Ever have a beloved band stop touring and headlining before you had a chance to see them?
For me there are quite a few. Didn’t used to earn much money as a security guard when I was young, and what shows I did manage to save up for were touring comedians. Oh I’ve got to see a few Aussie acts over the years such as Jon Butler Trio, Josh Pyke, Silverchair & Powderfinger and a few years ago Paul Kelly, but not a huge amount in the grand scheme of things.
So imagine my excitement when it was announced that, for the first time in 20 years, TISM would be headlining in a new show!
TISM is my favourite band of all time. – ever! Huge in certain demographics in Australia in the 90’s, they had so many songs that were so quintessentially Australian and manage to make you rock out and amuse you at the same time. Can safely say I know more of their songs by heart than any other artists.
TISM, along with four other acts, performed at The Hordern Pavilion in Sydney in November 2024.
I went with some mates. Sadly with us all having to travel from either interstate or from Central NSW, by the time we got to the gig we had missed the first two acts, though caught the end of Eskimo Joe who seems to have never lost the touch.
A big 4-poster bed!
The penultimate band for the evening were Machine Gun Fellatio who I’ve always been a massive fan of. Think I knew half the songs they played whilst the others were unfamiliar to me but still great. One thing that took me by surprise was how visually entertaining they were on stage – very much a burlesque show in some respects with changing costumes, hoop twirling, feather dances and even a bit of frontal nudity thrown in for good measure!
They were a feast for both the eyes and the ears and, like TISM, it was exciting to finally see them live. Plus it’s not just KK Juggy’s exposed chest that leaves you stunned – man has she got a set of pipes on her! A brilliant strong voice that carried so well through the entire arena!
Greg – the stop sign!
Then it was time for who we were all there to see, the headline act – TISM, with their show Death to Art.
The band took the stage wearing their trademark balaclavas, augmented by what seemed to be giant crests and matching…. shawls… ponchos… dunno what they were but the overall effect was that they looked like chickens from hell!
After an opening speech where they traditionally slag off some Aussie celebrity, this time Kyle Sandilands, they got straight on with the music. And they did not disappoint! So many classics that every member of the audience knew the words to, including personal favourites ‘Whatareya’ and “Ol Man River’, It was amusing to hear the audience purposely singing off key to keep up with the changing pitches in ‘I drive a Truck’. Between the awesome rock and often amusing lyrics the crowd was well entertained. This was helped by their dancing. Oh man – ya gotta love’em! Where MGF had these ostentatious, highly skilled and choreographed pieces, TISM looked like a bunch of your uncles that had been practicing for a few days. There was never a point where every member dancing was in perfect synch and you know what, it just added to the charm. This is TISM, they are daggy, they are Aussie, and they are ours!
TISM’s set went for approximately 75 minutes, a pretty fair achievement considering the age of the guys – I mean, they were in these big costumes dancing and most of us in the audience were sweating from just standing still. And in typical TISM fashion, at least two of the troupe were wandering around the stage in just their balaclavas and boxer shorts by the end while others were defying the warning signs and stage-diving into the crowd.
This really is part of the charm and appeal of TISM for so many of us fans, on the one hand they do daggy dances, wander round in their underwear, have amusing lyrics and are so Aussie they must sweat vegemite! But on the other hand they also have some very intelligent and thoughtful lyrics that really comment on Australian society, and their music is both catchy and has the ability to get the blood pumping. Truly a band that covers all the bases. Just a shame that on the night I saw them the speakers seemed a bit muffled, though with the audience singing the lyrics to nearly every song they were almost superflous anyway.
Do yaself a favour and…
Given the age of the group members, this could be one of the last times that the likes of Machine Gun Fellatio and TISM perform. So if you get the chance to see these two highly entertaining bands, go see them while you can!
Did you see the show? Leave your thoughts about it in the comments section below!
