Sometimes, you want to go where everybody knows your name – and for Cailin Russo, that's an Unwritten Law show.
Indeed, the 'little girl' from the band's beloved 1998 track 'Cailin' is all grown up and touring Australia for the first time with her dear old dad. Adorable, right?Here's the twist: She's going for playful, sultry, electronic pop that revels in the darker corners and isn't afraid of being a little outlandish. We're not on Warped Tour anymore, Toto.
Needless to say, most folks in attendance are flabbergasted – save, of course, for the young girl on the barricade that knows every word.
Though other punters don't quite get to her level of enthusiasm, it's to Russo's credit that she doesn't miss a step and refuses to minimise or shroud herself. If you don't like it, there's the door. You can drink until dad shows up.
Back in the room, Russo invites the scarce women in the audience to flex their muscles and for the "f...-ups" in the room to raise their fists with her.
Slowly but surely, she cracks away at the toughness of the older male crowd and gets a few heads moving. One bloke, who's been still as a statue all set, raises his PBR in salute to Russo during her final song. It's wholly emblematic of the young singer's uphill battle – which she ultimately wins.
The records show that Unwritten Law has only toured one country more than Australia in their 30-plus year career – and that's their own.
Since 1996, the band have come back time and time again for an audience that will always fill out a room or a festival field for them – right up to February 2020 as well, making them one of the final international acts to tour pre-pandemic.
Of course, this degree of exposure means Australian fans have seen them through a tumultuous array of highs and lows – from riding high on their 2001 masterpiece 'Elva' to trashing the stage at the ill-fated Hits & Pits.
So, which version of Scott Russo and co. are we going to get tonight (10 August) at a sold-out Crowbar? As it unfurls, one that's able to largely tow the line between a tight nostalgia act and a loose punk band.
Staples from the Unwritten Law canon like 'Teenage Suicide' and 'Lonesome' make their presence felt early, the crowd in full voice as Russo eggs them on and returning drummer Wade 'Blade' Youman (last here in 2018) charges at them with the same ferocity that he did circa '98.
Cailin returns for 'Cailin' (what else), before the Russo's take a run at Fleetwood Mac's 'Little Lies' with the intimacy and warmth of a karaoke booth. There's a wobble at the start of 2005 hit 'Save Me', where Russo comes in on the wrong key, but aside from that it's fairly smooth sailing.
The crowd are loving every minute of it too, even during inevitable detours into obligatory new-album songs. The band's current incarnation – wherein Russo and Youman are joined by Russo's brother Johnny Grill on bass, as well as guitarists Chris Lewis and Australian-born Scotty Mac – is a cohesive, steadfast unit onstage.
They know classics like 'Seein' Red' like the back of their hands, and their collective energy gets newer cuts like 'Beggars' over the line. Perhaps it's telling, then, that things begin to go off-rail a bit as soon as they leave.
On his own, Russo attempts an acoustic version of 'I Like The Way' and breaks a string on his guitar halfway through. Rather than switching over to an electric, he persists with the five-string – making the next ten minutes or so a messy struggle.
Tempers and tensions flare, but thankfully it never escalates into a classic meltdown. Once we're back on track with 'Holiday' and 'Up All Night', the course has been steered in the right direction.
Unwritten Law aren't a perfect live band, and it's unlikely we'll ever get a self-titled or an 'Elva' out of them again anytime soon, but when Russo speaks of how genuine his love of Australia is it's hard to deny him – and, by proxy, Unwritten Law as a whole.
