The hottest day in 50 years was upon us as ‘the greatest band of all time’, The Hives, brought their incendiary live show to the thirsty punters on this fine Monday night.
They have been tearing up the stage across the country over the New Year period off the back of both Falls and Southbound Festivals. Opening for the mercurial Swedes are Australia’s very own Dune Rats who are the lucky local supports on this tour.
Joining BC and Danny Beus were good mates Brad Heald (Red Riders, The Vines) on guitar and Brett Jansch (the live drummer for Bleeding Knees Club) who pummeled the bass to a pulp.
The lads played tracks from their EPs Social Atoms, Sexy Beach and Fuck It, and were super enthused on stage with a standout cover of the Violent Femmes’ ‘Blister In The Sun’.
The surfer beach-bum look they carried was at odds with the frenetic set as they crammed a whole lot of songs in 45 minutes. Having recently being ‘Unearthed’ by Triple J, they are another young Aussie band to look out for on the ever changing music landscape.
Splendidly dressed from top to toe in tuxedos with large black top hats, the five Swedish men that make up The Hives – Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist, Nicholaus Arson, Chris Dangerous, Dr. Matt Destruction, and Vigilante Carlstroem – strut onto stage to a chanting crowd against a large backdrop of a menacing and snarling puppeteer pulling strings.
Starting with ‘Come On!’ from their current record, Lex Hives, half of the set would be new material but this didn’t lower the raw energy infused throughout the venue with such an enthusiastic crowd. Multiple hand clap opportunities fuel the set; needless to say beer hats would have been handy at this show.
Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist stalks the stage like a young Mick Jagger with high scissor-kicks and towering juxtapositions on the various amps on stage.
It’s his stage presence and showmanship, crafted over nearly 20 years, that keeps every single soul entertained. ‘Wait A Minute’ is another standout track from the new album which sends the crowd into frenzy with its sharp crunching riffs and easy sing-along chorus. It’s a triumph that the new material flows seamlessly with the older classic songs.
The Swedes ooze a certain amount of sarcastic humour, making reference to bushfires, which may have crossed the line somewhat but was quickly forgotten as they launch into yet another hit ‘Die, All Right!’ The Hives certainly own an impressive back catalogue of music.
“Tomorrow’s going to be the hottest day in 50 years of Sydney and The Hives are in town. Coincidence? I think not,” teases Almqvist. “As the sun catapults its way to the earth for tomorrow’s D-day prepared to get toasted…” Pelle banters before launching into arguably The Hives biggest hit ‘Hate to Say I Told You So’ from Veni Vidi Vicious. The catchy riffs bounced off the walls as the crowd created a tsunami of flailing arms and seismic shifts on the dance floor.
Before heading off stage for the obligatory encore break, the frontman explained that the Australian Government had threatened The Hives, “you can’t play for more than one hour or we will stab you.” It gave the sweaty crowd another quote to ponder.
The encore was fast and furious with ‘Go Right Ahead’, ‘Insane’ and ‘Tick Tick Boom’. The finale saw the audience in the Metro sit mid song and with The Hives freezing in their playing positions before a final explosive mosh.
The band celebrated their retiring Ninja roadie with the crowd to some cheap champagne – which nearly stole the show. As Almqvist quizzically asks the crowd “is this not a 1,239.7 out of 10 show?!!”
For a Monday, it was pure madness in The Metro and The Hives certainly laid their claims to bringing the heat to Sydney town.
View the gallery of The Hives’ show at Sydney’s Metro here.
