Shihad, Grenadiers & The Iron Eye Live @ The Triffid

Throw me into a pit of rockers, kiwis and beer anyday and you could say I pretty much felt at home from the minute I entered the Triffid for Shihad!

First up were local Brisbane boys The Iron Eye who I was totally pumped to finally catch live for the first time. Lucky for us the boys have been spending some time recording in Melbourne with Shihads drummer Tom Larkin, which meant we had the pleasure of hearing some brand new songs.

Vocalist Nick took complete charge of new Hip Hop infused rock track Just Started with his voice sitting perfectly in its range, the Iron Eye front man belted out the lyrics with passion and authority. Bassist David danced like a robot while playing base lines that took us to heaven and back like he could do it in his sleep. Antonio on drums hit every beat like it was going to be his last with ever note as crisp and clear as the first. Playing the rockstars like seasoned performers The Iron Eye have a future of breaking hearts and breaking charts.

Finishing up the set with Different, the high energy grunge rock track left the crowd on a high as the boys left everything they had on the stage with a performance they well and truly slayed.

Adelaide solid rockers Grenadiers are supporting Shihad throughout the entire tour with their own mix of sweet rock and punk. True fans filled out the mosh floor singing as loud as they could while a pit of people jumped around like coy fish in a rock pond. Lead singer Jesse was slaying his guitar with his fingers moving at the speed of light while creating a rainbow from the sweat dripping from his forehead, his glasses tossed after only a few songs. Bassist Phil looked like fun was his middle name as he played bass like a master and drummer Jimmy kept us fist pumping till the end. Chaotic and angry, The Grenadiers played some of the classic fan favourites such as Summer and Live Fast, Diabetes all of which had the crowd pumping.

Iron Man by Black Sabbath breaks the silence in the room as we all waited in anticipation for the one and only kiwi rock legends Shihad. Kicking off their set with well known high energy track Home Again, you could tell from the minute the boys were present on the stage that they were ready to bring the noise.

Announcing that its been 20 years since the release of their ‘Fish’ album, Jon Toogood took us on a musical journey through the life of Shihad while announcing his favourite tracks from older albums right through to the present. This set list was hand picked by the band, not just fan favourites but songs that Shihad had a soft spot for. It was hit after hit of pure kiwi rock heaven.

Shihad produce so much energy, not just with their music but also their stage presence. and its contagious. Jon’s eyes were rolling around in his head like mad eye moody as the sweat and passion dripped from his forehead and sprayed out into the crowd. Leaping on monitors, dancing around the stage and even closing their eyes as the music flowed from their fingertips with confidence and ease. It was a great show from start to finish, the energy, the hits, the antics, Shihad was in rocking good form.

I’m not going to lie, it was rather nice to hear a slice of home again, rock on!