Gig review: Pennywise + Fangz + Fake News at Tivoli, Brisbane

Live review: Pennywise + Fangz + Fake News at Tivoli, Brisbane, Tuesday, December 12 2023

By DAN SOUTHALL

WHAT a big two weeks of shows we have been lucky enough to have had in and around town, including the sold out Good Things festival just two days ago. I am starting to feel tired between GT, Sepultura and real life work, but here I am, like so many others, to back it up one last time with what is sure to be a great show.

Local lads Fake News are first up tonight and due to punter tiredness, they come out to a very thin crowd. Despite the small early numbers they throw everything they have at us with some great melodic punk in the same vein as tonight’s headliners. With an album and a couple of EPs up their sleeves, Fake News have plenty of great material to draw from and by the time they are done there is no one at the bar drowning the tiredness. They are all out on the floor checking the band out – and it was great to see.

Sydney band Fangz are up next and don’t give a fuck if you are tired. They are here to party and you join in, like it or not. Vocalist Josh’s high energy performance is contagious as he dances and moves on the stage, even managing to get a cartwheel in and at one time climbing the stairs to the balcony level just to slide down the banister while singing, just to show it could be done, the energy of the music driving him. I have caught this band once before and whilst tight, they were missing that something special that made this 40 minutes so good. If you haven’t checked out this band yet you need to, they might just be your next favourite hardcore band and you don’t know it yet.

What can be said about Pennywise that hasn’t been said before? Three huge shows at Good Things were just a warm up for them to start a national tour – and what a start it is. Famed for a voracious live energy, after opener “Fight Til You Die”Fletcher asks the lighting crew to dim the lights more to make for a backyard party atmosphere. From here the party just ignites, only slowing for banter between the band and the pit, including some playful fun-poking at the NOFX retirement plans. And as if to make sure you remember their punk rock cred they cover chunks of Descendants, Rancid, NOFX and Bad Religion. Still one of the best live bands touring and despite being at the sunset end of a great career, there is no sign of them slowing down.

Image: Brendan Delavere