A Wednesday night in Perth… torrential rain and a huge cold front crosses the coast… there is a live gig on… surely a recipe for poor ticket sales and night in front of the TV! But no, wait! It’s the Eagles of Death Metal with support from the equally entertaining Southern River Band AND it is the final night of the Australian tour. It’s time to party!
With over nine hundred music lovers braving the weather, tonight was an indirect battle of the front men. In the blue corner, our very own West Aussie Cal Kramer, whilst in the red corner EoDM had their own master of ceremonies, Jesse Hughes trying to wrestle the title off our WA prize fighter. There was only going to be one winner tonight… the punters. And we bathed in the glory as we were treated to a fantastic night of entertainment and top class music.
With the theatre now brimming and buzzing with excitement, Thornlie’s finest hit the stage to a rapturous applause before cranking it up to eleven. The usual Cal Kramer banter flowed, tunes were played and fun was had by all. This is a band at the top of their game, and with two nation tours supporting international legends The Darkness and now Eagles of Death Metal under their belts, the world really is an oyster for these guys.
Songs like the glam-inspired, Quo bouncer ‘Watch Yourself (You’re Gonna Hurt Somebody)’ is as good as anything you’ll here out there in the live arena, ‘Chasing After Love (I’ll Burn a Hole in Your Shoe)’ a really hooky rock ‘n’ roller and the punky ‘Cigarettes (Ain’t Helping Me None)’ show the band have grown since their debut album back in 2016. Latest single ‘The Streets Don’t Lie’ lifted the roof and I was sad to see SRB leave the stage. Energy, fun & smiles… that’s what it’s all about!
If that didn’t warm the room then I have no idea what would. But the house lights dimmed and Rocky Horror Picture Show classic ‘Time Warp’ bellowed from the sound system as Jesse Hughes entered stage left, draped in red cape covering his white pants, white boots, and white tee with striking red braces. The arena was now Hughes’s and we were his prey.
This was Jesse’s final time to shine and he wasn’t about to miss his opportunity on the last night of this sell-out Australian leg of the tour. Soon to be joined by the rest of the Eagles of Death Metal, tonight we were treated to some damn fine hard rock ‘n’ roll with a hint of punk and anarchy in the only way they know how.
The all-female rhythm section of bassist Jenny Vee (Courtney Love) and drummer Leah Bluestein kept the train well and truly on the tracks with some exceptional musicianship. The pacey ‘Got A Woman’ kicked things off and ensured we weren’t resting on our laurels after the excellent SRB.
‘I Only Want You’ continued just as the expectant crowd wanted it to as Hughes strutted left and right across his stage… and yes he very much made it just that. Guitarist Scott Shiflett led the riff overload that opened ‘Don’t Speak (I Came to Make a Bang!)’ before the first of the Reverend Hughes’s sermons filled the room and at the end of each we were encouraged to answer his shouts of “Amen” and “Can you dig it?”
Crashing through a seventeen song set in now mean feat but to do with conviction and energy made this an even more memorable night. ‘Cherry Cola’ continued to help the crowd to bounce and sway in unison before another sermon lead us into ‘I Love You All the Time’. “You can drink love. Give him a love glass. Pour a little bit in the bottom and say that’s all you gonna get? Hell, no. You can’t promise a twenty four hours a day, seven days a week kind of love and only show up on Monday or a Thursday. And that’s all you’re going to give him? Hell no. The way I love you is like this. I love you all the time. Can I hear an Amen?”
The set closed with an exceptional cover of Bowie’s ‘Moonage Daydream’ taken from their 2019 album ‘EODM Presents Boots Electric Performing The Best Songs We Never Wrote’. The band returned for a two song encore as Jesse told us he wasn’t finished just yet. ‘I Like To Move In The Night’ preceded an extended version of set closer ‘Speaking in Tongues’ with SRB’s Kramer returning to guitar dual with Shiflett, a dual that started with the Perth frontman appearing up by the sound desk before hitting the stage to finish the twelve minute axe-off, leaving the crowd breathless!
As the crowd left Astor Theatre still on a high from the musical extravaganza and Perth’s winter weather enveloped the departing throng, we were left with one final thought. Eagles of Death Metal, please don’t leave it another seven years before your return and for Australian music lovers, make sure you catch Southern River Band if they hit a town near yours.
Set List: Time Warp – Intro, Got a Woman, I Only Want You, Don’t Speak (I Came to Make a Bang!), Anything ‘Cept the Truth, Complexity (Boots Electric Cover), Silverlake (K.S.O.F.M.), Heart On, Secret Plans, Cherry Cola, Flames Go Higher, Now I’m a Fool, I Want You So Hard (Boy’s Bad News), Whorehoppin’ (Shit, Goddamn), I Love You All the Time, Moonage Daydream (David Bowie Cover)
Encore: I Like To Move In The Night, Speaking in Tongues (with Cal Kramer Guitar Duel)
GALLERY by Shotweiler Photography
Southern River Band
Eagles of Death Metal
