Wagons - Meredith Music Festival

“I am the Santa of Meredith ’09,” declares Henry Wagons before launching into a countrified version of ‘We Three Kings of Orient Are’, which they recorded a day prior for a Spicks and Specks Christmas special. Regardless of whether you were naughty or nice, on this overcast Meredith Sunday, Wagons come bearing gifts. The band are truly at the height of their powers after relentlessly touring fourth album The Rise and Fall of Goodtown cross country, and they bring the proverbial “Shit” at a time when revelers are either packing up their tents, halfway to Geelong or cowering in a quiet spot somewhere gnashing their teeth.

Opener ‘Drive All Night ‘Till Dawn’ is enough to bring some stray onlookers into the fold, and by midway through a steady crowd has built. Henry Wagons keeps us all in our “happy place” with his between-song storytelling and witty repartee. He recalls how ‘Eagle on The Hill’ was inspired by a shitty roadside landmark that the band collectively defiled; blames his Cheap Monday jeans for a zipper malfunction; and speaks about his love for fat Elvis before a rendition of ‘Never Been To Spain’, changing the chorus to, “I ain’t never been to Meredith”, which draws warm cheers from those brave enough to open their mouths. ‘Goodtown’, with its honeyed harmonies and menacing outro elicits the biggest response, while a skip-hop interlude by percussionist Si the Philanthropist and drummer Mark “Tuckerbag” Dawson is funny and catchy, but never patrionising or glib. Wagons just can’t help but be authentic and engaging – even when they’re taking the piss.

by Darren Levin