The crowd is in a buoyant mood at the Roundhouse tonight as I catch the tail-end of Talk Heavy’s set, already mid-swell, and it lands with surprising weight, a reminder that even early slots can leave a mark when delivered with intent.
When Frank Turner takes the stage with The Sleeping Souls, Turner’s easy banter moves like a current through the crowd, every aside met with laughter or shouted agreement. There’s a sense of trust here, built over years and thousands of shows. On cue, he summons a circle pit that spins into existence almost instantly, a whirlpool of bodies under the lights. Later, he calls for a Wall of Death, then pulls the brakes at the last second, flipping it into a “Wall of Hugs” with a grin, because of the mixed ages in the room – choosing connection over carnage. The set itself is full throttle, equal parts grit and uplift, songs stretching across his catalogue including material from his latest, Undefeated, each one delivered like it still has something to prove.
Then Bowling for Soup arrive, and the tone pivots without losing momentum. If Turner builds communion, Bowling for Soup turn it into a house party. Jokes fly between songs, punchlines landing as frequently as the hooks. Decades into their career, they still play like a band aware of their own mythology but not weighed down by it. The crowd knows the words, and more importantly, knows when to laugh. It feels easy, but not careless. There’s craft in the chaos.
This co-headline run, billed as the Bowling My Bones tour, is carving a path across the country, with Newcastle, Melbourne, Frankston, Adelaide and Fremantle next on the map. Pairing two acts who understand that live music is as much about the space between songs as the songs themselves, tonight in Sydney proves the point. For a few hours, the room moves as one, somewhere between a singalong and a stand-up routine, driven by good humour and loud guitars working in tandem.
Go HERE for tickets.
Images Deb Pelser
