Play Loud

The distinctive Australian ‘pub rock’ sound was born in the hotels and bars of our major cities in the 1970s.
In the Melbourne scene, the ‘beer barns’ of the suburbs were complemented by smaller, more intimate venues in the city and inner suburbs of Carlton, Richmond, Fitzroy and St Kilda.
This film - made in his student days by award-winning producer Daniel Scharf - presents a 1979 performance by the Melbourne band ‘Cuban Heels’ at one such venue, ‘Hearts’ in Carlton.
The atmosphere of alcohol, cigarette-smoke and youthful exuberance is captured by the camera as it wanders through the audience and lingers on the dancers.
On stage, the band (led by Steve Connolly, who was later the guitarist with Paul Kelly’s ‘Coloured Girls’ and ‘Messengers’ bands) sings a song that could only be a product of the 1970s - about ‘the system’ and the coming revolution.