Review: Butterfingers at The Corner Hotel, Melbourne, April 5th, 2019
When it comes to bands doing anniversary tours for records, it’s not unheard of for fans to be somewhat apprehensive. After all, will the band be able to capture the fire and fury of the album’s original release, or will it just be an exercise in unnecessary nostalgia?
Thankfully, for a band like Butterfingers, the answer always lies in the former rather than the latter.
Back in November, the Queensland group announced that they would be hitting the road to celebrate 15 years of their debut record, Breakfast At Fatboys, undoubtedly exciting their hardcore fans in the process.
A genre-defying classic upon release, the record managed to gain massive support thanks to triple j, with three of its tracks charting in the Hottest 100.
Since then, Butterfingers have released one more album, went on hiatus for a few years, and regrouped once more. With a decade-and-a-half between the album’s release and this year’s anniversary shows, fans have had plenty of time to revel in the glory of this stunning Aussie record.
So by the time that Butterfingers hit up Melbourne’s Corner Hotel on Friday night for the final Victorian concert of the tour, they were eager to relive the excitement of this phenomenal album.
Check out Butterfingers’ ‘I Love Work’:
As 9pm on Friday night rolled around, only a handful of punters had made their way into Richmond’s iconic Corner Hotel. While plenty of folks might have been out watching the football instead, it was a fitting shame that they weren’t around to witness the majesty of the evening’s opener, Mr. Ruckman.
Kicking things off with a new track, Mr. Ruckman’s delivery was clear and forceful, with his lyrics packed full of deep observations and catchy hooks. Throwing in references to John Lennon in his second track, ‘Work’, it was clear that he drew influences from all across the board.
As dedicated fans up the front followed along to every word, his staccato flow managed to capture the attention of everyone in the room. However, it wasn’t long before he upped the ante, showcasing his rapping talents by spitting some absolute fire by the fourth track.
Playing through tunes that discussed the hip-hop struggle and the difficulty in finding a day job, Mr. Ruckman served as an astonishing opener, absolutely blowing everyone away with his final track, an immense delivery of ‘The Game (Fast Spit #3)’.
Truly living up to its name, and his own reputation as “Australia’s fastest rapper”, he delivered phenomenally fast rhymes at breakneck speed, switching time signatures and leaving everyone in awe of what they had just witnessed.
Check out Mr. Ruckman’s ‘The Game (Fast Spit #3)’:
After a brief intermission, the crowd was treated with a bit of hometown flavour, welcoming Fresh Violet to the stage with rapturous applause.
Decked out in a KISS shirt, Fresh Violet kicked off her set with an equally-fiery performance, bursting out of the gate with rapid rhymes and catchy hooks.
Backed by drummer Card Houses, the Melbourne hip-hop star noted how fitting her inclusion on Butterfingers’ Breakfast At Fatboys tour way, handing out cereal samples to her fans before ripping into a stunning rendition of her own tune, ‘Breakfast’.
Running through tunes like ‘No Sheep’, ‘Left Right’, ‘Gangsta’, and the enigmatic ‘Ask Vizzy’, Fresh Violet’s joints undoubtedly got the eager crowd moving, with everyone bouncing to her fresh, endearing flow and groove-laden beats.
“Some people think girls can’t rap, can you believe that?” she asked the crowd at one point, undoubtedly turning any haters into believers with powerful performances of tracks like ‘Aliens Aliens Aliens’ and ‘Little Blue Dot’.
Before long, Fresh Violet’s set was all over, as she left the crowd to the sound of fans clearly cheering for more, and hoping they won’t have to wait too much longer to see this promising MC on the stage once again.
Check out Fresh Violet’s ‘Breakfast’:
By the time Fresh Violet had left the stage, the crowd size in The Corner had undoubtedly swelled to a more healthy level, with punters filling the venue in hopes of seeing one of Australia’s most brilliant rock and hip-hop acts.
Thankfully, they weren’t waiting long, because with almost no warning the stage’s curtain was pulled back to reveal none other than Brisbane’s Butterfingers, ready to tear the stage up once again.
Immediately, the group jumped right into the Breakfast At Fatboys opener, ‘Hook Up’, recruiting Fresh Violet to guest on the second verse.
With hip-hop verses, a powerful chorus, and rock-based instrumentation, it’s easy to see why Butterfingers are an impossible-to-classify band (a theme they address on tracks like 2006’s ‘Anthem’).
Slipping from hip-hop to rock at the drop of a hat, they manage to sound like a different group on almost every song, truly delivering something for everyone in each and every tune.
As fans sung along with the impossibly-catchy ‘Mandarines’, it was easy to see that everyone in attendance was revelling in the memories that this classic record brought up within them.
Before long, Evil Eddie was spitting the delightfully-immature lyrics to ‘Everytime’, thanking the audience for all of their support of the track in Butterfingers’ early years.
As fans chanted along to the track’s “worship Satan” segment, the tune scored itself a bit of a hip-hop history lesson, with the group turning it into an impromptu cover of the Beastie Boys’ classic ‘So What’cha Want’ to close it out.
Check out Butterfingers’ ‘Everytime’:
As Evil Eddie picked up the guitar, Butterfingers dipped into their classic track ‘Yo Mama’, undoubtedly bringing out one of the biggest singalongs of the evening in the process.
Of course, while some bands may be apprehensive to work through the segment of their debut album that didn’t feature any singles, such is the power of Butterfingers’ songwriting and performance style that even the overlooked middle portion of the record scored stunning audience support.
Tearing through catchy tracks like the punkish ‘Girl From Gore’, the funky ‘Is It Just Me’, and the reggae-influenced ‘Hurt Me So Bad’, it was clear that fans weren’t just here for the band’s hip-hop reputation, but rather everything that had on offer.
Ripping into the cathartic ‘Sorry’, Evil Eddie found himself entering the mosh to belt out the chorus, before Fresh Violet again was welcomed back to guest on the eclectic ‘Piss On Ya’.
Eschewing the Rocky Horror Picture Show-sampling intro section of the track with a cover of The Black Keys’ ‘Lonely Boy’, ‘Piss On Ya’ was undoubtedly one of the rowdiest joints of the night, thanks to not only its powerful delivery, but the seemingly punk and noise-influenced composition of the tune.
After dropping into the hardcore punk style of ‘Smell You On Me’ (a track Evil Eddie says should get into the Guinness Book of Records for the “dumbest song ever written”), the group were back to their old tricks, dropping into the mosh-worthy ‘Snatch & Grab’, before delivering their iconic hit, ‘I Love Work’.
Thanking the support acts and venue staff for working on a Friday night, the group’s sarcastic ode to the nine-to-five was arguably one of the set’s high points, as fans belted out almost every lyric.
Sadly, after a performance of the menacing ‘Speak Your Mind’ (which offered one of the few chances to see kazoos on The Corner’s main stage), the group took their leave, bidding farewell to their followers.
Check out Butterfingers’ ‘Yo Mama’:
Thankfully, we weren’t waiting long for more, with Fresh Violet getting punters on side to chant for Butterfingers’ return.
After jumping back onstage, the group dusted off a few hits from their later period, dropping in 2006’s disco-inspired ‘Get Up Outta The Dirt’, and a performance of Evil Eddie’s 2010 solo debut, ‘Queensland’.
Closing out the evening’s entertainment with a rendition of 2005’s iconic ‘FIGJAM’, it was incredibly easy to see why Butterfingers commanded such dedication and excitement from the crowd, dropping in verbose, humorous lyrics, delivered by Evil Eddie’s exceptional flow, and backed by the stunning musicianship of Brad ‘Bradzilla’ Cochrane, Olly Thomas, and Damien Green.
As the band bade their farewell to their eager fans, it was clear that even 15 years on from the release of Breakfast At Fatboys, Butterfingers and their debut record are still the Aussie powerhouse they’ve always been.
With an uncanny ability to deliver some of the tightest and most iconic tracks in Australian music history, here’s hoping we won’t be waiting another 15 years for such another exceptional performance.
Check out Butterfingers’ ‘FIGJAM’:
Butterfingers 15 Years Of Fatboys Australian Tour
(Remaining dates)
Supported by Fresh Violet
Saturday, April 6th 2019
Granada Tavern, Hobart, TAS
Tickets: Oztix | 1300 762 545
Friday, April 12th 2019
Dalrymple Hotel, Townsville, QLD
Tickets: Oztix | 1300 762 545
Saturday, April 13th 2019
Magnums, Airlie Beach, QLD
Tickets: Oztix| 1300 762 545
Thursday, April 18th 2019
Spotted Cow, Toowoomba, QLD
Tickets: Oztix | 1300 762 545
Saturday, April 20th 2019
Racehorse Hotel, Ipswich, QLD
Tickets: Oztix | 1300 762 545
Friday, April 26th 2019
The Northern, Byron Bay, NSW
Tickets: Oztix | 1300 762 545
Butterfingers @ The Corner Hotel, Melbourne 5/4/19 Setlist
‘Hook Up’
‘Mandarines’
‘Everytime’
‘Yo Mama’
‘Girl From Gore’
‘Is It Just Me’
‘Hurt Me So Bad’
‘Sorry’
‘Piss On Ya’
‘Smell You On Me’
‘Snatch & Grab’
‘I Love Work’
‘Speak Your Mind’
Encore:
‘Get Up Outta The Dirt’
‘Queensland’ (Evil Eddie song)
‘FIGJAM’
