When New Jersey emo-rockers The Front Bottoms last toured Australia, they played to a modest crowd in support of The Smith Street Band back in 2014.
Nearly three years later and they had people frantically searching for tickets to this sold-out Stag show; and once they hit the stage it was clear why they’re a hot-ticket act now.
The Front Bottoms (Brisbane show) - image © Sophie WakefieldFresh from supporting Brand New on their most recent tour around the US, The Front Bottoms hit town on a warm, Sydney night (20 January) to play the even warmer band room of The Stag. Come show time there wasn’t a set of thick-rimmed glasses not fogging up thanks to the heat.
Not surprisingly, the band leaned heavily on material from 2015’s 'Back On Top', with standouts being the happy-sad anthems ‘HELP’ and ‘Laugh Till I Cry’, with frontman Brian Sella playing with the kind of conviction of someone who’s never played these songs live before.
The Front Bottoms (Brisbane show) - image © Sophie WakefieldWith the band hard to fault, whipping out some of their catchiest tunes in ‘Skeletons’, the more downtempo ‘Cough It Out’ and the affecting ‘Twin Size Mattress’, it was almost enough to ignore how steamy – and locker-room smelly – the space was getting.
By the time the band wound up, despite punters’ pleads for more, it was almost a relief to feed into the air-conditioned side bar, which allowed for clothes and hair to dry out.
The Front Bottoms (Brisbane show) - image © Sophie WakefieldBut it’s good to know that no matter how big The Front Bottoms get, you can still find a real, DIY punk-rock experience with them.
Click here for photos from The Front Bottoms Brisbane show.
