The Bronx @ Amplifier Bar
w/ Chubby and the Gang, Ghoulies
Tuesday, May 17, 2022
It’s not uncommon for international bands to start their tours in Perth. But on a Tuesday night of all nights, and with a pandemic thrown in – it was hard to know exactly what to expect when The Bronx arrived to play at Amplifier earlier this week.
This, however, was shown not to be a problem when local band Ghoulies opened up. A quick glance around the venue revealed a packed room. It may have been the first time many people there had seen the band (featuring some well-known faces from Aborted Tortoise, Dennis Cometti and Kitchen People) but it certainly won’t be the last. Ghoulies are what punk is all about, and the addition of keyboards brought a whole new dimension to the traditional punk sound.
Hailing all the way from the UK, Chubby and the Gang, were next on stage. By this time, the audience had really started to pack into the Band Room and the energy and excitement grew stronger by the minute. Lead singer Charlie ‘Chubby’ Manning-Walker called out Dennis Cometti – “the band; not the person” and dedicated a song to them, having just toured with them in Europe. They only formed in 2019 but evidently already have a strong fan base here with the audience was singing along and loving every second.
By the time The Bronx walked out on stage, the air was thick with anticipation and sweat. It had been a long time since most of us had seen an international band, and Tuesday or not, everyone there planned to make the most of it. Not long into the show, a newlywed couple (standing out in their white outfits amongst a sea of black) were thrust onto the stage and the groom threw the bouquet out into the audience before he and his bride crowd surfed out of there.
It was the first time that drummer Joey Castillo (ex Queens of the Stone Age) had played with The Bronx in Perth and he did not disappoint. He’s an absolute force to be reckoned with, bringing power to everything he did throughout the set.
It wouldn’t be a Bronx show if lead singer Matt Caughthran didn’t get amongst it in the pit and Tuesday night was no exception. Whether it was pacing atop the bar, or front-flipping from the sound desk, the pumped up crowd was there to catch him and send him crowd surfing back to the stage. In fact the only ‘disappointing’ moment of the night was when it finished and it was time to go home.
There’s been a lot of fear and anxiety going around the world over the last two years and music is something that not only brings people together but helps to heal and Tuesday night went a long way towards making everyone there feel just that little bit closer to normalcy. Everyone left Amps with a smile on their face and enjoying every, single ache and pain that came from moshing hard.
KAREN LOWE
Photos by Adrian Thomson
