The Brian Jonestown Massacre
16th June 2017
Powerstation, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Connor Crawford.
When defining psychedelic rock it is often outlined as ‘music intended to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of hallucinogenics’. And while Brian Jonestown Massacre also encapsulate elements of garage rock, folk rock and of course some healthy, delicious dollops of shoegaze – at the end of the day these guys truly are psychedelic rock n rollers. Formed in the 1990s they have been prolific when it comes to the subject of recording; with seventeen studio albums to their name – their latest entitled Something Else released just last month – as well as a handful of live and compilation albums to boot.
Of course there is one very much outstanding feature of Brian Jonestown Massacre and that is of their leader Anton Newcombe who with age has now often taken on the role of tortured musical genius when appearing live. To truly understand this statement is to watch Newcombe while hovering close by and preferably in a sober state. His face is often a map of emotions, the lines of incredulous confusion passing over his forehead like clouds on a winters day as he becomes lost in his own world of twiddling knobs on amps, pedals and of course his guitar. Indeed no two shows are ever the same when it comes to the Brian Jonestown Massacre and that is of course one of the factors that make them so appealing. Needless to say much of this is because of Newcombe himself thanks to his frequent off-kilter conversations and berating of his own band members; tonight being no exception to the rule, Newcombe running the full gamut of the emotions scale.
Kicking off their set late (who on earth thought psychedelic rock bands started on time??) the six piece band led by Newcombe shuffled out onto the stage. Arranging themselves haphazardly across the space, Newcombe securing the far left hand side for himself; more than likely due to the fact that just behind him hovered what seemed to be his own personal roadie whose list of tasks included changing over the song lyrics discreetly pegged against the wall, tuning his guitar and of course holding his beaded necklaces.
‘We Never Had A Chance’ was in many ways a fantastic song to begin the night with; ambling along it was in no hurry to get anywhere, instead curling and stretching about the floor like a cat after a particularly satisfying nap. Live Brian Jonestown Massacre provide no shortage of fascinating musicans to watch; the highlight tonight being that of Joel Gion who – alongside Newcombe – is the longest serving member of the band. In fact, Gion made everyone in the room tonight covet being a tambourine player. With hand flourishes that could rival any cheerleader and musical timing that was completely spot on, Gion entertained the fans from start to finish. Alongside him the front line of guitars that included Ricky Maymi and his bottle of red wine twisted and turned, slowly becoming intoxicated with both the music and their choice of on stage refreshments.
Sporting a rather in your face t-shirt that stated in large red letters ‘Eat Shit’ and Newcombe kept to his spot on the far side of the stage, addressing the audience briefly to discuss consumerism and the influence Flying Nun had on him before leading the group into some gorgeous lengthy instrumentals. Thanking the audience for coming he then exchanged words with a punter who declared that they loved him; pointing out that he indeed loved them too, but couldn’t love them right now as he was working, many of the fans laughing in delight at his response.
But soon enough that somewhat quarrelsome side of Newcombe’s nature made an appearance as he drew the audience’s attention to the pointlessness of a certain piece of equipment and the fact that the band was out of tune for the second time tonight; promptly instructing the guitarists to “tune up”. Stolen looks were sometimes exchanged but for the most part the band just carried on doing what they do best, pumping our tracks such as ‘Sailor’, ‘Who Dreams Of Cats’ and ‘Who’, the punters happily giving themselves over to each and every one, often with heads back and eyes closed. Seamlessly inserted into the set were many of The Brian Jonestown Massacre’s latest offerings, Newcombe seemingly becoming a little upset with himself as he pointed out that he wrote one particular track for his New Zealand fans but due to his voice being a little under the weather it was like delivering a gift a that had been “mangled by the rain”.
By now ninety minutes had come and gone, songs such as ‘Nevertheless’ and the very popular ‘Anemone’ that caresses the side of your face as it saunters around the room being welcomed into the fold. Gloriously Brian Jonestown Massacre have mastered the art of playing for hours on end without ever making the punter feel like they have been trapped for days in the venue; in fact their music is so deliriously enthralling that often fans will stare at their phones or watches in disbelief at just how quickly the time has flown by. But all good things must come to an end, and probably just in time too as Newcombe’s demeanor seemed to be taking a slight detour down the path of ‘my band members can’t do anything right’; the guitarists in question really beginning to sway on their feet thanks to their choice of liquid refreshments.
And therein lies the secret to psychedelic rock – no one cares what you think.
Finishing with the unadulterated rock n roll purity of ‘Yeah Yeah’ the band fully disgorged everything they had left before each exiting the stage, leaving Newcombe alone to finish the evening in the only way that Newcombe could; scurrying about, adjusting amps and undulating under the immense feedback. The resulting experience one that could never be replicated and one that tonight’s attendees will certainly never forget.
Were you there at the Powerstation for this retro psychedelic rock gig? Or have you seen The Brian Jonestown Massacre perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this content, please consider donating towards the running of Ambient Light, covering expenses and allowing us to expand the coverage you love by visiting our PressPatron page.