Words by Simon Russell-White
Pix by JD Punisher Photography
Another balmy Friday night in Southeast Queensland made for a cruisey drive to the Gold Coast from ye old Brisbane town. Aside from the obvious being the weather, flora, fauna, infrastructure and diversity, as Queenslanders, I feel I can speak on behalf of the lovers of live music in saying that we are very fortunate when it comes to music venues, with tonight’s venue being no exception!
If you haven’t been to Mo’s Desert Clubhouse, Burleigh Heads, I recommend looking at your local gig guide and circling a gig to attend as soon as you can! As Dennis Denuto once said during one of the many courtroom scenes in the Aussie classic The Castle “it’s the vibe of the thing”, with Mo’s being exactly that, and as of last week the owners of said venue added an almighty air conditioning system that saw the old wall fans be decommissioned and pedestal fans put in the broom cupboard, how good is it you ask, this venue is better than ever!
With the temperature control now in full swing, the Gold Coast’s own two-piece Cakes kicked things off, taking full advantage of said control by delivering the contrary, being a blistering set!
It’ll never cease to amaze (me) the tone Jake (guitarist/vocals) manages to produce from his wall of amps on stage, yes, it’s grandiose, yes, it’s intense, but my goodness does it sound incredible! Coupled with a complementing array of vocals throughout and drummer/vocals Sam holding a tempo and beat that would make Neil Peart (Rush) proud, Cakes scorched the opening slot tonight.
For me, closing track ILL was the standout, aside from the controlled punishment of Sam’s ride cymbal, which added as a visual and much as it did a soundscape for the intensity on stage. The energy on this track reached fever pitch, and for those immersed in it, including myself, we truly felt it.
Hailing from Bellarine Peninsula near Geelong, Victoria and having joined the Cosmic Psychos for the entire I Really Like Beer Tour, next up, we were treated to another two-piece, young guns, Good Sniff.
As far as music equipment goes, you would be respectfully misled into thinking Good Sniff is a rhythm heavy (only) outfit, with a drummer/vocals and a bassist/vocals together intertwining their sound with only the aforementioned instruments. From the first note, it was abundantly clear that the bassist was running all sorts of effects to cater for and fill both spots for guitar and bass on stage, and jeez, it sounded cool and filled the room with some real ear candy!
Between songs, the drummer introduced the band and what part of Victoria they call home. Mentioning how hot it was in Queensland tonight, making for a few giggles in the crowd, as it was shared knowledge it had been up to 45° in Victoria earlier today.
Nothing like travelling to Qld for a ‘cool change’ insert winky face here.
Before I continue, from all of us at HEAVY our hearts go out to all those affected by the insane fires that still burn in Central and Eastern Victoria. Such deep sadness and sorrow has (again) gripped the state; our sincere condolences to all.
There’s an infectious energy that Good Sniff delivers, they’re the kind of band that makes you wonder where the time went as their set seemed to fly by, that being a compliment to their songs and natural way to entertain and keep us punters paying attention. It’s no wonder they were given the opportunity to support our national treasure, the Cosmic Psychos.
It’s been a minute since I have had the privilege of seeing the one and only Cosmic Psychos in a smaller capacity venue, and for the 20+ years I’ve been going to see the trio play live, one thing that has always been clear is the following….
If a band of fellas could ever come off being a punters equal/ being “just like us”, then it’s Ross Knight aka Knighty (bass/vocals) and John “Mad Macka” McKeering (guitar/vocals).
If the boys read this, I’d imagine they’d snarl at the reviewer (me) even taking the time to point this out, but there’s purposeful reason for it as it’s part of the essence of the Cosmic Psychos who are (and have always been) cool, calm collected and ‘likers’ of all the simple things in life, one being a feature for this tour cycle, that being BEER!!!
With drummer BC Michael Marks of Dune Rats on drum duties, tonight’s openers Pub and Nice Day to go to the Pub are a fitting themed beginning for this I Really Like Beer Tour set list. In true Cosmic Psychos style, it was no frills balls to the wall rock and roll fury from the get-go and with BC on drums, things are a little more peppery than previous shows I’ve attended, this being a bloody good and welcome addition in my opinion.
There are few words between songs from the boys tonight, instead the constant anthems we’ve all grown to love keep being dished out and with a crowd age range of (my guess) 25 to 70 a lot of us were lucky enough to in fact grow up listening to songs being performed like Rip ‘n’ Dig, Dead in a Ditch and a clear crowd favourite from the 1991 album Blokes You Can Trust track Dead Roo.
Keeping the torch alight, and proving the boys are showing no signs of slowing down, is a newer standout track 10 Can Trip and (sorta) title track from the band’s latest offering, 2025’s I Really Like Beer album – the track, I Really Really Really Like Beer – had the crowd raising their beers like beverage-wielding foot soldiers.
Closing with a classic tracks’ trifecta, Fuckwit City, Lost Cause, and David Lee Roth, our rock and roll pallets had been satisfied and washed down with the very impressive Cosmic Psychos‘ own (on tap) beer! Jeez that was a tasty drop!
Cheers and Beers, everyone!
