Scary Kids Scaring Kids @Fowler's Live, Adelaide(19/08/10)

Sat 21st Aug, 2010 in Gig Reviews

The final tour for the now broken up Scary Kids Scaring Kids was supposed to be over and done with in January of this year. Thankfully for Australian and New Zealand fans, this was not the case. Making one final appearance in the country, the Arizonan band said their farewells to fans who had stuck with them for the past seven years.

For a ‘last ever’ tour, Fowlers Live was surprisingly empty; depressingly so. With such a strong following showing up to support Scary Kids at their 2008 Soundwave Festival set, it was disappointing to see a mere 50-odd fans braving the cold Thursday night.

Perth band We Are The Emergency kicked off the evening playing songs from their fantastic debut album, Whispers and Fragments. For such a young band, they pulled together perfectly, playing with energy and enthusiasm which was unfortunately not returned for the most part.

In one of the strangest support pairings since The Spazzys supported Marilyn Manson, the international support act hip-hop solo artist Mod Sun took to the stage with just a microphone and a small DJ kit (operated by Scary Kids Scaring Kids’ keyboardist). Conveniently, Mod Sun ( Dylan Smith ) is also the touring drummer for the Scary Kids tour, making his inclusion on the bill more understandable, but no less inappropriate. Clearly realising early on he was out of his element, Mod Sun spent his first few songs, Keep It Moving, and Picture The Sunrise trying for a response from the audience. He finally got one when he pulled an enthusiastic audience member on stage to join in on Clothes Off America. Easily the highlight in an otherwise confusing set, ‘Tom’ should have stuck around, if for no other reason than to distract from the terrible cliché that was the last song, titled No Girlfriend.

Local boys Capulet were the final support of the evening and while their fan-base may have grown over the last couple of years, their live performance has not matured. Performing tracks from their debut EP, We Won’t Let Go, the boys played well, but did not deliver what one would expect from the top support for an international band. Scratching The Walls was a crowd pleaser, but for the most part, the set was underwhelming.

Scary Kids Scaring Kids’ 2008 set at Soundwave in Adelaide was energetic, exciting, and the entire band looked as though they were genuinely enjoying themselves. The same could not be said for Thursday night, two and half years later. While guest member Dylan Smith, and keyboardist Pouyan Afkary each looked like they were having the time of their lives, the remaining members looked bored at best. Vocalist Tyson Stevens did little to engage the audience, small in number though they were, those duties were left to Afkary who did his best to carry the rest of the band.

Opening with the title track from their first album, The City Sleeps In Flames, the music was fantastic, if lacking energy. Despite his lack of enthusiasm, Stevens’ vocals were outstanding, switching from melodic to screams seamlessly. Afkary threw himself, and his keyboard, around the stage, a stark contrast to the otherwise still stage surrounding him.

The Only Medicine, Star Crossed, and My Darkest Hour were strong fan favourites, prompting as much of a sing along that 50 people can produce. It’s a great shame that the last impressions Adelaide fans will have of Scary Kids Scaring Kids will, for the most part, be underwhelming. No encore was played, but Smith and Afkary happily hung out with fans after the show, both genuinely appreciative of the support the band had received over the past seven years.

Unfortunately the near-complete third Scary Kids album will never be heard, but a final Australian tour is a pretty decent consolation prize.