Cosmic Psychos, Blood Sucking Freaks, Thee Cha Cha Chas, Stink Eye @ Lion Arts Factory, Adelaide 7/12/2023

It’s a warm, balmy November night in Adelaide, the smell of an Xmas break is in the air, and people are starting to wind down after another long year. It’s the perfect night for a Thursday rock show.

A reasonable crowd has assembled early at the Lions Arts Factory to witness local band Stink Eye open tonight’s proceedings. The band revels in the opportunity to play support on tonight’s line-up as the first of four bands, and they do a fine job, their raucous punk rock energy setting the tone early.

Straddling the genres of garage rock, punk, blues rock, and old fashioned rock ‘n’ roll, Melbourne duo Thee Cha Cha Chas have created quite a healthy following both here and abroad following some consistent touring. And if you are, like me, suitably impressed by drummers like Stink Eye’s Shane, who can both sing and drum at the same time, you’ll be even more dazzled by Thee Cha Cha Cha’s Lluis Fuzzhound who can simultaneously hold down the beat of a song with both a kick bass drum and a kick snare drum, while also playing the guitar like a boss.

While reticent to use the most obvious and clichéd comparison to another female/male duo, the energy and excitement Kylie Kooks and Lluis Fuzzhound express in the Thee Cha Cha Cha’s live sound is genuinely reminiscent of early White Stripes. Songs like Midnight Bus, Running Out of Time and the Ramones-esk Rock ‘n’ Roll Till I’m Dead put a smile on many in the audience, and the band is a timely reminder of how fun rock music can really be.

Tipping their cap to The Pogues singer Shane MacGowan – who sadly departed the world earlier in the week – their cover of Dirty Old Town is a touching tribute. Thee Cha Cha Chas are an exciting prospect right now, and I can’t wait to see how far this band can go.

As the crowd starts to filter in, the banter goes up a notch as hometown heroes Blood Sucking Freaks take the stage. Hand-picked by the Cosmic Psychos to play support tonight, it’s a rare performance from the popular local group, keen to treat their loyal audience to some old school Adelaide punk rock. They rip through the first batch of songs with unrelenting power, singer/guitarist Pete ‘the stud’ Howlett at his energetic and riotous best.

A few tech issues halt the band’s momentum briefly, but even with a false start on Nekromantik, the local crowd remain enthused and are willing to ride the bumps. The band regain composure to finish their set strongly with rousing renditions of GG Allin’s Hard Candy Cock, Fine Young Cannibal’s She Drives Me Crazy, and fan favourite Suck More Piss. It’s a treat to see such a revered local band still playing shows thirty years after forming.

Celebrating forty years as a band (yes you read that right, forty!), the Cosmic Psychos are an institution of the Australian rock scene. From humble beginnings in central Victoria, to making waves in the Seattle grunge scene in the early 90s, to doggedly continuing to tour and release new music, it’s no mean feat to keep a band going strong for forty years.

As they stroll onto stage, albeit a little slower these days, their performance lacks no energy as they launch into Pub from their 1989 LP Go the Hack. “It doesn’t matter how young you are” lead singer and bassist Ross Knight tells a young boy in the front row, “or how old you are” he tells the older gentlemen next to him, “it’s always a nice day to go to the pub!” he proclaims, before launching into the irresistibly catchy Nice Day to Go to The Pub. On a night where the band is showcasing songs from their forty year career, it’s hard to believe this song only came out in 2010.

The band continue with Lead Me Astray, Dead in a Ditch and Custom Credit but it’s the undeniable groove of I’m Up You’re Out that showcases just how much more there is to this band live than catchy three chord punk songs.

Fuckwit City gets audience arms waving and fingers pointing, even inspiring a small moshpit at the front (featuring an attempt to crowd surf that doesn’t end too well), and the crowd pogo action continues as the band rip into another older classic Lost Cause. As the band members trade smiles with each other throughout the set, it’s evident that after forty years on stage, if they weren’t enjoying it, they wouldn’t be here.

“Rock ‘n’ roll is all bullshit” Knight exclaims before the always popular David Lee Roth brings the set to a close, but not before a shirtless John “Mad Macka” McKeering showcases a shredding masterclass above his head, all while his wobbling belly attempts to hypnotize the audience.

There’s no encore, but no complaints really, the Cosmic Psychos delivered everything they needed to and close proceedings with each member dacking themselves in unison before they depart the stage.

They might be forty years in the biz, but the Cosmic Psychos still have plenty to give the Australian music scene, and let’s hope there’s many more years left in this band yet.

Live Review By Matt Eygenraam