Review: Lebanon Hanover at Rosemount Hotel

Lebanon Hanover at Rosemount Hotel
w/ Life Cult
Sunday, April 28, 2024

Darkware post-punk duo Lebanon Hanover imparted a set of glacial tones to a packed Main Room at Rosemount Hotel on Sunday night, much to the delight of those in attendance. The gig marked the first time in Perth for the group, and though the group appeared suitably sombre on stage in a kinship with their musical styling, the performance and crowd interaction from both Larissa Iceglass and William Maybelline showed the two to have very warm hearts.

First up on the night were local goth outfit Life Cult. Led by the husky baritone emanations of Alex Nilsson-Faulds up front, the four-piece moved through a solid set of dark post-punk numbers. The more noisy and distorted moments worked best for the group in the live environment, as these gave the songs an extra oomph and sonic texture that carried through the large room. The newer song, Life is Love, was a highlight of the set, whereas closer, a cover of Kylie Minogue’s Confide in Me, showed the dynamic range the group has on offer.

After a short interval, the headline duo Lebanon Hanover hit the stage, launching into the swaggering ’80s goth of Die World II which, with its opening lines of “Give me something to believe in/ Now that everything is dust,” adequately set the tone for the set to come.

Changing things up, the group adopted acoustic instruments for the neo-folk of Kyiv and Better Than Going Under, the latter being the namesake of the group’s latest EP, and perhaps because of its recency, the best representation of the group’s current sonic direction.

In contrast, it was the goth synth-pop tracks Kiss Me Till My Lips Fall Off, Babes of the 80s, and Totally Tot that were the most well-received by the audience, each absolutely igniting the crowd and getting all in attendance moving, including Maybelline himself, who exhibited some truly great, ’80s-inspired, Morrissey-esque arm flailing dance moves on these numbers.

Elsewhere, the group’s most well-known track, Gallowdance, was ushered in by wild cheers and applause from the crowd, while set closer Come Kali Come, with its ominous synth tones, slamming metallic percussion, and theatrical horror-movie feel, was nothing short of fantastically creepy and eerie.

Just like Larissa Iceglass’ brief smiles of appreciation after thanking the crowd and stating how she thinks Perth is absolutely beautiful, the set seemed too short, particularly given this is the group’s first time here in their fourteen-year career. Yet perhaps this is for the best, as with the duo adequately showcasing their ability to command a stage and connect with their audience while providing the full gamut of the group’s musical offering, there is only so much a band can achieve in the one visit.

MICHAEL HOLLICK

Photos by Adrian Thomson