It's the kind of cold that gets into your bones. The type of night where most people stay home, pile on blankets, scroll, scroll, scroll.
However, inside Melbourne's Performance Institute of Contemporary Arts, a sold-out, all-ages crowd gathered for something warmer. Something louder. Something that, for just under two hours, made the outside world irrelevant.Spacey Jane, one of Australia's most beloved indie rock exports, returned to Melbourne for the second of two shows (18 June) celebrating their third album, 'If That Makes Sense', released in May.
The band's rise from Fremantle garage gigs to topping the ARIA charts has been well documented. Still, the energy in the room tonight felt less like watching a group ride the wave of success and more like witnessing four people who are still in love with the reason they started.
Opening with 'Through My Teeth', the band set the tone early. The new material landed with confidence, frontman Caleb Harper sounding steady and assured. 'Estimated Delivery' and 'One Bad Day' followed in quick succession, showcasing the slicker, more introspective edges of their latest work.
Image © Danysha Harriott
There's a clarity in the arrangements that wasn't always present on earlier records. Live, it clicks into place. Tracks like 'Skin' and 'Lunchtime' offered quieter moments without dragging the pace.
When 'Whateverrrr hit', the show cracked open. A full-room sing-along erupted – arms in the air, lyrics shouted like gospel. If the set had ended there, the night would've still felt complete – but it didn't.
'Sawteeth' and 'How To Kill Houseplants' brought some of the evening's more textured moments. Then came 'Feeding The Family', arriving like an old friend. First released in 2017, it's the track that introduced Spacey Jane to the wider world.
Tonight, it felt completely new again. The guitar solo, somewhere between dreamy restraint and Frusciante-style fire, earned one of the loudest responses of the night. From there, the band hit their stride. 'Thrills', 'It's Been A Long Day', 'Ily The Most', 'Head Cold', 'Good For You', 'Hardlight'.
Image © Danysha Harriott
The crowd didn't let up; and when 'Booster Seat' started – the x7 platinum juggernaut that soundtracked a hundred thousand heartbreaks – the room went still for a moment. Then came the chorus, and everything split wide open again.
The band walked off. Some people clapped politely and turned toward the exit, but anyone who’d Googled the set list knew better. They returned for an encore. 'So Much Taller'. Then 'Lots Of Nothing'.
The night ended with Harper's vocals rising over a room still singing every word back to him. No pyrotechnics. No grand speech. Just four musicians who've found the sweet spot between vulnerability and control, and a crowd willing to follow them wherever they go next.
Spacey Jane didn't reinvent anything tonight. They didn't need to. What they delivered was something rarer – a reminder of how powerful a band can be when they know exactly who they are and play like it still matters.
More photos from night one in Melbourne.
