+Live+ Adelaide Review @ Adelaide 500

Walking briskly down the deserted Adelaide 500 track coated in rubber, towards the main stage at Victoria Park (3 March) would normally be an unnerving experience.

But as we rounded the corner and saw the massive stage set out before us, and the smell of beer and street food came wafting our way, we knew we were in for a good night in what is usually the otherwise unused parklands.


Standing in the crowd waiting for Birds Of Tokyo to start, many were desperately hoping that the eager Holden and Ford fans would lower their flying banners before they appeared on stage.

Click here for more photos from the event.

The amazing sunset streaming through the parklands turned many heads away from the impressive stage set-up, before whipping them back around as we heard the first note from the Perth rockers Birds of Tokyo and the screams of those in the first rows.

They came out swinging with several massive hits: ‘This Fire’, ‘Lanterns’, ‘I’d Go With You Anywhere’, ‘Plans’, and ‘Anchor’.

Frontman Ian Kenny’s voice soared as the day turned into night and the crowd grew more and more excited for the massive '90s band that is +Live+.

And when the band from York, Pennsylvania finally stepped onto the stage the cheer was unfathomable.


They launched into many crowd favourites, including a song that held a special place in lead singer Ed Kowalczyk’s heart. He dedicated the song to his eldest daughter and to all the mothers and daughters that were in the audience that night.

‘Heaven’ from their 2003 album, ‘Birds Of Pray’ had people holding their loved ones and swaying in the light breeze, singing softly through the verses before giving it their all during the chorus. “I’ll believe it when I see it for myself, I don’t need anyone to tell me about heaven, I look at my daughter and I believe.”

1999 songs ‘Dolphin’s Cry’ has been copping a sudden surge in radio exposure in the lead up to their Adelaide performance, and since their show I don’t imagine it is going to let up anytime soon.

Click here to read our recent interview with Ed Kowalczyk.

When the time came for the boys to exit the stage, the crowd was not going to let them leave that easily; I’m sure the encore roar could be heard over the Fringe music that was playing two blocks over.

They graced us with their presence once more and performed another five songs, a massive feat in itself after such an epic rock concert, before finally finishing with global 1994 smash hit, ‘Lightning Crashes’.

An amazing end to a massive evening of '90s music. I could not have imagined a more appropriate occasion for such a loud roar of thunder from the people of Adelaide on our biggest weekend of the year.