LIVE REVIEW: TROUSDALE + LOVELOVELOVE + MY DAYDREAM @ CROWBAR 06/11/25

Words by Cecilia Pattison-Levi

It was acoustic music heaven when Trousdale brought their authentic version of music (written, recorded, produced and performed by the actual musicians) to The Crowbar for their first ever visit to Australia and their first concert here. They also brought along two Brisbane bands, My Daydream and LoveLoveLove who share their philosophy and practice that indie-music doesn’t need to be the same, but it does have to be real. And what a treat it was to hear unfiltered real voices, no backing tracks, just natural music performed with the minimum of fuss. Melodies, harmonies and songwriting ruled the night, and what a glorious sound it was.

The evening commenced with local band My Daydream. The band comprises of twin duo Kisna and Ashanti. My Daydream focus on writing and producing their own music, with a style that blends indie dream pop with their vocal harmonies. The duo noted that this performance was different for them, as it was an unusual acoustic set rather than their full band.

My Daydream kicked off the night with their acoustic guitars and original songs ‘Full Circle’ and followed up with ‘Further Down The Rabbit Hole’. Then, they played a great cover of Radiohead’s ‘Let Down’. My Daydream engaged with the crowd and explained their music and then treated everyone to their new unreleased ballad ‘Deer Hunting Season’.

The set from My Daydream was short, and it was a perfect taster of the band’s music and songwriting style. They closed out their set with a really good original song ‘I’m Still Searching’. The duo let the crowd know that the music video was out for the song as well.

There was a quick turnaround as acoustic guitars were swapped out for other acoustic guitars and a lovely pink electric guitar. Then, the duo that is LoveLoveLove took to The Crowbar’s stage.

Brisbane duo, Denis and James, are LoveLoveLove. They demonstrated great harmonic resonance in their stripped back set. LoveLoveLove opened strongly with ‘Valentine’. Their voices were strong, confident and the vocal interplay was really well done as they complemented each other. The duo played great original songs like ‘Sweater’, ‘Honeymoon’ and ‘Pisces’. Each song showed great structure and lovely lyrical melody lines, especially through the electric guitar tuning.

LoveLoveLove performed their new single ‘Talk’ that was based a very funny story about a holiday in New Caledonia that involved near death jet ski adventures, a dumped boyfriend, and credit card fraud. The strongest original songs were the textural, emotionally affecting ‘Half Life’ and ‘Ultraviolet’. The band took a risk with finishing their set with a cover of 5 Seconds Of Summer’s ‘She Looks So Perfect’. It is a great song and they performed a really strong version that had the crowd singing along – especially with all those post chorus ‘Hey-hey, hey-hey, hey-hey, hey’. LoveLoveLove demonstrated the do-it-yourself ethos of music. There was a lot to like in the duo’s songs and performance delivery.

Again, the changeover time was short, as acoustic was the word. Then, Trousdale brought their Growing Pains Tour to The Crowbar stage.

The LA-based trio Trousdale is comprises of Quinn D’Andrea, Georgia Greene, and Lauren Jones. They performed a set that was both musically tight, emotionally open and fun. The venue was packed with fans who knew every word of their two albums ‘Out Of Mind’ and ‘Growing Pains’ and their EPs.

Trousdale arrived on stage and opened with their blues stomping ‘Growing Pains’ and they immediately locked in the crowd’s attention and devotion. Trousdale’s musical chemistry was immediately on show and their harmonies were incredible. Every member took turns at lead vocals, but it’s their harmonies where the magic lives. They hit those vocal harmonic blends that most bands can only pull off in the studio, and by the second song ‘Over And Over’ their innate talent was showcased. It was so good! What a strong start to introducing your music to a curious crowd in a country far away from home.

Trousdale didn’t shy away from talking to the crowd between songs either, joking about their adventures with jet lag: “We left on Monday and then it was Wednesday”. There were stories about mandarins and muffins with Australian Border Force and those pesky rules around biosecurity and food. It was funny because every visitor to Australia gets freaked out.

The trio kept the vibe of the evening casual with stories, fun, laughter and music. They made The Crowbar feel like a living room full of friends rather than a gig. Trousdale performed songs for their fans, especially for Tom and Anna. Trousdale played for them their “only love song” ‘Movie Star’ as Tom and Anna had that song as the first dance at their wedding.

Trousdale are sharp songwriters, stellar performers, and were clearly having the time of their lives on the stage together. These skills were demonstrated in the songs ‘Point Your Finger’, the emotionally affecting ‘SecondHand Smoke’ and ‘Any Day Now’ as the crowd sang along. Then, the new and fun single ‘The Ick’ a song about the moment someone gives you the creeps out of nowhere was delivered. Judging by the singing and the cheers, everyone in the crowd could relate.

Trousdale, then, performed the introspective song ‘Lonely Night’. The song is about escaping depression and loneliness after a bad year. Trousdale’s voices delivered the emotional punch in the lyrics: “and it wasn’t my year last year, I barely made it out” that was part of the profound chorus. Then, the trio really put it on the line as they demonstrated their vocal skill on a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘The Chain’. It is a deceptively simple song but so hard to sing well. It is my favourite Fleetwood Mac song and Trousdale performed it so well. It was practically perfect!

It was fascinating to read Trousdale’s setlist as they changed their set to suit the crowd and venue. The songs ‘If You’re Hurting’ and ‘Wouldn’t Come Back’ were placed in and other great songs removed that showed their flexible approach to live performance. The trio stopped to explain their musical origins at the University of Southern California, their classes, the sexism in the music industry and how they have taken that journey to write, record, produce and perform their own original musical work. They should be congratulated on their bravery and abilities to deliver their vision.

It didn’t seem possible but the 13 songs of the regulation set were about to finish with the fantastic ‘Out Of My Mind’ from their debut album. The gig was so much fun, and I was so wrapped up in it, that time had just flown. At the end of the song, the trio left the stage.

Trousdale, then returned to the stage and gifted the crowd a two-song encore. It was so much fun! Trousdale were joined on stage by their friend, singer and songwriter, Ben Abraham. He admitted to just being in town “vibing”. He performed ‘Sometimes’ with the trio (while checking the lyrics on his phone for about 20 seconds). He was word perfect and his lovely vocals matched the song’s lyrical dynamics of on and off again lovers. It was so good. Then, Trousdale ended the gig with ‘thank yous’ to sound and stage crew (the venue did sound wonderful) and the openers.

Then, they delivered the heartbreaker of ‘If I’m Honest’. The trio launched into a three-part harmony and then stopped and taught the crowd how to sing that way: alto, soprano and the melody line. They split the crowd into thirds (one section for each member) and taught us the singing style. The crowd nailed it! Trousdale finished the song and the crowd were amazed and so happy.

It had been such a joyful night of music. I hope Trousdale hurry back to Brisbane soon.