Maxïmo Park
Wednesday, 11th of November, 2009 – Billboards, Melbourne.
Support: Denim Owl
Setlist:
Wraithlike
Graffiti
The Penultimate Crunch
Russian Literature
Postcard Of A Painting
The Kids Are Sick Again
By The Monument
Apply Some Pressure
Parisian Skies
Acrobat
In Another World (You Would've Found Yourself By Now)
Questing, Not Coasting
Books From Boxes
Going Missing
Let's Get Clinical
Limassol
Girls Who Play Guitars
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That Beating Heart
Our Velocity
I arrived at the venue just as Denim Owl were ending their set, which was perfect timing as I wasn’t too enthused by their sound. Between Denim Owl’s and Maxïmo Park’s set, the so called “DJ” whacked on a painful INXS Best Of CD. Sure a couple of INXS songs would have been fine, but a variety of indie-pop anthems would have been perfectly suited. Not to worry, because the crowd needed no warming up at all, especially with Paul Smith’s penetrative dancing. The energetic (well excluding the bass guitarist, Archis Tiku) British indie-rockers opened the night with the Quicken The Heart opener, ‘Wraithlike’, and the energy did not stop there, instead it lasted the entire night. You could see Paul Smith dripping of sweat from the first few songs; I guess that is what you get when you try dancing around in a blue suit for over an hour.
Early in on the piece Maxïmo Park played their biggest hit to date ‘Apply Some Pressure’, receiving a huge cheer from the Melbourne crowd. ‘Acrobat’ made its first Australian appearance at a Maxïmo Park gig, which gave time for Paul Smith to take a break from his incredible dance moves. The lads from England closed their set with the uplifting, guitar rocking ‘Girls Who Play Guitars’, before of course playing an encore.
Strangely the encore consisted of recent b-side ‘That Beating Heart’, in which Paul Smith noted that this was going to be the first and last time that it would be performed in Melbourne. A punter from the crowd screamed, “Play it again”, jokingly Paul Smith begun singing the opening verse again. Paul Smith thanked the crowd, before playing one more tune, ‘Our Velocity’.
Overall, a fantastic gig! I forgot how good Maxïmo Park were, it had been over two years I had seen them at a solo show (not including a great set at Hurricane Festival last year). Paul Smith is the perfect frontman, and with catchy indie tunes…you cannot go wrong.
Overall
Artists Performance (0-10): 9.5
Self-Enjoyment (0-10): 9
Setlist (0-5): 4.5
Live sound (0-5): 4.5
Total: 27.5/30
Wed 11 Nov – Maxïmo Park, Denim Owl