Skegss deliver coasty riffs and a bit of chaos in Brisbane (28.06.25)

On a cold Friday night in Brisbane, every square inch of the footpath leading to The Tivoli was packed with punters braving the chilly wind sweeping across the city. The headliner? Byron Bay’s beloved surf-punk trio Skegss, playing to a sold-out crowd. As part of the Open Season festival, the band were in town touring their new EP Top Heavy, released just the day before. As the crowd made their way inside, the first of three support acts prepared to hit the stage.

First up was local Brisbane artist Ixaras. The 18-year-old appeared on stage clad in a Juventus jersey, band in tow. Her set hit like a freight train. Precise, heavy, and surprisingly melodic. As the band ripped through a cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Purple Haze” (blistering guitar solo included), Ixaras proved she wasn’t just making up the numbers. The room, still filling out, roared with approval. Standout track “Do You Like Girls,” released just the day before, closed out the set. Bold, confident, and commanding a presence well beyond her years, Ixaras was seriously impressive.

Next, WA outfit Fool Nelson took to the stage. The band declared their love for Brisbane early on, and the crowd gave it right back. Despite admitting to a 3am wake-up, their energy suggested they were anything but tired. Tracks like “Way I Am,” “Falling Apart,” and “Bad Dreams” were tight, confident, and well delivered. The trios catchy, rocky grooves offered a natural shift from ’ opener Ixaras, and the crowd lapped it up.

By the time The Buoys took the stage, the venue was swelling. Unfortunately, due to a small altercation in the crowd shortly after their set began, this reviewer missed a large portion of their performance. That said, judging by the crowd’s enthusiastic reactions toward the end, it’s safe to say the band well and truly delivered.

At 10:15pm, the lights went dark. As the silhouettes of Skegss emerged on stage, The Tivoli hit fever pitch. Opening with “Valhalla,” the crowd immediately belted the chorus back at the band. All the stored energy from the night was unleashed at once. The towering LED screen behind the trio blaring the band’s name shifted colours and graphics as “Got On My Skateboard” kicked off to even more cheers. The band’s trademark crunching guitars and laid-back vocals flowed effortlessly through the venue.

The guitar and bass took centre stage on the bouncy rocker “Under the Thunder,” while “State of Hawaii” brought a slower sway and singalong.

But it was somewhere after “Hawaii” that things truly took off,  or rather when the floor gave way. As the frenetic pace of “Slayer” kicked things up a notch, the once-chill beachy indie crowd transformed into a full-blown punk circus.

From the back third of the venue, a surge of bodies pushed forward and a pit half the size of the floor opened like a sinkhole. Like a beach rip, large pockets of people were swept into the madness.  Some by choice, others by circumstance. What followed was over an hour of beautiful, feral mayhem. Feet flew. Elbows grazed ears and foreheads. Pushes were met with shoves. Men and women hurled themselves at one another with demolition-derby enthusiasm. Above, the under-18s leaned over the mezzanine balcony, observing the madness unfolding below like Roman emperors.

Yet despite the chaos, the mosh pit was full of respect. Hands reached out to lift fallen bodies. Crowd surfers were caught and saved from every near-spill. The sheer velocity of the crowd was something else,  and Skegss fed off it. “Spring Has Sprung,” “Mustang,” “Down to Ride” and “L.S.D.” blew past in a blur of limbs and lyrics. Through it all, the band remained sharp: tight, fast and effortlessly loose all at once. Like an indie-rock jukebox, they churned out hit after hit to an unbelievably responsive crowd, never missing a beat.

The band didn’t say much between songs, apart from a few brief intros and a moment where feather-clad dancers took the stage. But they didn’t need to. Their playing said it all. Skegss have always thrived on vibe over virtuosity, and their connection with fans was on full display.

After extracting myself from the chaos around “Save It For the Weekend,” I watched from the venue’s fringes. Arms folded, smiles beaming, phones capturing grainy zoomed in footage. It was clear that even from the safety of the side-lines, the show was hitting just as hard in its own way. Final tracks “Up In the Clouds” and “Stranger Days” brought everyone back together again, and delivered a perfect full stop on the evening.

By the time the lights came up, sweat drenched bodies stumbled through a sea of empty plastic cups toward the street outside. The cold, previously unwelcome, was now a sweet reprieve from the sweaty, euphoric chaos inside. Friends reconvened, recounted war stories, and some even quietly prepared to throw up in the garden.

Skegss made one thing clear: It doesn’t get much better than this. No frills. No tricks. Just pure, sweaty, euphoric rock best enjoyed with friends. Get along to a show if you can. Just prepare to have the kind of night you won’t forget, even if you can’t remember all of it.

FIVE STARS (OUT OF FIVE)

Images courtesy of Emma Belas