Deborah Harry last graced Australian shores back in 2010 hitting the A Day On The Green circuit with Blondie, however their tour was cut short after the Brisbane show at Sirromet Winery was cancelled due to bad weather.
A couple of years and a controversial spot on the Homebake 2012 lineup later, and Blondie were back in Brisbane last Thursday night to make up for lost time.
Coming along for the ride was English punk rockers The Stranglers and Australian pub outfit The Saints, the latter of which got the night underway just before 6pm on a beautiful cool evening in the scenic Botanic Gardens.
Pumping out stellar sonics, The Saints deliver a great sounding yet rather lifeless set. Without any movement at all from the band members, they run through their short support slot providing tracks such as “King Of The Sun”, “Stranded” and the highly popular “Just Like Fire Would” (the ‘Inala anthem’ according to frontman Chris Bailey).
One look around the venue and there is immediately a Day On The Green vibe with a mostly older crowd sitting back, relaxing and sipping their wines whilst watching a bunch of older rockers belt out their hits.
After a short break, UK outfit The Stranglers hit the stage with their old school punk sounds in tow.
Straight out of the gate, this quartet of veterans gives the crowd a much more exciting live performance, with opening songs including “(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)”. The fast jumping keys and good solid rhythm section gains big reactions from the audience, even if they are all seated.
“Hanging Around” and “Time Was Once On My Side” still have that authentic punk feel to them even after all these years, which is commendable.
“Golden Brown” slows things down a little before the group urge the crowd to stand up on their feet and enjoy the rock show that they are putting on. Finishing their set with a Kinks cover before playing soccer with an empty cup, it’s clear that they’re still having fun.
By the time Blondie hit the stage, just before 8.30pm, the crowd have already been treated by The Stranglers with the headlining band expected to top them, but unfortunately this just doesn’t happen.
It’s a rousing reception that greets Harry and the rest of the band when they walk on stage. Deservedly, they were one of the biggest bands back in their day, however, as the second song of the set – “Hanging On The Telephone” – gets played, it’s pretty clear that the times have definitely changed.
Whilst the band rock out some great instrumentation, with fast and furious drumming and plenty of energy from the musicians, unfortunately the most important instrument of all, Debbie Harry’s voice, is showing its age.
Throughout “Call Me” images of old flash up on the screen but Harry’s vocals are hardly noticeable as they come over quite weak and flat, making for a fairly lacklustre performance.
The guitarist injected some of his young blood into the solos, and in turn, some excitement into the show, while the drummer’s showmanship from behind his kit also amused; but all of this drowned out Harry’s singing, which just couldn’t keep up.
“The Tide Is High” brings The Stranglers back up on stage to dance around in dresses and “Atomic”, a cover of Beastie Boys “Fight For Your Right”, and “One Way Or Another” bring about the end of the set.
Returning to the stage for an encore, consisting of a cover of Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s “Relax (Don’t Do It)” and “Heart Of Glass”, the night finishes; and even though the fans seemed to have enjoyed it, one must think that it’s all out of nostalgia and not based on the performance. One way or another, Blondie have lost their step.
View our gallery of Blondie’s show at Brisbane Riverstage here.
