Sons Of The East bring Australian authenticity to Soma: Concert Review

It was a packed crowd at Soma last Thursday (October 23), as friends, families, and couples, young and old, came to the sidestage to see Sons Of The East. Hailing from Sydney, Australia, the folk-rock outfit teleported the audience to a late summer barbeque, Aussie style: auburn-hued lights colored the air, die-hard fans sang along to every word, and lighters waved above the crowd in tandem with the swing of sentimental ballads. The only thing missing was a smattering of picnic tables and a bonfire.

Photo Credit:  Ryan Valenzuela @stillsbyryan on instagram

Opening for Sons Of The East was Kim Churchill, a young Aussie “from a small town in New South Wales” who got his start busking at a farmer’s market. Like Tash Sultana or Ed Sheeran, both former buskers who evolved to the concert hall, Churchill’s solo set was larger than life, featuring a fair bit of storytelling and a full-bodied, solo multi-instrumentalism. Churchill went a little over his allotted thirty-minute set, losing track of time as he told stories about himself and the origin of his songs. 

Although many of the stories (and song lyrics) were a bit shallow and overly sentimental, Churchill narrated and performed with a hard-to-dismiss authenticity and genuineness that made it hard not to like him; this was supported by his incredible musicianship and virtuosity. Playing the bass drum, tambourine, harmonica, and guitar all at the same time, Hutchinson transcended his own laid-back, surfer stereotypes by playing with a proficiency akin to fellow Aussie John Butler and singing with the ferocity of Robert Plant. Despite playing alone, Churchill’s sound was very full, very complete, and the perfect set to build anticipation for Sons Of The East. 

After a stint at the farmer’s market with Churchill, Sons Of The East brought us to the aforementioned backyard barbeque, opening with “Recognise” from their new album “SONS.” Adorned with a soft beat, luscious piano melody, and pop-y bass line, the band’s first song sounded like a mix between Chris Stapleton and Kings of Leon; although lacking in bite, it was wrapped in radiating warmth. Their second song, “On My Way,” saw the band pulling out a banjo for a Mumford & Sons-inspired hootenany ballad. 

Photo Credit:  Ryan Valenzuela @stillsbyryan on instagram

The band’s sound felt rooted in worship music that has evolved into pop, akin to groups like NEEDTOBREATHE or Lifehouse. While the sound is pleasing and inoffensive, it is simultaneously predictable and familiar. The song structures, lyrics, and melodies are firmly rooted in those influences and are content to stay there, to the appreciation of their fans.   

The band’s third song, “Pour The Wine,” rounded out the tone for the rest of the set, with the feel-good ode to ‘good times’ resembling “Take It Easy” by the Eagles or “It’ll Shine When It Shines” by the Ozark Mountain Daredevils. The rest of the set rotated between variations on the first three songs, which lacked diversity or surprises, but demonstrated the band’s comfortability with their material and their audience. “We just got back from [touring] middle America, and that’s beautiful, but West is best,” frontman Jack Rollins said, to an eruption of cheers. “We feel at home here.”

Rollins went on to ask how many members of the audience had been to one of their shows before, to which almost the entire crowd cheered in acknowledgement, which came as a surprise since Sons Of The East reside on the opposite side of the planet. Lukas and Raegan were two attendees who had seen the band before, having discovered them in Vienna while on a tour of Europe. “We were exploring [Vienna] last year, and just went to their show on a whim,” Lukas said.

The young couple was excited to share what they liked about the band. Raegan said, “It’s nice to hear their mix of genres. They bring back the boyband thing in a rock, country, folk kind of way that brings people together. There’s a wide variety of ages [here] and everyone’s having a good time. The atmosphere is incredible,” Lukas said if he could describe the band in one word, it would be “authentic.” “‘Authentic’ is the word that I think brings people to their shows,” he said. “They naturally have a style that I think is going to take the world by storm.”