Live Review: DZ Deathrays, The Belligerents, Skegss

Long, shaggy hairdos and tight skinny jeans were the outfit of choice among both band and audience members this evening as Skegss kicked off their set of slack, surfy rock. They had quite a cruisy vibe due to mostly indecipherable singing, with a few keen patrons getting their groove on up the front.

Next up were The Belligerents choosing to charm with their dance-infused, psychedelic indie-rock. The boys premiered a host of new tracks, as well as giving single In My Way a spin, showcasing Lewis Stephenson’s falsetto.

The crowd were more than excited to see DZ Deathrays who launched into Less Out Of Sync, sending the crowd into a frenzy. There were arms flailing as bodies were being thrown into each other around the pit in true hard rock fashion. Thinking the crowd couldn’t get any crazier; the hook in Dollar Chills pushed them over the edge and the room just exploded with energy, with not a single person standing still.

Keep Myself On The Edge and Northern Lights got a spin, momentarily calming the crowd down, but not before singer Shane Parsons announced that if anyone hadn’t crowdsurfed yet, Ocean Exploder was the song to do it to. The crowd went for it, with Parsons also launching himself into the crowd midsong and having to use the overhead truss to pull himself back onto the stage.

DZ Deathrays closed their explosive set with Reflective Skull and Gina Works At Hearts, which punters used up their last bit of energy to mosh to, both disappointed and glad there was no encore.

It’s a wonder how three guys can make so much ear-splitting, high energy racket-but my god were we glad they did, most leaving the venue ears ringing, exhausted and smelling of other people’s sweat: all signs of a knockout performance.