Stereophonics, Amy Meredith @The Hi-Fi, Brisbane(19/04/2010)

Sun 25th Apr, 2010 in Gig Reviews

A diverse bunch of punters lined up outside The Hi-Fi on Monday night, eager to catch Welsh rockers Stereophonics.

Kicking off the night were Sydney boys, Amy Meredith, who have been making the round of late with international acts, having just been on tour with Cobra Starship. An interesting choice of support act, given the electro pop sound of Amy Meredith, but the boys soon managed to get the crowd dancing along to their contagious rhythms and melodies.

Playing a solid set which showcased some of their latest songs including Lying and Porn Star, Amy Meredith put on an energetic and catchy electro pop show, managing to pull off the usual songs of unrequited and lost loves with an individual tongue in cheek twist. With a cover of Cyndi Lauper’s Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Amy Meredith managed to get the majority of the crowd clapping and singing along, an impressive feat for a local support act, making it easy to see why this charismatic bunch of boys are fast becoming one of the most toured Aussie bands of the year.

After an almost hour, and trying to decide if another beer was worth losing the spectacular spot I had secured myself, the Stereophonics hit the stage and all thoughts of alcohol disappeared.

Right from the start the band had the entire crowd singing along word for word to every single song, ranging from A Thousand Trees, Uppercut, Mr Writer, Maybe Tomorrow and I Wouldn’t Believe Your Radio in which the rare moment of hundreds of voice singing in unison drowns out lead vocalist, Kelly Jones.

Despite the show being the band’s last of the Australian leg of their tour, they put on an energetic and entertaining set, lasting over 90 minutes and packed with a range of songs from 1992’s Word Gets Around to 2009’s Keep Calm and Carry On, even finding time to find out the nationality of the crowd. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of punters hailed from the United Kingdom and made their presence felt.

Saving the best until last, the Stereophonics finished off their three song encore with 2005’s hit Dakota, but remarkably, unlike many bands, their most commercially popular track did not stand out in terms of crowd reaction. Every song the band played was received to screams delight, and had the majority of the crowd singing along word for word. It was a refreshing change, and one which made you fall in love with the Stereophonics and their fans even more.