On Friday a sold out Workers Club crowd were treated to a fantastic night of music, as Stuck Out put on a show in celebration of their stellar EP You Won’t Come Home. Joining them on the bill were Clove, Fever Speak, and Yours Truly. With every band having a fairly different sound, the vibes of the gig were constantly changing, but throughout the whole time it appeared everyone wanted to be there and were having a fantastic time.
Opening the performances was Clove. Having not heard much of them before, I was very impressed and pleasantly surprised by how much I liked them. Vocalist Mark Jamieson had a lot of energy, and was constantly dancing around the stage. He appeared to be exhilarated by the instrumentals, but also looked a little uncomfortable at times. Whether this was due to nerves or what, I don’t think it really matters because he has a great amount of vocal talent and still had solid stage presence.
Other members of the band were also full of energy, as they all jumped around the stage in perfect unison, and truly appeared to be in this together. It was also visible that they were having a great time, as they all continued to smile at each other and increased the mood of the room with that. If the band is having fun the crowd is having fun.
The visible enjoyment of the band brought a smile to my face, as their upbeat grunge type instrumentals and smooth yet harsh vocals matched up perfectly to create a very enjoyable performance and certainly left a good impression on me. I was also surprised to learn that the bass player was in fact a fill-in just for that night, which I would not have picked at all, as he fitted in perfectly and appeared to be having the most fun out of all of them.
[ Clove on Spotify | Clove on Facebook ]
Next up was Fever Speak, who suffered some technical difficulties early in the set, but were able to turn it around and show off their unique sound as it was meant to be heard. At the start of their set it was fairly low energy, as the crowd didn’t appear to be very into it and the band members themselves were not moving around much, except for the drummer who was going off behind the kit. The drummer also appeared to be ridiculously talented, noted because of his uncanny ability to play a beat whilst having each single limb playing a different pattern on a different part of the kit.
Once they fixed their technical issues and got their guitarist up and running Fever Speak upped the ante, and the dark instrumentals released some very sombre and moody vibes. They mentioned how good it was to be here, and how awesome it was to be supporting Stuck Out, and to be joined by the other fantastic bands. The singer Brent mentioned how rough it was following Clove after they had been so good, and thanked everyone for giving them the time of day and watching them play.
After this, people started to get more into the music, as I could see several people singing along and even a few playing imaginary air instruments. It’s always nice to see people getting so lost in the music and expressing that in whatever way they feel like, especially in such a small environment like the Workers Club where it almost feels more like a group hang out than a show.
The vocals were very strong, as the singer managed to play some ridiculous riffs on guitar while still going between harsh and soft vocals like it was nothing. The guitars themselves were also mesmerising at times, as it took away everything else I was thinking about at the time and forced me to listen to that and only that, as they echoed through the room and created a very powerful sound.
Towards the end of the set they appeared to say “Lets bring it the fuck home,” as they closed out their last song with some crazy instrumental work, where every single member just went to town on their instruments. The drummer was banging his head and playing fill after fill, belting the cymbals and setting up for the end. Both guitarists were playing high pitched technical riffs and were wailing away, as the bassist also went nuts on his bass pumping out the deep rhythms. This all led up to the ending of their set, which was incredible because of this last 30 seconds of instrumental insanity. Everyone was in awe of this, and the applause was strong as Fever Speak left the stage.
[ Fever Speak on Spotify | Fever Speak on Facebook ]
Coming all the way from Sydney to play this show, Yours Truly put on a fine set. The vocal performance was strong, as were the instrumentals. They were also very high energy, as synchronized punk jumps from the guitarist and bassist showed that they were on the same page. The constant smiles from the band members as they walked around the stage, playing and having a good time together, really signified that they love playing music, and was great to see yet again.
An overarching problem for this whole show, including Clove and Fever Speak, was quite low crowd involvement, which was evident again in Yours Truly’s set. Although there were a few people singing it was nowhere near some of the intensity we would see later on during Stuck Out’s set.
After performing a fun cover of 30 Seconds To Mars “The Kill”, singer Mikaila mentioned her thoughts on making females in bands more than a rarity, saying that it should not be a main talking point for a band that they have a female member, and it should be much more common than it is. She said this in a light hearted manner, and the crowd also enjoyed it as they cheered in agreement with her quick speech. Closing with their latest single “High Hopes” the participation levels jumped through the roof as the people that were merely swaying in unison with the instruments before got up front and started singing along loudly. They bounced around together and were all yelling the lyrics back at Mikaila, and created a fun end to a solid set.
[ Yours Truly on Spotify | Yours Truly on Facebook ]
Despite their being a good amount of appreciation for all the support bands, it was very clear who everyone was there to see. Everyone packed in close and made the small venue feel even tighter, as the anticipation for Stuck Out was strong. I’ve been following Stuck Out for about a year and a half now and it was awesome to see so many people excited for them. Surrounded by people wearing the merch and talking excitedly to each other it was clear this was something special for them and for the band. Everyone was here to see them, and will mark the beginning of what will hopefully be an even bigger chapter in Stuck Out’s career.
As the band came up on stage and went straight into the music the energy was already ridiculous. In spite of a sore throat and lost voice, vocalist Josh Walker was fantastic. Encouraging crowd surfing, mic grabs, and dancing around to the music, he was great to watch on stage. It was harder for me to view the rest of the band at times, as I got among it near the front and jumped around with my friends and everyone else in attendance. It seemed like every 5 seconds someone was jumping off the stage or crowd surfing over me to try get closer to Josh up the front.
Everyone was non-stop moving in beat with the music, singing along and fueled by the charged vocals of Josh we all tried to tear past each other in order to get forward and get our hands on that microphone. I personally copped it during “Linger”, as I pushed through everyone. Josh gave me the mic for the words “Home isn’t a place, no it’s a state of mind, I need to feel something from you so I can feel alive.” I yelled into the mic and then jumped back into the mess that was the pit as Josh smiled and went right back into the performance.
Other highlights were the emotional singalongs for “Fragments”, as well as the raw passion displayed by Josh during “Fade Away.” Everyone was clearly having a fantastic time, especially the band as Josh and the others smiled and danced and jumped together as one on stage, clearly drawing from the crowds energy. They closed with “Fade Away” as they thanked everyone for coming and went off to the side of the stage.
No sooner had they stepped off the stage then the chants for “one more song” started. The fans were rewarded by this as Stuck Out charged back on stage and launched into “Statelines,” an older song of theirs that was enjoyed by all. The fast paced energetic vibes continued right up to the end, as they left stage and were met by countless people trying to talk to them and buy merch. My friends and I all purchased a crisp white pair of Stuck Out socks which were awesome, and as we had a quick chat to Josh before we started to head home we discussed how awesome that show was. The energy was ridiculous, it was about 5 degrees outside but everyone was still covered in sweat. Unheard of.
To see so many people getting around Stuck Out like that was unreal, and I can certainly see them carrying this momentum into even bigger shows and even bigger releases. The supports also added to the night, as I will absolutely be listening to them more from now on, especially Clove. Keep an eye on Stuck Out, as they absolutely have big things on the horizon. This was overall a very wholesome and enjoyable night of music, where all the bands were happy to be there and the vibes were fantastic. This community we’re in is truly great.
[ Stuck Out on Spotify | Stuck Out on Facebook ]
Photos of Stuck Out courtesy of Liam Davidson.
