Strung Out @ Fowler's Live,Adelaide (06/06/10)

Fri 11th Jun, 2010 in Gig Reviews

It doesnt seem that long ago that we saw Strung Out tour in support of Bad Religion, since then though they have toured with No Use For a Name, released Agents of the Underground and are now returning for another headlining tour. It is good to be a Strung Out fan. Along for the ride are Philli based punks The Loved Ones. Its no surprise they keep coming out with the support they get at their shows and tonight was no exception. Despite a cold and wet Sunday night the Adelaide crowd was out in force.

First up was local 3 piece punk outfit Grenadiers. They put on a short sharp 30 minute set, further proving the strength of the Adelaide punk scene. I had never seen these guys before, but they were really impressive, Ill be looking to check these guys out again for sure.

Next up was The Loved Ones. After the first couple of songs I was ready to write them off as another pop-punk band, but by the end they had turned me. Their catchy melodies accompanied by gutsy riffs and strong vocals had more than a few in crowd rocking along. With songs like Louisiana, Living Will and Pretty Good Year I will definitely be looking for their Keep Your Heart record next time Im in JBs.

Then it was time for Strung Out. The Cali punk legends exploded onto the stage dressed entirely in black looking like the agents of the underground their new album suggests. Having recently dropped the new album it was no surprise they blasted straight into the opening track Black Crosses. As always, the onstage energy was intense as was the action in the pit. It wasnt long before they reached into their back catalog pulling out the classics Ultimate Devotion and Solitaire before demanding the floor be opened up for a circle pit for The Kids.

Cruz let the music do the talking with minimal banter, but plenty of crowd interaction by the way of singing half the set hanging into the front row or sitting on the front of the stage. Strung Out played a good mix of old and new, but with so much material and so little time there is always some disappointing omissions. The highlights of the set were Too Close To See, Velvet Alley, Razorblade and Exhumation of Virginia Madison and they wrapped up the show in familiar fashion with Matchbook.

Although the encore is usually somewhat of a formality it soon became apparent that, after only a 60 min set, that was it. The lights came on and the crew started packing up. The crowd however, was not happy and had other ideas. After about 5 minutes of persistent yelling and chanting and even after a good portion of the crowd had given up and left, the amps were switched back on and the boys returned to the stage for a couple more finishing the night with a cover of Ozzys Bark At The Moon.