Mick Medew & the Rumours
UPS & DOWNS
+ HUXTON CREEPERS
+ MICK MEDEW &THE RUMOURS
Hi-Fi Bar,
West End, Brisbane
Friday, November 11, 2011
Words by PETER ROSS
Photos by SHONA ROSSShareHaving a few weeks off after a weekend of Sydney shows at the Sando, the Creepers re-convened in the Brisbane hip suburb of West End to perform at the much lauded Hi-Fi Bar with Brisbane popsters Ups & Downs and chief Tribesman Mick Medew and the Rumours on the holiest of rock’n’roll days, “Nigel Tufnel Day”.
Facing a healthy early evening crowd, The Rumours bolted out of the gate with “Spinning Wheel”, the opening track from their album, “All Your Love”, stunning the crowd with a short set of the type of quality rock that Mick’s been churning out since the '80s. A mix of covers and a sprinkling of Tribesmen hits kept the momentum rolling until the band pulled out a blistering cover of the Only Ones “Another Girl, Another Planet” as a tribute to recently passed Rumours bass-player and co-founder Paul Hawker. There was not a dry eye in the house.
Finishing their set with “Date with a Vampyre” to a near full room was a baptism of fire for new bassist Jeff Lovejoy, who along with Tribesmen alumni Chris Dixon and Ash Geary, set the bar high and were a very hard act to follow.
To the surprise of the faithful, the appearance of the Huxton Creepers in the next spot caught the assembled throng unaware. Bouncing straight into “Autumn Leaves” the Creepers delivered a finely-crafted set of polished pop with soaring harmonies and good humour.
Rob Craw’s delight at taking centre stage with his old school chums from Melbourne’s Scotch College was infectious. They walked us through a celebration of the newly minted Fuse Records release of “12 Days To Paris” with a polished performance that only a band with 800 or 900 shows under its belt can deliver.
Behemoth, and as Rob described him, “saviour of the world”, Arch Law, pounded his kit like it deserved to be punished, as part of a cohesive and slick rhythm section with Matthew Eddy. Eddy’s tribute to Neil Diamond, “Cherry, Cherry”, nearly caused a riot.
Balancing out the nice guys in the front line was ex-Weddings Parties and Anything axe-slinger Paul Thomas whose good nature and quality chops show what twenty years touring as a rock’n’roll player can do for style and substance. The years have been kind to Paul, however his Gibson Firebird shows the wear and tear of the road with aplomb.
Racing through hits like “My Cherie Amour”, a rollicking cover of “Shake Some Action” and bringing it all home with their anthemic mega-hit “I Will Persuade You”, the Creepers had the crowd where they wanted them, who deliriously called them back for more.
It was an equally hard act to follow for Brisbane jangle pop band Ups & Downs who delivered a competent if uninspiring show, leaving many of us scratching our heads as to why they weren’t on earlier so we could have extended our warm and fuzzy feel from the earlier acts. They delivered their hits, promised the crowd they’d come back if people wanted them too, but seemed a little lightweight after the onslaught of the earlier acts. Perhaps with a different bill they’d have been the right act…
Reunion shows have become a weekly occurrence over the past few years, with everyone from Hunters and Collectors and Cold Chisel treading the boards on a weekly basis. Sometimes it’s a special occurrence, other times, like the New York Dolls in Sydney it’s a money making soul-less exercise, but in this case, the Huxton Creepers enhanced their legacy and showed us all that nice guys don’t always finish last.
Huxton Creepers
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