When you find naked photos of just about everyone in a few clicks of a mouse, and then read highly classified government documents with just a few more, it's hard to imagine a secret show maintaining its secrecy until the morning it's happening. But that's how it's gone down for The Smith Street Band and The Grates with their Splendour warm-up show. The morning of the show, Brisbane (but let's be real, Brisbane's online presence) is abuzz with the news that everybody's favourite punk poet dudebros are going to swing by. That excitement persists when the doors open and the crowd files down the stairs into Crowbar's basement. Dreamy indie outfit Deafcult cram their multitude of members onto the little stage and get the night into gear. Playing the mellow shoegazey numbers from their self-titled debut, the audience immediately gets a sense of why Deafcult is starting to garner a cult following.

Playing as a freshly minted five-piece, The Grates kick off their set with a rendition of their earliest single, 19 20 20. But tonight isn't much about going over the oldies. Sure they hit numbers like Feels Like Pain, which stands out as one of the strongest tracks of the set, but tonight is about the band road-testing some of the material off their fourth album, Dream Team. Back To Back stands out as the pick of the new cuts but there's plenty to keep the crowd entertained. Patience's glittery pop enthusiasm cuts through all the punk rock posturing like a warm knife through butter, the bear-and-beanie set smiling like preteens and nodding their heads with such vigour you can't even make out the writing on their neck tattoos.

The Smith Street Band have upgraded to playing venues at least three times the size of Crowbar and selling them out. When they're playing the big venues, The Smith Street Band make them feel small with their heartfelt earnestness and "we love you guys" shtick. So now that they're back in a cosy, sweaty basement that special vibe that permeates all the band's shows feels amplified. Even when there are no great variations in the set list from recent tours (the one downfall of near-constant touring) the energy the dudes inject into their performance makes tonight feel particularly special. The tunes from last year's Throw Me In The River are positively brimming with the piss and vinegar that initially endeared The Smith Street Band to the world and the crowd is right there with the band, hanging on every word and relating to every emotion Wil Wagner depicts through his lyrics. It's powerful stuff and proof once more that secrets are excellent and transparency is vastly overrated.