2012 has seen a welcome resurgence of classic 90s musicians getting back on the road and rocking venues like it’s 1999. If you don’t remember 28 Days, chances are you either weren’t born yet (unlucky) or chose not to listen to music during this epic period for Aussie punk rock.
Their #1 Album Upstyledown is still one of the best beer crushing summer soundtracks around. Excited punters filled The Evelyn early, eager at the chance to relive their favourites with this long-loved band.
First up on the bill were local lads, The Union Pacific, launching into their set with fierce and melodic guitar lashings. Sean Callanan’s grit-strength vocals stoke the audience with a nostalgic 90s sound. Tracks ‘Nomads’ and ‘Great White North’ are memorable, with the effect of meeting someone for the first time that you feel you’ve know all along. Heads nod and ears are successfully primed for a night of familiar pub-punk fun.
Melbourne boys, And Burn are next to step up with their polished post-hardcore style. Whaling vocals, spleen rupturing screams and unstoppable beats feature on songs such as ‘Never Bring a Gun to a Knife Fight’. The set finishes with a deadly rendition of their classic track, ‘Bottoms Up’. Slaying the stage with unrelenting energy, the room is successfully hyped and ready for the headliners.
Punters hustle forward keen to quickly claim the closest piece of floor for the main event. Straight to business, 28 Days members Jay Dunne, Simon Hepburn, Damien Gardiner and Dan Kerby take to the stage accompanied by compadre DJ Jedi Master Jay.
Suddenly, there’s a rip in the space-time continuum and the room explodes with pub-punk perfection. The crowd are instantly transported back to the late 90s/early 00s with their younger selves emerging, singing along to every word like it was only yesterday.
If there’s one thing that can be said for 28 Days, it’s that they know how to have a bloody good time with this show bringing particular revelry for singer Jay Dunnes’ birthday. There’s a real sense in the room of a common camaraderie between this beloved band and its fans who have stuck with them through thick and thin.
Crowd favourite ‘Sucker’, douses already combusting brains with Dunnes kerosene vocals and people are quite literally climbing the walls. Moshing ensues, and there are bodies surfing uncontrollably across the room. There is no doubt that 28 Days have still got it. The night finishes in a victorious ruckus with unforgettable performances of hits ‘What’s the Deal’ and ‘Rip It Up’. The band also announce that they have a new album in the works so it seems we have more memorable moments to look forward to from 28 days.
– Amy Shackell
