Concrete Playground

Billed as "a unique collective of experimental pop, indie and electronic" The Sister Cities Music Festival would be graded as small on the festival-ometer, but still packs punch with some great bands and solo acts from Melbourne and Sydney.

It's nice that they are trying to bring some unity to the table between these competitive sisters, and with acts like Sydney's Megastick Fanfare and Melbourne's The Emergency topping the bill we'll all learn there's nothing like percussive freak outs and dancing to bring cities and people together. It's a truly eclectic lineup with the folky/pop stylings of Shady Lane, and then Bon Chat Bon Rat - who win the obscure band name competition.

The are a few unknowns on the bill also worth checking out: TST from Melbourne who do moody post-punk with Bloc Party-esque dueling guitars and disco beats, and Tantrums adding some more electronic tinges to the Fest with their glitchey melodies and beats. It should be interesting to see if it all comes together into something cohesive, though it probably won't and that could well be the charm of it.