Bluebottle Kiss performed at The Gasometer Hotel, Melbourne, on Saturday, 15th October. Tyler Jenke reviews.
Close to 30 years after emerging as a noisy, angular entity on the Australian music scene, Bluebottle Kiss is once again a going concern. Two dates into their first tour of the country in 15 years, the Sydney quartet came to Melbourne for an evening of ferocious intensity and comforting nostalgia.
Bluebottle Kiss – ‘Ounce Of Your Cruelty’
Launching the evening was the comparatively fresh outfit The Gin Palace, comprising front person Peter Fenton (Crow/Tall Grass), guitarist Paul McDonald, bassist Marc Lynch (Glide), keyboardist Brad Christmas, drummer Gareth Richards (Copperline) and guitarist Mark Tobin (Scarlet, Caligula).
The sextet quickly asserted themselves as more than the sum of their histories, pairing strong stage presence with forceful vocals and instrumentation. With plenty of power-pop choruses, The Gin Palace got the evening off to an exuberant start. Expect a debut album from The Gin Palace in 2023.
The Gin Palace – ‘Burn Your Heart Out’
Next up were Melbourne favourites Deloris, who awoke from their slumber to perform their first show since late 2018. Having toured with Bluebottle Kiss previously, the reunion of Deloris was fitting.
Fronted by the charming Marcus Teague, Deloris’ set ebbed and flowed between the dark and the light. The band’s atmospheric yet deeply melodic tracks were paired with Teague’s trademark stage banter, which ostensibly added context to the songs’ origins, though unfolded into a suburban shaggy dog story. This humour worked in concert with the group’s fondness for shoegaze and indie-pop sounds, establishing a perfect balance for their well-received set.
Deloris – ‘The Unbroke Part Of It’
Despite the stellar openers, the main attraction was undeniably the reformed Bluebottle Kiss. Having recently reissued their 1999 record Patient, the Jamie Hutchings-led group are playing their first shows since 2007. Seeing them on stage was akin to welcoming old friends back into your life – albeit old friends who could sell out a venue and devastate you with a single note.
The career-spanning set began with a rendition of ‘Give Up The Ghost’, and it felt like not a single second had elapsed since Bluebottle Kiss last took the stage. Hutchings’ powerful voice howled the album’s lyrics, with many a fan chanting them back to him. Cuts like ‘Return To The City Of Folded Arms’ (which is rumoured to be about the attitude of Melbourne concert audiences), ‘Generic Teen’, ‘Ounce Of Your Cruelty’, and ‘Last Cinema’ appealed to the longtime fans, while the lengthier, more distortion-laced tunes allowed the group to flex their creative muscles.
After 15 years away, Bluebottle Kiss remain capable of imparting a feeling of emotional catharsis. It’s unclear whether the group are back for a long time or a good time, but this performance showed one of Australia’s finest acts still at the top of their game.
Further Reading
Bluebottle Kiss: Where Have They Been For the Last 15 Years?
Katie Noonan on ‘Polyserena’ Anniversary: “We Were a Bunch of Hippies From Brisbane”
“I Still Have A Lot Of Respect For It” – The Jezabels’ Hayley Mary On Ten Years Of ‘Prisoner’
