Viral superstars, 'industry plants', and a staple of the modern hardcore scene (don't) blow the roof off of Brisbane's The Riverstage.
If you're unfamiliar with the colossal rise of Bad Omens in recent years, you've either been living in an isolated yurt, North Korea, or simply don't listen to heavy music (the first two can be forgiven, but the third. . . tsk tsk).Their rise may seem like an overnight success, but it's been a decade in the making. Thanks to hard work, raw talent, and a viral TikTok moment in 2022 with 'Just Pretend', Bad Omens have become inescapable – a display of what a powerful tool these social media platforms and virality can have on a career.
Their Goodbye, Friend tour that has graced Australia's east coast (really feel for you on this one, rest of Australia) the last week has successfully sold out every night (with exception of Sydney's second concert at the time of penning this review).
With a stellar supporting line-up including everyone's favourite weird-old-internet 'industry plant' Poppy, IYKYK, and some very familiar faces to the hardcore/ punk/ alt-rock scene in House Of Protection, this recipe was always going to see colossal success for a plethora of reasons spanning a wide scope of heavy music fans.
Okay, no more meandering – we've got way too much to cover and a limited word count so let's jump straight into the good bits.
Kicking off the only Brisbane date of this tour, House of Protection, a two-piece hardcore/ punk-rock outfit hailing from California burst onto the stage with an energy that anyone familiar with both Stephen Ray 'Steevis' Harrison and Aric Improta has come to expect and quite frankly would be shocked to not see.
With impressive contributions to some wildly influential and often successful bands, these two individuals have won fans over across the globe with their energetic and chaotic displays of exuberant musicianship.
As a fan and follower of Steevis over the years through his continually consistent, exciting and energetic contributions to the heavy music scene, witnessing this latest endeavour lived up and possibly exceeded past experiences and the already high expectations set.
Capturing the raw energy of House of Protection's set would require a minute-by-minute breakdown – there simply aren't enough hours in the day to cover every spin, jump, flip, and climb they managed to cram into their short-but-explosive seven-song set.
Consumed multiple times by the crowd, ditching the guitar for nearly an entire song, and having a phenomenal control over the crowd, House of Protection were nothing short of a joy to witness.
This duo successful encapsulated their short and explosive career together storming through tracks including 'Pulling Teeth', 'Fuse', and 'It's Supposed To Hurt'. To the excitement of punters across the venue's grassy hill, new and unreleased song 'Fire' was also debuted live. An absolute pleasure for those of fast, unrelenting, catchy, and high-intensity hardcore.
An ongoing trend of the evening was the somewhat dramatic transitions between sub-genres with each act – and that is said with zero negative connotation (your mum and nan will still call them screamos, so don't fret).
Following the heavily punk-influenced duo was Poppy, who can only be described as holistically eclectic when reflecting on her entire musical career. However, as you may be aware, we are well and truly in the alt-metal era of this internet sensation and might I say, it looks and sounds fantastic on her.
The history of Poppy is truly wild from start to finish. Unfortunately, a large amount of, if not all of her interesting origin stories are no longer public on YouTube where scene-iour citizens such as myself would first have encountered this interesting individual (although with enough Reddit deep-diving, you can catch up on this peculiar saga of the young artist).
For Poppy fans however, this set was one that was eagerly awaited and will be fondly looked back upon. Having only previously toured our fair country once as a part of the 2019 Good Things Festival circuit, the stark difference in performance capability is a testament to the grit and determination of Poppy.
Treating adoring fans to not one but two live debuts by way of 'Have You Had Enough?' and 'They're All Around Us', both from 2024 release 'Negative Spaces', Poppy's set list was heavy, abrasive, but still kinda cute – that's just the energy this 5-foot-nothing artist exudes while commanding a stage with the confidence and credibility akin to many of her seniors.
While trying to find the common denominator between these three acts, I (unsurprisingly, in retrospect) have found the aforementioned Steevis of House of Protection actually possesses quite a number of writing and production credits to Poppy's catalogue, notably 12 tracks on 'Negative Spaces', including 'Scary Mask'. Of course, there is the Bad Omens x Poppy collaboration 'V.A.N.', which ties all of the pieces together perfectly.
Highlight for myself, and inevitably hundreds – if not thousands of other fans – was Poppy's closing song of the evening 'New Way Out', which has gained adoration and some serious numbers on streaming platforms.
I hope Poppy remains on the glorious and righteous path that is metal for at least a few more releases – I'm sure there's more in the tank before we potentially see another exciting and unpredictable chapter in this illustrious career.
Now, the pièce de resistance – Bad Omens, who were led to the stage by a man that needs minimal introduction within the heavy music world, Noah Sebastian. Commencing with 'Concrete Jungle', the crowd are immediately treated to the other side of the coin with a masterclass by this fantastic vocalist, and accompanying instrumentation.
LED screens are lit across the stage with a very cool cityscape that, throughout the evening, transposed and transformed into a whole array of various visuals, coinciding with the large screen behind the band – another fantastic aural experience facilitated by Riverstage's production teams.
To speak to duality further (within the first two songs, I might add), the quartet launch into an almost polar opposite that is 'Artificial Suicide'. The guitars are heavy as hell, the drums tight, crisp and penetrating, the vocals like Sebastian has filled his water bottle with gravel and taken a huge swig before commencing the crushing fan-favourite.
In a pleasant surprise, there was no build-up to the exciting pyrotechnics, beginning from almost the first minute of their performance.
It's difficult to avoid, however given the sheer spectacle that Sebastian is, it can feel as though there's some overshadowing of his bandmates. This is to no discredit of the sonically impeccable dare-I-say supporting performance of the accompanying musicians who for the majority, have been there from the beginning of the act's conception.
It is incredibly difficult to draw focus away from the volumes of talent exuded by the frontman. However, to not mention and recount the fantastic chemistry shared by all members would be unfair, as this outfit is in no way a one-man show, and very likely lack the signature musical prowess without the contributions of the backbone of the band, both in the creative conception process and in the live display alike.
As hoped and probably expected, Poppy made a guest appearance during collaborative endeavour 'V.A.N.'. With an impressive 16-song set list (17 if you include everyone's favourite adult peek-a-boo, the modern encore), Bad Omens share the love across their multiple records.
'Like A Villain', 'IDWT$', and 'The Death Of Peace And Mind' all standing out as personal favourites to this reviewer with enough fire to toast enough marshmallows for the entirety of America's summer camps.
In saying that, the set list was incredibly stacked and upon further review I'm sure moments from nearly all if not all songs will come flooding back to mind and I will regret their exclusion from these words.
There were multiple show-stopping moments where the band's production team flexed their craft including fire cannons shooting upwards in syncopation to 16th note chugs, streamers filling the warm Brisbane riverside air to the tune of 'Just Pretend', and the now-notorious confetti cannons.
For the unfamiliar, there was an unfortunate issue on the tour's first night performing in Melbourne, where a confetti cannon damaged the ceiling fixtures and in turn injured punters as debris fell. While not a laughing matter – punters being injured unexpectedly or unjustly at live events will never be humorous – a small part of me is relieved to have experienced this production in the gorgeous, open-aired arena that is Riverstage for more than the cheap and cheeky jab above. However, I'm absolutely biased and truly believe Brisbane may be one of the luckiest capitals in the country when comparing flagship live venues.
Closing out the evening with 'Dethrone', after what felt like one of the largest calls for an encore I have witnessed at this venue. Of course, this prompted a small outfit changes from Sebastian, fan-favourite the black balaclava and tank combo – woof.
This modern-metal powerhouse has rightfully solidified themselves within the upper echelon of the proverbial pecking order of the ever-evolving and incredibly competitive heavy music scene with zero visible intention of slowing momentum.
Fewer than two years since their last visit down under, we can only hope and cross all available appendages this insanely talented cohort continues to save their frequent flyer points to return to our red soil regularly to continue to showcase their latest and greatest – tell the boys that while satiated, we're ready for them to return already.
