Portugal. The Man, Auckland NZ, 2018

Portugal. The Man

8th May 2018
Powerstation, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Bridget Herlihy. Photography by Chris Zwaagdyk.

With their highly anticipated return to the antipodes, their first since performing at Laneway in 2014, it was no surprise that Portugal. The Man’s sole New Zealand appearance sold out in the weeks leading up to the show.  Renowned for their electrifying live performances, this tour was in support of their latest LP, 2017’s Woodstock, which rose like a phoenix from the ashes after an album’s worth of material was thrown on the proverbial cutting room floor after the band decided it didn’t make the grade. Aptly titled the ‘Feel It Still’ tour, it was apparent that the at-capacity crowd was indeed feeling it with a long line of punters stretching down the street, with the most eager making a dash to the front of the stage as soon as the doors opened.  

Kiwi songstress Theia filled the coveted opening slot for the evening, a fine choice to set the tone for the night, not to mention celebrating homegrown talent to mark New Zealand Music Month. Wasting no time getting the crowd to their feet and edging closer to the stage, Theia opened her all too brief set – her first at the Powerstation, with the exquisite Silver Second from last year’s self-titled debut EP. While Theia never fails to deliver a solid and thoroughly enjoyable set of her own brand of pop-infused R&B, it is evident that she is continuing to go from strength to strength. She certainly appeared in her element front and centre at the Powerstation, presenting a set of new and not so new material, including an exquisite performance of the smooth and sultry Everything, and the upbeat Treat You, keeping the crowd captivated with her sweet vocals.  New track Telling Everyone My Name, was given its second live performance, with it’s heavy, heavy bass lines that had the floors and walls vibrating, commanding the audience’s attention, and quite rightly so.  Latest single Bye Bye was another bona fide highlight of the set, along with Roam which rounded out the set, a track that continues to resonate as much now as when it was first released.  There is no doubt whatsoever that Theia’s ever-increasing fan base grew even bigger with this performance.

It was standing room only as the crowd gently manoeuvred their way to vantage points from which to view the stage. As the lights dimmed footage of Beavis and Butthead projected onto a screen the filled the back of the stage, that ended with a tongue in cheek order for the crowd to “bow down to the greatest band in the world”. Without further fanfare the band appeared on stage to a heroes welcome and launched straight into a what was quite frankly a jaw-dropping, blistering rendition of Metallica’s For Whom The Bell Tolls which masterfully segued into Pink Floyd’s Another Brick In The Wall, and then Purple Yellow Red and Blue, as psychedelic images played in the screen as the stage was bathed in red and blue lights, casting shadows of front man John Gourley and bassist Zachary Scott Carothers on the back screen, making them appear larger than life.  Banter was kept to a minimum throughout the set, with Carouthers pausing to greet the crowd with “Kia ora Auckland. Goddamn its good to be back”. Yet the long awaited return of Portugal. The Man wasn’t just good, it was phenomenal. While their reputation for putting on impressive live shows has spread far and wide from their home state of Alaska, it is easy to be somewhat sceptical about whether their live performances live up to the hype. Suffice to say that Portugal, the Man not only live up to expectations, they blow them out of the water.

Having set the bar incredibly high for themselves with the aforementioned Metallica/Floyd mash-up, the boys from Alaska kept the momentum going for the entirety of the set, one track flowing seamlessly into the next, with the band barely pausing for breath. And it was evident that they were thoroughly enjoying themselves, especially Carouthers who appeared to lose himself in the music as he flailed about majestically with his bass. Arguably their most widely recognised track Feel It Still was received with enthusiastic cheers as much of the crowd shimmied, gyrated their hips and waved their hands in the air. It was another mash-up of sorts as the Rolling Stones’ Gimme Shelter was artfully intertwined with Atomic Man, and All Your Light had every single surface of the Powerstation pulsating.

After a brief pause the band re-emerged for the obligatory encore, with Carouthers pausing for a moment to reaffirm their love for New Zealand, before momentarily lowering the pace slightly with the balladeseque Sleep Forever, which featured the chorus of Hey Jude beautifully woven into the final verse. Needless to say the eager crowd lapped up every single nanosecond of their performance. And quite rightly so. Portugal. The Man are a very welcome, and very refreshing, breath of fresh air. All too rare is it to experience a performance that leaves you totally and utterly spellbound.  Yet from the moment they walked onstage Portugal. The Man delivered an unrelenting auralgasm that was second to none.   This is a band that is unashamedly themselves, and bursting with an authenticity that is refrains from pretension. This performance was without a doubt an absolutely spellbinding example of musicianship at its finest. Those who were lucky enough to be in attendance for this sonic spectacle witnessed something very special indeed.

Portugal. The Man:

Theia:

Were you there at the Powerstation for this mindblowing Alt-Rock performance? Or have you seen Portugal. The Man perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below! 

Portugal. The Man Setlist:

1. For Whom The Bell Tolls / Another Brick In The Wall [Metallica / Pink Floyd Cover]
2. Purple Yellow Red and Blue
3. Number 1
4. Live In The Moment
5. Creep In
6. Atomic Man
7. Modern Jesus
8. All Your Light
9. Feel It Still
10. Sleep Forever
11. Noise Pollution [encore]
12. Hip Hop [encore]
13. Holy Roller [encore]

Theia Setlist:

1. Silver Second
2. Champagne Supernova
3. Tasty
4. Everything
5. Forever
6. Treat You
7. Addict
8. Telling Everyone My Name
9. Bye Bye
10. Roam

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