16 April 2025

5 mins read

Photography: Olivia Burns

Written by: Olivia Burns

what's happening with Slowly Slowly

LIVE REVIEW: Slowly Slowly Wrap Up Tour With Hometown Performance

It was a massive night ahead for Slowly Slowly as they are welcomed back to their hometown of Melbourne for their first-ever arena headlining show. Wrapping up their Forgiving Spree Tour, which had taken them around the country in celebration of their latest album, the band was set to go out with a bang—and that’s exactly what they did at Margaret Court Arena.

Joining them on tour were two very special guests from the U.S., Honey Revenge and Grayscale. As someone who was especially excited to catch both openers live, it felt like a huge bonus having Grayscale kick off the night. Longtime favourites of mine, their set included a blend of older gems like Fever Dream and In Violet, as well as powerful new tracks from their latest album The Hart. Hearing those songs live for the first time was genuinely incredible and they delivered in every way. Now, Honey Revenge is a band that most definitely should be on your radar. I first discovered them back in 2022, and when their song Distracted was released, I knew they were something special, and their live performance confirmed just that. Their ‘90s pop punk vibes, bubblegum aesthetic, catchy tunes, and infectious energy make them such a fun band to watch live. The sheer joy on their faces as they played was contagious, encouraging crowd participation with a sing-a-long during their track Habitual. While the arena was filling out during their set, the crowd unfortunately didn’t quite meet the energy these bands deserved, not that it was any fault of the artists, because they were phenomenal.

As the night went on, it was finally time for our main headliner. Watching a Melbourne band headline an arena is something special, and Slowly Slowly proved they belonged on that big stage. They kicked things off with Blueprint, instantly showcasing why they’re one of the best live acts going around. From the very first drum kick, they were all in—Ben Stewart leaping from platforms and drum kits, shirt drenched in sweat from the sheer energy he poured into every moment. Backed by Albert Doan on guitar, Alex Quayle on bass, and Patrick Murphy on drums, the band tore through an electric setlist packed with fan favourites like Daisy Chain and Ten Leaf Clover, as well as new standout favourites from their new album with tracks like Meltdown Masquerade and Love Letter. The crowd was fully into it—belting out every word with a passion that made the whole arena pulse with energy. A heartfelt moment was shared when Ben paused to reflect: “Some nights I feel like the luckiest man in the world, and tonight’s one of those nights.” truly showing they are present with us for the night and taking in every moment. A unique part of this tour has been their ongoing collaboration with Converse, where they’ve hidden a secret “love letter” at each show. One was hidden somewhere in the arena, and during the set, Ben flung another into the crowd for one lucky fan to catch. He also made sure to take that time to shout out the entire crew that made the tour possible—from lighting to photography—and gave a warm mention to Honey Revenge, sharing that after touring together in the US, they couldn’t resist bringing them back for the Australian leg. Just when the crowd thought the energy couldn’t go any higher, Longshot kicked in, sending the arena into full-blown chaos—in the best way. Ben teased that “this is our unofficial last song” before launching into God. Of course, the crowd wasn’t ready to say goodbye, and the band returned to close the night with Jellyfish and Race Car Blues, two songs that complete a show of theirs. There’s something about hearing Race Car Blues live. The emotion, the rawness, the crowd screaming “I miss myself, my friends do too” in unison, it’s the kind of moment that sticks with you long after the nights over.

What an incredible show to have been able to witness, to be able to play in an arena in their hometown is something they should be very proud of and if any band deserves to be standing up there, it would have to be them. They delivered a polished, emotionally charged, and unforgettable performance that made you proud to call Melbourne home. I truly believe that there is something extra special about a Slowly Slowly show and their energy is undoubtedly unmatched. I’m looking forward to seeing what is in store for the future for this band, because no doubt they’ll just continue going from strength to strength.

15 March 2025

6 mins read

Photography: Olivia Burns

Written by: Olivia Burns

what's happening with Falling In Reverse

CONCERT REVIEW: Falling In Reverse Bring The Heat To Melbourne

Falling In Reverse have been touring like crazy for their latest album release. It had been 5 years since their last visit to Australia when they appeared at Good Things Festival and had not come here for a headline tour since 2016, so it was well overdue, after a couple of shows in Perth and Adelaide earlier this week, last night Falling In Reverse’s Popular Monstour finally hit Melbourne’s sold out Rod Laver Arena. It was a huge lineup with Black Veil Brides and Hollywood Undead set to open up the night!

The arena was quickly filling with a sea of black, as if every emo in Melbourne had gathered in one place. Whether there to relive their early days or just beginning their journey into the scene, the crowd buzzed with anticipation.

There was already a large crowd drawn in early to see US band Hollywood Undead who started us off with some rock music infused with rap elements, they put on such a fun and energetic performance and the audience fed into this. Along with a cover of Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline, their songs Hear Me Now and Undead being my favourite parts of the set.

Next up was Black Veil Brides, kicking off their set with the classic Knives and Pens. For many in the crowd, including myself, this band was a staple of our high school years. I’ve lost count of how many times In the End was on repeat back in the day, and 12 years later, it still hits just as hard. Hearing it live was an experience in itself. The band’s chemistry was undeniable, playfully interacting on stage while delivering electrifying guitar solos. Lead singer, Andy Biersack’s vocals were everything you’d hope for, and the iconic scream at the start of Perfect Weapon sent a wave of nostalgia through the arena. Hopefully, it won’t be long before we see them return to Australia for a well-deserved headline tour.

The time had now come for the main event, Highway to Hell blasted over the speakers as they showed the band doing their band’s pre-show ritual and their walk to the stage played, building anticipation. The arena erupted in screams as each member made their entrance, the energy reaching an all time high when frontman Ronnie Radke stepped into the spotlight centre stage. Wasting no time, they launched straight into Prequel, quickly following up with fan-favorite Zombified.

Ronnie is every bit the frontman you expect from start to finish, he has a very commanding stage presence and is very outspoken. He is often known for causing a bit of controversy online by calling out haters and honestly, you have to respect that and he carries that same bold persona on stage. You also have to give a huge amount of credit for a band of this genre selling out arenas all over the world and witnessing their show, you understand why. Gone are the days where a band just gets up on stage and performs their tracks, this was a full production, pyro lit up most songs during their performance, and it was just an all round polished performance. In between making jokes about other bands who hate on him, and hyping himself and the band up, he often showed moments of gratitude as he looks around the arena in disbelief and thanking everyone.

Falling In Reverse have evolved a lot over the years, but their album Popular Monster made a polarising debut from their old sound. Their setlist making little nods to some classics with I’m Not A Vampire, and of course The Drug In Me Is You, songs of which played a vital part in our younger emo days for many of us. As the crowd sang along to every word, it proved it was never a phase. Other than playing the obligatory tracks, they’ve now certainly moved on from their classic metalcore sound, and are fully embracing their new style which sees them blend more hip hop and their latest album introduced us to the rap side of Ronnie which I loved seeing this side of him live. As much as everyone, including myself were secretly hoping they’d play Situations, seeing their new music live has made me love it more and it feels so refreshing seeing a band fully change up from what they were doing previously and doing it exceptionally well. Instrumentally, they were flawless. Luke Holland proved exactly why he’s one of the best drummers in the game, while Tyler Burgess’ backing vocals and screams were a major standout. Ronnie’s vocals remain as powerful as ever—his screaming raw and commanding. His on-stage banter kept the night unpredictable, at one point joking, “We’re done, we’re going to watch the F1 now, cyah!” before disappearing backstage. The cameras followed, cutting to a clip of someone dressed as Steve Irwin wrestling an inflatable alligator, because when you’re in Australia, why not.

Ronnie then popped on his cowboy hat, introducing All My Life, his country-infused collab with Jelly Roll. The crowd absolutely lost it, prompting Ronnie to exclaim, “Shit, it’s good to know we made a worldwide hit, that’s amazing!”

Time flew by and we had already hit the encore, with a fiery performance of Watch the World Burn to close out the night!

Falling In Reverse has never been a band to play it safe, and their live show proves that their evolution is anything but a phase—it’s a full-blown transformation, and they’re thriving in it.

Black Veil Brides

Hollywood Undead

Falling In Reverse

2 March 2025

4 mins read

Photography: Olivia Burns

Written by: Olivia Burns

what's happening with G-Eazy

LIVE REVIEW: G-Eazy Brings The Energy & Charisma To Melbourne’

On the 22nd of February, American rapper G-Eazy was set to kick off the Australian leg of his Freakshow Tour at Melbourne’s Forum. This was his first visit to Australia since 2018, so you can definitely say that this was a very long-awaited return for both G-Eazy and fans alike. Opening up on this tour was Canadian singer songwriter Goody Grace, making it his first-ever appearance down under.

The room was starting to fill up and the air was full of anticipation as Goody Grace hit the stage. Disappointingly, I felt like concert etiquette had gone out the window as my ears were filled by the chatter from the crowd and all I could hope was that he didn’t hear it. Nevertheless, it did not take away from how great Goody Grace was live, he was only accompanied by his guitar and had a great voice to go along with it, maybe not as upbeat as people were expecting for a G-Eazy concert, but I thoroughly enjoyed his performance and in between songs the crowd at least clapped and cheered loudly showing their support. I loved his performance and hope that he returns to Australia again soon.

The whole venue was packed out as we awaited the main act. The band and DJ got up on stage, and intro music started up, the crowd’s screams alerted the fact that G-Eazy made his appearance on stage and was ready to get the night off to a start with One of Them. His shades on as he just has a coolness about him. Throughout the night, before introducing songs he would scream out to the audience ‘Do y’all remember?’ and the reaction from the whole crowd to each song pointed to the fact they all do remember and that most were die-hard fans knowing every song, singing along. Bras from his fans were flung up on stage where he then hung them over his mic stand and bar staff were even dancing along, and caught the rapper’s attention as he came over to the side of the stage, making hand hearts to the ladies. He played through a great mix of songs from each album, some very deep cuts along with well known tracks including his Him & I collab with Halsey and Me, Myself & I with Bebe Rexha. His latest viral song Lady Killers II, which gained a lot of traction as a TikTok trend, and it sounded incredible live and the crowd filled with so much energy. With thirty songs on the setlist, you definitely got your money’s worth, granted some were snippets of songs but it gave everyone a chance to hear a large amount of his discography. As we were nearing the end of the evening, G-Eazy’s main message for the night and for everyone in the room was that the best thing in life is love and to never stop chasing your dreams. He then brought his show to a close with his song Anxiety.

You know an artist does a great job in their performance when they can turn you into a fan just by seeing them live. Of course I knew his bigger tracks going into the show however, I felt so much passion and energy from him on stage and he sounded amazing. He has that cool, confident rapper persona and is very charismatic, winning the crowd over. G-Eazy asked the crowd to give him energy and he will give it right back, and he definitely delivered. We can’t wait to have him back in Australia, hopefully a lot sooner than his last visit.

9 February 2025

5 mins read

Photography: Olivia Burns

Written by: Olivia Burns

what's happening with Tyler Hilton

An Unforgettable Evening with Tyler Hilton at his Sold Out Melbourne Show

California born, singer songwriter, Tyler Hilton finally made his long awaited return to Australia. After lockdowns put a stop to his tour last time, he was officially back down under for the first time since 2017. With the Brisbane and Sydney shows wrapped up, and on the 8th of February it was now finally Melbourne’s turn for his last show on this run at Northcote Social Club and the Melbourne fans made sure to sell this one out.

With an already large crowd, warming up the evening was the lovely Matilda Duncan. With songs about what it felt like to dream about moving to Melbourne, to the feelings of finally doing it, along with a song written in inspiration from the Netflix series You, of how it would feel to be in love with main character Joe, her voice was stunning and I think she won a few new fans in the crowd. Following up on that performance was Lachie Gill, winner of The Voice in 2022. Playing a mix of original songs, which included an emotional tribute he wrote on the ten year anniversary for his friend who had passed away when he was younger. We were also treated with a surprise cover of One Tree Hill’s theme song I Don’t Want To Be by Gavin Degraw, he had the crowd fired up and singing along.

The excitement from the crowd was undeniable as drummer Stephan Stanzione and guitarist Corey Balsamo got up on stage, which erupted into louder cheers as Tyler made his appearance. For any fan, there’s always something so surreal about having a singer and actor in front of you for the first time instead of on your screen and their eyes just lit up with excitement. As Kicking My Heels and Overtime opened the night, the crowd was full of smiling faces and immediately people were singing along. The venue was small but packed, creating a really intimate atmosphere. During a break between songs, he mentioned that Melbourne is known for its great milkshakes and joked that post-show plans these days look a little different than they used to. The milkshake talk didn’t stop there, it kept coming up throughout the set, turning into a running joke for the night. At one point, a fan asked the all-important question: what’s your favorite flavour? His answer; vanilla which was met with loud booing, and his bandmates even exposed that they have a group chat called “Milkshake Boyz.” On top of that, Tyler seemed fascinated by the fact Australia has Pepsi Max, as he shared how he grinned while he ordered one, only for servers to casually acknowledge it like it was no big deal. If you’re a big One Tree Hill fan, you’d know that Tyler Hilton played the best character, Chris Keller. Unlike many actors who move on from past roles, Tyler fully embraces any mention of the show and loves sharing behind-the-scenes stories which is so refreshing to see. These stories included his friendship and possible relationship with co-star Bethany Joy Lenz. During the show, he even gave a plug to the book she wrote, which delves into their relationship. He joked that now that everything’s out in the open, he can finally talk about it—including how Bethany being in a cult put an end to their growing romance and once wrote a song for Bethany behind the scenes. That song, along with many real-life moments between them, ended up making it into the show. He laughed about how it felt like some outside force was trying to bring them together, when really, it was just the writers pulling inspiration from real life. He then played You’ll Ask For Me, a song he wrote for her, making the moment even more special knowing the story behind it.The setlist saw us reminiscing on tracks that were featured on the show, with Glad, When It Comes, Missing You and of course When the Stars Go Blue, we got to live out our TRIC dreams while also enjoying tracks from Tyler’s own albums, including Jenny and Prince Charming of Nothing—a personal favourite of mine that sounded absolutely incredible live. Tyler spoke about his love for Australia, admitting he hadn’t expected to love it as much as he did until his first visit, promising he will be back every year from now on. I think we in the audience were on board for this and we are now holding him to that. The hour-long set flew by far too quickly, and before we knew it, he was announcing the final song of the night. After thanking everyone for coming, he launched into Loaded Gun, a bluesy rock number that had the entire crowd singing along, closing the night on a high.

Tyler is as charismatic as they come and you can’t help but notice the endless smiles and joy he brings to the stage. During a break he said that ‘playing live music feeds my soul’, that the crowd is really what makes the show and you could just tell that those words rang true. He delivers such a great performance, his incredible talent for singing and songwriting, coupled with his storytelling and authentic interaction with the crowd made for such an unforgettable evening. We hope they managed to get their hands on some milkshakes and we look forward to hopefully seeing him back in his new favourite city (his words) again next February.

30 January 2025

4 mins read

Photography: Olivia Burns

Written by: Olivia Burns

what's happening with You Me At Six

CONCERT REVIEW: You Me At Six’s Final Melbourne Show

After two decades, ten albums released and their huge mark they’ve made on the music industry, UK rockers You Me At Six are currently competing one more victory lap around the world to mark the end of an era. The US had already said their farewells and next up it was Australia, with their first show on this leg of the tour in Brisbane complete, it was finally time for the Final Nights of Six Tour to grace Melbourne’s Forum.

A huge majority of the crowd turned up early to ensure they were here to show their full support for our openers. First up was a familiar face—Jenna McDougall, best known as the frontwoman of Tonight Alive, now performing under her solo project Hevenshe. Her indie-rock sound, paired with her natural charisma, immediately captivated the audience. She took a moment to acknowledge how many people were already singing along. Next, Welsh rock band, Holding Absence, these guys have been making waves in the music scene, and for good reason. I cannot recommend people to see these guys live enough and the new generation of rock lovers are certainly in safe hands with these guys as they deliver everything you could want in a modern rock band along with a captivating live performance. They credited YMAS for inspiration for their music and acknowledging that this was definitely a full circle moment for them heading out on this tour to farewell them.

The venue was now packed to the brim with eager fans who sold out the show. Figures walked across the stage taking their positions as the crowd cheered them on, anticipating what song we were going to hear first. Room To Breathe started out and the crowd lost it, what an absolute tune to start out the night!

From Stay With Me, to Straight To My Head, to Crash; track after track, a reminder of what we are truly losing. These guys and their music have been such a staple within all of our lives and played a part in our music journey in one way or another. The whole band looked like they were taking in every little moment of the show, making the most of it and putting all the energy they could into their performance, sounding exactly as they did twenty years ago, if not better. Frontman Josh Franceschi, prefaced Lived a Lie by declaring it the night’s crowd-surfing anthem. Fans wasted no time throwing themselves into the wave of bodies, each one met at the front by a handshake from Josh—well, most of them, as a few left him hanging.

The sadness suddenly hit me as the room erupted in a sing along with phone torches lighting up the venue in camaraderie as Take On The World played out. The setlist was a perfect balance of songs throughout each era of the band, delivering what I can imagine, exactly what fans hoped for on their final tour. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Melbourne show without a classic shoey, and Josh didn’t disappoint the crowds chanting, downing a drink from a lucky fan’s shoe.

Beautiful Way closed out the show and the band slipped offstage, but the crowd wasn’t ready to let go. Stomping, chanting, and pleading for more. The band returned to the stage, for not one, but three more songs. Bite My Tongue saw Josh take on Oli Sykes’ screaming parts flawlessly, Reckless turned the energy up another notch, and then of course – Underdog and the crowd became more lively than ever, screaming louder than they had all night, giving the send out off the band truly deserved.

It was such a bittersweet night celebrating their music, soaking up all of the nostalgia while also having to say our goodbyes and the fact this is the last time we will hear these songs live on the forefront of our minds. As they continue on their Australian leg, with them taking their final bow in the UK, we wish them nothing but the best.

Thank you You Me At Six for your music and the memories.

30 November 2024

2 mins read

Photography:

Written by: Olivia Burns

what's happening with Drake

Drake Announces Highly Anticipated Return To Australia & NZ in Feb/Mar 2025

Drake has announced his long-awaited return to the southern hemisphere and will be bringing his The Anita Max Win Tour to Australia and New Zealand arenas. These shows will be his first time back here since 2017. The multi-platinum global artist had sold out multiple shows in the first announcement, warranting extra shows to be added to each city, including adding a Perth date. You will want to get your hands on the few tickets left for this massive tour as soon as possible, before they’re all gone!

Tour Dates:

Tue 04 Feb – Perth, AU – RAC Arena – NEW DATE
Sun 09 Feb – Melbourne, AU – Rod Laver Arena
Mon 10 Feb – Melbourne, AU – Rod Laver Arena
Wed 12 Feb – Melbourne, AU – Rod Laver Arena
Thu 13 Feb – Melbourne, AU – Rod Laver Arena – NEW DATE
Sun 16 Feb – Sydney, AU – Qudos Bank Arena
Mon 17 Feb – Sydney, AU – Qudos Bank Arena
Wed 19 Feb – Sydney, AU – Qudos Bank Arena
Thu 20 Feb – Sydney, AU – Qudos Bank Arena
Mon 24 Feb – Brisbane, AU – Brisbane Entertainment Centre
Tue 25 Feb – Brisbane, AU – Brisbane Entertainment Centre
Fri 28 Feb – Auckland, NZ – Spark Arena
Sat 01 Mar – Auckland, NZ – Spark Arena

For all tour & ticket information, visit: livenation.com.au & livenation.co.nz