Gig

Don Broco - Gig Review & Photo Gallery 4th May @ 170 Russell, Melb VIC

Walladmin
Heavy Metal Wordsmith
/10
May 5, 2023
7 min read

Don Broco
170 Russell, Melbourne, VIC
May 4th, 2023
Supports: Alt., Wayside

The live music scene in Melbourne is well and truly alive at the moment, with several gigs happening in and around the city on Thursday night. One of these fantastic shows was headlined by the one and only Don Broco, who haven't played in Australia for almost 6 years! With support from Adelaide's Alt., and hometown band, Wayside; winter slowly started to creep up on us, and although it was a bit chilly, there was nothing but warmth and excitement in the air inside 170 Russell.

Kicking off the night was Wayside, who describe themselves as 'Australian, emo shoegaze', which is a lovely combination of adjectives. The room was slowly beginning to fill up as the band took to the stage, and they gave off a bit of a melancholy, ethereal vibe. Being the hometown heroes meant they already have a bit of a following here, and some of those dedicated fans showed up to support the guys. Unlike your typical set, Wayside finished each song with a bit of a jam session before they started on their next track, and I really enjoyed this point of difference from what most live acts do. They were super mellow, but sonically and vocally they were pretty tight. They were a great warm-up act to get the crowd settled and ready for the rest of the evening.

Next to take the stage was one of the hottest acts to come out of Australia in recent times, Adelaide 5 piece Alt.. If there was a single descriptive that I could use for those boys, it's energetic. From the moment they took to the stage, from the moment they left it, there was nothing but good vibes and non-stop energy from all 5 members of the band. From vocalist Daniel Cullen-Richards taking the mickey out of bassist Oscar Harding for speaking on stage for the first time, to the mid-set mini wall of death, Alt. brought it from the word go. The boys are incredibly tight live and you can see why they are doing as well as they are, and if you haven't checked them out yet, I would recommend it. The gang work fabulously as a hype machine and having them as direct support was a huge bonus; there was nothing but excitement and happiness in the room when the guys were done, as we waited patiently for the headliners to take the stage.

Finally, it was time for the headliners, the one and only Don Broco. The boys have been non-stop action lately and I was so excited for them to take to the stage and bring in the night, and boy, did they bring it. Frontman Rob Damiani came out like a true bogan, with a can of VB in his hand, and a VB-emblazoned jacket as well. If there was an award for 'Best Dance Moves' and 'Best High Kicks', they should go to Rob and guitarist Simon Delaney respectively, seeing as the two of them were non-stop moving throughout the entire set. It's always so refreshing to see bands where the members actually look like they're enjoying themselves, and are running around the entire stage rocking out with each other and dancing, which is exactly what Don Broco did. Props to the entire 170 Russell crowd for getting down on their knees during 'Automatic', and I do mean everyone from the barrier to the back of the venue, so that we could all pop up and bounce. It was a ridiculously rowdy crowd in all the right ways, giving just as much hype and energy as Don Broco were giving.

There were a few particularly awesome moments during their set, Sam Bassal of Ocean Grove jumping on drums for 'Manchester Super Reds No.1 Fan', THEN, Sam AND Twiggy Hunter joined the band for 'ACTION', and what's the only thing better than 1 member of Ocean Grove on stage? TWO members of OcG on stage, and the whole crowd seemed to agree. I'm still very much a fan of killing the whole shooey business (I still blame Daniel Ricciardo for making it popular), however, seeing Simon drink VB out of a cowbell, graciously provided by an audience member, and Rob drink VB out of a shiny, silver cowboy hat, also provided by an audience member, was something to behold. Simon and Rob both stood on the barrier, with the help of security, while they did their - shall we call it a 'Hat'ey', and a 'Cowbell-ey'? - and it was incredibly entertaining. The crowd were chanting for 'Thug Workout', which sadly the guys didn't play, but, Rob promised that if next time they come back to Australia, we sell out the whole tour in a week, they will play it. So make sure you keep an eye out for when Don Broco return, so we can make sure they fulfil their promise.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cr2REYII8j2/?hl=en

The night as a whole was absolutely incredible, and Don Broco are a band that can absolutely do no wrong, and who make sure that their set is one that is high energy and electric from the first note of the first song, to the last note of the last song. Fingers crossed that we don't have to wait another 6 years for the Brits to touchdown on our shores again, and let's hope that next time we can do as we've been asked and sell the whole tour out in a week (maybe less!?)!

Gig Review by Kelsey Trevan @kelsey_139

Setlist:

Pretty
Gumshield
Technology
Uber
Come Out To LA
Automatic
Bruce Willis
One True Prince
Manchester Super Reds No.1 Fan w/ Sam Bassal of Ocean Grove
ACTION w/Sam Bassal & Twiggy Hunter of Ocean Grove
Priorities
Endorphins
Anaheim
Everybody w/Sam Bassal of Ocean Grove on intro cowbell

Encore:

Fingernails
T-Shirt Song

Photo Gallery by Clinton Hatfield. Insta: @ampd.agency.
Please credit Wall of Sound and Clinton Hatfield if you repost photos.

Wayside

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alt.

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Don Broco

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don broco aus tour 2023


Don Broco – Aussie East Coast Tour


May 6 @ The Metro, Sydney


May 7 @ The Triffid, Bris


Tickets Here

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Heavy Metal Wordsmith
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