At one point I do a couple of quick single stroke fills and Lachlan somehow spins around with enough time to give me a thumbs up without missing a beat. This is part of why I love playing in this band ? these guys and girl make it a lot of fun on stage. We close with ?Whatever Makes You Feel Superior? and Mike Mills showcases his incredible vocal range with a now signature vocal solo mid-song. It is still unbelievable every time I hear it. The sampler does it?s cut out and reset thing again at the very end but it doesn?t matter ? Mike has won the game and we smash it out to finish. As I?m rushing gear off stage in order to get Troldhaugen going, I spot my buddy Alex Tulett near the front of the stage. He congratulates me and as we?re talking I realise now?s the time to do the speech thing. So I make my own show run a few minutes late as I launch into an ad lib thank you ? to Alex, for the inspiration to start this thing in the first place. To Laurence and Adam from sFj (who are both here somewhere), for the musical education. To Brett, Stu, Tyson, Manning Bar and all the crew over the years for their support. To MGM who have released all our material to date. To all the bands who?ve lent parts of their lives to us, creating amazing music and putting on epic shows. I can?t really remember exactly what I said but I?m pretty sure it included a few puns. I guess I was just winging it. Troldhaugen take the stage a few minutes late, but not before we cut some of the incredibly delicious chocolate cake that my beautiful wife Sonia has brought to the show, along with my mother-in-law Mary (thank you both). There?s a bit of happy birthday singing, including a 7/8 bar where half the people sing ?Mike? and the other half sing ?Bird?s Robe?. Then it?s Troldhaugen time. Again, a band I can hardly describe. They are costumed, fun-loving, crazy-prog-dance-pop-metal freaks. Or something. The room is full for them, which is great, considering just how different they are to the rest of the bill. But another sign of how open-minded people are at shows like this ? they embrace this lolly-throwing, silly-string-catapulting, yammering quartet of dudes and are chanting for an encore by set?s end. Brett is at the desk and I?m side of stage so I quickly hop on and catch his eye to switch on the mic so I can gesture the band back on. We?re a few minutes behind but it doesn?t matter ? sleepmakeswaves are cool with it, the venue are cool with it and this band earned the right to rock for another five minutes. When they finish I make sure they get their share of cake ? and quickly wish the sleepmakeswaves guys luck before they head on. They are slick in getting on stage and with our mate Sam Jarousek jumping up on lights they put on one heck of a show. From Perfect Detonator through Great Northern, their set pulls heavily from 2014?s Love of Cartography and is high on positive vibes. The rooms isn?t quite a packed as it was the last time the band headlined here, but it?s full nonetheless and an appreciative crowd shows their thanks to Kid at his last hometown show. Alex?s heartfelt thanks to him is capped off in the best way possible ? with a massive outro of ?The Stars Are Stigmata? and ?Something Like Avalanches?. As they are yelled back out for an encore, I hop on stage to take a shot of the band with the crowd ? I can?t help but think this is the last time I?ll get to snap incredibly good-looking head on a Sydney stage. The mood is joyous though ? this band and this community has had a great year ? a great five years in fact. sleepmakeswaves close with their crushing track ?a gaze blank and pitiless as the sun? from their debut ??and so we destroyed everything.? Fittingly, this was the album that really started our journey together. They extend the noise jam at the end just that little bit more this time. Goodbye Kid & thank you. After the show it?s nice to hang out by the merch desk, offering people popcorn, cake, lamingtons and snapping a couple photos. My buddies in Troldhaugen made me a towel with my name on it (though Matt suggests it?s possibly for Mike Mills instead, I can?t be sure) so we get a photo of that. Of course we need a photo with Giampaolo too, who has had a really great time ? which is a relief for me! Andrew ?Salty? Saltmarsh has also made the trip up with Toehider and spent time drawing awesome pictures in real time at the merch desk ? he gifts me a Salty stylised Bird?s Robe owl, which I will treasure. He also unveiled a hidden talent as a lighting operator ? since he knows all the Toehider & Troldhaugen songs, he jumped up and put on one hell of a show for us! Catching up with other friends and musicians has been a wonderful element to the day ? Andre from Grun is there, Grant from Paper Champion, Daniel and Keith from Sicaria, Jess from Hemina and many more. It has been a real family vibe the whole day, which is the most gratifying thing for me. It doesn?t take long for everyone to pack up and start to load out (touring bands are fairly efficient) though unfortunately more than one have car troubles on their way out. By the time I get through loading my car to drive home it?s 1.30am and I?m still replying to messages from friends wishing congratulations on the day. Eventually I hear the car issues are solved hours later and everyone is home safe, which is good. Writing this it?s still hard to comprehend how a day like this could actually have happened ? it?s a weird feeling when a dream literally comes true. Back in 2008 when we first started doing shows I was adamant that with the right support and community, one of these bands could headline the Manning Bar or the Metro one day. In 2014 and 2015, sleepmakeswaves did just that ? with shows that felt like a culmination of everything we?d worked towards for years. I was also always adamant that any of these bands could successfully find an audience and play shows in Europe and other countries abroad. By now we?ve had nearly a dozen bands play abroad ? not to mention all the bands who have been able to tour nationally thanks to their excellent music and impressive work ethic. To be able to have so many of my favourite bands play in one day and still feel like it is all part of the same community after all these years is really quite amazing. So ? thank you everyone, once again. There?s plenty more to come. 

• Mike Solo, December 2015

--------------------------------------------------------------- Post Script: in the ensuing days I?m flattered by a number of kind and generous messages on social media and via text and email about the show. En route to Melbourne for a show the next day, whilst at the airport I run into Dave Batty, the booker for Manning Bar, who let us book the first ever BRC gig at Hermanns Bar back in 2008 and who has continuously supported us ever since. He asked me how the show went and I said ?Dave, I can?t even describe how much fun it was. It was so awesome. Thank you.? Then I run off for my flight (just in time). It was kind of a weird synchronicity that happened, but it felt good to see pretty much everyone who helped this thing happen in a single weekend =) RELEVANT LINKS Mike Mills ?Wuthering Heights?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnG5iLR9g9k Dream Citieswww.dreamcities.bandcamp.com Pirate ?Time Minus Five?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKK36F6QExk Mish ?Precocial?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3--kroGumtg Captain Kickarse and the Awesomeswww.captainkickarseandtheawesomes.bandcamp.com Solkyriwww.solkyri.bandcamp.com Dumbsaintwww.dumbsaint.bandcamp.com Anubiswww.anubismusic.bandcamp.com Meniscus covering PVT ?O Soundtrack My Heart?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsUk_3yuxCk Toehider feat. Mike Mills hitting the high notes in ?Whatever Makes You Feel Superior?https://www.facebook.com/toehider/videos/10153809312158236/ Troldhaugenwww.troldhaugen.net sleepmakeswaveswww.sleepmakeswaves.bandcamp.com Photos:http://fromthepit.com.au/birds-robe-5th-birthday/ Review:http://www.thebrag.com/music/birds-robe-collective-5th-birthday-manning-bar