Nothing But Thieves
10th May 2024
Powerstation, Auckland, New Zealand
Review by Andre Fleming with photography by Doug Peters.
Live music is something else. Sure, you can sit there and listen to the albums of your favourite band over and over again and love every second of it. But witnessing a band, especially one as good as Nothing But Thieves is a whole new level of joy.
All the way from Essex, it was no surprise that Nothing But Thieves sold out not one, but two back-to-back shows at Auckland’s Powerstation this week. And to say that the show last night was incredible would be an understatement. And a half.
Opening for both nights were Daffodils, an Auckland based band who have been around for a while now after catching the eye of many a music fan when they became finalists at the 2017 Smokefree Rockquest.
Fast forward seven years and Daffodils are one hell of an accomplished live act, the vocals of Theo Salmon still as haunting as ever. Yes, they have been compared to bands like Joy Division more than a few times, but that is not exactly a bad thing. I mean if you are being compared to another band, it may as well be a legendary one.
And they brought the fire last night, with a set that was one of the best I have seen from them many of their new tracks getting me excited for potentially another EP or album? Also, a huge shout out to whoever was on duties for lighting, as it was phenomenal, and just elevated their set perfectly. Watching Salmon whirl his guitar around while cloaked in swirling mist and blood red lights and at one-point moody blues with just the right amount of haze was *chef’s kiss*. If you haven’t seen them already, make sure you do.
Now this is not my first rodeo at Powerstation, and it won’t be my last – it is one of my favourite music venues in Auckland and I am sure the same can be said for many music fans. And last night it was heaving with bodies. What a fantastic way to welcome a band all the way from England!
When Nothing But Thieves arrived, the entire venue roared as one collective voice, the excitement in the room was so high that you could almost taste it. The opening notes of ‘Welcome to the DCC’ with that instantly recognisable rhythm, and frontman Conor Mason’s falsetto that he can impressively deliver live setting the crowd alight. The track is from their latest album Dead Club City released last year and it set the tone for the rest of the evening.
‘Is Everybody Going Crazy’ came next, an apt song title for how the room must have looked to the guys on stage, as they were doing exactly that. Every single person was dancing, bouncing and or singing along with the band. As I said, nothing better than live music!
After a couple more tracks, Mason addresses the crowd and enquires “Would you like a real love song?” before they moved into ‘Real Love Song’, the first ballad of the night, and it allows Mason to once again display vocal dexterity that is enviable, as bassist Phillip Blake anchors it alongside guitarists Joe Langridge Brown and Dominic Craik, who carefully build it up in the chorus, curating the emotion of the track. Breathtaking.
Taking a moment to address the fans, Mason spoke of how happy the band were to not only be playing in New Zealand, but to have sold out both nights which he said was “insane”. He also spoke of how they “sipped some wine” on Waiheke Island which was pretty “awesome”. Thank goodness that Aotearoa blessed these wonderful guys with some picture-perfect weather for their trip.
Moving into ‘City Haunts’ and again Mason hits us with that incredible falsetto before the track drops into a groove that is just downright sexy. If you weren’t moving to this track live, then it was quite possible that you needed your pulse checked. ‘I Was Just a Kid’ kicked off by the killer James Price on drums, has an intro rather reminiscent of early Queens of the Stone Age (think ‘Song for the Dead’).
There was a lot of love being shown for the kiwi fans as once again Mason expressed how privileged they felt for everyone to be supporting them, “or at least faking it”, his smile one that lit up the room instantly, that British wry humour always one that endears a band. It was a nice little way to introduce one of their first ever singles ‘Lover, Please Stay’ a haunting track that brought a momentary reverent stillness to the room. It elicits the same feelings in me as ‘Michelle’ by Sir Chloe does, and that is a very good thing.
Watching the crowd’s enthusiasm towards the band and how they reciprocated it honestly made my heart swell. Sure, this is what bands do, this is their career choice, but there is something quite noticeable about an act who genuinely are enjoying what they are doing at that exact moment in time. I mean these guys had just performed (from what I hear) an outstanding set the night before, and yet here they were giving it their all once again, less than twenty-four hours later.
We were sadly coming towards the end of the set, ‘Impossible’ from the album Moral Panic and ‘Pop the Ballon’ taking out the night with mouth watering fuzzy overtones of in-your-face rock, the duo of Brown and Craik once again owning it.
Of course, an encore was called for, in fact the volume of the crowd must have been able to be heard from three streets away, no one was quite ready to go home yet, no one wanted this to end, including myself.
Nothing But Thieves graciously returned and gave us not one, but three more songs, the night closing with ‘Overcome’, a track that has a far more pop feel to it but in a good way. Soaring guitar solos that are uplifting and Mason’s vocals still sounding just as good as when he began the night. They gave it their all and the crowd gave it straight back. It was a moment in time where everything outside of the walls of the Powerstation could momentarily be forgotten.
So many adjectives that could be used to describe what a show that was, but a fan tossing them a Tino Rangatiratanga flag that was accepted and waved with grace is what really summed it all up for me.
There was a bond formed last night between Nothing But Thieves and their New Zealand fans. One forged in both love and sound.
Nothing But Thieves:
Daffodils:
Were you there at Powerstation for this English Indie Rock gig? Or have you seen Nothing But Thieves perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Setlist:
- Welcome to the DCC
- Is Everybody Going Crazy?
- Tomorrow is closed
- Broken Machine
- Real Love Song
- City Haunts
- I Was Just a Kid
- Sorry
- Ce n’est Rien/Gods/Number 13
- Do You Love Me Yet?
- Unperson
- You Know Me Too Well
- Lover, Please Stay
- Trip Switch
- Futureproof
- Impossible
- Pop the Ballon
- Oh No :: He Said What? [encore]
- Amsterdam [encore]
- Overcome [encore]
Note: Ambient Light was provided passes to review and photograph this concert. As always, this has not influenced the review in any way and the opinions expressed are those of Ambient Light’s only. This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase a product using an affiliate link, Ambient Light will automatically receive a small commission at no cost to you.
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