Concrete Playground

2ser 107.3 has been a pillar of the airwaves in Sydney for 30 years now. This month they celebrate this 30th with a great lineup of shows all around town. The gigs seem to achieve the same diversity as the station itself, from Dubstep to folk and in between - check out the whole lineup here.

For one such evening, they've enlisted the tall-as-hell troubadour Jack Ladder. Ladder has decided that instead of being a moody balladeer as he was on his debut Not Worth Waiing For, he'd quit the self pity and get himself a band, tapping into more of a Sam Cooke/Otis Redding vibe, but still with slight hints of post-punk weirdness and malady from his baritone.

In 2008, Ladder - nee Tim Rogers - developed this new sound whilst living in the USA and Europe, putting it down on an album which came out earlier this year called Love Is Gone. The LP sees his bluesy stories on top of a bigger beat, with rollicking drums (courtesy of Pivot's Laurence Pike) and electric guitars all jangling along, conjuring up ideas of dusty saloons and smokey basements. The Cad Factory will be the setting for these electrified tunes this evening, and there's a great lineup of supports, specifically Adrian Deutsch (ex Red Riders) and Tired Hands (Moonmilk). It's all ages too so kids, come on down!