Words and pix by Donna Lunan
Hailing from Byron Bay, the mighty prog rock band COG has been creating music for the past two decades and don’t seem to be slowing down; in fact they are only becoming bigger and better and, in more demand, than ever.
Originally forming in 1998 in Sydney, drummer Lucius Borich and his high schoolmate, Flynn Gower (singer and guitarist), recruited Flynn’s brother Luke Gower to play bass. Flash forward to now and in celebration of COG regaining the rights in January last year for all their music off the first two albums The New Normal (2005) and Sharing Space (2008), both albums and the compilation of their first 2 EPs Titled Just Visiting, were all released on vinyl.
COG’s Vinyl tour saw them tour the country earlier this year, with packed shows and rave reviews and by popular demand sees the band back on the road this October and November with their The Vinyl Tour Continued, playing the regional leg of the tour.
I had the pleasure of attending one of these shows last Saturday night in their hometown (and mine) of Byron Bay at the iconic Backroom at The Hotel Great Northern, supported by Melbourne punk/rock band Captives, and local Byron Bay Psychedelic surf rockers the Sea Benz. Not only was the show sold out, but punters were also queuing outside even after the gig had started, begging for tickets, which proves COG are still very popular and with all age groups.
The first band to take to the stage was Captives, hailing from Melbourne, the five piece punk/rock band released their self-titled debut EP in 2013 and the follow up Butterflies, Diamonds and Lightning EP the year after, Captives first single Insomnia became one of the top Fifty most played songs on Triple J Unearthed radio in that year. Since then, they have been quite busy in the studio releasing more music and have had a hectic touring schedule, including a run of successful overseas shows. Playing their first ever show in Byron Bay, Captives set the tone for the evening, bringing high-octane energy, heavy guitar riffs and pure rock vocals. The audience loved them and are highly recommended if you get to a gig-you will not be disappointed.
The second support were Byron Bay Local three-piece The Sea Benz. The trio formed their own style of Psychedelic Surf Rock, after years of experience being part of other Australian musical acts including Alex Lloyd, The John Butler Trio, Bernard Fanning, and Pete Murray.
With Alex McLeod on guitar, Grant Gerathy on drums and Mike Mills playing bass, the instrumental group recorded their debut album Tremors in 2022 over two days and mixed over the following week. The Sea Benz captivated the crowd, with their tight and flawless set, some remarking of the “Zappa” inspired sounds.
Next the lights went dark, and the crowd swelled as it neared time for the Mighty COG to grace the stage. Lucius Borich, the extremely talented drummer (and backing vocals), and brothers Luke (bass, backing vocals) and Flynn Gower the guitarist and lead singer, were pumped as they took to the stage and engaged with the crowd saying it was great to be back home playing, to the people who have supported them throughout their journey and the room erupted – and it was electrifying.
The first song, Real Life, got the crowd pumped up, and it only got better. Are You Interested, Anarchy Ok, Swamp were to follow, then after a quick breather, Lucius took to the mic too once again thank everyone, the crowd chanted “IN COG WE TRUST” and screamed with anticipation as too was to follow.
The band starting the opening chords to Sharing Space, and the crowd went wild, What If? was next, The Spine is always a favorite, Charades, The Town of Lincoln was a crowd favourite. Run started off with the crowd singing and by the end, there were a few fans crowd surfing, this continued with My Enemy and everyone singing along, and by COG’s final two songs for the evening Bird of Feather and Problem Reaction Solution the crowd didn’t want them to stop. The punters left with rave reviews and can’t wait until the next gig.
IN COG WE TRUST.
jh
