Shihad
26th October 2018
Town Hall, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Doug Peters.
There are a few things in life that are synonymous with being a kiwi; jandals, tomato sauce, pineapple lumps, marmite and Shihad. Even if you aren’t a fan you would be hard-pressed to say that you didn’t know at least one song. The sold-out crowd at Auckland’s Town Hall last night certainly knew one if not many, many more – bodies of all ages, sizes, races and genders flooding through the doors to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of the iconic four-piece.
Allowing the crowd the chance to stretch their muscles and warm-up properly for the night of ruckus that lay before them, Villainy delivered a set of pop-rock that delighted and entertained. Complete with an array of giant inflatables for the single ‘Tiny Little Island’ the Auckland locals are always solid performers.
The mood in the room soon dramatically shifted however as the legendary Kora ambled onto stage; armed with their own unique brand of ‘heavy alien funk’ and smiles that are as big as they are wide they laid down a set that positively left the room humming. As ‘Little Star’ from their 2012 album Light Years reverberated around the room the crowd united as one, those down the front bobbing in time to the space funk infused bass lines. Stuart Kora was in fine form on vocals, at no point ever looking like he was even breaking a sweat as he delivered track after track of Kora goodness.
Crowd favourites ‘Skankenstein’ and the devilishly delicious ‘Drop Dead Killer’ held the room, thousands of eyes focused on the four piece who made it look all too easy; fellow brothers Francis and Brad melding their bass and drums together to create a sound that instantly brought a smile to the face. Finishing with the sly little number ‘The Delivery Man’ Kora bid the fans goodnight, although truth be told they could have delivered another seven tracks and there would not have been a single complaint from anyone in the room.
Bodies jostled for better positions, the house music drowned out amongst thousands of chattering voices. That was until the familiar and awe-inspiring sound of Metallica’s ‘Battery’ came flooding through the speakers.
For a split moment in time, the music was actually drowned out by the sheer volume of cheering that was pouring forth from the fans, the three men in black who huddled around a fourth behind the drum kit seemingly feeding off of the crowd’s energy as they began to bounce before breaking off to their respective positions and smashing out ‘Think You’re So Free’ which then flowed straight into the almost orgasmically heavy chugging riffs of ‘FVEY’. In many ways it is hard to believe that thirty years have passed since the creation of Shihad, the four core members having remained static since bassist Karl Kippenberger joined the band in 1991; a feat that not even most international bands could claim.
Toogood taking to the mic expressed his gratitude before advising that Shihad would indeed be playing material from each and every album – but in reverse chronological order, beginning with the present day and working their way backwards. What would follow was an impressive display of how a band that have bonded together through years of work can command a crowd with a single song. From the outset a large mosh pit had formed near the front barrier, varying in speeds and ferocity in accordance with what was playing at the time, it was filled with fans both young and … not so young anymore; age no barrier when it came to displaying one’s love and dedication to a homegrown band.
Toogood as always led the charge, the man forever the epitome of the energiser bunny as he traversed the stage, often perching himself on the top of a foldback, prompting the crowd to scream even louder as he would raise his arms into the air.
Songs such as ‘Alive’ with its chorus that would provide a momentary breather for the crowd fed into the anthemic ‘Comfort Me’ Toogood stating that while the Pacifier period may have been a strange time in their career he would never change it as it gave him some of his favourite Shihad tracks. As Kippenberger, Larkin and Knight took a brief but well-deserved break from the stage, Toogood delivered ‘Brightest Star’ against a backing track and stage bathed in the darkest of reds, the moment surreal as he wound his way across the stage, reaching out to some invisible force in the centre of the room. The sheer beauty of the moment may have been lost on those still recovering from the first half of the set, but for those paying attention it was the perfect opportunity to appreciate just how melodically solid Toogood’s vocals truly are.
‘My Mind’s Sedate’ once again powered through like a freight train, the circle pit back in motion as thousands of vocal chords screamed the song’s title back to Toogood, even Larkin smiling from behind the kit. Things took a little sideways turn when a stage dive by Toogood during ‘Wait & See’ didn’t quite go according to plan, the fans holding him up tipping sideways; Toogood – with tongue firmly in cheek – thanking them for their ‘support’.
While the set delivered almost everything that a Shihad fan could have ever wanted, one couldn’t help but feel that while technically the band could not be faulted, there was just something missing; the performance so clinically proficient that it was slightly devoid of soul. This may have been due in part to the issues that Toogood appeared to be suffering with his ear pieces throughout the night; following two techs trying to extrude him from the wires, Toogood apologised to the crowd and advised that he would be taking his shirt off. The crowd cheered but Toogood was obviously a little uncomfortable, even thanking them for putting up with his “ugly bod”.
Once sorted the band went on to deliver ‘Factory’ from their debut album Churn released in 1993, the day one fans in the audience completely losing themselves amongst its chords. Bidding all goodnight, everyone played along with the encore game, Shihad returning to bring the evening back full circle by performing an extended and heavy as hell version of ‘Cheap As’.
Where do they go from here? Only time will tell – but one thing’s for sure, their fans will be following for generations to come.
Were you there at the Town Hall to witness these Kiwi rock legends? Or have you seen Shihad perform live some other time? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Setlist:
- Think You’re So Free
- FVEY
- Sleepeater
- One Will Hear The Other
- Alive
- Fascists
- Comfort Me
- Run
- Brightest Star
- My Mind’s Sedate
- The General Electric
- Wait & See
- Pacifier
- Home Again
- La La Land
- Deb’s Night Out
- You Again
- Factory
- Cheap As [encore]
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