It was a day of boutique beer, fancy finger food and hirsute hipsters, but for many at Young Henry’s Small World festival, the day belonged to Wollongong rockers Tumbleweed.
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In a narrow, leafy laneway in Marrickville on Saturday, the iconic band played their first gig back since the death of bassist Jason ‘‘Jay’’ Curley on August 25.
The pummelling rock of Tumbleweed may have been a puzzling choice to headline an eclectic line-up of indie, folk and hip-hop up-and-comers, but those who stayed until the night’s conclusion were treated to a powerful, emotion-charged set from the band.
‘‘We’ve been going through a hard time,’’ frontman Richie Lewis told the crowd midway through the night-time set.
‘‘This will get real emotional.’’
Pat, older brother of Jay and guitarist Lenny, took his brother’s spot on the bass guitar for the performance. The band said their set would be a tribute to Jay, and as they launched into Jay’s signature song Acid Rain, tears welled in the eyes of the band and many in the crowd.
‘‘Pat is their older brother, and an inspiration for us playing music. It’s great he is here,’’ Richie said.
The slow, sombre, almost mournful song was a monument to Jay’s musicianship. The lyrics ‘‘the things I had are now just a dream’’ took on new meaning, fans in Tumbleweed shirts embracing and crying together.
The band have said they will continue in the short term, planning to honour three booked gigs in Melbourne, but have made no further announcement on Tumbleweed’s future.
‘‘The magic of the band was in the line-up with Jay,’’ Lenny told Fairfax Media.
‘‘It might be a good time to hang up our guitars, at least for a while.’’
‘‘Thanks to our families and friends for being here and enduring a long day. Thanks for coming and celebrating the life of Jay,’’ Richie said as the band wrapped up their set.
‘‘Thanks, good night, see you later.’’