The opportunity to hear some live Quo was too good to miss, so it was a long drive over to Moorabbin to check out new Victorian tribute, "Australis Quo", supporting established AC/DC tribute band "Thunderstruck" at the mechanic shop-cum-venue Lucky 13 Garage.
There were plenty of folks packing early shortly after doors opened at 8pm so it was a good chance to mingle and catch up with some old Quo mates (including band member Steve Harvey) before the band took the stage at 9pm for their first public outing.
Marshall stacks and a bunch of Teles boded well as the foursome lined up - Steve Harvey (rhythm guitar and vocals), Chris Christo (lead guitar and vocals), Mal Leishman (bass) and Brett Spicer (drums).
A sneak peek at their setlist suggested a lengthy set so the stage was set for some serious rocking - and we were not to be disappointed!
Steve Harvey took the honours of playing the first notes of the band's public performances as he banged out the intro to "Caroline" and we were off, heading straight into a nice heavy version of "Roll Over Lay Down". The classics kept coming and they had to include crowd pleasers like "Rockin' All Over The World", "Down Down" and "Whatever You Want", but it was the heavier old numbers like "Big Fat Mama" that really got us air guitarists going! Their version of this great song was fantastic and a highlight of the set. "Softer Ride" was another excellent inclusion and the guitar work on "Don't Waste My Time" was top notch. The familiar opening notes of "Bye Bye Johnny" sadly spelled the beginning of the end of the band's 12-song set, which lasted just under an hour.
This was an amazing performance from such a new band (after just three rehearsals!) and they gave the audience exactly what they came for, some no nonsense boogie. There were some mis-steps as you'd expect, with plenty of missed lyrics and repeated verses. There were a couple of dodgy song intros - "the next song is from the "Quo" album, a thing called "Rain" and "Anyone remember Live Aid? Quo opened the event with this one, "Don't Waste My Time"! I'd have liked the lead guitar to be a little higher in the mix at times, as Chris's notable lead work was sometimes difficult to pick out. But to nitpick would be to miss the point. This was a seriously enjoyable hour of live Quo, performed with passion and good humour to an encouragable crowd.
The band have a few more gigs lined up as supports to "Thunderstruck" and other rock tribute bands, so do yourself a favour and get along to support them if you happen to be in this part of the world, I certainly will be!
Revisit the June 2023 event list
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