F I V E M INUTES WITH
Car Park Social BY KYRON SMITHSON
I love the Summer holidays, I love having an influx of visitors to our town, and I love seeing new faces at live music events. For a piece of the year, I feel like we exist in a microcosm cut of from the rest of the world, then Summer hits, and we are reconnected. It’s great to get feedback from these travellers, Esperance ex-pats, or family friends, they can give us a fresh perspective on our little slice of paradise, pros and cons. The Esperance music scene is many things though one of its greatest strengths currently is its propensity to cultivate original acts. Regularly I hear from local expats that in Esperance, you get to see artists develop over time. This is due to several factors, though an essential ingredient is the overwhelming support of one artist to another no matter the musical style. We all want each other to keep pushing the limits, and we all want to instil confidence in each other’s craft, which is a beautiful thing.
Car Park Social kicked off their existence as a two-piece, with Dan Seinor on vocals, rhythm guitar, snare and kick drum and occasional harmonica accompanied by Paul Ricciardo on lead guitar. To begin Dan regularly played an acoustic guitar while Paul just generally shredded along on his Fender electric. I have some fantastic shots from the lads early open mic performances at the Cannery. Instantly everyone recognised the quality of the act, bringing forth a robust sound that fitted into a classic rock and roll/ blues feel that everyone could wrap their ears around. Not long after these era performances, the lads found themselves playing the odd paid gigs, just enough to push them to practise and write a few new tunes. Some absolute bangers were taking shape. Without a doubt, the lads hit a high point, in duo form, when they performed at Blues At Bridgetown 2018. This was quickly followed by a support slot for a sold-out Swamp Thing show at the late Esperance Motor Hotel.
