The Kooks, Catfish & The Bottlemen, The Griswolds @ The Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Melbourne (24/01/2015)
UK lads Catfish and the Bottlemen played first support, giving the early punters an incredible show! Their on-point performance was well received by the crowd, sounding like a mix of Arctic Monkeys, Oasis, and The Kooks themselves. I dare say it won't be long until we see Catfish and the Bottlemen back on Australia's shores!
Surprisingly, this would be my first time seeing one of Australia's hardest working local bands, The Griswolds. While they're incredibly popular amongst the local scene, they didn't impress me too much with their music. It all sounded somewhat the same (the old wall of noise), and didn't exactly strike a chord with me. The last time I saw The Kooks live was at Groovin The Moo Bendigo, where they'd put on a fun performance for the crowd, despite it being 0 degrees cold! It was a welcome change (especially for this reviewer) to now watch their show on one of Melbourne's perfect Summer evenings, with the stars out, drinks being poured and the atmosphere amongst the crowd full of happiness and excitement. The set list was primarily focused on material from 'Listen' and 'Inside In/Inside Out', but sadly lacking from material of their LP 'Junk of the Heart' (this reviewer's personal favourite). With only the title track from the album performed, it was the only disappoint of the night. |
An performance of 'Seaside' saw frontman Luke Pritchard perform solo acoustic, and was a clear stand out of the setlist. However, unsurprisingly it was the fan favourite 'Naive' at the end of the show that saw the biggest reaction from the crowd, ending the night on a blissful high, and sending everybody home with smiles on their faces.
Luke Sutton
Luke Sutton