Review by Jimmy Glinster
Pix by Squirty G
For once in our lives, Krispy and I both arrived on time to the show, well at least for the Jets.
We completely missed the opening act, whoever the fuck they were, but Krispy caught a glimpse of some shirtless bloke onstage. And no, it wasn’t Skenie, he piked out to catch a Gold Class screening of Barbie.
That’s probably stretching the truth a bit, but as usual I’m here for comic value even if you don’t think I’m anywhere near as funny as I fucking do.
Now that we’ve got the laughs out of the way, I should probably mention that this place is fucking packed, and it’s only 9pm. And yes, it’s a bit early for this kind of carry on, but I’m a little excited to say the least, and so are a few hundred more peeps behind me as the lights dim and a digitally glitching spoken word intro powers through the front of house.
The band enters the stage as the intro track becomes increasingly chaotic as Dave Gleeson enters side of stage on an elevated platform. Very shortly after the guitars kick in and the band launch into Needle. One track in and this place is already rocking hard to a very loud and appreciative crowd.
I’d tell ya the name of the second track, but to be 100% honest, as much as I admire this band, I don’t know the names of too many of their tracks. Yeah, I’m literally that Nirvana shirt-wearing hipster right now. Do song names even matter when you’re rocking as hard as this bunch of seasoned veterans though? And while we are talking about veterans, there’s a heavy presence of salt and pepper across the receding hairlines of the crowd, and my beard.
Dave takes a minute to throw a shout-out to the vale and promises a set full of The Screaming Jets back catalogue favourites before announcing that a new album is due for release in October. They quickly kick into Otherside which although a slightly slower-paced track still has the crowd rocking away. All of a sudden the stage blacks out and the PA silences and just us we are all starting to wonder what the fuck is going on they kick back in full blast.
Tricky old bastards they are!
The pace picks up again with Automatic Cowboy and it’s hard rocking bounce and groove. The bass line is bone-rattling as it keeps the guitars and drums tight and honest. Another track rocks us hard, and then we hear some talk about Larry Emdur, Tony Barber and a few other irrelevant TV game show hosts. Fuck knows what that was all about.
A couple more songs pass that I also don’t know the names of, but I’m sure the crowd does as they sing along to every word, including a weird one about Tasmania. Next thing I know there’s some talk about politics and the greatest pussy grabbing president ever. Some laughs ensue.
I really fucking wish I knew the names of some of these songs, or if Dave could take a second to tell me because I have no idea what the fuck we are all rocking out to at the moment. Oh, wait just one second, I know this one, it’s called Shivers, and yes, it’s sending a permanent shiver down my spine. I’m definitely not feeling weary though, it’s only fucking twenty to ten. Who am I trying to fool, it’s after 8pm, I’m yawning and was ready for bed at least an hour and a half ago.
I take a second to get a breath of fresh air and as I walk outside, I inhale a lung full of 50 or so punters filthy cigarette smoke. I can say that now as a holier than thou reformed smoker.
I quickly realise my error and run back inside to hear another song I know which is something about the Eve of Destruction. That might even be the name of it, but I can neither confirm nor deny. Either way, the crowd seems excited about it all.
I have no idea what the next song is called, and I’m starting to hope that someone gives me a fucking set list so that I don’t sound so much like a clueless twat. All I know about the next few songs is that there was something about Whoa oh, oh, ohs.
Alright then, it’s time for that song. The one that I even know, the one with that super catchy guitar riff at the start. Don’t you know that I know better … you fucking should by now. I even know the majority of the words to this one, as does the crowd and they sing it loud enough that Dave doesn’t even need to and as the band completely stops, they prove my point. Skip to that quick rocking guitar solo in the outro and the songs over! Not before some epic drum fills and ya standard end of song shred fuckery.
For a minute there I thought it was all over, but then we get schooled on the use of the C- Word on the first date. This may have been a reference to an expletive or possibly something to do with the next song and not changing a thing. I slip in a little more centre to the stage and soon get pushed out of the way by some 4-ft tall old chook with a bad attitude. It’s not my fucking fault she was vertically challenged, and I’ve got a fucking job to do.
The next track is a bit more modern sounding and may or may not be a new one. I have no idea to be honest, but the bass line is thumping and the bands a fuckin rocking. I could be right though because no one seems to know the words, not even the old angry mega fan.
The following track had a few people singing along and a classic clap-along section in the middle. I’d clap along too if I could hold a beat. All of a sudden, the song becomes about Kyle Sandilands being a fat rich cunt which everyone seems to agree with and quite eagerly participates in a chant of said statement.
Now that the crowds finished giving them a Helping Hand it appears to be time for the show to wrap up as they kick into that other song of theirs that everyone knows, including me.
Then the bastards tricked me again by walking off the stage as if they’d finished. Then they come back out and do one of those encore things with a new track called Nothing to Lose. It’s a bit of a fucking banger, and I’m pretty quickly getting very fucking excited about the new album. Apparently, it’s the first time ever for that song.
It’s not over yet though, it’s time for one last rocking good time which Krispy advises me is called “I like Pork Chops”. As much as I trust the dodgy bastard, I’m gonna guess that’s not the actual name of the song. If I manage to grab a set list I’ll let ya know about that one, and all the other ones.
Aussie Rock Royalty at their fucking finest!
