The Bouncing Souls, Hot WaterMusic @ Fowler's Live,Adelaide (09/12/10)

Mon 13th Dec, 2010 in Gig Reviews

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Although the summer season in Australia is usually associated with the large festivals like Big Day Out, Soundwave, Falls, Pyramid and the list goes on, the true highlights are often found in the incredible tours that do come through in celebration of the warmer weather. Tonight’s show at the well-known Fowler’s Live was more than a highlight, but more like a climax as this show was for some, definitely a treasured memory.

Adelaide’s Paper Arms had the honour of opening the show and did so with genuine appreciation of the momentous occasion. Performing songs mostly taken from their debut album Days Above Ground, the quartet provided a strong testament why they were tonight’s opening act, and sounded tighter than I have ever seen them perform before. With a strong similarity in sound to the main support act Hot Water Music, Paper Arms were the perfect entree for evening, and their song Bricks And Mortar may just be the best original Emo anthem created by an Australian outfit. Keep your eyes on this band, as there is a wealth of knowledge with the experience the band members have and are true masters of their craft.

David Hause from Philadelphia’s The Loved Ones followed Paper Arms to perform some of his solo material which will be released next year on his debut album. The music he plays is quite alike that of the much loved The Gaslight Anthem, with some very similar Brian Fallon vocal parts. The real beauty exists however in the actual lyrics which Dave Hause has penned for his solo ventures, they are amazingly genius and best of all addictive. The choruses and hooks are as infectious as the flu in the middle of winter, and with his sweet serenading capabilities and acoustic guitar, it was impossible not to have a smile on your face. This album is going to be poetically astounding, and all the night missed was a fire on the beach to enforce a remarkable summer vibe.

It has been a long wait for many to see Hot Water Music, including this very reviewer, so the anticipation amongst the audience was, in simple terms, astronomical. This switched quickly to excitement as Chuck Ragan, Chris Wollard, Jason Black and George Rebelo attacked the stage leaving no head unturned. Although each member of this significant outfit are far from the age they were when Hot Water Music formed in 1993, it’s incredibly impressive how much rigour, energy and passion the four-piece still play with. With Chris Wollard and Chuck Ragan’s unforgettable duet style encouraging the crowd to sing along an array of songs from the impressive back catalogue, with definite highlight being the performance of Remedy, this was an instance where if you did miss this, well I’m sure this review is just adding to your remorse.

Finally the headline act The Bouncing Souls, the challenge had without a doubt been set with Hot Water Music jaw-dropping inspiring set so for the headline act, it really had to be something special. Clearly a lot of the crowd at tonight’s show were here to see The Bouncing Souls as the reaction to their arrival was near deafening. Many punters joined the band onstage for the chance to sing-along, stage dive or just to be closer to their idols. But if this were a true contest, and although I may be biased on this, I believe Hot Water Music may have taken first place. Whilst The Bouncing Souls play a very catching sound of Pop Punk, their delivery is just not as spirited. That’s not to say that the show was disappointing, by no means. Their live rendition of True Believers was possibly the best live example of punk music I have ever seen. To really add the cherry on top of this night was the encore to which band members from every outfit joined each other on stage to play versions of each band’s songs. It was a very picturesque and celebratory way to cap off an unforgettable night. I guess for a lot of people Christmas did come early.