Juanita Stein had a simple request for her bandmates. “Don’t fuck this up”, she joked, before the Australian group played a song from their new album for only the second time ever. You could understand the concern, however lightly it was expressed. These are still early days in the band’s reformation, with this year’s “Strange Days” offering the first material in 11 years.
Hence the trio, augmented to a foursome here, were back in what Stein called a home away from home – the cramped surroundings of King Tut’s. It is a familiar haunt for the group, while also indicative of the fact that despite decent amounts of critical acclaim and the odd big support slot with the likes of Coldplay, they never really encroached on the mainstream like some of their contemporaries of the mid 2000s.
Thankfully, some other things have not changed since the group drifted into a lengthy hiatus over a decade ago, save for a small run of 2022 shows revisiting their debut album. Most notably the diminutive Stein has a considerable voice that is a fantastic weapon, capable of bristling with fury, as on thumping garage rocker “Sacred Land” or swaying with wistfulness, evidenced by the breezy country-pop strum of “Melbourne”.
The fresh songs from “Strange Days” leaned more towards dreamy, hazy pop than before, but the components all felt familiar, with muscular rhythm from cowboy hat wearing drummer Glenn Moule and bassist Jimi Wheelwright and expansive guitar from Juanita and her brother Joel. They did not hang about either, most songs whipping by in about three minutes throughout a sharp hour long set.
Such brevity did not always work. A track like the 90s alt rock flavoured “Angel” – the aforementioned number that prompted the call not to mess it up – felt a little disposable , and although “Looking Glass” offered something longer, its whirling fairground pop never convinced enough. Whether this is due to the songs themselves or the group finding their feet in playing them live is a question to be answered in time.
Ironically, it was old track “Nightingale” that tripped them up, with a false start leading to a sheepish if cheerful restart. The hand-clap led tune also felt a little too upbeat, as there is something more satisfying when they embrace a darker side. That was true of most of the stand-outs from the back catalogue. There was a brooding nature to “Cities Burning Down” and a Gothic hue enveloping “Blessed Night”, the night’s opener that came from their 2006 debut.
That record also provided the evening’s closer – the dynamic indie riff of “Low Happening”, a song of wiry tension and pummelling release. It was the most rousing moment of the show, but a strong closing run – from the chugging, defiant rock of “The Night Is Young” to the brashness of punky newbie “Sweet Relief” and a cover of Neil Diamond’s “ Girl, You’ll Be A Woman Soon” that possessed enough twang to make Hank Marvin envious, was proof why this is a welcome return.
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