The Bennies, Fangz, LOLA, Slim Krusty @ Jive, Adelaide 20/4/2024
With their new single Let’s Have a Party out, The Bennies have hit stages around Australia partying with us all, and on April 20, they rolled into Adelaide’s much-loved venue, Jive. This stoner punk and ska influenced band excited crowds and got all fans involved in their trippy conversations and music right from their sound checks. With echoes and instruments tested, the band tried out the crowds’ musical abilities too.
The night began with hectic and talented punk bands like LOLA and Fangz. But first, solo folk punk act Slim Krusty graced the stage with his guitar and perfect contrasts. His grunge vocals sound like he’s swallowed razors and a pack of cigarettes but are paired stunningly with his unique and melancholic tunes about heartbreak, loss and cigarettes. This gritty, raw, friendly and flinchingly honest artist is seriously someone you need to listen to and go see when he performs again in Adelaide!
Adelaide’s own punk rock band LOLA took the stage with their insanely cool music, giving off 80’s and 90’s punk vibes. Their high energy rocked audiences and warmed up the venue for the rest of the night. The final support act was Sydney’s Fangz who all waltzed onto stage with their matching black overalls, with frontman Josh Cottreau literally climbing the walls and indoor balcony in Jive before jumping into the crowd, thrashing about everyone – his fans, Slim Krusty and band members from LOLA.
Lead vocalist Anty Horgan from The Bennies happily navigated himself around the stage jumping metres into the sky then swaying to his band mates’ instrumentals through the entire headline set. His giant smile lit up the stage and you knew he was there for a good time. His engagement with the audience melted us all together into a clouded haze of fun, laughs and beautiful confusion while playing crowd favourites like Weed is Beautiful, My Bike, Legalise (But Don’t Tax) and their 2024 song, Cocaine. If you’ve ever seen The Bennies live, you would know the experience isn’t for the faint-hearted. It’s chilled but simultaneously spontaneous, not knowing what the boys will do next. The unfiltered gestures, conversations and stoner punk lyrics exude a hedonistic vibe that permeates the entire venue and its crowd.
Putting the jokes, unplanned rawness and mindless fun aside, the band displayed truly impressive instrumental and vocal skills to be commended. The ska punk style and Aussie accent vocals, synth features, trombone talents, drumming and guitarist skills were all genuinely cool to hear from all the guys.
The Bennies showed mateship with each-other and the other bands, who were in the crowds watching each of them play throughout the night. Anty asked us all to turn around and hug someone, sending a contagious wave of good times and love through the crowd.
It was a trip to experience and in true The Bennies style, their energy and hilarious passion for music exploded from the very start until the last few songs, including the awesome Party Machine, which stuck in your head as you walked out the venue, drove away and woke up the next morning.
Live Review By Zara Zampaglione
Photo Credit: Wil Johnstone