Review: DZ Deathrays at Rosemount Hotel

DZ Deathrays at Rosemount Hotel
w/ Last Quokka, Homebrand
Friday, July 5, 2024

It’s not often that a band invades your ears in a way that leaves you wanting to see them every opportunity you can. DZ Deathrays have been one of those bands since first seeing them support Children Collide at Capitol back in 2011. The then duo’s thrashy guitar and drum-heavy tunes grabbed you with no way of escape. One of their most memorable gigs and albums was 2014’s Black Rat Tour—a killer album that was only intensified live; it had all the elements of a perfect gig.

So when the release of the Black Rat 10^th Anniversary Tour hit the press, it was not one to miss. That sentiment was clearly mirrored by punters at Rosemount on Friday night. The vibe was pre-set; there was anarchy in the air—an indication of the thrash fest that was about to commence.

Local indie-punk outfit Homebrand kicked things off, throwing down some gritty hooks layered with catchy choruses. There’s some strong influences from the likes of Sly Withers and a touch of Smith Street Band in their sound, which you’ll no doubt be hearing in the Sunday Sesh playlists come summer. Playing a selection of released songs with Blue, Picket Fence, What You’ve Done, Where Did The Time Go?, and a selection of unreleased tasters (produced by DZ’s Shane Parsons) before closing with their latest single, The Trouble, they didn’t disappoint. While there was no indication of release dates, vocalist Daryl Wright suggestively announced, “It’s like a 16-year-old me; could come at any time," throwing further mystery into expectations.

What was intended to be a sneaky run out to the beer garden between sets quickly turned into a side mission after hearing the alluring murderous screams of Perth skramz outfit Puke discharging from Four5Nine. Like a fresh apple pie on the windowsill, the razor-sharp screamo and thundering bass lured you across the venue for a taste. It was a short but delightfully sweet set that was perfectly timed, allowing a quick return to the main stage like we’d never left.

Back to the main stage, it wasn’t long before Last Quokka took to the stage and shook things up with their classic thematic punk angst and rebellion. While never shying away from topical lyrics, these guys have a knack of throwing down delightfully stompy punk rock. They quickly ignited a brewing mosh pit opening with Gina/Rupert before blasting through a neat scattering of songs from 2023’s Red Dirt and some new stuff from an upcoming album, including Save Our Pubs, which takes aim at the loss of the institutionally classic pubs we all know and love thanks to the gentrification and pretentious takeover many have succumbed.

Their lyrics are simple, but their messages are clear and buttered across some gritty punk beats, like fresh toast in the morning. Last Quokka don’t give a fuck about who they throw shade at, but they do give a fuck about things that matter to them, like environmental and cultural preservation and standing up to the establishment. As they kicked on with Broome, Cue, and My Girl, intermixed with some new stuff, the room was rocking with a ruckus in the mosh and regular sing-alongs or shout-outs from the crowd. Before kicking off with Cue, Trent asked the crowd, “Any of you guys been to Cue?” followed by “Fuck, that’s more than I expected" after the crowd let out a mass cheer. Closing with Piggy saw a final moment of anarchism from the band and crowd before things subdued ever so slightly upon the song's end.

The room was heaving as it quickly filled, leading up to DZ’s headline timeslot. Andrea Bocelli’s Con te partirò signified the band's emergence and had the crowd singing along thematically. DZ Deathrays then hit the stage and immediately kicked into gear with Black Rat, which was met with mass crow engagement and a chaotic mosh that only intensified as fan favourite Gina Works at Hearts followed. Something about this moment right here felt like the memory of the night, encapsulating everything of the night in a moment of carthaic freedom.

The addition of second guitarist Lachlan Ewbank (since 2015) and bassist Luke Henery (since 2023) to the original dynamic duo Shane Parsons and Simon Ridley has only intensified their sound and added more depth to the shred fest. Henery spent most of the gig rocking out; all you could see was hair thrashing and whipping in every direction like a wacky waving inflatable arms man; he was clearly in the zone.

They eased through songs in the album's exact order, with Less Out of Sync and Reflective Skull next up, both bringing out mass crowd engagement, especially the former's chorus. There wasn’t a still body in sight, and the mosh quickly became a force to be reckoned with. Regularly absorbing anyone in the vicinity like a cyclone collecting houses, people emerged battered and beaten, covered in a mixture of beer and sweat, and missing both shoes for one punter, yet without a frown in sight.

The pace slowed ever so slightly with Keep Myself on Edge, Northern Lights, and Nightwalking before the electronic Fixations intro and Ocean Explorer saw decent sing-alongs from the crowd. “I wanna see the fucking energy in this room; are you ready, Perth?" from Parsons made the crowd step things up as Tonight Alright started. Nobody gave a fuck, and like a parasite taking control of its host, the music continued to be the motivator of uncontrollable movement. The final album song, Night Slave, gave people one last chance to live in the moment. Albeit, everyone knew there was a little something extra around the corner, but that didn’t deter anyone at all. The guitar work of this song is almost hypnotic, seductively luring you into some sort of thrash trance.

Then it was done—Black Rat in its entirety—and they walked off stage. But that wasn’t the end; a brief but prominent request for one more song from the crowd saw Parsons and Ridley return to the stage to belt out 2009’s The Mess Up from their debut EP. What a glorious homage to the days of the dynamic duo! They followed with Gebbie Street from 2012’s Bloodstreams before Ewbank and Henery returned to throw down some treats from 2023’s RIFF, including Paranoid and the jangly riffage of My Mind Is Eating Me Alive. The last song was announced with Parsons shouting, “Alright, Perth, scream with me. Are you ready?" as 2017’s Shred for Summer’s intro built to the opening scream with a deafening crowd bellow. It was a great closer to drain any remaining energy from the crowd, with a tidy guitar solo from Ewbank to boot.

The supports killed it, and DZ absolutely destroyed it. It would have been awesome to see some more from the Bloodstreams album, but the night realistically couldn’t be faulted. They could’ve finished up at any point and everyone would have still left satisfied, but in typical DZ fashion, they wanted people to leave with a stamp on gig of the year for those who attended.

RYAN ELLIS

Photos by Karen Lowe