What a pairing and what a night this will be. Two bands that took on the 90’s together on the same bill. So this very full venue is excited and ready for a night of songs we all grew up with and have become a part of our lives.
Live take the stage and as the spotlight hits Ed he starts the opener ‘Hold Me Up’ and they sound great, and as the drums crash out the opener they waste no time going into ‘All Over You’ and with some early crowd participation it’s always great to feel like that younger version of me hearing this for the first time and that breakdown and key change get me every time. Then as that all but familiar bend of the guitar string opens ‘Selling The Drama’ this is great. This is a nostalgia overload and I’m here for it!!! Side note Ed tells us today is the Hordern’s 100th birthday. That rules. Ok back to ‘Freaks’ and as this slower groove hits that chorus and I’m happy. Let’s go back to Throwing Copper again with the brilliant ‘Shit Towne’ followed by the even more brilliant ‘Run To The Water’ which is easily one of my favourite Live tracks. That was so awesome to hear again after the band not being here for so long. Then as Ed stays solo on stage he leads us into ‘The Dolphins Cry’ and it was as awesome as you’d want. Ok a new song… always dangerous but ‘Leave The Radio On’ hits us with a country twang and then back into it with ‘Turn My Head’ which was a nice treat and chilled out before we groove things back up with ‘White, Discussion’ which rocked big time before the band rings and it sounds like what could be one of my other faves next… yep it is! ‘Lakini’s Juice’ and that riff hits every time. That song was born to be played live and they did it well. They take a breather and as some peaceful music plays they return to of course give us the bangers to finish the set. First up is ‘I Alone’ the one that truly grabbed me and made me a Live fan and the sea of phones being held aloft says that many others feel the same! Introducing the band and of course closing with ‘Lightning Crashes’ there was no other way they could close the set. Even more phones come out to capture the one that really took the band to that next level in the mid 90’s. What a set that was!
It’s time for Incubus and bathed in blue light they come on stage and start things off with ‘Quicksand’ which was a nice chilled way to get things going. The record scratches and things explode as ‘Nice To Know You’ kicks in and what a way to really set things up. They hit us with another hit as ‘Anna Molly’ takes its place nice and early and stops to get someone fighting out and then back into it with no pauses and it’s so damn good. It’s so hard to put Incubus into a category and that’s such a good place to be. I love their sound and they do it so well. Bang bang two big ones in a row and that was awesome. ‘Stellar’ is a monster and had the crowd singing along and ‘Sick Sad Little World’ is as manic as it is brilliant and how these guys keep up with these changes is awesome and it gets all kinds of trippy. That was insanely good, as was ‘Circles’ which was loud and heavy and I’m completely ok with that. Damn these guys are good. ‘The Warmth’ continues the goodness and the groove, then ‘Pardon Me’ gets things going again with the crowd loving this one, then bass player Nicole takes vocals on ‘Karma, Come Back’ which is a slower groove and very Beatles-esque at times and I dig it. Oh ha ha and here’s the Beatles song it sounded like, ‘Come Together’ and it suits this band perfectly. So the question ‘Are You In?’ can be a dangerous one but in terms of songs it’s a great one. This song is a mood, it’s one you can’t help but just move to and it sounds great live here tonight. Throwing in a little Doors mid song with some ‘Riders on The Storm’ before closing out ‘Are You In?’ and the answer is yes.
‘Vitamin’ gets things rockin’ again complete with Brandon taking on percussion in an almost mid song drum solo before an unexpected cover of Portisehead’s ‘Glory Box’ which they did really well. ‘Echo’ slows things down again to that mid tempo groove. Then up next I’m so glad this one made it in, ‘Megalomaniac’ is such a killer track and it gets a whole lotta psychedelic in the middle before they smash it out to end. It’s a massive drum intro and time for another cover and this time it’s David Bowie’s ‘Let’s Dance’ and that was fun! With surely only a couple to go, an acoustic comes out and it’s of course time for ‘Drive’ and we all know it and love it as made evident by the way everyone shouted the lyrics back to the stage! Lucky last they hit us with ‘Wish You Were Here’ and those that weren’t I truly wish you were here and tonight was a whole lot of nostalgic fun.
What a night and what a pairing. Two juggernauts of their time showed that this many years on they can both still deliver, and those that came out in droves would most definitely agree.
Essential Information
Venue: The Hordern Pavilion
Date: April 10, 2024
Presented by: Face To Face
Live Set List:
Hold Me Up
All Over You
Selling The Drama
Freaks
Shit Towne
Run To The Water
The Dolphins Cry
Leave The Radio On
Turn My Head
White, Discussion
Lakini’s Juice
I Alone
Lightning Crashes
Incubus Set List:
Quicksand
Nice To Know You
Anna Molly
Stellar
Sick Sad Little World
Circles
The Warmth
Pardon Me
Karma, Come Back
Come Together
Are You In?
Vitamin
Glory Box
Echo
Megalomaniac
Let’s Dance
Drive
Wish You Were Here
