With a country surrounded by coastline, it’s no surprise that Californian surf-rockers The Growlers have found a strong contingent of Aussie fans. The band are currently in the midst of a 14-date tour of Australia, fittingly scheduled smack bang in the middle of our summer.
Taking the stage at The Corner Hotel, for the Melbourne leg of the tour, the band breezed through track after track of their infectious, self-proclaimed ‘beach goth.’ New album Chinese Fountain got plenty of airtime, with Big Toe, Black Memories, Dull Boy and Chinese Fountain all receiving a rousing welcome from the crowd. Despite the more polished finish seen with the latest release, the new tracks flowed seamlessly with old favourites, such as Graveyard’s Full, One Million Lovers, Sea Lion Goth Blues and Gay Thoughts.
The band are in their element in a live setting, never missing a beat when any random assortment of people, from support acts to fans, appear on stage, or when certain… paraphernalia are whirled around in the front row and eventually tossed to the band, in a repeat of their 2012 Coachella set. Frontman Brooks Nielsen takes everything in his stride, launching into a spiel about how the item is a family heirloom. When he’s picked up and cradled by one of the stage invaders during Going Gets Tuff, he simply says, “We’ll play that one at the end,” referring to old favourite, Gay Thoughts.
The band’s unique brand of garage surf-pop is enough to put a smile on anyone’s face and by the third track in, even the more reclusive members of the crowd were beginning to sway along. By the end of the set, when people had well and truly settled into the summer grooves (and as more beverages and other substances continued to be consumed), each member of the crowd had developed their own distinctive dance form, from the subtle foot tap, head bob or gentle sway to a full-on circle of shufflers, complete with animated arm movements and plenty of dreadlocks.
BY KELSEY BERRY
Loved: Feeling like it’s actually summer on a miserable, grey Melbourne day.
Hated: That I could barely understand a word Brooks Nielsen was saying, felt like I was missing out on some good banter.
Drank: Water.
