LIVE REVIEW: FOXY SHAZAM + BIG RED FIRE TRUCK + WHITTS END @ THE TRIFFID 10/06/26
Words by Cecilia Pattison-Levi Photos Charlyn CameronI have to say that the unrelenting rain and poor weather conditions had me thinking twice about venturing out of home to attend this gig, but I had been so enjoying Foxy Shazam’s music that I battled through the heavy rain to get to The Triffid to see them. And I am so glad I did. What an amazing night of glam, soul, piano-rock, punk, disco-rock, operatic ferocity and theatre. It was sensory overload at the surreal and chaotic brilliance of Foxy Shazam’s performance.
In fact, the whole evening was amazing with three terrific bands, Whitt’s End, Big Red Fire Truck and Foxy Shazam delivering tight and different rock flavoured sets. As the lyrics in ‘Magic’ state: “There ain't no wrong way to rock and roll’ as “All is fair in love and rock and roll/ Every imperfection, every rejection”. The rock ‘n’ roll was punked, metalled and ballistic!
Foxy Shazam
The evening opened with Brisbane-based band Whitt’s End. The three-piece band fronted by brothers Saxon and Jarvis Whittaker delivered a high-energy and bouncy set.The first song was the melodic rock of ‘Corner Of My Eye’ and they followed it with ‘Times We Spent Together’. Whitt’s End performed a high-energy blend of pop, punk and rock with amazing guitar riffs and solos, a slapping bass and great drumming.
The new song ‘Save It For Another Day’ was performed well as it merged into ‘Swore To Myself’. The antics on stage from the band were great to watch as the lead guitarist executed backward rolls, jumped off the drum riser and wriggled all over the floor. Musically, Whitt’s End have a love of 1990s grunge, rock and punk. The references to Nirvana, Blink-182 and indie-rock culture were evident, and the combination sounded wonderful.
Foxy Shazam
Whitt’s Ends’ humour came through in the Mario-referencing ‘Impending Doom’ and ‘Ode To Music (It Doesn’t Matter)’. The band closed out the set with ‘Is This A Reality?’ and it was obvious that the band’s sense of fun and personality means that bigger stages will be calling for their melodious rock. And it won’t be long. Whitt’s End executed a fantastic opening set. There was lots of “following” on Spotify!
After a short break, the crowd were treated to another band, Sydney’s Big Red Fire Truck. There was a big symphonic introduction, followed by big guitars, big drums, big basslines, big melodies, big hair and big everything. From the VB shorts, the white fluffy jacket, wrestling looks, to the red lighting, Big Red Fire Truck lit up The Triffid.
Foxy Shazam
There was a declaration of “Let’s party” and the gig was on! Big Red Fire Truck: Digby Robinson (lead vocals/guitar), Nick Frazer (bass), Drew Suhr (guitar) and Cooper Hills (drums) opened their set with the incendiary and dynamic ‘Testarossa’. There was instant head banging as their heavy metal grooves bounced off the crowd and the walls. The songs ‘Heading For Disaster’ and their new song ‘Dance For Me’, that had its debut in Norway, had the crowd dancing along.
Big Red Fire Truck, then, addressed the crowd and talked about their song ‘Cravin’’ and their love of American glam metal band Warrant. The song had that flair and – yes, it had that subtle ‘Cherry Pie’ adjacent sonic style. With the “crack of a coldie”, the band launched into their first song they ever wrote in ‘Primal’. The drummer Cooper Hills was working so hard that he broke his snare drum. The band slayed on stage with rockin’ grooves andgroup chanting with ‘Psychotropic Thunder’ as “who doesn’t love Predator”.
Foxy Shazam
There was a sing-along with ‘Tokyo Karaoke Bar’ that was fun for the band and crowd. Big Red Fire Truck closed out their brilliant and fun set with ‘Trouble In Paradise’ as Digby Robinson put Drew Suhr on his shoulders as they both played guitar. It was mad and fabulous fun!
After the fun ended, and the beer was spilled to the music gods, the stage was stripped back and cleared. Water, set lists and lyrics were placed down. But all the instruments like trumpets and guitars were placed at the side of the stage. A keyboard stand was placed near the front but with no keyboard. Then, the crowd had a short wait before the controlled chaos began.
Foxy Shazam
It has been 15 years since Foxy Shazam performed in Brisbane at the Soundwave Festival 2011. And the loyal crowd were excited to see them. The current line-up of Eric Nally, Sky White, Alex Nauth, Misster Universe, Devin Williams and Teddy Aitkins took to the stage and absolutely smashed it with one of the most fearless rock performances I have seen. The physical and musical prowess of Foxy Shazam was stunning.
Foxy Shazam’s music has been riding a wave of late. The band has performed sold-out tours in the US, their music featured in ‘Superman’, their track ‘Oh Lord’ featured in ‘Peacemaker’ and a Foxy Shazam song opened each episode of the series. The band also closed out the second season of the show with a full Foxy Shazam live performance. It has been quite a ride for them and one the crowd wanted to take.
Foxy Shazam
Foxy Shazam delivered a blistering and manic performance like Energiser bunnies on speed. They kicked off with ‘Yes Yes Yes’ and the crowd were singing along from the first note. The intensity was undeniable. Then, they followed up with the divine rock of ‘Magic’. The band were ‘Killin’ It’ as they moved as one.
The piano melodies crashed into towering hooks as the keyboard was taken for a crowd surf. The drum and bass locked in the rhythm with precision as they anchored all the madness happening out front, as the lead singer bounced around like a superball. Guitar riffs tore through the mix while horns punched accents that felt like exclamation points.
Foxy Shazam
It takes a lot to genuinely stun and amaze me. Foxy Shazam did not just stun me, they overwhelmed me. The band’s energy did not stop, and I do mean, did not stop.
The band and the crowd went off when they performed ‘Oh Lord’. Then, the set got wilder when ‘Holy Touch’ was delivered next and ended with lead singer Eric Nally telling the crowd: “I want to touch you all – just not physically” before he jumped off the stage and gave the front row a high five.
The amazing part of Foxy Shazam’s music was theirhumour. It was out there both physically and lyrically.The songs ‘Dreamer’, and their new song ‘Only Love’ had that tongue-in-cheek lyrical fun. Then, the droll introduction to ‘Love Like This’ written by the drummer Teddy Aitkins was truly amusing. “It’s a song about love” – “What, another one!”. The band’s energy just kept increasing as ‘Ghost Animals’ was played. The energy level launched up again with ‘Rocketeer’.
I was wondering how the band members were sustaining their performance level. It was insane, exhausting and magical at the same time. The antics on stage were unhinged as they climbed into the crowd, or climbed onto their instruments, and somehow, they never missed a beat or vocal. Except for one little slip, but the recovery was so good!
Musically, Foxy Shazam falls in the ranks of Queen and The Darkness, as their catchy songs are real rock ‘n’ roll with added extras in those keys and trumpets. The band closed out the night with ‘Axe’ as every member of Foxy Shazam shone.
It was astonishing as the band just delivered and delivered the set never sagged. It was all killer and no filler. There was not even a polite breather. The crowd could never feel entirely comfortable either, as you were not sure what the band was going to launch at you next. But that was the point: Foxy Shazam are not background music. They are that band with the in-your-face musical performance art. So, freaking good!
I can say if you were not at this concert, you truly missed out!
