Live Review: Saskwatch w/ Cub Sport @ The Triffid

Melbournian alt-soul 6-piece Saskwatch celebrated their arrival in Brisbane with a captivating performance at The Triffid on Saturday night. Saskwatch showed off their versatility with tracks from their genre-hopping third album ‘Sorry I Let It Come Between Us’, moving the audience like puppets through a myriad of emotions, joyful dance moves, and awestruck appreciation of frontwoman Nkechi Anele.

Brisbane 4-piece The Good Sports opened the show with their indie-rock, circa-1970s tunes. The Brissie band played a collection of their more recent tracks including crowd favourite Midnight Drive. Indie-pop 4-piece Cub Sport were second on the bill, their presence alone drawing the swarming crowd towards the stage. The set featured tracks from Cub Sport’s debut album ‘This Is Our Vice’, kicking off with I Can’t Save You. The song’s infectious melodies and fun vibes satisfied the crowd while frontman Tim Nelson used his healthy sense of humour to keep fans entertained. “This song’s about being in a relationship with someone you don’t like… and they don’t like you either,” he said.

Cub Sport’s onstage chemistry along with keyboardist Sam Netterfield’s enthusiastic dance moves perfectly captured the band’s strange and loveable nature. The upbeat set had the crowd energised and more than ready for the main act.

The room immediately filled up as Saskwatch took the stage, opening with happy dance track I’ll Be Fine. The psychedelic, distorted sounds of the guitars with the upbeat tempo instantly pumped up the crowd and set the tone for the rest of the show.

Saskwatch backed up their strong start with another stellar track, Bite My Tongue, and all eyes were on Nkechi Anele as she delivered a beautifully strong vocal performance. This song managed to combine the band’s new psych-rock sound with wonderfully soulful lyrics: “Love come back to me/We can make it better/Be what we used to be/Love you to the letter”.

Spitting Image again highlighted the band’s new psychedelic sound. Creepy strobe lighting set the scene, enhancing the combined sound of fuzzy guitar and gentle vocals. Slow, melancholic track Blind was delivered perfectly, leaving the audience swaying and drinking in each and every moment. Down The Stairs brought the mood back up with it’s fun, dance vibes. Like Blind, the track allowed Liam McGorry to show off his cool bluesy flair on the trumpet.

Throughout the show there was a vibrant back-and-forth energy between Saskwatch and the audience. The songs were delivered with such gusto that the crowd couldn’t help but return the good vibes, and the band loved it – guitarist Robert Muinos declared Brisbane the “best crowd of the tour.”

A Love Divine was delivered flawlessly and with so much energy that it quickly became an obvious crowd favourite and a highlight of the performance.

Saskwatch finished off the show with funky soul hit Born To Break Your Heart. For the final number, The Triffid was filled with an estranged mixture of excitement and disappointment as fans anticipated the end of the show.

As Saskwatch left the stage, the cheers, applause, and whistling grew louder than the set itself, and didn’t cease until the band reappeared for one last song. They matched the audience’s enthusiasm, dancing, jumping, and climbing the stage structure, making the encore the ultimate celebration of an awesome show.