Pennywise - Perth, 1st Oct 2015
Words: Todd Lockley
It was a 20th Anniversary all round. Pennywise were back in their favourite country, celebrating the 20th anniversary of the album that broke them in Australia, About Time. And it was almost 20 years to the day since their first ever Australian headline tour.
The doors flung open to Metropolis Fremantle a little earlier than your average punk gig, however it was a school night, and as Billy Joe Armstrong was awakening, the droves of mo-hawked punkers, punk rock skunkers and the many black T-shirts inbetween flooded every possible vantage point. The sold out signs weren't out but it must been damn close to a brush of eyeliner shy.
Anti Flag jumped straight into Press Corpse before greeting the crowd with a kindly "Brothers and Sisters! How you doing tonight? You doing okay?!" They continued the vibe with Turncoat but the crowd was a little subdued until The Truth got the barrier collective circling like guppies chasing a miniature piece of fish food. The Pittsburgh punkers were up and down in their set; lead man Justin Sane seemed frustrated at times at the crowds lack of enthusiasm, but it went both ways. The constant requests for a 1,2,3,4 countdown dragged on throughout All Of The Poison, All Of The Pain. Even the highest mo-hawk in the venue could be seen having a cheeky yawn in the front row.
Broken Bones finally saw the circle pit get into full force and for a few minutes it looked promising. Then folks started dropping off with multiple boo boos. It was a fun place to be, perhaps even a religious moment for some; a man on crutches threw them to the ground and danced like the pain had gone away when A Trillion Dollars got a birth.
A sloppy rendition of the Clash’s Should I Stay Or Should I Go once again lost momentum before Anti Flag brought it back to awesome for their final track, with drummer Pat Thetic packing up his kit and heading into the crowd for Die For The Government. It was an amazing way to close their set.
After a short wait, the About Time backdrop signalled the commencement of a drift down memory lane for many, as Pennywise strolled
The doors flung open to Metropolis Fremantle a little earlier than your average punk gig, however it was a school night, and as Billy Joe Armstrong was awakening, the droves of mo-hawked punkers, punk rock skunkers and the many black T-shirts inbetween flooded every possible vantage point. The sold out signs weren't out but it must been damn close to a brush of eyeliner shy.
Anti Flag jumped straight into Press Corpse before greeting the crowd with a kindly "Brothers and Sisters! How you doing tonight? You doing okay?!" They continued the vibe with Turncoat but the crowd was a little subdued until The Truth got the barrier collective circling like guppies chasing a miniature piece of fish food. The Pittsburgh punkers were up and down in their set; lead man Justin Sane seemed frustrated at times at the crowds lack of enthusiasm, but it went both ways. The constant requests for a 1,2,3,4 countdown dragged on throughout All Of The Poison, All Of The Pain. Even the highest mo-hawk in the venue could be seen having a cheeky yawn in the front row.
Broken Bones finally saw the circle pit get into full force and for a few minutes it looked promising. Then folks started dropping off with multiple boo boos. It was a fun place to be, perhaps even a religious moment for some; a man on crutches threw them to the ground and danced like the pain had gone away when A Trillion Dollars got a birth.
A sloppy rendition of the Clash’s Should I Stay Or Should I Go once again lost momentum before Anti Flag brought it back to awesome for their final track, with drummer Pat Thetic packing up his kit and heading into the crowd for Die For The Government. It was an amazing way to close their set.
After a short wait, the About Time backdrop signalled the commencement of a drift down memory lane for many, as Pennywise strolled
on stage and kicked into album opener Peaceful Day. Jim Lindberg had a giggle at the younger generation in the pit "20 years since the album came out and there's still little cunts in the crowd, this show’s a bloody ripper!"
Perfect People was delivered with the same venom as it had two decades earlier. Monster Fletcher Dragge prowled the front of the stage, ripping and shredding his axe like it was ukulele for a normal sized person, all the while popping the lids off beers, taking a sip, then look for another full one. Pennywise do punk rock proper and they were on point tonight from go to woah, woah oh oh oh - but more on that later.
Mick Fanning and his mad shark-fighting skills had Not Far Away sent out to him while some onstage banter resulted in Freebase being dropped from the set. A request from the crowd for an early rendition of Society was greeted with a quick tease from Fletch and Jim asking "You don't wanna hear the rest of About Time?" before the super sonic assault of 90's anthem Same Old Story had the setlist back on track. The crowd seemed a little flat until the "for me, for meeee" part drowned any chance of Chinese whispers as all were united in voice.
With the About Time formalities over, it was time for the classics. A cover of Bad Religion's Do What You Want kicked things off, with Lindberg claiming "If it wasn't for this band we couldn't wouldn't be standing on this stage right now!" Pennywise drew one of the biggest responses from the crowd before the man on vocals once again big up'ed the Fremantle crowd "This is the best show of the Australian tour. When we got here we were tired and broken but you people gave us life!" A very nice sentiment indeed.
Society was unleashed again, this time in full, to an appreciative crowd, before a juggernaut assault of Fuck Authority, Men At Work's Down Under and the one and only performance on this Australian tour of Stand By Me. Pennywise had clearly given their all and the cheers were just reward for what was a spectacular night of classic punk rock by a band still at the top of their game 20+ years on.
Perfect People was delivered with the same venom as it had two decades earlier. Monster Fletcher Dragge prowled the front of the stage, ripping and shredding his axe like it was ukulele for a normal sized person, all the while popping the lids off beers, taking a sip, then look for another full one. Pennywise do punk rock proper and they were on point tonight from go to woah, woah oh oh oh - but more on that later.
Mick Fanning and his mad shark-fighting skills had Not Far Away sent out to him while some onstage banter resulted in Freebase being dropped from the set. A request from the crowd for an early rendition of Society was greeted with a quick tease from Fletch and Jim asking "You don't wanna hear the rest of About Time?" before the super sonic assault of 90's anthem Same Old Story had the setlist back on track. The crowd seemed a little flat until the "for me, for meeee" part drowned any chance of Chinese whispers as all were united in voice.
With the About Time formalities over, it was time for the classics. A cover of Bad Religion's Do What You Want kicked things off, with Lindberg claiming "If it wasn't for this band we couldn't wouldn't be standing on this stage right now!" Pennywise drew one of the biggest responses from the crowd before the man on vocals once again big up'ed the Fremantle crowd "This is the best show of the Australian tour. When we got here we were tired and broken but you people gave us life!" A very nice sentiment indeed.
Society was unleashed again, this time in full, to an appreciative crowd, before a juggernaut assault of Fuck Authority, Men At Work's Down Under and the one and only performance on this Australian tour of Stand By Me. Pennywise had clearly given their all and the cheers were just reward for what was a spectacular night of classic punk rock by a band still at the top of their game 20+ years on.
There was only one song that could bring the night to a close. "This song is for the crew, all the people behind the scenes who get our sweaty arses up here. This next song is for all you guys as well (gesturing to the crowd). It’s called Bro Hymn. Here we go!" And as Randy Bradbury revved up the starting bass line, the "woah, woah oh oh oh's" commenced and the celebration began. Special guest Justin Thirsk, brother of the late great Pennywise bass player, Jason Matthew Thirsk, stepped up to the mic to express his part of the track that can be heard on the "Tribute" version. It was magical, memorable. By the end of the song all the crew and supporting bands were onstage. "Jason Matthew Thirsk, this one's for you!".
And even after the band had walked off stage and the venue emptied, you could still hear fans singing Bro Hymn’s “woah oh oh oh's” through the streets and alleyways of Fremantle. Here’s to another 20 years!
And even after the band had walked off stage and the venue emptied, you could still hear fans singing Bro Hymn’s “woah oh oh oh's” through the streets and alleyways of Fremantle. Here’s to another 20 years!