LIVE REVIEW: ASH + NORTHERN LIGHTS @ THE TIVOLI 10/09/26
Words by Cecilia Pattison-Levi Photos Rod Fletcher
Ash cranked it! There’s something rather delightful about how much noise three people can make. The speakers were jumping. Guitars were played on microphone stands. There was talk of Livid – Silverchair, Garbage – remember that! And the band belted out one of the best albums written in the 1990s: Ash’s classic debut album ‘1977’. The crowd was full of 50-year-old “teenagers” reliving their youth. And it was unapologetically loud!
I must admit that I was a bit worried when the fans trickled in slowly to The Tivoli. There was a good crowd when the young alternative rock band from Ipswich, Northern Lights, came to the stage to start warming up the venue on a cool Thursday night in Brisbane.
Northern Lights started their set with ‘Dope Fiend’ and a song with “rainbows” mentioned in ‘Looking Down’. The band really hit their stride by the third song, ‘Doomsday Blues’, that was full of swampy and stompy blues-rock. Then, Northern Lights really broke the ice with the crowd when they performed a cover of Silverchair’s ‘Freak’ and it was great to hear that song live. It’s been a while!
Following that, Northern Light’s delivered their new single ‘Higher’, that has been on rotation with Triple J and gaining traction on 4ZZZ. Then, the five-piece Ipswich band of Dustin Schmidt, Angie Christie, Dane Petersen, Fraser Petersen and Logan Senjov performed a great rollicking song in ‘The Ecstasy & The Agony’. The song had great guitar riffs, a solo and a melody that had real swing.
The funniest song of Northern Lights’ set was the closer ‘Resignation’. It had a metalcore breakdown in it that had the hair flowing and heads-a-banging. The band threw everything in at the last minute. The bass player played his bass with a drumstick as a bow while he also hit the cymbals. There was added harmonica, tambourine and lovely vocals.
I would like to thank the band for the setlist and yes, I will keep it and treasure it as I was reliably told, “It’ll be something when we get famous.”
The stage was rapidly cleared. It was bare. Just one microphone stand, one drum-kit and a bass laying against a speaker. It was then that you realised the nature of these Northern Irish alternative rock and rollers: Ash is a three-piece band comprising of Tim Wheeler (vocals and guitar), Mark Hamilton (bass) and Rick McMurray (drums).
Ash’s debut album ‘1977’ was written at the height of grunge rock from 1994 to 1996 by three 17-year-old boys trying to finish Year 12. The album was released 30 years ago but it still holds that energy, noise, heat and drive of garage-rock. The album got its name from the year of their birth.
So, knowing that, the Star Wars sample (from 1977) that opens the record played as the band came onto the stage, and without much talking, Ash launched straight into ‘Lose Control’, the opening song on ‘1977’. The rapid-fire guitar ripped, but it was the bassline that controlled the rhythm as the wonderful ‘Goldfinger’ was delivered. It’s a visceral track, and a reminder that Ash were perhaps the UK’s only bonafide grunge band. It was followed by the huge fan favourite ‘Girl From Mars’. I was beginning to realise what a privilege it was to hear this album played live and in full track order.
Ash’s ‘1977’ was really a “no-skips” album and it even had a secret track, ‘Sick Party’. It was a 1990s thing! The songs ‘I’d Give You Anything’ and ‘Gone The Dream’ were up next before the huge song ‘Kung Fu’ ripped through the venue. It was ‘Oh Yeah’ as the songs came: ‘Let It Flow’, ‘Innocent Smile’ and the huge singalong of ‘Angel Interceptor’.
Then, Ash’s, Tim Wheeler told the crowd they had two songs left from the album as ‘Lost In You’ and then ‘Darkside Lightside’ followed. Ash had delivered ‘1977’ from beginning to end. It was joyous! The band left the stage for a quick breather before returning for set two.
What was truly astounding was how good Ash sounded. The album is just as amazing now as it was when it was released in 1996. Tim Wheeler made his guitar sing and squall. His speed on the strings was impressive, he also sang without a break or much chatter. Mark Hamilton was astonishing on bass: the moves and the thrumming rhythm. And Rick McMurray drove the whole thing from behind his kit with natural power and skill.
When Ash returned for set two, they kicked off with the barnstorming ‘Zarathustra’, as the band thrashed out the power chords. Then, ‘Fun People’ and ‘Ad Astra’ were performed and the crowd was brought back to the present in Ash’s world of 2025/26. Then, the hits from 30 years of music-making kept coming with ‘A Life Less Ordinary’, ‘Shining Light’ and the heavy pop of ‘Orpheus’ played.
Tim Wheeler addressed the crowd and introduced the band. He told us there were two more songs to come and that Ash would return to Brisbane – and “not be away so long.” Ash then performed an unexpected cover of Harry Belafonte’s ‘Jump in the Line’. Then, the end was here: the guitar, bass and drums delivered ‘Burn Baby Burn’. And it was a great ending. The band took a bow to the standing ovation from the very happy crowd as the song from Dirty Dancing ‘(‘I’ve Had) The Time of My Life’ by Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes played as Ash left the stage.
Ash had held the crowd in the palm of their hand all night. The band delivered a genuine set of pure, unadulterated rock ‘n’ roll with no gimmicks. Ash were iontach!
