Since bursting onto the scene five years ago with the wonderfully hilarious video for hit single Smoko, The Chats have turned themselves into one of the most popular punk bands of the decade, filling bigger and bigger venues every time they revisit a city around the globe.
On Saturday, the 3 Aussie lads had a date booked with a sold-out crowd at Glasgow’s iconic Barrowland Ballroom, and they more than rose to the occasion with a fast-paced juggernaut of a show.
We headed in early to see the 2 supports, the first of which was the wonderfully named Guantanamo Baywatch, which got the crowd going with some 1960s good old-fashioned rock and roll. This was a great way to start the night, and we even got our first pit of the night, something we would be seeing plenty of throughout the evening.
By the time the second support, The Chisel, came on stage the Barras was already 3 quarters of the way full and The Chisel rewarded their early arrival by treating the crowd to some fantastic old-fashioned British punk. It’s easy to see how The Chisel has such a stellar live reputation as they got the place bouncing with banging tunes such as Unlawful Execution and Class Oppression. It was like Idles were fronted by Frank Carter to create some beautiful madness, and I’d recommend checking them out next time they come north of the border.
Up next was the main event and when the ballroom lights went down the Glasgow crowd erupted to welcome our hero’s from down under, wearing his classic denim shorts and a white Budweiser vest front man Eamon Sandwith greeted the crowd with a ‘hello Glasgow how the hell are ya?’ before bursting straight into the first tune of the night Nabored.
The Chats blasted through their gritty punk rock back catalog of bangers at such a pace you would be forgiven for thinking you were at a classic Ramones gig with new album’s singles 6L GTR and Struck By Lightning getting especially hot reactions from the crowd. The night produced some of the biggest mosh pits and the greatest crowd surf I have ever seen when an absolute legend was passed over the crowd in his wheelchair gaining a jubilant reaction from his fellow gig goers and the band themselves.
After a member change, it can be a scary time of uncertainty for a band but in The Chat’s case, new guitarist Josh Hardy has slotted into the band perfectly and gives them a quirky new dynamic with his wild facial expressions and even wilder curly hair and as he dances around the stage like an absolute madman and drummer Matt Boogis was his usual self where he manages to create some amazing sounds whilst looking like he’s just sitting chilling.
The Chats give off the vibes that they are just 3 best pals taking over the world together, and you can feel the connection between the band and their audience with almost every song being screamed back at them at twice the decibel level it was sent out at. They ended their set with an interesting cover of Kiss’s Rock And Roll All Night, which I never knew I needed until now, and their 2 biggest singles, the iconic Smoko which seems to have cemented its place as a modern-day classic for fans who just want to be left alone and then the ever so catchy Pub Feed which makes us all crave some good old fashioned greasy pub grub.
Words: Declan Anderson @well_no_one_fucking_told_me
Pictures: Mark Gillies @inyerface__