Eventually the trip ends, and it’s back on the bike for the trip into the city to Max Watt’s. On present and past form, Cable Ties are always something to behold. Jenny McKechnie’s razor sharp post-punk riffs and crystal threatening vocal shards, the rolling thunder of Nick Brown’s Entwistle-via-Brian Hooper basslines, Shauna Boyle’s freakishly brilliant drumming. 

If rock’n’roll has surrendered its pretensions to rebellion, Cable Ties missed the memo. Fueled by McKechnie’s razor-sharp licks, “Crashing Through” does just what it says on the box, and we’re away, followed soon after by “Perfect Client”, also taken from Cable Ties’ new album, “All Her Plans”. A brief music malfunction is barely a flesh wound and it’s the polished gems and gunfire riffage of “Tell Them Where to Go”. 

Shauna Boyle adds 100 percent to any band she’s in, and on the post-Orwellian “I Want My Thoughts Back”, she assumes lead vocal duties. The call and response take-down of self-serving institutional politics of “Sandcastles” is always invigorating and when McKechnie delivers a feisty rant about the imperfections of the justice system prior to “Mum’s Caravan”, the career public servant in me wants more nuanced policy detail, but the agitprop punk rock fan says “Yeah, right on’”      

There’s a couple more tracks from “All Her Plans” – “Same for Me”, “Time for You” – both an exploration of the personal as political, if you’re inclined to that sort of philosophical analysis. And if you’re not, then just bask in the tight-as-a-fish’s fundament musical delivery. The set ends with the almost atypical “Deep Breath Out”, a chance to pause, reflect and seriously consider whether Cable Ties is the best band in Melbourne. 

I couldn’t pick the encore (sung by Nick Brown), but kept sensing it was a punked-up take on the Celibate Rifles’ “Pretty Pictures” – of in itself, something to ponder. It wasn’t, but geez it was good. Fucking fantastic, in fact.

Cable Ties
All Her Plans Tour
Aug 10 - Beechworth - Tanswells Hotel
Aug 11 - Canberra - The Shaking Hand
Aug 12 - Sydney - The Lansdowne
Aug 13 - Servo Food Truck Bar, Port Kembla
Aug 20 - Manchester, UK - The Castle Hotel
Aug 21 - Glasgow, UK - The Hug and Pint
Aug 22- Dundee, UK - Fat Sams Dundee*
Aug 23 - Edinburgh, UK - O2 Academy*
Aug 25 - London, UK - The Victoria Dalston
Aug 26 - Utrecht, NL - Loose Ends @ Beton-t
Aug 28 - Paris, FR - Supersonic
Aug 29 - Bordeaux, FR - Rock School Barbey*
Sep 1 - Hamburg, DE - Molotow
Sep - Berlin, DE - RESET - Live Club Berlin Kreuzberg
Sep 7 - Raleigh, NC - Hopscotch Music Festival
Sep 8 - Richmond, VA - Richmond Music Hall ^
Sep 9 - Baltimore, MD - Ottobar ^
Sep 10 - Ardmore, PA - Ardmore Music Hall ^
Sep 12 - South Burlington, VT - Higher Ground ^
Sep 13 - Portland, ME - SPACE Gallery ^
Sep 14 - Hamden, CT - Space Ballroom ^
Sep 15 - Woodstock, NY - Colony ^
Sep 16 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom ^
Sep 21 - Seattle WA - Tractor Tavern +
Sep 22 - Portland OR - Mississippi Studios +
Sep 26 - San Francisco CA - Cafe Du Nord +
Sep 28 - Sacramento CA - Harlow's +
Sep 30 - Los Angeles CA - Teragram Ballroom +
Oct 1 - San Diego CA - Soda Bar +
Oct 2 - Phoenix AZ - The Rebel Lounge +
*with Amyl and The Sniffers
^ with Superchunk
+ with Pile
all Australian shows with Our Carlson