- œFive fingers make a fist, and this fist is called The Hives, ladies and gentlemen. We are those Hives!’
Almost three years exactly since they stomped the very same stage during their Tyrannosaurus Hives tour, the notorious Swedes returned to the Forum Theatre on Monday night and all was full of love. Far from being punched and knocked out by Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist and his band, we were caressed, flattered, teased and then slapped in face by their noisy garage-punk, reduced to putty in their hands. Young Melbourne lads The Fearless Vampire Killers brought their cruisey, bluesy hipster rock to the stage in support. Having slightly developed their sound since I last saw them at Revolver, there were elements of The Beatles, Jet, alt-country and 60s surf guitar. Most impressive were Alright Now Honey and a dark, epic, swaggering track with a marching beat and a menacing strut.
The Hives’ electric red banner and creepy, bleepy intro music were met with excitement by the full capacity audience. Gracing us with their presence at the very respectable time of 9:20 in their dapper schoolboy threads, opening track Hey Little World was crisp, tight and, like their suits, a little buttoned up. Had the boys left their fire back in Fagersta? No way – soon, Pelle’s tie was gone, then his jacket, and by the time they begin to rip and shred apart the classic Main Offender, everything had gotten loud and loose.
The absolutely indefatigable guitarist Nicholaus Arson was both a joy and a headache to watch. He has the moves of an old school punk and the stamina of the Energiser bunny – his face contorts, he wields his guitar as a gun, plays it under his leg and swings it nonchalantly around his body. A Little More for A Little You already felt like vintage Hives – it was a super fast and jerky three minutes, with the most unexpected breakdown midway through the song, so thrilling because The Hives aren’t exactly famous for their musical diversity.
– œI love you… love is a strong word but I mean it.’ Pelle was candid and overwhelmingly charming, lecturing like a preacher, blowing kisses and strutting like Mick Jagger. He’s a truly entertaining showman no matter how many times you have seen him do his thing before. The gig was exhausting, exhilarating and, most importantly, completely mesmerising. Walk Idiot Walk caused an instant reaction: you know it’s a kick-arse track without even having to use your brain. It truly is like being in love. And Pelle loves us too – apparently because Melbourne has two streets named after rock and roll icons, AC/DC and Batman!
Die! Alright proved almost too fast to mosh too, but the sea of bobble heads tried their best, shuddering epileptically. The scathing guitars and piercing screams of the very dark and very fantastic Diabolic Scheme signalled a significant increase in volume, with Pelle, all spoken word and Nick Cave-ish, fancying himself embodying the devil. Arson’s guitar solo here was thunderous and psycho-killer sexy. During Two Timing Touch and Broken Bones, Pelle asked the audience, – œlet me see your left hand, let me see your right hand, let me hear what they can do together!’ And there were more hands than I had ever seen before.
In the end, The Hives are a particularly telling example of the power of attitude and concept – after all, with mostly simple, four chord songs, little to no remaining hype, and a live show in which the intricacies of their recordings are lost due to the sheer volume, it’s amazing that they can exist on pure showmanship. But, their magic is more complex than this – the Hives have a tight order to their chaos, their stage is like the set of a play, a harmoniously balanced performance space within which they can milk their guitar riffs and create a decidedly impressive visual experience. In proof, the presence of those idiots who clamber on stage to shake themselves smugly was very jarring and completely disruptive to the on-stage equilibrium.
Ending with Black and White Album single Tick Tick Boom, before treating us to a four song encore including a wild, lightning quick Hate to Say I Told You So, Return the Favour and a cover about Sweden’s shit weather, Pelle screamed happily – œWe have been the Hives, and you have been Melbourne, and we love each other!’ You just cannot go past this band for hilarious, heart warming eloquence and a ringing in your ears that will last till the morning.
