PRESS CLUB // Intensely Intimate

This may be the last tour that you’ll be able to catch Press Club playing in smaller venues. Following the release of their album Late Teens earlier this year and selling out both their Melbourne and Brisbane dates, the tiny upstairs music space of Bloodhound Bar was cramped with sweaty humans waiting in anticipation for the band to take the stage.

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Kicking off the night to a half-full bar of fairly rowdy patrons was Brisbane based four-piece Sometime Sonny. With just a few songs out, and more being released in the coming months, the smooth tunes and laid-back attitude were very well fitting for the first support, giving the room a slow and steady warm up towards the end of their set.

Sometime Sonny // By Aimee Ravik

Kicking it up a notch from the soft-spoken boys prior, with riffs that could have been written in the 80’s—The Cutaways really got the crowd ready for Press Club. With fans to the front, there was lucky to be 4 people still sitting down for the entire set. The change of pace was much needed, and the change in perspective welcome. With transgender front-woman Emmy Haora, the band brings punk rock back to its roots of being unapologetically yourself.

The Cutaways // By Aimee Ravik

The Cutaways have been on a steady rise since supporting Waax for their Brisbane shows and playing at the Dead of Winter festival last month. The set was high energy, and hard to fault with the only negative moment of the set being the 6 drunk girls who decided their voice was more important than hearing the actual band, who inevitably got yelled at by other patrons. Human down to earth with old-school style riffs, their sound isn’t brand new or stand out, but they’re a bucket of fun to watch.

The room was buzzing, from both excitement and excess alcohol by the time 10:30 rolled around and Press Club was arriving to appease the masses. The set started a little late, while frontwoman Natalie Foster finished up checking people’s tickets on the door, which is quite possibly the most down to earth thing I’ve seen a band do in a long while. The set started large, with her crawling along the caged divider screaming the opening to Late Teens. Between songs, she asked, “Let’s get fucking comfortable!” before walking into the middle of the floor and starting My Body’s Changing and getting intimate with the crowd. If you’re unfamiliar with the band musically, think a grungy combination of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Grates and The Preatures. Lyrically and musically Press Club brings a relatable honesty to the table, and through their live performance, it united every person in that room.

Press Club // By Aimee Ravik

Between songs off the recently released Late Teens, the set was sprinkled with tracks that are difficult to find on streaming services but offer a deeper insight into the early life of the band. Slightly less refined and a little bit messier around the edges, tracks like Don’t See You really brought attention to the bands’ growth and development.

Press Club // By Aimee Ravik

Saving the two tracks that have had the most Spotify and Triple J plays till last, they took their performance up a notch with Headwreck and the crowd was the most animated they’d been all night. Closing with Suburbia a track that anyone who has made the move to inner cities can relate to, Natalie flaunted her vocal range with an added layer of sentiment and vulnerability. If Press Club isn’t on your radar, they sure as hell should be! This band is backed by some big forces in the music industry but more importantly, they’re backed by a loyal fan-base, there are definitely big things on the horizon for Press Club.

Press Club have sold out their second show at the Bloodhound Bar, but you can catch them again in Brisbane during Halloween Hysteria on Saturday 28th October, tickets available through Oztix here.