Regurgitator“I built myself a spaceship one afternoon,” sings opener Johnny Russell, aka the lone cape-wearing conjurer of beats, synths and heavily distorted guitar known as Mystery School. It's a nice touch that tonight's headliners would have the designer of their current artwork open, and it helps that he has a handle on all things nonsensical, too.
Seja makes no bones of her synth-whisperer status as she opens with C'mon and the spectacle of two synth-playing bandmates flanking her. With the cover pic of her new record All Our Wires shot on this very stage, she's right at home even without a setlist as the four-piece swap instruments and woo an early crowd.
In trio mode, Oregon's Wampire bring fun, stoner sensibilities to their sound by way of a rich tapestry of dynamics; seductive bass grooves, pop harmonies and even head-pounding rock litters the set. Guitar and bass sharing frontmen Eric Phipps and Rocky Tinder cover all sorts of hilarity in their on-stage banter from Jurassic Park and sunburnt penises to selling out their countrymen: “Americans are assholes.” Showing off some serious shredding ability with a Kraftwerk cover and some country emotion in Trains, they've made some more Wam-fans tonight.
In pink jumpsuits with leopard-print detail, Regurgitator launch straight into their trademark high-NRG brand of subversive rock with the appropriately chosen repeated refrain of Blood And Spunk's “Go” signaling the start of the show in fine form. There's nothing quite comparable, or somewhat head-scratching, than a room going nuts over I Will Lick Your Arsehole as Quan Yeomans and Ben Ely literally bounce like primary school kids all over the stage, stopping only to command an audience of willing puppets. Unleashing old friends – the abrasive and iconic guitar riff of Track 1, Unit highlight Black Bugs and Tu Plang's sweetly delivered I Sucked A Lot Of Cock To Get Where I Am – the rock-solid trio get almost the same response to songs from their current record Dirty Pop Fantasy, of which Fuck You Sweetness is a highlight, Made To Break is pacey, fun and thick, and Home Alone Stoned is Ely's honourable ode to '80s power-pop. 2011's All Fake Everything continues to trade in the clever playfulness present across Regurgitator's eight albums as the faux-ballad intro has Yeoman's offering crocodile tears before launching into a rap. Though a total pisstake, the words ring true of their career to-date: “Be your mutha-fuckin' self.” With an indefinite hiatus announced tonight, a highlight-packed set closes with an encore of I Wanna Be A Nudist as a wheelchair bound guy is launched through the mosh and the seemingly ageless outfit leave four words on the lips of the audience they provided a teenage soundtrack for: that was shit hot.
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