Regurgitator

Live music is like a game of poker - You win or you lose, with not much in between.

With this is mind, after terrorising Western Australian and Victorian audiences (and hotel rooms, I’m sure), the 7th leg of the ‘Regurgitator Lives!’ tour rolled into Hobart’s Wrest Point Casino for what was sure to be a high-stakes show. As luck would have it, New Zealanders ‘The Mint Chicks’ and West Australians ‘Snowman’ were dealt as the supporting acts, ably complementing the stars of the show.

First act on stage was Snowman, playing tracks off their critically acclaimed ‘Zombies on the Airwaves of Paris’ EP. Now, I must admit, after doing the obligatory background research, I wasn’t really expecting much from Snowman. Thankfully, much like a dud hand that’s actually a straight on second glance, Snowman defied all expectations and emerged as the pleasant surprise of the evening. Despite appearing a little sloppy at times, their energy and stage presence combined to leave a satisfied crowd in their wake.

After a brief interlude (and sizeable crowd increase), the stakes were raised as The Mint Chicks took to the stage, providing what could only be described as an ‘interesting’ experience. While the material off their album, ‘F**k the Golden Youth’, was pretty impressive, their stage show didn’t quite deliver. The antics of vocalist Kody Nielson, while often amusing and always energetic, were off-putting at times. In contrast, the drummer didn’t appear to have a flicker of life, maintaining a poker face (rather appropriate considering the location) throughout. While obviously talented, The Mint Chicks always seemed to stop just short of something great, leaving the audience wondering what could have been.

A longer break was needed before Regurgitator could grace us with their presence. But, finally, all was in readiness for the final hand of the night to be dealt…

Unsurprisingly, it was worth holding.

Newer and older favourites such as ‘My Friend Robot’ and ‘The Song Formerly Known As…’ were met with great appreciation from both those in the (quite sizeable) mosh pit and the more ‘settled’ fans around the perimeter, while material off their new EP ‘#?*!’ was incorporated into the set with both ease and great audience pleasure. All throughout, Ben, Quan and Pete maintained a great energy and seemed to feed off the punters, really making this show an experience to be remembered for all in attendance.

A final three-song encore capped off the night, including favourites ‘Kong Foo Sing’ and ‘Pop Porn’ – which, of course, were met with great pleasure from the masses.

Overall, despite the architectural shortcomings of the venue and its subsequent effect on the sound quality, the night was highly enjoyable. Some bands are groundbreaking, some bands are technically correct, and some bands are simply fun – Regurgitator comfortably fall into the latter category. I sure as hell didn’t learn anything new, but I had a hell of a time doing it.

If life was a game of poker on this night, we all left as winners.

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