One of my favourite bands is back in Australia. Easily one of the best out there at the moment, so if you’re not on board with H.E.A.T then where have you been?!
Opening the show tonight is Big Red Fire Truck and they come out blazing, with a big sound and a bigger attitude they are a whole lot of fun. An excellent choice to open the show and definitely a band I’ll be checking out after this.
Up next is Catalano and instantly those 80’s Miami Vice vibes hit and as the band take the stage and take us straight into their blend of rock and early metal they sound killer. Catchy songs and amazing musicianship really stand out here as they belt through their set which included some new ones which were stand outs for me. It’s not often that two openers do the job for me but tonight this pairing was perfect. We are now well warmed up and ready to get even hotter with some H.E.A.T…
Let’s go!!! And the heat is on!! Opening with the killer track from their newest album ‘Welcome to The Future’ we get ‘Disaster’ which was easily going to be the opener and this I have to say that this band has always been good, but they are even better right now. Kenny blasts on stage and is an absolute ball of energy and just watching how this band performs is a treat. With a “Sydney welcome to the future” we have ‘Rock Your Body’ that gets the crowd singing and you just can’t fault this band, this live staple is so good to hear this early on. Dave and Crash ring in ‘Dangerous Ground’ and they are not playing around tonight, with a big drum ending hitting it into the key change in to ‘Hollywood’ which is easily one of my favourite tracks of theirs and the energy is massive tonight. Damn that was impressive. Oh shit, Jona starts ‘Rise’ and this is my first time hearing this live and oh my god that song is just perfect for the stage and Kenny absolutely gives it his all and hits every note man he’s impressive. What a song. I could go happy now after that but I won’t because it can only get better, and with ‘Nationwide’ it has, it’s just frantic and melodic as all get up and this band just knows how to write a song.
Crash thumps in ‘Redefined’ and hearing Kenny sing the Erik era songs is always a treat and he does them so well. Then from the old to the brand new with their newest song ‘Set Me On Fire’ and you know how much I love a power ballad and this one delivers all the power required and what a song. Can’t wait to hear what’s next, and if this is the calibre of stuff still coming out then this band will keep taking over the world. Sending some love to Erik Gronwall which I love they launch into ‘Beg Beg Beg’ which is always a perfect live song but as mid song they take it into ‘War Pigs’ paying tribute to Ozzy it was perfect before closing out ‘Beg…’ and a key charge makes everything better!
The band leave Crash on stage to show off and give us a drum solo and a Viking chant which we all joined in with. The band are back on stage and a first for the band as Kenny was locked out after their break and singing from outside which was hilarious yet still nailed ‘Back To The Rhythm’ was perfect. My god what a song. Now we get to hear ‘Running To You’ live in Sydney for the first time and it delivers. This is my favourite track off the newest album and it just goes next level like this. ‘Living On The Run’ takes things back and this banger just keeps that catalogue showing us how it’s done. Straight into ‘1,000 Miles’ and you just can’t go wrong with this one. Perfect live song. Ooooh a sneaky different one ‘Straight For Your Heart’ and hearing that was so good, love that we got an old school track thrown in for the last night of the tour. What I love about H.E.A.T is that they’re having so much fun up there and it radiates. We almost got some Europe out of them but we head into ‘One By One’ instead and this is pure power, and the same level of power as when they bounded onto the stage at the beginning. Dave solos in ‘A Shot At Redemption’ and it’s the only way to close the show. Always a staple in the set and just that perfect anthemic song to show you who H.E.A.T are and just showing everyone how it’s done.
H.E.A.T may be one of the best live bands on Earth, and they may also just be one of the best rock bands on Earth too. This band is phenomenal. Pure entertainment… and to get a crowd singing along, and even out in Sydney on a Sunday night is testament to the knowledge of how good they are, these people wouldn’t miss it, and nor should you next time they come back to our fine shores.
Essential Information
Venue: Crowbar – Sydney
Date: April 12, 2026
Presented by: Silverback Touring
Website: http://www.heatsweden.com
Set list:
Disaster
Rock Your Body
Dangerous Ground
Hollywood
Rise
Nationwide
Redefined
Set Me On Fire
Beg Beg Beg
Back To The Rhythm
Running To You
Living On The Run
1,000 Miles
Straight For Your Heart
One By One
A Shot At Redemption
