Thursday 24 July
Supports: Microwave, Garage Sale, Talk Heavy
If you’ve been feeling heavy lately and are in need of a gig to liven up your life, I implore you to get out to catch emo/pop act Free Throw. The Nashville-based band are currently on their second trip down under with friends, Microwave, touring together for the very first time. It’s refreshing to see bands who formed just over a decade ago still playing shows halfway across the world and you could say, Free Throw might just be living their best breakthrough yet.
Kicking off the tour in Brisbane on a cool wintry Thursday night were local boys Talk Heavy. While I’ve heard talk of them lately, I’d not had the opportunity to check this band out yet. Boy, were they a treat though. Delivering high-octane energy and whiney vocals to the key of New Found Glory, Talk Heavy got this show off to the best start possible. Performing a lively set of their short collection of rowdy punk debauchery, with the band’s latest song ‘Die 4 U’ perking the early crowd up with their Aussie-twinged dose of pop punk. Think Sly Withers meets Man Overboard.
But the real highlight? Talk Heavy somehow managed to perform their strongest track yet with ‘Marissa‘. For three high-intensity minutes, Brisbane’s The Princess Theatre shapeshifted into Newport’s The Bait Shop and had the whole room riding a wave of teen drama nostalgia. That left a buzz in the air that lingered on for the rest of the night.
The trippy 2000s nostalgia continued inbetween the stage setting things up for the next band. Freaky Friday’s soundtrack ‘Ultimate‘ blared out over the speakers just before Melbourne rockers Garage Sale took to the stage.
Mic issues on the first song didn’t shy them away though, Garage Sale managed to keep things going with their hazy blend of grunge and shoegaze cinematic aesthetic. There’s something about their presence that feels both intimate and expansive, like a late night movie scene scored by overdriven guitars and dreamy melancholia.
Their mellowed out guitars brought a noticeable shift in energy, a grounding moment if you will. The room settled into a gentle sway, heads nodding in unison as the band carved out their own pocket of moodiness within the evening’s otherwise punk-fuelled chaos. It wasn’t loud or showy, just quietly magnetic. For first time listeners unfamiliar with Garage Sale, this set felt like a discovery of new tunes.
The anticipation escalated minutes before Microwave took to the stage. As the lights dimmed, a soulful jazz number blared out over the speakers, bringing about an unusual ambience. But straight from the first note, vocalist Nathan Hardy took command of the stage, delivering some of the most soul-baring, emotive vocals I’ve witnessed in a live setting.
Overseas flight delays didn’t tear this band though; their energy was unwavering and reliquishing every second of finally connecting with an audience across the globe.. The crowd swayed in unison, then surged, hanging on every explosive chorus and quiet confession. As the set continued, swirling guitar tones and thumping drums left many listeners in the room tongue tied and head over heels with the poetic lyrics pouring from Hardy.
A highlight of Microwave’s debut Australian set had to have been the anthemic tune ‘Something Right’. At this point, it was clear this wasn’t just a gig. It was a moment. That track in particular landed in my memory like a gut punch and seemed to echo around the venue long after the final note.
For Free Throw to return to Australia on the exact same stage they left us at on last year’s tour with Hot Mulligan was let’s just say, iconic. Walking onto the stage to the stylings of a country music song, it definitely more like Brisbane’s Honky Tonks bar in the valley rather than the Gabba’s Princess Theatre. The band kicked off with ‘Such Luck‘ and from the first chord played, the performance was nothing but good times.
Vocalist Cory Castro thanked Brisbane fans for returning to catch them once again and his energy and gratitude to be there was invigorating. Similarly to Microwave, Free Throw also had luggage delays and had to last minute source equipment. Not using their own gear didn’t deter from the performance though. From ‘Pallet Town‘ to ‘Spacer’s Choice‘, the boys delivered melancholy emo with an upbeat change of key to blistering punk anthems that had pit momentum surging.
A highlight for me was hearing the band revive my senses with their hit ‘A Part is Better Than Zero‘ from 2023’s Lessons We Swear to Keep. It hit with the force of a memory you didn’t know you needed. Almost perfecting that balance of punk rowdiness with pop dynamic, Free Throw were the fresh breath of air the scene so very much needed. The contrast between Castro’s emotionally cracked delivery and the driving instrumentation hit the perfect sweet spot of raw yet melodic, heavy but heartfelt. It was the kind of performance that not only revived the crowd’s energy but reminded everyone why emo and punk still matter today.
Back for their second visit to Australia, the band’s overjoyed presence was impossible to miss. Every thank you from Cory felt like it came straight from the heart. Their tight chemistry on stage, the way they leaned into every build and breakdown and the sheer emotional honesty in their lyrics turned the set into more than just a gig.
Celebrating a statement of how far they’ve come and where they’re heading, Free Throw proved that night that they’re ready to play in front of bigger crowds. Following this performance, it became very easy to see them sharing stages with scene heavyweights Neck Deep and State Champs one day, all while still holding their own without missing a beat.
Review by Tamara May
