Walking up to 170 Russell the street was packed with Chinese New Year celebrations but down stairs in the venue the Emo Extravaganza was about to being. The venue had been changed from PICA to 170 Russell which was a welcome changed as the new venue leans towards a more intimate show.
The emo anthems were already pumping as you walked down the stairs and people had already secured prime positions on the barrier well before the bands started. The first night of tour was already shaping up well.
This Wild Life started off the festivities for the night, their acoustic rock sound was the perfect thing to start off the night. The crowd was singing along to every lyric and swaying with the songs. Kevin Jordan triggered everyone’s nostalgia by talking about playing Soundwave 2015. They played their 2014 album Clouded in full and set the perfect emo tone for the evening.
Broadside where next to take the stage, there were some initial sound issues but these were quickly resolved and the bands high energy launched them into the rest of their set. The crowd was dancing along to every song and spirits were high. They then played Blissed out and Warning Signs off their new album, these songs turned the venue into full on party mode. To close out their set Oliver Baxxter started a rally call for everyone in the audience to follow their dreams before launching into Foolish Believer.
Then it was time for Hot Chelle Rae, with a Labubu on the mic stand they transformed 170 Russell into an early 2000’s emo club with their upbeat pop-rock sound playing Whatever in full. For Beautiful Freaks they called up members of the audience to sing and dance on stage. A soft toy of Pesto the Penguin that the band had acquired after meeting him earlier in the day joined the rest of the band on stage. Nash Overstreet threw out USBs with their new album to the crowd to promote it, people dove to grab one as they flew through the air. They finished their set with Tonight Tonight which had the whole crowd dancing and singing out the lyrics.
Cartel exploded onto the stage with their high energy and strong melodies. They played their debut album Chroma in full, the crowd singing along to every word. They built upon the energy from the previous bands, the crowd did not stop dancing the entire set. Will Pugh showed off his impressive range with cleans and long sustained screams, which was met with applause.
Then it was time for the head line Anberlin. The lights went down and the crowd waited in anticipation. The atmospheric sound track from the movie Anhelation begun to play throughout the venue, the base could be felt vibrating the whole room. The stage was bathed in red light as the band walked out before they went straight into Never Take Friendship Personal from their album of the same name, which they played in full.
During their set they talked about how they have been touring this album for the past year and a half for its 20 year anniversary and how they were so grateful that Australia has continued to welcome them over this time. It felt like no time had past before they reached the end of the album, as the music from the last song rang out, the crowd started chanting for one more song. The chanting grew louder while static played through speakers and the screen flashed. That’s when Matty Mullins' voice rang out “I can’t hear you” teasing from back stage. The band walked back on stage to applause for an encore. They played 4 songs during their encore, a pit started in front of the stage and the energy was high in the room as they closed out the evening. Mullins cried “This has been Anberlin” and the night ended.
Emo Extravaganza brought all the emo nostalgia of the 2000s to Melbourne and the rest of the tour stops are surely in for a treat.
