Friday was a pretty busy day for Sydney pop punks Stand Atlantic. Not only did they drop new album GODBREATH, but they kicked off a tour in support of the new release, starting things off in (a very wet) Brisbane. We headed to the Fortitude Music Hall to catch the first show of the tour – here’s our recap of the night.
A mad dash from work in the rain (wait, this has happened to me before) meant we missed opening act nightlight, but the Melbourne trio have been on my radar for a good while. Their pop metal fusion is a great match for the more recent Stand Atlantic releases – I’m personally partial to their Future Static collab “what if i’m the devil?” and last year’s “DYHM”. If you have tickets for Stand Atlantic’s other dates, get there early and check them out.
If we’re making the argument that Nightlight represent the newer era of Stand Atlantic’s sound, then second support Knuckle Puck are here for the OGs.
It’s been a long time between drinks for Australian Knuckle Puck fans – about eight years by frontman Joe Taylor‘s reckoning. But the Chicago pop punks made it worth the wait, blazing through a 12 strong setlist and opening the pit up at every available opportunity. Yelling the opening lines of “No Good” with a few hundred other fans scratched an emotional itch I didn’t even know I had, and I know I’m not the only one crossing my fingers it won’t be quite so long before their next visit.
After the reception Knuckle Puck received, you could be forgiven for thinking they were the main event but, of course, that honour fell to Sydney’s Stand Atlantic.
From an all girl stage invasion during, naturally, “Girl$” to a contemplative rendition of “Skinny Dipping”, to vocalist Bonnie Fraser putting in an appearance in the pit for 2017’s “Coffee At Midnight”, the show was an energetic exploration of Stand Atlantic’s back catalogue. Pulling tracks from their 2010s start all the way to brand new album GODBREATH, the setlist showcased it all, from the pop punk roots to the metal and pop influences clear in more recent releases, including 2022’s F.E.A.R and 2024’s Was Here.
And, most importantly, they’re bloody good live. For all the inflatable beach balls, fireworks, and confetti, it’s reassuring to see a slightly awkward stage presence give way to a band that can put on a hell of a show. Of course, a receptive crowd never hurts, and we had that in abundance.
In a genre so dominated by US artists, Stand Atlantic remain a powerful reminder that some of the best pop punk is actually homegrown. The highlights were many, but seeing a young teen hoisted on a parent’s shoulders screaming the words of “NOSE BLEED” back to Fraser is up there. Isn’t that the coolest thing? That I can be there, feeling all my feelings with a track from 2015 and there they are in the same room, doing the exact same thing with something from almost a decade later? How good’s that?
FOUR AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Stand Atlantic’s GODBREATH tour continues next week, with dates in Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth. More details and tickets HERE.
GODBREATH is out now. Buy/stream it HERE.
Header image credit – Nikki Haney (supplied by PR)
