With a turnout that wasn’t too shabby for a Monday night, the masses rolled in nice and early to for some epic pre-show entertainment from Sydney psych-rockers Magic Machine. Easing us in with their soft vocals and funkadelic sound waves drifting through the Astor like a warm autumn breeze. Wrapping up the set with some solid surf rock it was definitely safe to say that all in attendance were warmed up and ready for the main attraction.
Walking out to purple haze lighting and thunderous applause, The Dandy Warhols wasted no time launching straight into fan favourite Not If You Were The Last Junkie On Earth before pumping out a healthy mix of songs from their broad (and at points genre bending) 30 year discography. With Courtney Taylor-Taylor delivering a vocal performance in only true Warhols style from beginning to end. Peter Holmström never straying too far from the amps Keith Richard’s style. Multi-instrumentalist Zia McCabe having no difficulty making the switch from keys to bass while making it quite clear that Perth is her favourite city (mainly sticking to keys for the duration of the set). While Indie drum prodigy Brent DeBoer kept the well oiled machine going without missing a single beat.
Exchanging some playful banter with some chatty patrons between songs, the show went on without a hitch, all against a backdrop of nothing more than a giant black drape. Not that this 90s powerhouse needed much in the way of a stage production to enhance or project their image and sound. Showcasing that they are truly the masters of their craft with a far-out instrumental in the final quarter. Coming into the final few songs, the band disappeared backstage, leaving Taylor-Taylor going into a rant about potties and communism while manning the stage by himself before the rest came back with Zia flexing her gymnastic ability with a couple of Cartwheels. Bringing it all to a close was Flushed Away classic, Bohemian Like You followed another spacey instrumental and to wrap it all up a goodnight song from Zia.
With the amount of raw power and energy given in the solid 100 minutes that they gave us, it is easy to see why The Dandy Warhols have not only stood the test of time, but are still able to draw a crowd. Even on a Monday night.
With thanks to Maric Media for the media access.
All Image Credit Shotweiler Photography
