Live Review: Dune Rats, Wavves, Hockey Dad, WAAX

Is it the exhaust fumes of endless cars passing by? Or is it the sweet burning scent of cigarettes and other narcotics filling the atmosphere? Only one thing is clear, The Tivoli's home to another sold-out gig, Brisbane's own piss-up favourite, Dune Rats.

The lights darken, a bassy, deep guitar riff takes over the massive PA of the packed-out venue and then Brisbane's most familiar face, Marie DeVita, graces the stage as she and her band WAAX shred right into This Everything. After such a powerful opener, moshers are already drenched in sweat and it isn't even 8pm yet! The definitive highlight of WAAX's crazy set is when the band pelted right into a cover of Courtney Barnett's Pedestrian At Best. At the behest of De Vita's powerful, shaky vocals, the pit becomes a mess of dangling legs and swinging fists.

After a brief period of silence, drums crash in, and suddenly the floor is full and almost suffocating for Hockey Dad. Airing new material, the crowd still manages to pick up a few words they'd expect to be in classic Hockey Dad shows. Through A Night Out With and I Need A Woman, there's nothing but consistent enthusiasm for this wild set.

Is it the headliner? Certainly not yet, but Californian babes Wavves take on the stage as if they belong in Australia! They crash straight into Way Too Much and it's impossible to tell up from down in the wavve of crowd surfers. They follow up their wild opener with King Of The Beach and the mosh becomes a full whirlpool. The phase shifting in the guitars is so perfectly overdriven, it absolutely turns on any aspiring musician in the crowd. For Green Eyes, the crowd opens the biggest circle pit of the night without any convincing necessary from the band. The venue's full of sweat, and some are ready to call it a night, but it is still far from over yet!

No Dune Rats show would ever be complete without their signature pre-show promo video. Jumping on stage to the deafening roar of a packed-out venue, the Brisbane locals open with Demolition Derby and then throw out inflatable tinnies for fan fave 6 Pack. Veteran Dune Rats fans form circle after circle during Superman, going impressively wild. After closing up their setproper, the Dunies hit the stage yet again to deliver the Dunies TV theme song and Dalai Lama, Big Banana, Marijuana, breaking into verses of Celebrity Skin by Hole with help from DeVita and Hockey Dad's Zach Stephenson. It's an impressive finish - leaving the venue through the stink pit of sweaty moshers is almost a challenge. But wow, what an absolute ripper of a night!