If Saturday night in Melbourne belonged to Camp Cope, then Sunday's public holiday eve was definitely owned by punks from a litter further afield; Berkeley, California's good-time emo boys Mom Jeans. and Atlanta, Georgia's wonderful broody-emo rockers Microwave.
This reviewer has seen Microwave in the US a few times, including a big support for a huge Chicago Jimmy Eat World show, so had the good sense to make sure to be down in time to catch their early set.With the Monday holiday, there was no mistaking this Sunday night (12 March) for a Saturday in terms of set times, but you'd have never known it was an earlier one if judging on the enthusiasm of this capacity Corner crowd.
Microwave threw out a solid across-the-catalogue short and sweet set that included some faves from 2016's 'Much Love', including 'Vomit' and 'Lighterless', which proved a nice sandwich between the more stripped-back moody emo-punk of their 2014 debut 'Stovall' and 2019's much heavier and sonically layered 'Death Is A Warm Blanket'.
Teasing new songs on their debut Aussie tour, the band will have plenty of fans – new and old based on these shows – eager to see what they do next.
But the rowdiness of the crowd was certainly holding out for the headliners, and the Corner exploded in a sea of arms as soon as Mom Jeans. hit the stage. The well-lubricated crowd were making the most of the public holiday Monday, by the looks of it.
The pared-back nature to a lot of their songs – like fan fave from 2016's debut 'Best Buds', 'Scott Pilgrim vs. My GPA' – provided ample sonic space for epic sing-alongs, and some solid brass flourishes from frontman Eric Butler.
They spun 'Movember' and '*Sobs Quietly*' from that album too, plus plenty from 2022's 'Sweet Tooth', the third album they were touring on the back of.
Highlights were opener 'Something Sweet' and 'What's Up', and judging by the crowd reaction, Mom Jeans. have earned plenty of new fans on the back of this more revved-up, more hi-fi set.
While the band had spent their week partaking in some Aussie traditions of touring acts, namely getting photos holding koalas, they also managed to sneak in a stage shoey – filling a sneaker with Moon Dog Fizzer, no less (when in Melbourne. . .).
While the humble old shoe is fast becoming a divisive stage presence, as long as an American punk band is touring, we don't think it's going anywhere just yet.
