Photo by @jack.gobbe
As the line into the Fortitude Music Hall snakes through the main strip of Fortitude Valley, punters sport their vintage denim and beaten leather, perhaps reliving their own nightlife memories in their old stomping grounds. The essence of Grinspoon’s tour captured this exact feeling, treating fans new and old alike to a trip down memory lane, if that lane went straight into a 2002 Big Day Out moshpit.
This exact energy was channelled by a diverse trio of opening acts, from the frolicking and heartfelt tunes of Bugs, to the coastal punk of The Gooch Palms all the way to the fist-pumping Hard Aches. As the stage curtain dropped to finally reveal Grinspoon, the Lismore quartet was met with a deafening roar, with frontman Phil Jamieson’s greeting drowned out by the audible anticipation of punters.
Photo by @jack.gobbe
The crowd’s rampant bellow was pierced by the razor-sharp intro to ‘DC x 3’, kicking off a raging opening suite that saw the likes of ‘Lost Control’ and ‘Just Ace’ prove that the boys possess the exact same ferocity as they did a decade prior. An early inclusion of ‘SickFest’ was a heavy nod to their roots, being both the first song they wrote and the very song that won them Triple J’s first Unearthed comp in 1995 and led them down their successful music career.
If anyone thought that age had got the best of Grinspoon they only had to see a track like ‘Black Friday’ or ‘Ready 1’, fan favs that were met with the exact same excitement as the band themselves. The same punters who lined up before the show were now found crowd surfing, the soundtrack of their younger years propelling their enthused bodies into the arms of their music brethren.
A beloved cover of INXS’ ‘Don’t Change’ furthered the love between punters, heads swaying in unison as one set of Aussie legends honour another. With fans still riding a high from one of the finest fusions of Aussie rock, the all-too-familiar intro to Chemical Heart began. While the song found controversy upon its 2002 release for its detour from the group’s beloved grunge sound, you’d struggle to find a slither of disappointment in the crowd as the band and punters alike sing one of the finest Australian rock songs.
Photo by @jack.gobbe
Where ‘Don’t Change’ and ‘Chemical Heart’ found everyone holding each other, ‘Champion’ kicked things right back into gear, Jamieson’s sardonic lyrics erupting the crowd into the kind of frenzy that is only found in an encore. Subsequent and final song ‘More Than You Are’ followed through, its rushing guitars and raging vocals getting every last headbang out of every punter. Closing the set on a song from their first EP felt fitting, depicting Grinspoon as a band wholly aware of their legacy. While many expected the ballad of ‘Chemical Heart’ to end the night, Grinspoon went out just as they rocked up – kicking and screaming.
