Reviewed onSunday March 6
After a ten-year hiatus, during which new generations of fans must have given up hope of their return, the iconic Sleater-Kinney arrived back in Sydney at the iconic Sydney Opera House. One of the few reunion gigs where the new stuff would be as anticipated as their esteemed back catalogue, the band had multiple options as how to handle the plethora of fan expectations. As it went, the night became the future textbook example of how to handle a comeback show.
U.S. Girls opened with their brand of synthpop by way of The Ronettes, and while the set itself was solid – the high harmonies and Meghan Remy’s sampling prowess in particular impressed – pairing a synthpop opener with Sleater-Kinney’s hard rock was a thankless task. Add to that the Opera House’s notoriously frigid crowds and giving a first impression with the lumbering dirge ‘Rosemary’ meant the band deserved a better response than what the crowd offered up.
From the very first notes of ‘Price Tag’, Sleater-Kinney made clear their sole intention was to rock you, and they did nothing but for 90 minutes straight. Corin Tucker’s one-of-a-kind voice, Janet Weiss’ non-stop drum abuse, and Carrie Brownstein’s endless supply of guitar licks (and endless supply of rock star posturing, delivered with such grace that it looks like she invented the idea), this band is one of the most dazzling in existence, with its multitude of talents all merging to create an unstoppable ball of brute force.
No Cities To Love arrived last year to universal acclaim and gained Sleater-Kinney hordes of new Portlandians to call fans, so they’d be justified in focusing on just that album. But they were very diplomatic, covering all but their earliest material. Special attention was given to One Beat, Dig Me Out and their solid gold masterpiece The Woods, which provided most of the set’s highlights.
However, the band wasn’t immune to the cold Opera House audience either – as iconic as it is, the Concert Hall and punk gigs shouldn’t mix, as chairs are a poison for punk. Slowly but surely people got out of their seats and started dancing, until it came to a head with a vicious ‘Entertain’, which saw Brownstein put her guitar down, jump into the crowd with mic in hand, and chastise the remaining few people still sitting down before returning to the stage to finish off the song without missing a beat. This led right into a supercharged ‘Jumpers’, with everyone dancing around and energy levels going through the roof.
Closing with their most signature of signature tunes – ‘Modern Girl’ followed by ‘Dig Me Out’ – Sleater-Kinney exceeded all sky-high expectations, leaving in their wake only stunned expressions and the hope that they don’t take another ten years to come back.
