Live Review: The Beards

By spotlight and triumphant keys, the hairy band and living tributes to the humble beard grace the stage, greeted by what can only be described as euphoric applause.

The Durries bounce on stage to kick off proceedings in the rain-drenched Triffid with great energy, infectious presence and a ragged “G’day all you durry munchers!” As you’d guess by their name and main interests, their set starts and cruises through maintaining the theme of smoking, drinking and more smoking, and it doesn’t take long for them to wrap the crowd around their nicotine-stained little fingers. They coast through the list of themed songs like they would the offerings of smokes at a convenience store, and they list off well-known (and often disliked) brands of cigs before belting out ballad-esque tunes to full-on pub rock anthems. The track Winfield Blues is a particularly rich, bluesy choice to round out a fast-paced set.

The Fumes make their way to the stage having braved torrential conditions on their way up from Sydney. They settle into the smog-filled room for their “blooze-rock” set, their heavy liquor-soaked sound entrancing the crowd. Tunes like Python For A Pillow amp the pace of the set tenfold, while Automobile brings the sound down to prog-rock, a heavy welcomed sound.

In case the evening’s crowd full of beards aren’t clue enough, the chanting of and for The Beards is hint of what’s about to come. By spotlight and triumphant keys, the hairy band and living tributes to the humble beard grace the stage, greeted by what can only be described as euphoric applause.

They swiftly launch into a series of anthemic tributes to beards – some slow, wistful and awe-inspiring, others putting ‘80s rock and pop tracks to shame. Keytars and saxophones populate the routine instruments, coming together to belt out tunes If Your Dad Hasn’t Got A Beard, You’ve Got Two Mums, Born With A Beard and the song that brought this tour to Brisbane, Stroking My Beard. Each song is finished with a triumphant exclamation of “beards!” before a few chuckles from the band mates, with some lucky punters having a feel of the facial features before moving on to another bigger and more boisterous song. The ladies in the crowd are celebrated as much as the hairy gents (and more so than those smooth-faced lads) with All The Bearded Ladies making the trouble of sporting a fake beard all the more worthwhile. As the night draws to a close, the beers are tossed higher and the singing turns to yelling and all are jovial in the victorious You Should Consider Having Sex With A Bearded Man.