Live Reviews

You know how much a ticket was to see one of my favourite artists play the last show on her current tour? $15. Fifteen Australian dollars. A year ago, I was in London spending that much on a pint of beer. Yeah, the beers were delicious, but I’d have definitely been more than happy to…

On a Thursday night, The Gov fills out comfortably to await the return of Paul Dempsey to his beloved Kingdom. The air is chilly, but the vibe on the inside of the popular venue remains warm and inviting. It’s been a little while since the Australian favourite has been to Adelaide in this capacity and with…

If Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite, Maxwell’s stunning debut album, was released today instead of two decades ago perhaps it would be him who would hold the power to glue our eyes to a live stream of a near empty room for days on end. Perhaps it would be #Maxwell that would constantly trend on Twitter…

The first song I ever heard by Grouplove was “Colours”; I think it was an iTunes Single of the Week back in the days before streaming – remember those?! In the months that followed, while the tune had incredibly high rotation on my iPod, I remember having a feeling they’d be kick-ass live. Hitting the Oxford…

Since the release of their debut LP The Heist in 2012, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis have dominated the global music scene. While their latest project, This Unruly Mess I’ve Made, hasn’t peaked as high on the charts, it’s definitely helped cement the duo’s already loyal following, made evident in their live show. Frequent collaborator XP opened, running through…

Thousands of miles from home on a hot August night in the middle of the United States, Broods and Jarryd James had a night they won’t soon forget. Three hours before the show and right after Broods’ soundcheck, a thunderstorm hit the downtown Omaha, Nebraska area and wiped out the power of three city blocks. Unfortunately,…

It’s not the first or the last time Hey Geronimo‘s music will be synonymous with the Beach Boys. Catchy lyrics about guys, girls and fun times with a quirky vibe seem to be the signature of Hey Geronimo’s new album, Crashing Into The Sun. The feeling of nostalgia was even more present the final stopover of…

I’ve had a confusing and somewhat hypocritical relationship with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis over the years. I was indignant in 2012 when my boy Flume came a mere fourth in the Triple J Hottest 100, wildly proclaiming how wrong it was that “Thrift Shop” should take the title; all the while grooving along to that…

The pro’s of getting the chance to review a show announced the day it’s performed is that you don’t have to wait two hours in line, in the freezing wind and rain, to see one of Australia’s best live bands. Luckily for me, I was reviewing, so got to bypass the 50m long line and…

In town as part of Australia’s premier winter festival Splendour In The Grass, Los Angeles natives The Internet hit Sydney’s Metro Theatre stage and left the crowd frothing at the bit in one of the most satisfying displays and uses of bass in recent memory. Opening the night was local DJ and quite possibly The…

Having seen The Cure at Splendour in the Grass six nights previous to their Adelaide show, I had a pretty good idea of what kind of show I was walking into when I got into the venue on Friday night. With three hours allocated to their beloved catalogue of music and no support act, these headline shows of…

Late July for non-Splendour goers means just one thing- side shows, one of which being UK double-header Jake Bugg and Blossoms at Melbourne’s Palais Theatre. Blossoms took to the stage with authority and, despite the still filling room and seated crowd (a side effect of Melbourne’s severe lack of mid-sized venues), were impressive from their…

In 1991, Perry Farrell had an idea to create something no one had tried before. 25 years later, Lollapalooza has been perhaps one of the most influential things ever to happen to live music. Over 160,000 people flock to Grant Park in Chicago to catch singers and bands from all over the world spanning every…

The weather is a little chilly and blustery, winter is still lingering but Splendour In The Grass season always brings with it a bounty of warm sideshows. Tonight’s British bout would feature young whipper snappers Blossoms opening for the eternally young looking Jake Bugg. The State Theatre was an intriguing but adequate choice of venue for the…

Splendour in the Grass has existed as a must-attend festival in the minds of almost every Australian music fan since its inception in 2001. Widely regarded as one of the music events on the Australian calendar, the Byron Bay festival has seen some of the world’s best tread its stages and offer up live music…

The 1975 can’t seem to get away from our beloved country. After a string of January shows, the alt-pop band upped the ante for the second coming of arena sideshows after this year’s Splendour in The Grass for their sophomore album, I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of…

Despite being in a small venue in the middle of Williamsburg on a hot and humid New York night, it feels like I’m back at the Oxford Art Factory in Sydney. I’m surrounded by Australian accents every which way, drinking beer and about to watch DZ Deathrays. Given it’s a Wednesday night and they’re not…

MANE aka Paige Court comes to the scene fresh and wide-eyed to some, but once you listen to any of her songs, you’ll quickly get the impression that this young songwriter has emotional lyrics and stories to burn. Launching her House of Horror EP at a well-attended show at The Bluebee Room in the heart of the Adelaide’s CBD…

The recent conversation about funding cuts to community radio was met with much opposition. Much of the opposition came from the music community and bands, many of whom got their first radio play on community radio. It’s a pity that the cuts to community radio is such a real thing, because it’s bands like Brother…

This week, Glass Animals returned to Australia with a live show that had been so highly anticipated, all shows on their quick east coast run sold out impressively well in record time. Since Australian crowds first fell under the spell of their grooves and eclectic and exotic interpolation of beats and rhythm at the Falls…

Who better to tear Adelaide’s Fat Controller down on a Friday night, but the psychedelic, rock grooves that are The Delta Riggs? The room filled out as time went on before the show. The Pretty Littles played their bit of the night jamming out tracks that only brought fans closer to the purple and red…

Urthboy‘s national album tour for The Past Beats Inside Me Like a Second Heartbeat wrapped up over the weekend, with shows in South Australia and out in Western Australia bringing the Elefant Traks family to many, many fans. With L-FRESH THE LION and Okenyo on support duties, this was an incredible line up of talent, both established and emerging – a…

On Wednesday night in Morrison, Colorado, Sia opened the US Festival SeriesFest with a special performance at the historic Red Rock Amphitheatre, headlining the opening night of the festival in its second year. SeriesFest aims to be the “Sundance of Television”, offering a platform for independent television writers, producers and creators to have a platform to…

Back in the 90s, when standards in R&B were still a thing, Brandy rose to become one of the genre’s best known and successful solo performers, eclipsing her contemporaries with a remarkably golden husky voice, defined by the kind of warmth and charisma that easily set her apart and set her on the path to…

Last night, 80’s parody band Steel Panther rocked The Big Top in Sydney’s Luna Park. If you’ve heard even one Steel Panther song, you know exactly what to expect from their live performance and god, I hope for their sake there was not a single feminist without a sense of humour in the audience. The…

I’ve said it before, but mid-week shows are always outstanding. It’s not just mid-week gigs that go down a treat; it’s anything that breaks up the monotonous nature of work. While there would have been plenty of other reasons for people to have a cheeky night out on a Thursday night, for me, it was…

The last time I properly remember Spit Syndicate coming through Adelaide was maybe in 2012. Playing to a handful of people on a Thursday night at then-metal bar Enigma, the fans who had deigned to leave their houses on a weeknight to see the Sydney rappers (plus Joyride on decks) do their thing got a great show….

There was a hint of unrest in the lead up to The Smith Street Band’s second show in Perth last Friday night, some slight tension after harsh words were dealt out by frontman Wil Wagner over some unsavoury punters that had the crowd feeling he’d painted Perth with the same brush. Much to the relief…

Sunday marked the final day of Bonnaroo and there was little mercy on the crowd as temperatures reached the highest they had been for the four day festival. The sweltering heat didn’t prevent a stacked lineup from wonderfully wrapping up the 15th edition of one of the best festivals in the world. Sunday is the shortest day…

The clouds opened up and the lightning came down, but no force of nature was stronger than Pearl Jam Saturday night at Bonnaroo. It had been eight years since Pearl Jam last played the Manchester, TN festival, but the wait was very much worth it. The unexpected 90 minute delay due to lightning only helped drum up…