LIVE REVIEW: HELMET + CHIMERS + SUPERNEW @ THE TIVOLI 18/04/26

Words by Cecilia Pattison-Lev Photos Charlyn Cameron

New York City heavy metal punk and noise rock pioneers Helmet returned to the Tivoli and brought their crushing guitar riffs, precision bassline grooves, and huge drums back to the stage. They also hosted Wollongong band Chimers and local Brisbane band Supernew.

The large crowd at the Tivoli were presented with three bands. None of the bands were particularly chatty, they were all completely focused on blasting through the sets at hand, and it was a night of mixed heavy rock, post-punk, noise rock, with sprinklings of garage rock and surf stomp, and maybe some jazz influences. The playlist that underscored the evening was a contrast, with the lush sounds of Soul and R&B legends like Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, The Supremes, and Otis Redding.

The evening started with the young four-piece band Supernew from Brisbane. The band had big drums, big basslines, and big driving guitar sound. What was even better, the band had three members who were singers. The lead singer had unique, deeper sounding vocals and was supported by the others to give the band a melodic sound. Supernew kicked off their set with ‘Exist In Times’.

From the start, Supernew had those big guitar melodies instantly out in front. The band then launched into their original songs ‘Already Know’, ‘On Empty’, ‘Young Kids’, and the melodic rock song ‘Saturday’ with added egg shaker. Supernew performed a tight 30-minute set and ended with two new original songs, one with spooky surf rock undertones, and ‘Static Forecast’ with those chiming guitars going off. The lead singer gave a funny sign-off, “Time is past / So bye from us”, and the other guitarist said “WTF was that?”. Supernew is a band worth watching, and I believe they are coming to play at Redcliffe, ‘Where We belong’ in June – see them there!

After some serious mucking around on the drum kit, more speakers going onto the stage, the Tivoli crowd got to see the second band Chimers.

The band from “The Gong” Chimers are a drums and guitar duo that makes music combining their love of noise pop, post-punk, garage rock, and surf stomp into a “jazz-like” 30-minute set that moved at a rapid pace with a few “Ta’s” spoken to break up the tracks. The band consists of Padraic Skehan (vocals, guitar) and Binx (drums, vocals), and they make a dynamic sound of discordant guitar, off-beat drum lines, and brash melodic vocals.

Chimers delivered original songs like ‘Gossip’ and the fabulous ‘Generator’. Then, they turned up the speaker amp dials all the way up to 11 to deliver ‘Glossary’, ‘Beasts’, ‘Timber’, and the energetic ‘People Listen (To The Radio)’.Their music was delivered with skill, Binx’s speed on the drum kit made all the preparation before the set make sense. She was a whirling dervish over the kit. They ended their set with ‘Red Chair’, and it was a fascinating demonstration of skill within their noisy and melodic garage rock.

The stage was redressed again. Speakers were removed, microphones were moved, setlists went down, and the instruments went through an extensive warm-up. The crowd’s anticipation built, and the heat and energy in the venue built up.

Aretha Franklin’s ‘Respect’ was playing, and the lights went down slightly, as Page Hamilton (guitar and vocals) just marched out on stage and grabbed his lovely red guitar and started to play. He cut such a commanding presence, and the lights immediately came back on. The crowd went nuts. Then, the rest of the band, Kyle Stevenson (drums), Dan Beeman (guitar), Dave Case (bass),joined him on stage. There was no chat. Helmet got straight down to business with ‘Role Model’ and was so completely focused on the job at hand as they delivered ‘So Long’ and ‘Renovation’.

The wall of sound reverberated around the Tivoli. The sonic wall that hit the crowd was immense. It was hard, heavy, and loud with a lot more melody than I remembered. Page Hamilton’s guitar work was exemplary as he skilfully worked the strings, the neck as his fingers raced over the strings to perform amazing riffs through ‘Exactly’, and ‘Wilma’.

The mosh in the centre of the venue got aggressive really quickly. The venue was bouncing. The crowd surfers got going and I thought the barrier might not hold, it was shaking, bending, and moving forward. I salute those people who were in the front at the barrier, tough night. The energy in the venue was huge. But the band just kept cool and calm, as they delivered the rush with maximum urgency to the appreciative crowd.

Helmet used breaks in their delivery which was smart. The second group of songs they performed were ‘Holiday’, ‘You Borrowed’, ‘Gun Fluf’, ‘Speechless’, and ‘Birth Defect’. These songs highlighted the band’s skills. Kyle Stevenson’s drumming was tight, as his mechanical timing underpinned the stop-start rhythm. The pairing with Dave Case’s basslines drove the low-end punch and groove-heavy foundation that allowed the guitars of Page Hamilton to shine even when it was played upside down,and Dan Beeman to nail his dense dissonant riff structures and provide stage energy with his dynamic moves. It was impressive!

Helmet is a band that let their music do the talking, as they followed with ‘Dislocated’, and ‘Bad Mood’, and that’s when I got wiped out by a crowd surfer. So, I took myself upstairs to watch for a while. The lighting of the stage in the Tivoli was beautiful as Helmet performed ‘Ironhead’, and ‘Milquetoast’. It was great to watch them from a higher position in those beautiful pink, purple lights.

The last four songs of the set ‘Crashing’, ‘Give It’, ‘Unsung’, and ‘Meantime’ were delivered by Helmet with passion and precision, and received with delight by the crowd. By this time, some very wet and exhausted people were lurching out of the mosh, seeking a seat and hydration after the crush on the floor. But no matter where you were in the venue, you could hear and feel the vibration of Helmet’s angular riffs and staccato dynamics. The bassline thrum vibrations could be felt through thecouch cushions, it was a thing!

It was amazing to see and hear Helmet,and the band is at the top of their game. Their adrenaline-filled set was full of “fire in the belly” with their dense and muscular music.Their performance was tight and disciplined, their songs had melodic weight, and their career impact on live performance was so notable, this band just loves jamming out! The fans loved Helmet for this superb concert experience.