Over the weekend, The Jezabels returned to Sydney for their first major hometown show in quite some time; their first non-secret headline show off the back of their brilliant LP SYNTHIA. Eight songs featured from the record as they performed for nearly two hours on the iconic Enmore Theatre stage.
With the main set bookended by the album’s opening and closing tracks, it’s clear the band want to showcase the album in the order it was meant to be consumed – with a splattering of old favourites thrown in for good measure. Though SYNTHIA took up almost half the setlist, the Sydney based quartet were able to fit in tracks from all five records (three EPs and two LPs for those playing at home), from “Disco Biscuit Love” off their debut EP The Man is Dead through to “Endless Summer” off their AMP winning debut LP Prisoner.
The band were in top form, and thanks in part to the delay between the album’s release and the tour, so were the crowd, singing along to every song and giving back all the energy that Hayley and the band were throwing at them. There was some banter – “Now it’s not wanky, it’s endearing!” said Hayley, after they stuffed up “A Little Piece”, the first track of their encore, after saying how no matter how long you’re in a band, the encore gets no less wanky; “I mean it’s on the setlist and everything!” – but for the most part they let their music speak for itself.
And though they didn’t want to spend time talking about keyboardist and vocalist Heather Shannon‘s cancer battle earlier this year, guitarist Sam Lockwood did take a moment to thank the Australian health care system, and Heather thanked fans for their support (notably those who were yelling out to her that they loved her, but you get my point).
The new tracks play beautifully live and though not every one is a singalong hit (nor should it be), they have developed well on the stage and make for an engaging show – which is not always a given with new material, no matter how strong. Their pitch-perfect live sound and a fantastic light show also combined to make this night one fans of the band (of which I am certainly one) will not soon forget.
“The End”, their first single off their Sophomore effort The Brink, closed out the night, and it saw Hayley Mary end the night in fine fashion; getting the crowd to surf her back to the sound desk, before getting them to give her a “tunnel” to run through back to the stage. It’s that sort of energy (not to mention crowd enthusiasm) that makes her one of the finest performers on the Australian touring circuit today, while songs like “The End” help make them one of the finest bands of the last decade. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have them back.
Setlist
Stand and Deliver
My Love is My Disease
Mace Spray
Long Highway
Smile
Look of Love
Unnatural
Rosebud
Easy to Love
Come Alive
Pleasure Drive
Disco Biscuit Love
Hurt Me
Endless Summer
If Ya Want Me
Stamina
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A Little Piece
The End
The Jezabels played the Enmore Theatre on Saturday, 8th October. The band continue touring around the country, before heading to the US and Canada. For more details head to their official website. Photo by Gwendolyn Lee.
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