Live Reviews

It’s only been two months since Fremantle indie-poppers San Cisco released their fourth studio album Between You And Me and for the past fortnight they’ve been making hay while the sun shines with WA’s relaxed restrictions with a series of the shows, the latest on Saturday night at Freo Social. Saturday night’s gig was actually…

“I thought this revolving stage would be a nightmare but it’s awesome,” Eskimo Joe singer Kav Temperley exclaimed two songs into their set at the ground-breaking Good Day Sunshine Festival in WA’s south-west region on Saturday, in a ringing endorsement. It was the question on everyone’s lips. Festival organisers Macro Music had created a world-first…

He may have admitted nerves and rustiness in the lead-up to his first live event in more than six months, but DJ Tom Loud, aka Hot Dub Time Machine has still got it when it comes to get a crowd energized. Hot Dub was billed as the main attraction at Saturday’s sold-out Wine Machine festival…

With festivals banned due to the current pandemic, organisers have either had to postpone, cancel or in the case of the Johnstons of Dashville in the Hunter Valley, think outside the square. ‘Dashville’, near Belford, in the Hunter Valley in NSW has been the home of the Gumball Festival since 2005. This little gem of…

Isolation has quite obviously dried up the live music scene over the past few months, leaving audiences thirsty for their concert fix. But last night, the Oxford Art Factory’s tastebuds were quenched with a large glass of Lime Cordiale as the Sydney band played one of their sold-out speakeasy shows to celebrate their upcoming album….

I write this sitting in self-isolation in Toronto, Canada – as countries around the world are closing borders, scrambling to “flatten the curve” as the reality of the spread of Coronavirus sinks in. I, like too many, had been rather blasé about the whole thing – I mean I was sanitizing surfaces, washing my hands…

Every year, Adelaide is home to WOMADelaide, one of the world’s most eclectic, unique and diverse cultural festivals that combines music, dance, cooking demonstrations, workshops, talks and much more. The massive four-day event meanders throughout the trees and clearings of Adelaide’s beautiful Botanic Park, with seven stages and over sixty-five acts from across the globe. Proceedings kicked off with a…

Once in a generation there comes a remarkable talent that manages to take the breath from all who hear them. Mavis Staples is one such artist. She is Gospel royalty. It was fantastic to see her back in Melbourne and getting on board with the cause to benefit the Mountain Pygmy Possums. Staples was joined by…

The penultimate Zoo Twilight show of 2020 saw one of the Ninetie’s biggest experimental groups, Stereolab, head back to Melbourne, ten years after the group last toured. The group were joined by Mildlife, a Melbourne group whose lo-fi dream electronica kept the crowd pulsing early before the main event. Mildlife lulled the early crowd with a fusion…

Touring in a country you’ve had a unique connection to will always be different to other shows and tours. Coming back to the country you lived in and married into, will always give you reason to perform at a level that goes beyond what could be expected from a touring act. For Ben Folds, playing…

Friday night at the Melbourne Zoo’s ‘Zoo Twilights’ performance series brought about an evening of upbeat soul with the pseudo-pop musings of Meg Mac and guest support Fergus James. Turning up for some wonderful weather, with the golden hour casting its glow over Meg Mac’s set. First up was Fergus James, the warm-up from NSW….

Level 5 of the RCC played host to an insane collection of classic Japanese punk rock last week. Friday night saw the Jet Boys joined by a last minute addition to the Fringe, the 5,6,7,8’s, consisting of Sachiko and Yoshiko “Ronnie” Fujiyama, two sisters from Tokyo, for Tokyo Jet Daze Opening the night early were Adelaide…

The Melbourne Zoo Twilights happen every summer in the outdoor surrounds in the Royal Melbourne Zoo. Tonight is a sold-out show featuring Julia Jacklin with support from Weyes Blood. There are all ages here tonight although mainly younger guys and gals in their vintage threads. Hipsters, parents, lovers, friends and babies combine together to soak…

Level five of the RCC is effectively the old Adelaide Uni Bar. There are still the same issues if you walk up the wrong stairs. You go straight past security ending up at the back of the venue only to get told to walk back down and go up the other stairs. Despite advertising opening…

It seems fitting to start this review with a confession – I knew very little about Amanda Palmer before this night. I’ve never listened to The Dresden Dolls, have never seen her perform, I’d never even heard her sing. But after tonight, I know more than I ever thought I would. The show she’s currently…

It is an undeniable truth that electronic, chillwave band Tora have had a flourishing career. Emerging from Byron Bay, the boys erupted with their album Take a Rest in 2017, catapulting them into immediate international success and touring abroad. Releasing their most recent album Can’t Buy The Mood in October last year, the four-piece have…

It’s been an exciting year since The Cat Empire’s last appearance at the Zoo Twilight shows of 2019. They have toured to sold-out venues around the country, released their album Stolen Diamonds and frankly had a little bit of fun around Australia as they toured. Luckily for us, the band has graced Melbourne Zoo again,…

It was one of the hottest tickets in town: experiencing US tween sensation Conan Gray’s only Australian show in Sydney’s intimate The Lair. With a clear divide in the crowd between lucky young fans and curious industry members, it was a night that united both sides through a diaristic performance by the 21-year-old Texan. In…

Emerging Melbourne alternative-pop artist Max Lawrence has been gigging around town for a few years now and it was his performance at the 2019 Gaytimes Festival which led to a collaboration with Evan J Lawson and the Forest Collective orchestra for the Midsumma Festival. Forest Collective is a not for profit arts organisation focusing on…

In the hectic nature of big city life, everyone can appreciate the importance of making the most of our precious weekends. Friday evening allowed the delightful Bobby Alu to set the tone for a lucky few in Melbourne; busy brains were wound down after a long working week, forming positive mindsets to enter the weekend…

It was a warm and overcast day on Friday in Adelaide, which made for perfect conditions for Laneway Festival. Since humble beginnings in the laneways of the Adelaide University grounds, Laneway Festival has grown in harmony with the improvements around Hart’s Mill on the Port River. This year there were four stages playing a good…

There are music festivals (think Laneway). There are conferences with a showcase festival that runs alongside it (think BIGSOUND). And then there are events that are in a class of their own. There’s SXSW in Austin, Texas – an event that is at such a large magnitude, there’s no way to describe it but to…

8pm on a Tuesday night and 170 Russell St was completely sold out. There were no gaps leading up to the stage – no room to move, barely any to breathe. It’s never comfortable to feel like a human sardine, but Mahalia made it well worth it. A self-proclaimed “sexy R&B princess” hailing from Leicester,…

Sydney’s St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival had surprises in store even before the day had begun. With The 1975 being a late cancellation to the previous night’s festival in Brisbane, Sydneysiders were stricken with worry that their the headliner wouldn’t be fit to perform. But as the city got festival-ready in the morning, the UK act…

Although she may have cut her planned quad-run at the Sydney Opera House in half, citing health issues, Houston artist Solange was very much in fine-form as she danced across the Concert Hall last night. The first of two shows (the final one being tonight), Solange and her impeccable band managed to perfectly capture the…

After a five year break between releases, during which he released a polarising feature film, Flying Lotus (real name Stephen Ellison) finally reacquainted himself to fans with the album Flamagra. Ever one to place visuals central to the musical experience, he has returned to Aussie shores with a new 3D live show. UK/Aussie Warp Records…

In 2017, Brisbane-based R&B singer-songwriter Wafia was starting to build her career, singing alongside acts like Vancouver Sleep Clinic and supporting acts like Daughter. Now, in 2020, she’s running her own show and practically selling out 170 Russel St on a Friday night. Modest yet engaging, Wafia truly captivated the audience with both her music…

Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes kicked off the Aussie leg of their tour last night, bringing the noise to Brisbane’s Triffid. Led by ferociously energetic frontman Carter, the British punks are known for their live show, a manic yet heartfelt affair, and one not to be missed. Newcastle’s Eat Your Heart Out opened proceedings, with…

If you’ve seen Regurgitator perform live you know that their shows are high energy ones. They’re also partial to a great costume and some interesting visuals. Their children’s show, Pogogo has all these same ingredients. The big change however, was that the content of the songs was less G-spot and more G-rated. The trio performed…

An emotional Sir Elton John addressed a packed out Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney last night, expressing his admiration for the firefighters battling Australia’s current bushfire crisis and pledging $1 million dollars to the relief fund. It was but one of many moments of sincere and heartfelt speeches from the legendary artist during his first…