LIVE REVIEW: SHIHAD, Fremantle – 31 Oct 2014

Shane | 5 November 2014 | Reply

LIVE REVIEW: SHIHAD, Fremantle – 31 Oct 2014
Shihad – Live at Mojos, Fremantle, Western Australia – Friday 31 October 2014
Review & photography by Stuart McKay

Shihad are a national institution in their native New Zealand and in a sense, also in Australia. It’s not difficult to see why when you consider that they have been playing together since ’88, writing some of the most popular hard rock songs to ever come out of the North Island whilst retaining a reputation for their explosive live shows that have seen them play with some of the biggest bands in the world.

After releasing one of the best Rock records of the year in FVEY, they can certainly claim a return to form and tonight was the night that Fremantle got to hear these new songs live.

Opening with the crushing Think You’re So Free they dove head first into their set, much to the enjoyment of the sweaty, bustling maelstrom that was gaining momentum behind the barrier. Next up was FVEY, then The Big Lie. It then became evidently clear that they would be playing their new record in its entirety.

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There are a few factors as to why FVEY has become their best work in some time. Firstly, the songs have been crafted brilliantly, the melodies have been weighed out thoughtfully and with thunderous riffs that would make Zeus quiver it’s a perfect example of a band’s passion reignited. Secondly, and most importantly, the album has managed to capture how Shihad sound live almost perfectly and there is no better example of this than seeing them just destroy Mojos tonight with this monstrous sound. After powering through the album they closed the set with the epic Cheap As leaving the crowd ravenous for more as they waited for the encore.

Whenever one goes to see their favourite band ultimately they want to hear the older songs that they fell in love with in the first place and there’s usually an indifference towards new songs initially until familiarity solidifies. So it was a brave move by Shihad to play the new album from start to finish but it’s a move that more or less paid off. When they returned to the stage to play Factory and You Again the punters completely lost their shit. It was a crescendo that was building for an hour and it worked beautifully. Completely feeding off the energy of the crowd, frontman Jon Toogood, who seemed relatively restrained during the FVEY set, was now all up in their faces stepping onto the barrier or climbing onto the PA proclaiming ‘You’re all rock pigs and I love it!’

Once they played their classic The General Electric they had Mojos bouncing freer than Nicki Minaj’s ass at a twerk contest. Finishing off with Home Again the lads left the stage to cacophonous cheers and applause. It was a fine display of how even after so long together they’re still a band in their prime playing with an avidness found in men half their age. Toogood summed it up when he said ‘I’ve been playing in this band for 26 years. Having music like Rock and Roll is the shit.’

Indeed it is, THE SHIT!