I can smell the nostalgia and taste the anticipation in the air inside Brisbane's The Fortitude Music Hall.
As I move further into the venue (26 February), I feel like I've been thrown in a chaotic melting pot of boomers who have never let the punk fire die, grizzled Gen X lifers in faded and even tattered tour shirts, and baby-faced punks eager for a baptism of speed and distortion.Hailing from the south-east corner, Fake News – Tim Russ (vocals), Darren Crowe (guitar), Mick Braszell (guitar), Nick Vanderkley (bass) and Nat MacDonald (drums) –cram themselves onto the stage crowded with headliner drum kits, amps and whatnot.
In saying that, they ooze a confidence of a band who knows exactly why they're here and know what we want. Russ leans into the mic, his vocals a blend of grit and melody on 'Checking In'; it's like he's fist-bumping our ears in a musical welcome in the same vein.
As the set comes at us frenzied and fast, the guitars of Crowe and Braszell bite through the mix, like a double whammy attack of sharp-punk energy, while Vanderkley's bass punches through, pounding us deep in our chest and his vocals are really packing a punch as he helps out Russ who's been suffering from a cold.
We are asked to practice the lyrics "pour me a beer" before 'Beer' kicks in. Fans are taking it literally with plastic cups filled with beer flying here and there. More of the venue floor is disappearing, replaced by nodding heads, some grey, some shaved, even a few Mohawks and neon tresses, but all equally locked in focus towards the stage.
Former band member Mick gets his chance to join the group on guitar to play a song he wrote. Since Pennywise is one of his favourite bands, the guys thought he'd love the sh.t out of it; and he does!
Fake News - image © Radical Imaging
Moving through the set (from memory included 'Not Giving Up' and 'Where We Stand'), I'm taken aback by MacDonald's relentless drumming; Dude is playing like a maniac, with a shirt, without a shirt, sitting and at times standing. The man is insane! As their set is closed, I assure you couch sitters that Fake News went great guns heating up the house and you missed it.
A rowdy intermission erupts around me and my guess is venue bar staff are being run off their tootsies. Let the good times roll!
Millencolin's backdrop is illuminated in red and Fredrik Larzon (drums) is the first to take the stage. The rest of the band then join him and there's really no mucking around. Nikola Sarcevic (vocals, bass) steps up to his mic, gives us an acknowledging nod, before 'Penguins & Polarbears' explodes the room to life. His bassline can be felt bouncing beneath Mathias Färm's (Millencolin's OG drummer btw) sharp, bright guitar work, and just like that, the Swedes have us wolfing down their classic '00s banger.
'Da Strike' follows, the call-and-response chorus ricocheting between the crowd and Erik Ohlsson's unrelenting rhythm. The set is totally stacked with fan faves that have the crowd surfers coming in droves screaming the lyrics all the way to and out of the barrier.
'Fingers Crossed' arrives in a haze of fast-paced drumming from Larzon, each snare hit slicing through the energy of the bouncing crowd like butter through a hot knife. As the set powers forward, 'Fox' emerges as a highlight, Sarcevic's vocals rougher live, carrying a rawness the studio cut clearly smooths out way too much. The band locks it in tight, riding that skate-punk groove with a confidence honed over countless shows and rehearsals (not sure they'd need those at this stage).
Millencolin - image © Radical Imaging
'Olympic' pushes the tempo, Larzon an absolute machine – he's killing it behind the kit. 'Man Or Mouse' makes the cut, but it's 'Bullion' that sends the first proper shockwave through the floorboards. The opening bass riff alone has a sea of fist-pumping punters helping Sarcevic snarl out the lyrics.
The momentum doesn't let up for the next couple and then 'True Brew' leans into their more recent, politically charged side. 'Ray' and 'The Ballad' brings that melody – Millencolin's not-so-secret weapon of weapons – fans lapping it up like hungry kitties.
The next course on the musical degustation menu of Millencolin's set is 'SOS'. This cracker is served with the flavour of ferocious urgency that is battered in a declaration of "we still give a f...!" Even if they think it's a bit hot Down Under!
A frantic and seamless whirlwind medley, of 'In A Room', 'The Story Of My Life', 'Pain', and 'Pepper' showcase their precision. 'Mr. Clean' revs up our wanton nostalgia again before 'No Cigar' drops on our ears like an atomic bomb we have prayed for. Its unmistakable opening riff is sending diehard fans around me into overdrive.
Crowd surfers keep coming, punters voices louder. It's obvious Millencolin aren't here just for the coin – they're here for their fans and totally enjoying owning the stage and playing to us, meaning every note delivered to our ear lugs!
Millencolin - image © Radical Imaging
With the crowd warmed up and sweaty, Pennywise – Fletcher Dragge (guitar, vocals), Byron McMackin (drums, vocals), Jim Lindberg (lead vocals), and Randy Bradbury (bass, vocals) step in to finish the job.
Lindberg grips the mic as 'My Own Country' kicks in, Dragge's guitar roaring like the unmuffled roar of a V8 VE commodore. The pit properly reopens with crowd surfers of all sexes, ages, shapes and sizes at it again (many more than once).
From this moment, it's clear this set is going to be a demolition of bodies and our senses with 'It's What You Do With It' and 'Who's To Blame' blasted in rapid succession. Both delivered with the kind of ferocity that reminds everyone why Pennywise has survived as one of the most revered bands by skaters, surfers and punk-lovin' peeps.
Pennywise - image © Radical Imaging
Bradbury's bass can be felt rumbling beneath our feet, a steady backbone, while McMackin's drumming is as tight as it is fast – urgent, precise, the most coordinated ordered chaos possible. By the time 'Just For You' lands, the room is well and truly theirs. Lindberg spits the lyrics with venomous clarity, met with a wall of fan voices rising up to the high ceiling.
'It's Up To Me' and 'Same Old Story' incite another mad sing-along, with some of the flying beer or perhaps Lindberg's beer has dampened the floor. I'm not sure if Bradbury slipped, but Dragge pretend kicked him while he was down. LOL! Even while the mop-up is happing around them (thanks to Tim!), Pennywise easily keeps our steampunk train rolling.
'Homesick' sees the first real moment of fan unity. Dragge's chords resound even deeper within the venue's structure, the song's melancholic edges cutting deep into our cores. The crowd – young and old – sing every word, a moment of liberation amidst the bedlam on the floor.
Lindberg tells us how they love Australia and are moving here (yeah, sure?) leading us into an unexpected cover. The first chords of Men At Work's 'Down Under' ring out and suddenly, we're in a punk-rock-pub sing-along. It's raw, it errs on the ridiculous, but it's bloody perfect. Lindberg grins through the verses and it makes us belt out the chorus louder than ever!
Pennywise - image © Radical Imaging
'American Dream' snaps us back to business, Dragge's guitar work moving between razor-sharp riffs and grinding power chords as he shows us he's all about the business. Then comes the marriage of melody and muscle with 'My God'. The crowd shifts from pogoing to pushing forward, an unstoppable current that carries even more crowd surfers to the shoreline of the front barrier.
We lap up the dialogue from Lindberg ahead of 'Perfect People' and Dragge's sermon before 'F... Authority' riles up the crowd. On both accounts, it induces punters to raise the energy; it reaches boiling point during 'F... Authority' – Lindberg and Dragge's defiant vocals are a punk-addled battle cry, with us screaming the lyrics back at them with everything we've got.
Then 'Badge Of Pride' brings a moment that hits hearts, live. Dragge stretches the solo, bending the notes along his torchlit fretboard (yes, that's a thing!) which are screaming under his fingers. The final leg of the set is a sprint – 'Living For Today' which I pre-empt is laying the groundwork for an inevitable closer. A closer fans have been heard hollering out for from all corners of the venue all night.
Pennywise - image © Radical Imaging
Of course it's the anthemic big banger, 'Bro Hymn'. From the moment the first bass notes drop, it's done. Gen Xers and Boomers, plus descendants of first wave fans, are singing loudly shoulder to shoulder with younger fans who have also discovered punk's angsty truths and stimulating arrangements.
Holy heck! What is happening? The stage is being crowded by all and sundry who have been part of this tour – maybe even some fans are in the mix. I don't know for sure, as I have misty eyes and moved to the back of the room to get a wide-angle view of the spectacle for this last song. All I know is there's no more space left on that stage, not even for a set list!
This call-and-response is absolutely deafening, keeping fans in place, heaving in unison till the very end with not many bothering about having to be part of the mass exodus to come. It's truly punk rock family feels right now, in its purest form demonstrating the melding of community, chaos and sweet release. There can be no encore – this just can't be topped.
Pennywise - image © Radical Imaging
The energy kept climbing all night with a nostalgia that was thick but never cloying. A beer-soaked chorus of voices from the fans rising to meet the guitar grinds and bass beats through the mix that hammered our ears and bodies like a jackhammer into a cement slab.
Pennywise and Millencolin's co-headline show has left no one wanting and everyone exhausted and exhilarated. Fake News were the perfect support.
Collectively, they have reminded me why punk rock endures, needing no pretence or gimmicks for its sustainment. In this case just two bands, minimal chords and a room full of fans who still yearn for and worship the power of a song played loud and fast; and that, dear readers is more than enough for this chic!
More photos from the concert.
