Noiseworks were back in town for another big show at Hindley Street Music Hall hot off the heels of playing Sounds By The River up at Mannum the day before. What was noticeable and made for quite the talking point was the early start for a “rock” gig with Noiseworks kicking off at six thirty on the knocker. For me, that was a great time slot and to be able to leave the show still being daylight was another bonus. It was a great turn out and one thing is for sure that when you’re going to a Noiseworks show you know what you’re getting and you would be hard pressed to find anyone who left disappointed. This show was right up there as one of their very best and with the summer tour circuit in full swing fans have plenty to look forward to when they play your town.
Jon Stevens is the ultimate front man and he is right at the peak of his powers. It is fair to say that rock and roll is a feeling, you either have it or you don’t, you can’t buy it and you can’t manufacture it but when you experience what Jon Stevens does live on stage he’s seriously got it. That’s not diminishing the talents of the rest of the band with Steve Balbi (bass), Kev Nicol (drums) and Tim Henwood (guitar).
The power of Noiseworks is clearly evident considering the calibre of the songs left off the set list. Right from first drop Stand Up got proceedings off to a flyer followed by Miles and Miles. The energy in the room was great, everyone was smiling, singing, dancing, drinking #perfect. Love Somebody was epic and even Jon said it was a bit early for them commenting that it was “hot as fuck” up at Mannum and added he couldn’t show his “fab” dance moves having taken a tumble the day before. Nevertheless, Stevens and band sounding freaking incredible! How good was Voice Of Reason? So good!
Hinting they might have been a bit pissed on the red wine the night before Jon spoke about how much he loved Hindley Street Music Hall forgetting about the place and remembering when he rocked up for the gig. Burning Feeling was stellar then featuring tracks from newish album Evolution which was described as a labour of love and a moment of reflection acknowledging that this was the last album Stuart Fraser did before his passing. Amerika and Sunshine were welcomed additions to the set list before venturing back to familiar territory with Freedom. Heart and Soul is an absolute gem of a single from Evolution and resonated with the faithful.
Jon spoke about the early finish time suggesting when they are finished that “we will all go out” or “stay here and get on the piss”. Time flies when you are having fun and with the end in sight what a way to finish the main set with the likes of Touch, No Lies (dedicated to our politicians), Hot Chilli Woman and Take Me Back. Returning for an encore the crowd got more with the anthemic In My Youth and a rousing cover of Led Zeppelin’s Rock ‘n Roll. Killer show and uncharacteristically cool to be heading home early while its still daylight.
Live Review By Rob Lyon