Live Review: Band Of Skulls, Spookyland

At their sold-out Sydney show, Band of Skulls played with precision, delivering flawless belting rockers, the kind of songs that made punters turn to their mates and sing along with passion.

Sydney band Spookyland, a bunch of really nice guys sporting T-shirts condemning violence against women, opened the evening. Spookyland recently released some new material, including The Silly Fucking Thing, an earnest piece that shows off the unique twanging vocals of lead singer Marcus Gordon. The set started with a few chilled songs then took off with a range of upbeat indie rock songs that matched the synchronised jolt-like movements of the band that looked pretty damned awesome! They finished off with an older track, Blood In The Rain, a tune the crowd seemed to love.

After a considerable break, the curtains at Oxford Art re-opened to whoops and cheers from the crowd as Band Of Skulls took the stage. They broke straight into song with singer/guitarist Russell Marsden teetering on the edge of the stage, getting up close and personal with the punters. Armed with three albums under their collective belt, it’s no wonder the English three-piece from Southampton delivered 90 sensational minutes that kept the audience enthrallingly engaged. The doting crowd loved Patterns, led by Emma Richardson, the ultimate fucking cool rock chic. The hits kept coming – Wanderluster, dedicated to us Aussies; Cold Fame, which had the crowd singing along, and Sweet Sour with that mouth-watering guitar hammering on and off, from latest album, Asleep At The Wheel. The set was complete with guitar changes and encore, finishing with Marsden holding his guitar to the ceiling as the crowd roared. The band gave us wholesome British rock with every song a highpoint because, let’s be honest, Band Of Skulls haven’t written a bad track.