Review: Frenzal Rhomb at Rosemount Hotel
Frenzal Rhomb at Rosemount Hotel
w/ Mannequin Death Squad
Wednesday, October 21, 2026
Touring an album for its 23rd birthday because “we just missed the 20th, and the world may not make it until the 25th” is about as Frenzal Rhomb as it gets, and their return to the Rosemount to celebrate 23 years of Sans Souci a couple years since A Man is Not a Camel’s 25th birthday may have been even better than that most excellent and epic night was.
A cheeky Wednesday night punk gig at the Rosie always goes down a treat, and with Mannequin Death Squad opening the proceedings, this one was particularly tasty. The Melbourne-based thrash pop duo played a pretty unique set as far as opening acts go—their funky flavour of grungy punk was high energy and fun—the perfect openers for Frenzal. It was a big ol’ party vibe on the dance floor. It’s always fun to see a two-piece when they nail it as well as Elly (lead vocals and guitar) and Danny (vocals and drums), so far so good. But then, midway through the set, the pair swapped instruments! How fun! How different! How impressive! Bloody show-offs! Na, we love this kinda all-hands-on-deck attitude—what could be more punk than that? With their catchy songs and awesome live presence, this is definitely a band to keep an eye on. Hit that follow button! This tour was their first time playing in Perth, and given how they won the crowd over, hopefully they’ll be back soon.
Ahhh Frenzal Rhomb. Despite being on tour for quite the while already, the band were in damn fine form. The banter between frontman Jay and guitarist Lindsay, in particular, was even more hilarious and entertaining than usual. You know when it seems like a band are actually enjoying themselves up there very genuinely? Well, that’s what it felt like.
Giving the album in question several hoons before the night, damn, it really holds up. It’s silly, it’s fun, it’s got a huge variety in its sound, lots of stories to tell… plus, it’s positively STACKED with tracks that are pretty much a staple on any Frenzal setlist: Punisher, Ballchef, Bucket Bong, Who’d Be a Cop—all standouts on the night, as well as the perennial Russell Crowe’s Band, which also inspired one of the funnier merch designs available to purchase this tour. Yes, it’s probably exactly what you’re imagining—but, as Frenzal themselves say, best not to mention that song’s lyrics, or else his lawyers could get salty.
They promised they wouldn’t play the album in order, and they didn’t, which kept things interesting. They did, however, kick things off with album opener Stand Up & Be Cunted, but surely all would agree that it’s just objectively an excellent song to open a live show with?! They promised they’d even throw in several favourites from other albums, and they did, such as their set closer, Never Had So Much Fun, which, yep—an objectively good song to end a live show with!
I guess the moral of the story here, kids, is that these cats have been around long enough to know what they’re doing. The only unexpected thing that happened was Jay repeatedly saying, since it was a Wednesday, that the good humans of the audience “probably have jobs to go to the next morning” and therefore shouldn’t be kept out too late. What a guy! Fan favourites such as Punch in the Face, When My Baby Smiles, and Bird Attack were peppered through the setlist in between songs from Sans Souci, much to the joy of everyone present.
One of the many excellent things about playing whole albums live when touring them on anniversaries (anniversaries that make sense, or the other kind, like, say, a 23rd anniversary), is that everyone in the crowd knows every song, and they’ve obviously loved it for an anniversary-worth-celebrating amount of time, so the vibe is about as good as it gets. The temptation to head down to Bunbury for their show there the next night was strong. Sans Souci—it’s still French for Frenzal Rhomb are fuckin’ awesome fun live.
MELISSA KRUGER
Photos by Taylor Broadley
