Bird’s Robe 15th Birthday (aka Mikefest II)

Max Watts, Melbourne

Saturday 6 December 2025

Bird’s Robe Collective is a big deal in the Australian music sphere – especially the world of post-rock, prog-rock and experimental adjacent genres. I never realised the full extent of their impact from New Zealand. I know that some of my favourite bands are associated with them – like Meniscus, Cog and sleepmakeswaves. And they’ve been responsible for bringing a lot of great acts to Australia and NZ. (Chelsea Wolfe, toe, This Will Destroy You, Russian Circles…). But arriving at the venue tonight, and seeing the stack of records and old posters on display gave me a better insight into just how much they’ve done over the years.

Tonight was part of a series of celebrations, spanning three cities and two weekends, coming together to commemorate 15 years of Bird’s Robe.

This was my first time at Max Watts, a neat subterranean venue. It was a good intimate size, with tiered flooring that gradually lowered, meaning standing at the back had you leveled with the band, but being at the front had you looking up at them. Or, to phrase it another way: the mosh pit area was an actual pit. My favourite aspect of the venue were strips of LED lighting overhead, (perpendicular to the stage) which gave the illusion of going into hyperspeed a la Star Wars.

Lorespinner kicked off the night, a hooded duo in red robes playing ethereal synth, occasionally interspersed with spoken word samples like meditation guides. Their name was apt – their music taking us on a fantastical journey.

I came over to Melbourne a few years back, for a friend’s wedding, shortly after the COVID related international travel ban had finally lifted. At some point in the night I befriended the bartender at the wedding. I can’t remember how it came about, but we soon realised that we shared a lot of similar music tastes. I distinctly remember him recommending that I look up his mates from local band Treebeard. 

This was my first time seeing them. Flurries of long heads of hair whipping about onstage signalled that they had some riffs and energy to be shared. Some of their vocals made me think of their labelmates Myriad Drone, who I’d seen a few times when they’d come to NZ in February.

Squat Club is a name I hadn’t come across in the past. Searching for their name led me to plenty of gym accounts, but after a while I did manage to find some music. They’re a supergroup of sorts I think, but forgive me for not knowing much about them.

They started off fairly subdued, slowly building and layering the music up to a more djent feeling rock groove. I loved how they were not afraid to play with dynamics and bring things right down, barely even touching their drums or strings with the lightest of taps for a minute, before exploding into the next passage. They even brought a mandolin out for one song.

I fell in love with Solkyri from the get-go. Their music is so uplifting and hopeful. They’re interesting too. How many rock bands do you know who use glockenspiel? Their set was an absolute triumph and I wish it had been twice as long.

After Solkyri I was delighted to spy Gilbert Potts, esteemed post-rock writer and occasional Will Not Fade contributor. I went to say hi, and give him some stickers that I’d got for him at Post Fest in America earlier in the year. It’s really cool how the internet can bring people together in a community that spans the globe, and it’s always so nice to connect with friends from other countries. Another friend I saw was Andrea, who I’d last seen at dunk!festival in Belgium, and Post Fest in Indiana. This truly is an international music community.

Meniscus were one of my main draw cards, having long been on my bucket list of bands to see. Their album Refractions is one of the best post-rock albums in my collection. They started off with a few new songs. I know it’s a bit selfish, but with such a short set, I wish they’d dedicated more time to the songs I already love so much. Not that the new songs were bad by any means. But when they started playing “Overhang” I felt like I was going to burst with excitement. Their hypnotic songs are fantastic, casting a spell and then building to a big climax. Dan was a whirlwind on guitar, bouncing round the stage and letting his inhibitions fly as he poured himself into his playing. I’m glad I’ve seen them now, and already cannot wait until next time.

Suldusk were perhaps an outlier on this lineup, with more of a black metal feel than post-rock. But variety can help spice things up. It was cool to see the violin in the mix, and they also had acoustic guitar at times. Their music shifts from tender, atmospheric and softly sung to raspy growls and blast beats. I was pleased that they played a few tracks from Lunar Falls, which I have in my record collection and play frequently.

I’d seen Caspian at dunk!fest in Belgium in 2018 and couldn’t even comprehend what was going on. They melted my brain with their beautiful intensity. When I heard that they were coming to Australia I jumped at the chance to come, figuring they were unlikely to ever come to my country.

Well, I can say that coming to Australia for this was well worth it. Caspian know how to play great music. The humming bass, the big swells, the crashing cymbals. They sound like euphoria and transcendence. The three guitars and many effects pedals are all used to bring layer upon layer of sounds, all combining as a huge force of sonic nature. The lighting really added to the mood too, with the band mostly backlit to cast strong silhouettes.

I had a short chat with Mike Solo, the guy at the heart of all of this. He was saying how he really wanted to celebrate all the amazing bands involved in the night, and showcase how incredible they are. We discussed how important it is to have a passion project. This is his.

It was such a fantastic night of community. Truly excellent bands coming together. I saw Tool play a big festival last night, but this was far better. Seven acts was a lot to fit in, and I wish some bands had longer sets, but I can’t complain. It was a brilliant night. I’m jealous of the people who get to attend the other nights of this event in Sydney, Brisbane, and over next weekend.

Happy birthday Bird’s Robe. Wishing you many fruitful years of great music to come!

 

Joseph James

(I will post photos later in the week once I have time to sort through them and edit some)