Perth’s Amplifier Bar was the setting for the punk cover band, supergroup and all round fun guys, Me First And The Gimme Gimmes performing the penultimate show of their Australian tour.
While this adventure has seen Fat Mike’s (of NOFX) position filled by the dreadlocked Eric Melvin on bass and Chris Shiflett (of The Foo Fighters) filled by his brother, Scott Shiflett (Face To Face), the banter, hilarity and upbeat vibe of the band remain unchanged.
With a decent crowd already gathering, Perth band, FAIM hit the stage. Bristling with energy and channelling Jello Biafra mannerisms and vocal style throughout the short set, frontman Noah Skape seemed intent on raising interest early.
Mixing his vocal presentation from the stage, the pit floor as well as over and around fellow band members, Skape’s body language echoed that of the nearby mental asylum. Theatrics aside, it was deranged fun culminating in a killer rendition of Bad Religion’s ‘Generator’.
Next up were another local product, the three-piece band, Leeches. With a debut album, Lords Of Dullsville out next month the night was an opportune time to create some hype.
A few technical difficulties plagued the band’s set but amoung the six or so songs the band cranked out, the music was both intense and to the point.
By the times the Gimmes took to the stage the Amplifier was heaving with the near capacity mass creating a heat vacuum inside the small venue.
Perhaps it is the nature of the songs the band plays or the uniformity of a bunch of guys wearing Hawaiian shirts but the smiles on the band member’s faces indicated a great night lay ahead.
From the time that Spike Slawson, the iconic frontman uttered the first line of Gloria Gaynor’s classic, “I Will Survive” the crowd knew they were in for a good time.
The “here’s another cover” line never got old as it was repeated numerous times throughout and the jovial jousting between Slawson and guitarist, Joey Cape (of Lagwagon) over the course of the night… hilarious.
The subtle change ups from melodic cover to frenetic punk is what the band are renowned for and they utilised this to maximum effect on the setlist. ‘Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard’ and ‘Leaving On A Jet Plane’ interpretations drew a manic response from what would be best described as the happiest mosh pit seen in a long while.
‘Who Put The Bomp’ and ‘Jolene’ had the crowd singing in unison again, whilst the Johnny Cash cover, ‘(Ghost)Riders In The Sky’ provided the heaviest rendition of the night with Melvin, Stiflett and Cape conducting a punk rock version of epic proportions.
Slawson donned a white lounge jacket over the ‘team’ orientated Hawaiian shirt and rocked some Elvis-like sunglasses the whole night. The vocal performance of Slawson was a highlight throughout, a worthy representation of some classic songs whilst maintaining that punk edge when the version required it.
‘Needles And Pins’ covered by Slawson alone on stage with ukulele was spell bounding and the man had the whole of the Amplifier engulfed in his vocal exploits.
Indeed when the band re-entered the stage , bass player, Melvin quipped that he wanted more Slawson sideshow. In jest or not, Slawson oozed charisma and is the perfect front man for a band of this kind.
Not even the lone punter who valiantly attempted to scale the lone pillar in the room to the rooftop before crumbling to the pit below could steal the show.
In no time the encore had arrived, with crowd favourite, ‘Country Roads’ producing an “all in” response, the room now singing in unison.
The Gimmes concluded with the classic Boyz II Men cover, ‘End Of The Road’, endearing itself to another sing-a-long and bringing an end to a night of Gimme shenanigans.
Whether it was the Friday night slot or just the pure frivolity of the band, this was one of the happiest crowds of recent years seen at the Amplifier.
