About a minute into the set, it’s clear that Kingswood need a bigger stage. If not to better reflect their music, then definitely so we can fully appreciate the mass of guitarist Alex Laska’s long, curly mane. It’s obvious that they’ve perfected the art of live performance since playing nearly a hundred gigs last year. Impressive harmonies, witty onstage banter, face melting guitar solos.
It’s a night of triple j darlings. Supported by Bertie Blackman, who throws her whole body into every song – she reminds us that we are now entering killer performance territory. Kingswood have the formula for entertainment and still manage to pull off a show that isn’t stale or contrived. After selling out two shows at the Corner Hotel, the boys seem genuinely grateful and utterly blown away with the past year’s whirlwind.
They largely take the crowd through tracks from their EP Change of Heart. Opening with She’s My Baby, then delving into power ballads like Sun and the bursting Medusa. Lead singer, Fergus Linacre and guitarist Alex literally explode offstage and reinvent crowd surfing when they hijack the venue video cameras and scramble through the audience to film the revellers.
It’s about halfway through when it feels as if things have peaked too soon. The hecklers have gone quiet and just when it feels we’re losing momentum, a cover version of First Aid Kit’s Wolf widens the repertoire. It exposes a delicate moment otherwise unseen in their own material. At this point I overhear the seasoned rocker next to me tell his mate, “this is fucking awesome!”
Things come to an ultimate high when the boys tease us with an extended play of Ohio. A glass of Rosé cradled in one hand and the entire audience in the other, Linacre instructs us to crouch down. At risk of ripping our skinny jeans, we obey, and every single person at the final hook launches into the air. Arms flail while the crowd gives their own rendition of the song’s falsetto.
An hour and a half after they start, Kingswood have been sucked dry. Linacre flops to the edge of the stage, awash in blue and green light. He’s on his knees in a heaving, sweaty heap. Kingswood have surrendered themselves to the music Gods where Nashville, new material and the promise of a bigger stage await.
BY ISABELLA UBALDI
Photo credit: Kate Griffin
LOVED: The interaction with the audience.
HATED: Not much.
DRANK: Beer and then vodka.
