Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle
Saturday October 5th, 2013 :
Hailing from Portland, Oregon, indie-rock band Wampire were the main support act on Regurgitator’s latest tour. Upon seeking confirmation that they were in fact in Newcastle, singer Rocky Tinder declared “people in the states are wankers, it’s a lot nicer here.” Although they had some good riffs, their set was rife with jarring background noise and unnecessary effects that detracted from the overall performance.
After being disappointed with their set at Groovin’ the Moo, I was hoping that long time favourites Regurgitator would redeem themselves on their current “Dirty Pop Fantasy” tour. Sporting fluro pink and leopard print jumpsuits, the band left no doubt in my mind that they were back to their obscene best. Advising fans that they would be on an extended hiatus for the foreseeable future, they set out to create a memorable night.
Always hard to describe, Gurg manage to successfully mix a little bit of punk, pop, rock, electro, hip-hop and funk to create a true ‘Mish Mash’ of music. Pick a genre and you can guarantee that they have amalgamated it into one song or another. Not known for their lyrical subtly, Regurgitator encouraged the crowd to sing along to ‘I Will Lick Your Arsehole’ before proclaiming that along with Brisbane and Hobart, Newcastle was one of their favourite places to perform.
Despite the years, there is an apparent lack of ageing amongst the band members, an observation only made more notable by the boundless energy that they display. Amending their set list to accommodate crowd requests, Gurg belted out old tunes ‘Polyester Girl’, ‘Kong Foo Sing’, ‘I Wanna Be A Nudist’ and finished the set with ‘! (The Song Formerly Known As).’ Despite these tracks being released close to fifteen years ago, the band still played them with proud enthusiasm. Accordingly, the crowd responded in-kind and gave the Gurg the send off that they deserve.
Photographer: Timmy Johnston
Reviewer: Mel Woodward
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