Supported by Move Trees and Choirboys, Noiseworks reunite for a series of concerts around Australia after 15 years apart.
I almost missed going to this show due to illness but am so glad that I forced myself out of my sick bed to attend this memorable night at Revesby Workers.
The first support band to play were Move Trees. Led by Steve Balbi, who is also the bass guitarist for Noiseworks, these guys did not disappoint. At one point the club’s fire alarm started blaring. Initially, we thought it was an annoying sound effect on one of the songs, until the announcement came over the loud speaker that they were investigating the cause of the alarm!
Whilst this was being done, a quick thinking Steve, in true “the show must go on style”, continued singing, without the assistance of power, and started table walking around the room, much to the delight of the supportive full house who cheered, clapped and stomped their feet, as Steve belted out a song called Stand by Me.
Once it was determined that, thankfully, the alarm was false, the show continued as the band impressed with their vocals and their repertoire. A pleasant surprise was the free Move Trees CD that they were giving away during the night’s performance. Definitely a band I will be keeping an eye on in the future.
The next to perform were Choirboys, the band that penned Run to Paradise, an eternal anthem that no party is complete without. Having only seen them perform at the Countdown Spectacular, I was very much looking forward to seeing them play “up close and personal” and they certainly didn’t disappoint. Looking buffed and toned, a flirtatious Mark Gable flexed his pecs as he belted out their hits. Sounding on top of the world, the Choirboys are certainly a great act to get the audience into party mode. It was just unfortunate that my flu-ridden tonsils wouldn’t allow me to join in with the boisterous crowd .
Finally, the band that everyone was waiting to see hit the stage and I can tell you they looked and sounded amazing! Was it really 1992 when Noiseworks last played together? Time has certainly not wearied these men. Forty may well be the new Twenty in their case!!
As expected, Jon Stevens put on a brilliant, powerful, at times emotional and vocally flawless performance. To be in the presence of such an amazing talent is truly uplifting.
When they walked onto the stage from the darkness, the crowd burst into rapturous cheers and applause. A few times during the night, Jon seemed genuinely overwhelmed by the adoring crowd. The first song on the list was Touch and I’m sure that’s what all the women in the audience had in mind as they raised their hands in the air hoping this rock legend would do exactly that!
The band continued to impress with their repertoire of hits such as No Lies, Love Somebody, Freedom and one of my all-time favourite songs, Take Me Back. There’s nothing like seeing the original artist, of an all-time favourite song, perform it live in front of you. It’s a feeling I wish I could bottle and sell on ebay!!
One of the performance highlights was when John sang an acoustic version of R.I.P (Millie) and dedicated it to all of us who had lost someone dear. What a beautiful song, sung by a remarkable man. It gave me goosebumps and brought a tear to my eye, not just by the depth of emotion with which it was sung, but because it also brought back memories of my beautiful mother whom I’d lost 15 years earlier.
We were on an emotional journey with a legendary band and the atmosphere in the room was charged. It wasn’t long before the electric guitar was amplified and we were jumping out of our shoes again.
As the night was drawing to it’s inevitable end and the band returned to the stage for it’s encore song, Hot Chilli Woman, I decided to walk around the room to try and get some different shots of the stage. To my surprise, I turned around to see people standing on chairs and even dancing on tables!! Something I’d not seen in a long time but an indication that the audience was having the time of their lives! After all, who knows how long we might have to wait for another reunion!
Why the venue chose to have reserved seating and no dance floor at a night like this is beyond my comprehension but not one I had much time to ponder. What I did ponder though was the fact that all three bands put on fantastic performances and that great music will stand the test of time, no gimmicks or pyrotechnics required. I think a few young performers should come to shows like this to learn how to really entertain and work a crowd.
Before we knew it, it was all over. Despite the crowd demanding more, the lights came on and we knew it was time to leave but the memories of such an uplifting night were going to stay with us for a very long time.
As Molly Meldrum would say, “Do yourself a favour”, guarantee you won’t be disappointed!
