When punk bands tour, they tend to bring other well-known acts with them to pull in the punters and satisfy those who have tickets from start to finish. Tonight’s Pennywise gig was no exception, as the punk rock veterans brought out a trio of popular acts to support them throughout the tour, namely pop-punkers Bowling For Soup, raw punk rock favourites The Vandals and the ever popular Sum 41.

The staging of the event during school holidays ensured all the kiddies would be out in force, but there was still quite a gathering of adult fans from very early on, with most of the older crowd preferring to stay within the confines of the fenced-off licensed area; there were seemingly almost as many people within the bar area as there were outside of it. An indication of the heavy drinking culture which is so prevalent in our country, or merely a means of separating oneself from those pesky young’uns? Let’s not argue social motivators though – long story short, there was a mixed group of punters watching on, and the venue ended up hosting quite a large crowd by the end of the night.

Bowling For Soup began their set to a decent-sized crowd and blasted through a set of pop songs with a light-hearted punk demeanour. From the outset, the acoustics were great – a feat not easily achievable at the Riverstage. Proving a hit with the audiences were two singles off BFS’s fifth album Drunk Enough To Dance – Girl All The Bad Guys Want and Punk Rock 101, yet the relevance of their cover of Johnny Cash’s Ring Of Fire seemed to be lost on many, especially the younger audience members. Yet BFS quickly put an end to the situation by closing with their biggest single to date 1985, sending many in the crowd into a jumping frenzy.

The Vandals did not just shift up a gear with their set – they switched vehicles altogether. Whilst still retaining a pop-friendly sound, the Californian four-piece delivered a style of punk more rough around the edges than their previous counterparts. Stand-in drummer Brooks Wackerman of Bad Religion fame was at his hard-hitting best, with the seasoned skinsman keeping up with the intensity of the band’s up-tempo punk rock.

Dishing out a multitude of tracks from their back catalogue, The Vandals provided the crowd with ample opportunity to mosh, and many obliged. Of course, a punk set wouldn’t be a punk set without a compulsory cover or two, with the band opting to play a rocking version of Team America: World Police theme song America, Fuck Yeah! and finishing the set with a cartwheel-infused cover of Queen’s Don’t Stop Me Now. With the close of their set, many satisfied fans left the pit and made their way up the hill for some well-earned rest.

With the departure of many punters from in front of stage, Newton’s third law of physics took form as a slew of Sum 41 supporters trundled down the hill to position themselves for the Canadian four-piece’s performance. Impatience set in as the crowd grew increasingly anxious to see the pop-punk powerhouse, whom had not toured our shores since 2002 on the back of their third album Does This Look Infected? However, once they took stage, the crowd erupted into massive cheer as vocalist Deryck Whibley greeted the appreciative audience before launching into the title single off new album Underclass Hero.

An array of songs spanning all five albums helped to appease many in the crowd as possible, however the band were trying too hard to involve the audience in between and during songs – too many theatrics and not enough performing it seemed. Although stand-in Gob guitarist Tom Thacker’s demonstration of the “clock” dance is sure to inspire schlock dancing at parties the city over. Almost every tune proved a hit with the crowd, including The Hell Song, Makes No Difference, We’re All To Blame, Still Waiting, In Too Deep and breakthrough single Fat Lip, during with departed guitarist Dave Baksh’s vocals were amply replaced by the other members in the band. This reviewer was completely satisfied however, when the act concluded with drummer Steve Jocz swapping duties with Whibley as the band belted out their glam metal-inspired track Pain For Pleasure, during which Whibley showed his drumming chops and Jocz displayed his aggressive growling to a very hyperactive audience. Once again, another set, another highly satisfied crowd.

The fans seemed to thin out for the intermission before headliners Pennywise made their mark on Brisbane. Hardcore fans cemented themselves down in front of stage, with some choosing to heckle those who left the pit area during the break. However, there was still plenty of support when the 20-year strong band entered onto the stage, with the crowd cheering and screaming as the Californians returned to Brisbane once again. As the first stop on the Australian tour, Pennywise were out to entertain audiences from the very first chord, and As Long As We Can from new album Reason To Believe managed to kick off the Aussie leg on the right note.

A new album can either be met with much excitement or relative hesitation by a fanbase, and in the case of Pennywise, tonight’s crowd seems to be more in the former category, demonstrating the lasting appeal of these punk rock legends. They continued to rock out just as hard as ever, churning out track after track of pure punk rock energy to an appreciative throng of onlookers. Their cover of Men At Work’s Land Down Under pleased the crowd, as did The Western World and Society, however what was to follow fired the crowds up ever more. Making their views on war and American politics very clear to the public, Pennywise blasted out the familiar strains of Fuck Authority to supportive middle-finger salutes and a near riot of a mosh. Guitarist Fletcher Dragge espoused his views on the current state of the United States to large cheers from the crowd, proving their political stance is widely accepted amongst fans of the punk genre. However, the fun was soon to end as the band blasted out a few more tracks before closing with their breakthrough anthem Bro Hymn with the help of every band member on the bill plus all the technicians side of stage in what was a memorable close to an all-round great punk rock show.