Gracing Brisbane’s riverfront cultural forecourt lay a 93-year old-Belgian spiegeltent, which shared much in common with its main attraction for the night, Brooklyn band Beach Fossils; absorbing to look at, an interesting history, and a slightly off-kilter vibe.
Dustin Payseur (founder and frontman) and his band kicked things off with their 2011 track “Calyer”. From the first catchy notes of Payseur’s guitar, it’s clear to the mid-sized crowd that this is going to be a great show- lively, musically spot-on, and extremely conducive to dancing.
Later, “What A Pleasure” was punctuated perfectly by Tommy Gardner’s contribution on percussion and Jack Doyle Smith’s subtle but intricate bass-work, creating one of the lower-tempo but technically impressive songs of the group’s 70 minute set.
An older track that was definitely a hit amongst fans was “Daydream”. Like most of Beach Fossils’ set, it was incomparable to the studio version, with stronger energy, bigger and clearer vocals, and an infectious backbeat that simply can’t be translated to recordings. Featuring great variations on the vocals from the album recording of the track, Payseur was clearly comfortable mixing things up without detracting from the overriding surf guitar sounds that undeniably make the song.
“Shallow” from this year’s album Clash The Truth was followed promptly by the second track from the same album “Generational Synthetic”. Described by Payseur as being about “having no fucking idea what you’re doing,” Gardner again kept infallible time that kept the audience moving.
“Youth” from their 2010, self-titled album went down well with the long-time fans in the crowd, and was a nice aural break with its more mellow structure than the majority of the set. Leading up to their typical big chorus, there was great interaction between Payseur and Davidson on stage, enforcing the friendly vibe that was present on and off the stage.
With an early ‘90s pop vibe, “Taking Off” began with a sweeping guitar introduction that progressed to include garage-style vocals from Payseur, followed with “The Horse”. Again with his self-deprecating humour, Payseur introduced the song by simply stating “this song sucks”, though Gardner’s tricky beats again ensured otherwise.
Showing a little more vulnerability, Payseur explained the sentiment of “Careless”, which he wrote for an unwell friend. Shredding on the guitar between verses and balancing the heavier emotions with an upbeat tone beautifully, he played the song extremely well. Lit from behind with a vivid white light, everyone seemed particularly on the ball for that number and it was the musical standout of their set.
The titular track of this year’s album (which Australian audiences would have missed, had Beach Fossils’ tour not been postponed last year), “Clash The Truth” opened with a literal clash of instruments that built before launching into the groovy first verse. Davidson was a standout as second guitarist, and the chanting that concludes the song was extended, to leave Payseur’s cries of “Nothing real, nothing true,” echoing around the mirrored walls of the tent, a harbinger of the frontman’s commentary to come.
One of the stronger tracks from Clash The Truth, “Burn You Down” was hampered by Davidson’s microphone being incorrectly levelled, which was unfortunately only redeemed at the very end of the track, though just in time to catch an impressively held note from the guitarist.
Beach Fossils’ final track, “Twelve Rose” came from their first album, and had the entire crowd heaving and hanging off Payseur’s every note. As things became increasingly chaotic, he embarked on an intriguing, deeply personal rant that appeared to reflect on happiness, success, and life in general. As his remarks of how he and the crowd were “all so fucking happy,” the backlights turned to a sinister red, as the show turned from an indie/lo-fi concert into a bizarre piece of performance art that definitely had a few audience members scratching their heads.
Though the outburst was incredibly engaging, it seemingly left many questioning how genuine it was, and to what degree it was merely a way of leaving an impression. Regardless, Beach Fossils played a wildly strong first Australian show, that showed both extreme talent and interesting character.
