Brisbane night's air is thick with anticipation. Suicidal Tendencies are tearing through their Lights, Camera, Side Shows tour, stopping off for an up-close hit-out before their Suncorp Stadium slot with Metallica the following night.
I'm already buzzing at the thought of seeing these crossover thrash icons in the more intimate setting (11 November) of The Tivoli. The energy's reverberating in the enclosed space; it's gonna be a rare treat. The Cyco energy's crackling even before they've hit the stage.
Melbourne group BIG NOTER storm in first, dragging everyone into their world with that heavy-lidded swagger that screams confidence. My first and so far only Big Noter set was at last month's ZED50 Festival. Briggs joined by Steve Smith (drums), Craig Strain (bass) and Leigh Davies (guitar) impressed me with their talent that day.
Tonight, they kick off with 'Free Yourself'. It's hitting like a pulse shot, their rhythm section hammering away beneath the grit. 'It's All Good' is next and is grooving hard, a fat low-end shaking the floorboards, before 'Talk Straight', their Briggs cover.
BIG NOTER - image © Clea-marie Thorne
It lands like a boot to the sternum, loaded with political fire and purpose, and I have to say I thought they were good last time – can a band dial up in a matter of weeks? This one can – tight as!
'F.M.D' may be a new release, but the crowd's quick to pick up the lyrics and shout along. I think BIG NOTER are on their way to earning the royal right to do just what their name implies.
The crowd starts to move way more by 'Munarra', shoulders bumping and voices joining the chant. 'Identity' is snarling and defiant, while 'What Ya Swingin' At' keeps the attitude rolling. By the time 'Moves Like A Winner' and 'Whats The Matter' hit, Briggs is prowling the edge of the stage, grinning wide as the crowd throws it back.
BIG NOTER walk off drenched and proud, leaving behind that humid buzz only an emerginbg act of such calibre and enthusiasm can spark. Intermission comes and goes quickly. The merch line's still snaking and the bars are hit with a frenzy of requests for liquids. Then it hits. Lights drop. Tension spikes.
BIG NOTER - image © Clea-marie Thorne
Dean Pleasants (guitar), Tye Trujillo (bass), Ben Weinman (guitar) and Jay Weinberg (drums) claim the stage. Sam Sal is there making sure we know what we're here for. Guitars slice into the opening riff of 'You Can't Bring Me Down' when Mike Muir (vocals) bursts onto the stage and asks fans "what the hell is going on around here?".
Then like a live wire, he paces and twitchs with manic intensity as the crowd truly detonates. Arms are raised, bodies are already flying on the hands of fans toward the barrier and the pit's starting to swirl as Muir shouts his lungs raw.
Muir's delivery is pure fire straight up, every line being spat out like he's still clawing his way out of a war zone, while the combustible talent of the musicians behind him's truly explosive. Man, it's shaping up to be one fiery inferno so much so, I predict the roof will blow when they're actually peaking.
'Join The Army' lands next, gang vocals booming as the crowd yells it right back, that brotherhood feeling electric. 'I Shot Reagan' is over in a flash. A short, savage jolt to the senses ahead of 'Freedumb', which rolls in on a punk groove.
Suicidal Tendencies - image © Clea-marie Thorne
Pleasants' guitar is cutting sharp, while Trujillo locks in with the kind of precision and bounce that can only come from his deep bass bloodlines and the committed energy of youth. 'Send Me Your Money' hits with that classic sneer, Muir leaning into every syllable while the pit howls the chorus back at him.
Weinman and Trujillo take turns jumping off the amps while playing, making the crowd "ahh" every time. Muir continues to fire off raw bits of wisdom and cheeky self-digs, mateship and the grind of keeping your head above water when life keeps swinging.
'War Inside My Head' unleashes chaos, Weinberg pounding like a machine gone rogue, cymbals crashing. He has the crowd colliding in sync beneath him while Weinman's goes feral like a man possessed to do all things unnatural, daring and extreme while playing his axe.
The lad's relentless; he's already been up to the barrier and stood on the hands and shoulders of fans while playing upright. In his energetic pursuit of live performance experiences. . . yes he's up to more shenanigans!
He arrives on the mezzanine, right in front of me. While still playing his guitar, he's up and over the other side of the railing, free-falling into a wave of arms and hands, fans gathered, breaking his fall. As he surfs the crowd, some idiot follows suit. Needless to say, with most eyes on Weinman, his fall's nowhere near broken with as much care.
Suicidal Tendencies - image © Clea-marie Thorne
'Subliminal' crashes through next, that skate-thrash bounce alive and nasty. Muir is still grinning as he riffs on his bond with Australia; before the chaos levels spike again for 'Adrenaline Addict', he's joined by Nisha STar for a guest vocal that sends the energy screaming off the rails. Muir's eyes are wild, his body jerking in time with the beat, pure Cyco incarnate.
'I Saw Your Mommy' follows, the morbid humour biting as the crowd screams every lyric. By 'Possessed To Skate', the room's gone feral. Stage divers are launching more frequently, Pleasants is grinning mid-solo, and Muir's pacing like a caged animal.
Then 'Cyco Vision' hits. Trujillo swings his bass low and the generational crossover of new and old band members sends the place into meltdown. The groove's thickening, the floor's shaking – it's pure pandemonium behind a hectic Trujillo who hammers the groove straight into everyone's skulls.
Suicidal Tendencies - image © Clea-marie Thorne
'How Will I Laugh Tomorrow' drops the tempo, and we take this moment to catch our collective breath, Muir's voice carrying all that ache beneath the rage, Pleasants and Weinman letting guitar lines soar in the dark like bats emerging from a cave at dusk.
Then the closer, 'Pledge Your Allegiance'. The entire room's screaming "S!" "T!" in perfect sync, fists flying, sweat pouring, chaos united. When it ends no one moves, but everyone's grinning, dripping, stunned.
Suicidal Tendencies didn't just play tonight; they detonated. It was a full-body experience and everything a Cyco Nation crowd could want. A sweaty, brutal, beautiful mess.
More photos from the concert.
