Review: MAMMAL - Live in Brisbane

3 Aug

Saturday 3rd August 2024
Written by: Tom Wilson
Photos by: Rashid AlKamraikhi >> SEE PHOTOS

The Penny Drops at The Brightside
w/ MAMMAL + HAMMERS + THE LONESOMES

We enter the venue just as the thundering bass of THE LONESOMES starts rattling the walls. A trio from the Gold Coast, they play spaced-out rock at approximately 1000db, and a brief run at the merch desk has to be conducted entirely with sign language. Thank god for earplugs.

Taking up position near the stage, SENSE bears witness to their set, and they are really, really good. With their drummer handling vocals, you can’t help but think of SPIDERBAIT’s Kram as you watch him hammering out drum patterns while his reverb-heavy vocals unfurl over The Brightside. THE LONESOMES have hit all three targets tonight. The songs are great, they’re great at playing them, and they seem to be having a terrific time playing together, even if that pesky kick drum keeps inching forward across the stage.

HAMMERS were one of the only bands I got to see in 2021, playing The Other Festival when the Brisbane music scene was struggling to open back up, and they’re just as good as I remember them. A well-oiled, foul-mouthed rock ‘n’ roll machine, they could get by on the strength of their banter alone, but fortunately they’re also bloody good at what they do. Suze and Cracker Night are sterling examples of Aussie rock, and frontman Fish takes a moment halfway through their set to keep the rest of the band topped up with beer. Clearly, these are blokes with their priorities in order. They drop a new track to stunning effect, and their debut LP is certainly going to be one to look out for.

The last time I saw MAMMAL was around 2008 at a festival in Tasmania, and watched frontman Ezekiel Ox jump into the crowd and run around the festival grounds, leading people to the front like the Pied Piper of rock ‘n’ roll. Now, fourteen years, two break ups and two reformations later, it’s time for a second helping, and they explode onstage with Moscow, the opening track off their absolutely stellar new album The Penny Drop. “Do you know where you are?” Ox screams, and from the reaction of the pit, yes, we do. He is soon in the crowd, trailing a mic cord behind him as he climbs up onto the first balcony and conducts the chaos.

Tonight is the first sold-out show on this run, so, they theorise, that makes Brisbane the best. We agree. The sweaty bedlam isn’t without its issues. There are problems with his mic, and they are compounded when Zeke enters the crowd and the cord is yanked, but just when it looks like he’s going to lose his shit, crisis is averted.

Later, when chatting to the crowd, Zeke apologises for breaking up. “It hurt you, and it hurt us too.” But, he assures us, they’re back for good, and they seem to be having a great time playing together tonight. The Penny Drop brings the set to a storming close, and after a brief backstage breather, they return, Zeke wearing the world’s loudest trackpants as he introduces Keanu Reeves. Ever the considerate bloke, he makes sure that the crowd is ready before launching himself onto the pit, and we hold him aloft as he screams his lungs out. A great set? Hell Yeah.