LIVE REVIEW: MAXIMO PARK + FLAMINGO BLONDE @ THE TRIFFID 29/04/26

20th Anniversary 'A Certain Trigger' Australian Tour

Words by Cecilia Pattison-Levi Photos Steph Ure

It was a rainy evening as the growing crowd arrived at The Triffid to see the English Newcastle-based indie rock band Maxïmo Park turn back time with an energetic set celebrating their debut album, ‘ACertain Trigger’. They had asked local Brisbane band Flamingo Blonde along to warm up the crowd with a set of new songs, and songs from their EP ‘Two Trick Pony’.

Flamingo Blonde opened the evening with a seven-song set that had violins and soft-spoken dialogue in electronica grooves that merged into the dominant melodic guitar rock. The band played songs ‘On Your Side’, ‘Shy Away’, with sounds of steel drums echoing in the mix, and ‘Lightening McQueen’. They warmed the quickly-building crowd with their infectious indie guitar rock. The band stopped to address the crowd and thank people for going out early, someone in the crowd yelled out, “Who are you?”

Flamingo Blonde aka James Bartlett said, “We are Flamingo Blonde, Flamingo Blonde, Flamingo Blonde. Now, I won’t say it f@#kin’ again. We are going to play some new ‘local’ songs now”. He and his band of musicians on keys, drums, and punched out songs about Brisbane in ‘New Casino’, and ‘Picture Me Gone’. The last song of the set was ‘Worm Hook’, where the eclectic electronic synths were dominant in the instrumentation.

There were some great melodies shining through Flamingo Blonde’s set. The crowd had swelled in the last two songs. Everyone thanked Flamingo Blonde as they left the stage. Then, a huge redressing of the stage took place.

Drum kits, speakers (so many speakers) were packed away under the stage, as the stagehands played Tetris in stacking the instruments away and trying not to hurt themselves. A finger was injured. The bare stage was ready for Maxïmo Park,as the water bottles and setlists went down on the floor.

The concert tonight was a celebration. Maxïmo Park have returned to Brisbane after a 14-year absence, and it was also an epic birthday bash as their debut album ‘A Certain Trigger’ is now 21 years old.The band, Duncan Lloyd (guitar), Tom English (drums) with Andrew Lowther (bass), and Jemma Freese (keyboards) came onto the stage first. Paul Smith (vocals) waited on the side of the stage to make a grand entrance with his trademarked Trilby hat set to rakish and his suit trouser tight, as he took straight to the microphone and started their 21-song set with the first song from their debut album ‘Signal And Sign’.

The band moved quickly into ‘Graffiti’ and ‘Postcard Of A Painting’, and the crowd was in full voice singing along, and the energy in the venue was building. Paul Smith leapt and high-kicked throughout the song. It was evident from the beginning that this celebration, or as Paul Smith said when the band addressed the crowd, “birthday party”, was not going to be a dud. The energy in the room was high as Maxïmo Park charmed the crowd, and when ‘Our Velocity’ was performed, the whole place was dancing along with the band.

Then, Maxïmo Park gave us coastal vibes with ‘Leave This Island’, and ‘The Coast Is Always Changing’. Then, the crowd really got revved up with ‘The Night I Lost My Head’, and there were a few jokes about those types of nights. Paul Smith made time between the songs to chat to the crowd. He was so engaging as he provided a history of the band (now 24 years strong), the twenty years with “gender neutral” ‘A Certain Trigger’, and the history of the single with its A and B sides. Then, the special B side song ‘Fear Of Falling’ was performed.

Maxïmo Park then really got a run on with the songs as they delivered ‘Questing, Not Coasting’, ‘Once, A Glimpse’, and ‘Favourite Songs’. Then, a fan in the crowd cried out for the band to play ‘Unshockable’, and Paul Smith laughed and said, “It would be shockable if we could play it without practice”. But the band played the first two lines or “3%” of it.

Maxïmo Park were extremely tight musically. The guitarist Duncan Lloyd’s guitar work was outstanding, especially as he controlled the melodic and surfer guitar sounds. Jemma Freese on the keys was fabulous with the sound she produced, and her complementary dance moves. Paul Smith was the consummate frontman with his charisma and exuberant energy.

The middle of the set had the songs ‘I Want You To Stay’, and the rock ballad ‘Versions Of You.’ Then, the huge fan favourite hits were delivered with a ruckus ‘The National Health’ exploding from the stage into the venue with many high kicks. Then, the classic ‘Girls Who Play Guitars’ was a huge crowd singalong that saw enthusiastic dancing from Paul Smith and Jemma Freese on stage.

The last three songs of the regulation set were performed. The cheeky ‘Kiss You Better’ had the crowd singing along before Maxïmo Park merged that song into ‘Limassol’, and took the crowd’s excitement up a notch. The crowd had moved into peak excitement mode. Paul Smith thanked everyone involved in getting the band to Brisbane, the crowd, and the staff at The Triffid.

It was time for the final song, and ‘Apply Some Pressure’ rang out. It is such a banger! Paul Smith leapt and scissor kicked his way through the song. And when it finished, the band said good night and left the stage. But the zealous crowd was not going to let Maxïmo Park get away without an encore.

The “one more song” chant echoed across The Triffid. Maxïmo Park returned to the stage quickly, and the electronic synths announced ‘Acrobat’. The crowd was rapturous. Then, the fabulous ‘Books From Boxes’ was delivered. The set was closed out with ‘Going Missing’. The crowd’s response to the gig was so powerful and grateful. The band linked arms and took a bow together.

Then, Paul Smith was left standing on the stage alone, taking in the adoring crowd. He seemed taken aback, in a good way. He stated that “It is amazing, that people here could be so engaged with our music. We won’t be so long away, we will hurry back”. He expressed his gratitude to the crowd before he left with a jump of the drum riser.

It had been a wonderful night getting reacquainted with Maxïmo Park’s debut album with its jagged riffs and angsty yelps. The band played a blinder, and their newer songs shone, and were so good to hear live. I also think they sound better now than back then, years of practice. I hope they hurry back to Brisbane as they are a band that should not be missed.