Live Review: Ambleside w/Hindsight & Sleep Talk @ Phoenix Arts Theatre

It’s always a gamble heading to the new red-centre of Brisbane’s heavy live scene. Unpredictable parking, loose set times, and hit-and-miss sound quality are the issues at the forefront of my mind. However, I rocked up and there’s a free car space for me (I definitely did NOT accidentally park someone in ….), the show was running relatively on time, and the sound quality was of a high standard. Perfect, time for a review!

Adelaide’s Ambleside have set out on their ‘Shape Me Australian Tour’ in support of their new EP ‘Shape Me’, which is a tasty morsel of feels-heavy melodic hardcore that has fans all around the country eagerly wrapping their ears around.

Opening act Sleep Talk, another Adelaide native, had the crowd well-warmed up by the time I walked in during their set. Frontman Jacob Clement is an expert at working up a crowd, and flawlessly drew them in for plenty of mic grabs and high-fives. The secret is to know when to take the mic back and simply perform, too, and Clement has this in spades.

Sleep Talk’s music is airy and open at times, allowing the brutal assault of slamming chord sections to really punch through with a deep impact. Perhaps the highlight of the set was when a trumpet was whipped out by guitarist Lewis Tito, a sight rarely seen at a hardcore show.

Up next was another crew from Adelaide, Hindsight, delivering a set full of alternative rock styled instrumentation with a healthy dose of vicious angst from vocalist Jack Nelligan. Smooth guitar work and punchy drums were the backbone of Hindsight’s performance, with enough ambient clean guitar sections to keep things fresh.

Highlight of the set was the title-track of their latest EP ‘Disposable Paradise’, a slow and brooding belter featuring a superb back-and-forth of screamed and clean vocals with plenty of crowd involvement to boot. Rounding off their set was hit single Love Over, which ramped up the crowd involvement to another level, with Nelligan barely having a moment to perform between constant mic grabs.

Before taking the stage Ambleside were coolly chilling with their tour-mates and visibly relaxed amongst the punters, a picture of what the all-Adelaide band tour package is all about: hanging with the boys. Taking this vibe onstage with them the band rolls into slow single Dear Mother, a left-of-centre choice for set opener. Nonetheless, the crowd carries over their energy from the previous set and immediately sings along.

Tearing into punk beats and overdriven guitars, second song Good Enough? was a high-energy, circle-pit-starting track that whipped the crowd into a frenzy. Deafening shouts from the crowd permeate the chorus, “Broken bones and shattered teeth/memories still haunting me/the past never changes”. It’s here my worst fears were realised, however, as the mix of the band was clearly overpowering the clean vocals from guitarist Dean Lawrence, and as a result rendered him almost inaudible.

Maintaining this energy through next song Wasted saw the crowd form a circle pit filling the entire room, which clearly pleased the band and everything kicked up a notch. Drummer Ash Mayes, grinning ear to ear, layed heavily into each drum strike, while Jonathan Young on bass grooved nonchalantly beside him.

Before the band moved on, a second bass drum was mounted onto a stand in the middle of the stage, inciting confused looks from the crowd (and myself). After the trumpet in Sleep Talk’s set, it’s clear anything goes at the show. Halfway through the next track, Daniel Stevens (frontman) grabbed two mallets and belted the hell out of the mounted drum, riling up the whole room with a furious energy. Whoever was manning the sound-desk at that point was clearly struggling to compete with all the angst and fury, as the clean vocals suffered the same mistreatment as they had previously.

Once the chaos died down, a punter from the back yelled out “Ambleside f*cking rule!”, which was echoed by many and a round of applause and cheers welcomes in the next slow song. A moody and bluesy song that went unnamed, the clean guitar lines shimmered smoothly while Stevens blasted his voice over the sonic backdrop. This led into another unnamed instrumental track where a piano was brought onstage for Lawrence to noodle on, whilst Stevens dished out the usual thank-yous and shout-outs. Layers and layers on guitars swelled into explosions of post-rock goodness while the crowd let loose to the music.

As the musical storm faded, penultimate song Wash Away was introduced and the crowd rushed the stage as if they’d been waiting the whole afternoon for the moment. A clear fan favourite, the song is a fast and energetic single that demonstrates how tight Ambleside are as performers. The crowd participation never faltered throughout the song, with the band using their energy as the fuel to keep sailing through. Chorus refrain “Bottle up the pain/let it rain and wash away/let it carry you to a better place, don’t forget my name” drew out a deafening sing-along from the crowd, with every word belted out with furious energy and heartfelt passion.

Set closer Tired Eyes needed no introduction as once the first guitar note was struck the crowd somehow became even more energetic. The fastest and heaviest song Ambleside dished up during their set, it added a final dash of diversity that’s encouraging for the future of the young and exciting 5-piece. Stage dives, moshing, and endless mic grabs saw the song out and the band graciously departed the stage with smiles all round.

Check out Ambleside’s award winning music video for Wash Away below!