The Church @ Hindley Street Music Hall, Adelaide 10/6/2023
Incredible! The Church steered The Hypnogogue in to Adelaide for a performance at the Hindley Street Music Hall that can only be described as elite. Front man Steve Kilbey clearly showed that he is right at the top of his game and with a band that is full to the brim with pure class which includes the likes of Ian Haug (guitar), Ash Naylor (guitar), Jeffrey Cain (keyboard), Tim Powles (drums) and Nicholas Meredith (percussion and drums) this far exceeded what we have seen before (and we have experienced many incredible shows previously).
It was a bit unusual to see rows of seats in the venue compared to other shows but nevertheless this was a stellar show. Two sets which were around an hour and twenty minutes with an intermission (which was imported from Denmark!) in the middle. Playing at Hindley Street Music Hall gave the band full licence to amp up the production with all the trimmings with lighting and A-grade sound. Opening with Ascendance Kilbey remarked that they are the best band in the world playing the best venue in the world and that they would be playing their “fucking concept album”. Destination followed then we were asked to cast our mind back to 1990 “where the only good thing was the last Church single, there was no Aioli, no kale, no MP3’s or Spotify”. Perfect intro to the single Metropolis.
Columbus is an absolute gem but it’s the stories behind The Hypnogogue that are fascinating about this “geezer” who lives in 2054, the biggest rock star in the world who invents The Hypnogogue and everyone who hears it goes crazy. As the show progresses there are more stories that connect The Hypnogogue and building this mystique that you would only find out about by going to the show. No Other You was brilliant. Before Kings, Ian Haug played a teaser of Powderfinger’s Hindley Street (which seemed appropriate) which got the crowd excited for a minute. The moment of gold came by way of The Unguarded Moment. It looked as if some fans didn’t know there was a new album out as they appeared lost in back to back newness in Flickering Lights and the title track.
Old Coast Road and Albert Road were given the acoustic touch up and Kilbey spoke of the world being a different place in 1983 particularly with the release from that year Seance. The US record did not want to put it out “as the kids will think it is depressing shit” with Kilbey claiming credit for inventing goth. The first set ended on Fly with the band retreating backstage during the intermission imported from Denmark.
Twenty minutes or so later The Church returned playing a spellbinding set starting with One Day, Comedown and Almost With You. New tune C’est La Vie fits comfortable amongst the tried and true in the back catalogue. Kilbey posed a couple of rhetorical questions asking the crowd how many times were their songs played on Miami Vice (correct answer twice!) and also adding that Under The Milky Way will become the national anthem the day after he dies and his kids will be rich. What a song! What a moment! Bringing the second set to end on Tantalized and Second Bridge it was hard to believe that there was more to come. Returning for an encore featuring the brilliant Reptile off classic album Starfish and the mesmerising You Took from The Blurred Crusade. Brilliant show, be sure to catch The Church when they play near you.
Live Review By Rob Lyon