Since I’m a sucker for any kind of rock/blues music, I stopped by the Substation for Rock the Sub on Saturday (7 June). This festival was probably one of the cheapest deals in town that night ($17 for six hours of music and two stages, plus a free drink – Heineken or whiskey and ginger ale!). If you haven’t been to Timbre @ The Substation yet, it’s also worth checking out — the alfresco bar/dining area is relaxed, has casualty cover for the daily rainstorm, and a tasty menu with about 20 options around $9 each, ranging from BBQ chicken salad to mini burgers.

Anyway, after feeding my face, I settled in for the first two bands playing at the Timbre stage: You and Who’s Army? and Heritage. The former — a new, baby-faced band that takes its name from a Radiohead song — opened with a surprisingly solid Radiohead cover, thanks largely in part to the beat laid by their chick drummer, Benita (who also doubles on the keyboard). Not a bad start. The latter band definitely has some heritage behind it: the group has been playing the local scene since the 1970s. Their music is described as ‘eclectic’, which is one way of describing a band with a frontman who’s also a … flautist. Rock the flute, frontman. Rock it.

Couldn’t stay for more, though I would have liked to see West Grand Boulevard and Vertical Rush (the closing bands on their respective stages). B Quartet, my favourite local band as of late, wasn’t on the roster for some reason, though Aging Youth (their label) was on hand. An entertaining sideshow was the teenage flirtfest going on outside the bar — this is definitely the place to pick up if you’re 18, wear tight T-shirts and can spend hours debating the merits of faux-hawks.

What I’m really looking forward to, though, is the Blues at the House on Saturday, 14 June, from 6pm-2am at Timbre @ The Arts House. Bands from Singapore, Australia and Thailand, among other locales, will play blues, soul and funk down by the river. Will refrain from making a Chris Farley ‘down by the river’ joke.