LIVE: THE POGUES – Fremantle, 25 March 2026

LIVE: THE POGUES – Fremantle, 25 March 2026
Fremantle Prison, Western Australia
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar
Photography by Stu McKay

It’s the first show of The Pogues’ first Australian tour since 2012, and there’s a strange vibe in the courtyard of Fremantle’s historic prison. Perth and Fremantle are bracing for a visit from Tropical Cyclone Narelle, with punishing wind and biblical rain forecast just two days from now… and 60% of the crowd are sitting on teensy plastic chairs lashed together with zip ties.

It doesn’t take long before Spider Stacey urges us all to get on our feet, where most of us stay for the duration. After all, a band as synonymous with a rollicking good time as The Pogues is better enjoyed interactively, rather than viewed with detachment.

Even with a cast of thousands (well, fourteen in total, including original members Stacey, Jem Finer and James Fearnley), though, there’s still a Shane MacGowan sized hole on the stage which nobody can ignore.

They’re playing their seminal second album Rum, Sodomy & The Lash in full, plus bonus tracks – though not in order. Released in 1985, it contains the classics The Old Main Drag, A Pair Of Brown Eyes, Dirty Old Town (written by Kirsty MacColl’s Dad Ewan) and Eric Bogle’s funereal And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda amongst others, and it’s a grand ride. But still, some small spark is missing. It’s difficult to articulate – and it may well be jetlag or something – but we’re left wishing they’d have a few pints and let themselves off the leash a little. MacGowan may have been a shambling, sodding, slurring drunk at times, but he brought a spark of dangerous magic to the band that was undeniable.

The traditional The Parting Glass (originally the B-side of Dirty Old Town’s 12” single) is dedicated by Stacey to their fallen frontman, “without whom you wouldn’t be here, we wouldn’t be here.”

Vocals are shared by Stacey with guest singers Iona Zajac (who also plays beautiful harp), Lisa O’Neill and multi-instrumentalist John Francis Flynn, who also served as support act, and by the time the encore begins with the perennial The Irish Rover, the band have finally shaken off whatever was holding them back and are in full flight, having as good a time as the crowd.

It’s an infectious and upbeat mini-set, featuring Streams of Whisky, Boys From The County Hell, Dark Streets Of London and Sally MacLennane (“I’m sad to say I must be on my way, so buy me beer & whiskey ‘cos I’m going far away”), then a bonus second encore of Greenland Whale Fisheries from their debut album, and by gosh, don’t we know it: The Pogues are almost as glorious as ever once they’re in full, unfettered flight.

Setlist:
The Sick Bed of Cúchulainn
Wild Cats of Kilkenny
A Pair of Brown Eyes
Billy’s Bones
Navigator
Planxty Noel Hill
The Gentleman Soldier
Jesse James
I’m a Man You Don’t Meet Everyday
The Body of an American
The Old Main Drag
The Parting Glass
Dirty Old Town
A Rainy Night in Soho
A Pistol for Paddy Garcia
Poor Paddy Works on the Railway
And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda
London Girl

Encore:
The Irish Rover
Streams of Whisky
Boys From the County Hell
Dark Streets of London
Sally MacLennane

2nd Encore:
Greenland Whale Fisheries

Category: Live Reviews, Photo Galleries