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Plenty of bells but not enough howling

Sydney via London rock band Howling Bells are a good-looking bunch. Front woman Juanita Stein, labelled "the sexiest woman in rock" in 2009 by Gigwise, surrounds herself with some pretty-faced rockers including brother Joel Stein, whose guitar playing is reason enough to watch the band.

Howling Bells are still learning that it isn't enough to look good on stage and belt out your best songs. On the few occasions Juanita did interact with the audience, such as explaining there would be no encore but we should clap and make them feel desired none the less, she exhibited effortless charisma.

But asking the crowd to fully engage when you're running through completely faithful renditions that rarely pass three minutes is a punk ethos and Howling Bells are far from punk. Their moody and occasionally droning sound is at turns dirty, slick and easy to like, but they should be a very good live act and instead settle on being a good one.

The band formally known as Waikiki seem perennially on the verge of breaking big overseas but the poor turnout on Saturday was evidence of a lack of interest at home. Perhaps latest album Heartstrings, their fourth, hasn't made its mark yet, a surprise as it's arguably their best.

Songs from it dominated the set alongside popular numbers from their 2006 debut. The rockier the guitar workouts the better the results, and Original Sin and Your Love were early highlights as Joel played some ripping leads. His slide part on Setting Sun was more textural than country, and he was inventive throughout.

He also treated the crowd to his solo incarnation Glassmaps to start the night, with the help of drummer Glenn Moule. The amazing My Head My Heart is worth checking out.

Also on the bill was young Perth outfit 44th Sunset, quickly making a name with their post-punk styled indie rock. Frontman Nik Thompson is a dynamic presence; his elastic performance style and audience interaction matched by good songs including proven radio track Caesar, but live is where they shine.

Their moody and occasionally droning sound is at turns dirty, slick and easy to like, but they should be a very good live act and instead settle on being a good one.