Pix by Marky B Photography
Due to my well documented propensity for running late, it was no surprise when I arrived at Brisbane’s Riverstage to find Shinedown’s road crew scurrying from stage in readiness for the American rock legends to grace Australian stages for the first time in 16 years. But what was a surprise was pretty much every one of the capacity crowd was seated watching the stage. There was even a sprinkling of tablecloth looking bits of fabric housing what might have been picnik items. It was a strange sight indeed for a rock show.
That quickly changed as Peter Gabriel‘s Sledgehammer reverberated around the open arena as Shinedown‘s unofficial mascot – the thoughtfully named TV Man – did his best to rouse the crowd but it was until the band – i.e Brent Smith – hit the stage running that the assmebled masses found full voice.
With little by way of introduction (the reasons for which will become clear shortly), Shinedown launched into opener Safe and Sound before a left/right of Devour and Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom) fired the opening shots – quite literally. The pyrotechnics were next level and a nice touch, but it was the assortment of smaller LED light at the rear of the stage that flashed a haphazard array of light and colour over the stage which really rammed the spectacle home.
It appeared the band was having a few sound issues at various points of the opening four or five songs, leading bass player Eric Bass to hurl his instrument towards the rear of stage at one point before sucking it up and strapping it back on without much sonic difference. By the time Shinedown reached 45 the issues had been – for the most part – smoothed over, with the song booming across Riverstage amid a chorus of punters who sang with almnost as much venom as Smith himself.
Taking a leaf out of Corey Taylor‘s book, Smith made the crowd split down the middle and take five steps to their respective left and rights, but what started out as sounding like an awkward attempt at a Wall Of Death actually turned into a bout of pleasantries as Smith urged everyone to turn to the person next to them and give them a warm handshake. He tried to add a touch of spice to the failed Wall by demanding everyone jump as Enemies kicked in but unfortunately for him the only frontman I have ever listened to in moments like that is Mr. Taylor and I still hold him making me jump against the entire Slipknot so forgive me Shinedown if I don’t fancy having to pick myself up off the tarmac after making a potentially fatal landing.
Another poignant moment came when the frontman urged the crowd – to a man – to take out their phones or lighters for the duration of A Symptom of Being Human, which was offset by a wave of flames from the rear of the stage coupled by flame effects and real fireballs bursting from somewhere above the band’s heads. My personal highlight was Shinedown‘s rendition of Leonard Skynard‘s Simple Man but the rest of the crowd voted unanimously against me with a commanding display of affection before, during and after set closer Sound Of Madness.
Quite a few fans were left disgruntled when Shinedown didn’t return to play some of their better known songs – particularly Second Chance – but rules are rules and bands only have an allotted time to man their moment of stage time so – as my Mother told me on countless occassions – “you get what you get and don’t get upset”.
The crowd got a bit restless during the changeover – and surprisingly a few even left for some reason – but from the moment the lights went down as Chris Traynor, Corey Britz, and Nik Hughes eased onto the stage a hushed sense of anticipation quickly settled the flow. The outpouring of emotion magnified exponentially as Gavin Rossdale glided into view and for the seventy – five minutes or so the Bush faithful were dealt a full house of fan favourites, starting with Everything Zen, Quicksand and The Chemicals Between Us. Even at this early stage I was pleasantly surprised that I knew every song so far, and that didn’t change much as Bush powered through The Land of Milk and Honey, The Sound of Winter and Ghosts in the Machine.
Perhaps made more aware of the time restraints due to the wave of discontent that followed Shinedown off stage, Bush wasted little time or energy with pleasantries until after May Your Love Be Pure when Rossdale took time out to exchange his current feelings of love and warmth for his fellow men and women before delivering an emotional eulogy of sorts to their recently deceased manager, PK. It was a fitting seguey into Glycerine, which also sent the crowd into raptures which in turn amplified the emotional message of the track.
That emotion reached boiling point when Rossdale left the sanctity of the stage and made his way into the crowd, hugging, greeting and high fiving as many of his startstruck fans as he had time for, before he noticed a young child sitting in the pit and watching the performance from his wheelchair. After shaking the boy’s hand Smith grasped it even tighter and sang directly into his eyes from a comfortable distance – a moment that exemplified all that is sacred about music and the bond shared between artist and fan. The boys Mother wasn’t the only person left with tears streaming down her face as Rossdale returned to stage and punched out I Beat Loneliness, bringing the set proper to a close.
But, unlike Shinedown, Bush had time up their sleeve and they returned for the trifecta of Machinehead, More Than Machines and Comedown, in the process imprinting themselves and their music even deeper into the collective hearts of Brisbane fans.
Was it a flawless performance by both bands? Not by a long stretch. But who needs or wants perfection? Live music is supposed to be dangerous and unhinged, and to have it any other way would be downright un-Australian….
Wednesday, 23 September 2026: Hordern Pavilion – Sydney, NSW
Friday, 25 September 2026: John Cain Arena – Melbourne, VIC
Sunday, 27 September 2026: Adelaide Entertainment Centre Theatre – Adelaide, SA
Tuesday, 29 September 2026: Perth HPC – Mt Claremont, WA
Tickets HERE
