“The cutest thing happened before we came onstage,” F...ed Up guitarist Mike Haliechuk announced to the crowd at Brisbane’s Crowbar (12 October). “[Vocalist Damian Abraham]’s son facetimed from Canada to ask him how to make scrambled eggs.”
When it comes to F...ed Up, cute isn’t the first word that comes to mind. But, the Canadian six-piece have defied expectations of what a hardcore-punk band is meant to be, winning acclaim for each of their five ambitious, concept-heavy albums, including last year’s ‘Dose Your Dreams’.
The same restless energy fuelling their albums raged throughout their return to Brisbane, barely contained within the Crowbar.
“Make us feel comfortable; come over here,” LOSER frontman Tim Maxwell sheepishly asked the crowd.
The Melbourne rockers - featuring members of Grim Rhythm, The Smith Street Band and The Bennies - blasted out '90s-indebted alternative rock, confidently showcasing a gift for hooks and melodies roughed-up by distortion pedals.
The band wore goofy smiles beneath their long hair, enjoying themselves as much as the crowd.
F...ed Up drummer Jonah Falco walked on to the stage alone. “Since no one else has their butt on stage, I think it’s just me and you,” he chided, his smile showing no malice. Jonah’s groove signalled to his bandmates the show’s start, and each arrived one by one, building the crushing psychedelia of ‘Dose Your Dreams’.
Finally, Damian strolled in ripping off his orange jacket and bellowing into his mic. Damian’s signature hoarse bark showed no signs of the straining that would afflict a normal person.
Damian rested his voice whenever bandmates Mike, Jonah, and bassist Sandy Miranda took over on lead vocals, but he continued to toss his body across the stage. His bald scalp gushed sweat, and every vein and muscle tensed with every scream and wild-eyed stare.
He climbed onto the stage barrier, shoving his mic into fans’ faces to scream lyrics, with many climbing over the convulsing bodies in the mosh to have their voice heard. Holding the ceiling for support as he balanced on the barrier, Damian let go and grabbed fans’ hands to hold himself before shoving his microphone inside his mouth, his muffled bark fighting to be heard among his bandmates’ colossal roar.
“Brisbane is a magical place,” Damian told the crowd, listing the city’s beloved punk institutions from The Saints to RAZAR’s ‘Task Force’, and recounting a strange occurrence on a past visit. “I smoked DMT, saw a geometric shape in the sky, went to support the Foo Fighters, saw Johnny Depp backstage with the same pattern on his face, pulled a record out of my pocket that had his ex-girlfriend on the cover and made him cry.”
More magic occurred as they played ‘The Other Shoe’, with Damian holding court on the barrier and the entire room punched the air and chanted “dying on the inside”. The crowd’s chant was filled with joy, defying the lyric’s misery just as F...ed Up defy all expectations of what they’re supposed to be.
