Good Charlotte @ Rod LaverArena, Melbourne (13/10/2007)

Tue 16th Oct, 2007 in Gig Reviews

They love us; they really do. So much so, Benji Madden is moving to Australia next year. He fell in love, just like many have with him over the years.

Good Charlotte have progressed from playing Festival Hall in 2003 to Vodafone Arena in 2005 and Rod Laver in 2007. But the message is always the same: “We love Australia. We wish we were an Australian band”. Well, if his words are true, it is not long until Benji officially is one of us.

And they love our music, our bands. When given the choice of bringing some American bands to support the Australian tour, they were adamant they wanted to “hang out” with some locals. And after hearing The Hot Lies and Kisschasy, they were selected to join them on the national tour.

The Hot Lies kicked off the show with the hard rocking – œGhost and Mirrors’ from their 2005 EP Heart Attacks and Callous Acts. They also played – œPromise Me’ from the EP as well as ripping into some tracks from the newly released album Ringing In The Sane. They finished the set with the album’s first single – œEmergency! Emergency!’, which caught the ears of those who weren’t so familiar with the band.

The crowd began to fill and the cheers became louder as local Melbourne boys Kisschasy took the stage. A hooded Darren Cordeux admitted to being slightly drunk; clearly enjoying the company of his new made friends “GC”. Everything about Kisschasy is likeable, from their well-executed songs to their inviting personalities.

They played the favourites from the 2005 release United Paper People, which included – œDo-Do’s & Whoa-Oh’s’, – œThis Bed’ and – œFace Without A Name’. The new material is slightly darker, a more mature Kisschasy. Darren encouraged some “heavy moshing” to – œMy Bible Is A Scrapbook’, to which the crowd obliged. And of course the well-received first single – œOpinion Won’t Keep You Warm At Night’ from Hymns For The Nonbeliever had the crowd singing and jumping.

After two great performances, the stage was set. As the lights finally dimmed again, Good Charlotte appeared behind a white screen to the scream of enthused fans. It has become a style of theirs to begin with the intro track of the new album. This time is was – œGood Morning Revival’, which kicked into the new single – œMisery’.

They certainly came out with a bang, playing back-to-back songs from a mixture of their four albums before interacting with the crowd. They haven’t forgotten, and it seems they never will, the acceptance and support Australia gave to them when they were just starting out. A performance of – œLittle Things’ and – œThe Motivation Proclamation’ was a thank you as both songs were a hit in Australia, the latter only received play here in Australia. As the crowd embraced songs from all albums, it was clear the fans had come along on the journey.

Naturally, they played a fair few new tracks from Good Morning Revival but surprisingly played more songs from The Young and the Hopeless (2002) than The Chronicles of Life and Death (2004). Possibly because of the massive success of the 2002 release and the image that album created for the band.

Benji stole Joel’s spotlight for a solo performance of – œWhere Would We Be Now’, which he dedicated to his fiancée Sophie Monk and his new family who were at the concert. Although his voice struggled, Benji’s performance did have “character”, which he enjoyed having a laugh about. There is always heart when it comes from Benji Madden.

Bass player Paul Thomas was restricted to a chair after breaking his ankle earlier this week but Billy Martin (guitars and keyboards) seemed to really enjoy the Melbourne crowd. These guys love and embrace what they do. But it’s from the Madden twins that we hear the stories and feel as if we know them. The interaction and teasing between Joel and Benji added colour to the live show and let the crowd in. Of course the fans had to be on Benji’s side as he is “our boy”. An “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie” chant was imminent.