The Brave – Gig Review 17th August @ The Brightside, Brisbane QLD

The Brave
The Brightside, Brisbane QLD
August 17th, 2019
Supports: Pridelands, Mirrors & Days Like These

The paint may be peeling off the ceiling of The Brightside but it was a big night starring Brisbane band The Brave with a bunch of quality supports. As their last show on their Aura album tour in their hometown, it was bound to be a good one.

Kicking it all off were locals, Days Like These. They’re a reasonably fresh band that are doing something right because they look so well put together on stage and their excitement about supporting The Brave and just being there in general really translated to the crowd. They played their latest single ‘Antidote‘ to which the everyone really responded, along with a new song that doesn’t even have a title yet. Revisit our chat with the lads to find out what the future holds for them right here

We had quick changeovers between bands and next up was Melbourne boys Mirrors, and they were just effortlessly cool up on stage. After fist bumping each other they jumped straight off the deep end into their set and we saw some impressive and slightly dangerous windmilling from their bassist who featured incredibly long dreadlocks. Despite a few technical issues they powered through and the crowd almost seemed not to notice, too much fun was being had. Playing songs from their latest EP Cold Sanctuary it was full of fire, ‘Damien’ especially being a very powerfully emotional song.

Pridelands came out of the gate blazing. They presented very strong, impressive vocals from both singers, clean and screamed and visually they owned the stage. They did try a bit too hard for more crowd involvement and their songs probably did deserve a bit more moshing but the crowd just wasn’t feeling it as much as the band would’ve liked. ‘Any Colour You Desire’ was a favourite and Pridelands ended on their most recent single ‘Dark Sources’.

And then we finally had The Brave. Their album Aura came out in April and while this album tour was a few months coming it was well worth the wait. Opening with ‘Desolation’ there was an explosion of confetti and, well, it was all up from there. There was an ease of performing that came across in their body language towards the crowd and each other, it was just like breathing for these musicians. A few weeks ago they released a re-imagined version of ‘Aura‘, and to hear it live was something else. The original is great, but live, this new version packed a punch and was just as heartfelt; you could tell that the band loved playing it.

It’s worth mentioning the mosh that rolled from band to band. It started during Days Like These and kept coming back through Mirrors and Pridelands to come to a peak during The Brave’s set. We had crowdsurfing, mates on each other’s shoulders and just guys and girls having a blast dancing away. ‘Ethereal‘ and ‘Burn‘ were clear standouts and at one point the drummer threw his stick in the air, caught it and kept playing.

Ending on their very popular single ‘Technicolour‘ we had one last explosion of confetti well timed with a breakdown. Super satisfying, it was a very colourful and literal visual to go with their last song.

Watching The Brave is just a really good time. There’s a lot of quality in the way they put together a show and that includes skilled supports and a darn good setlist. If you haven’t ever seen these guys before, jeez, what are you waiting for?

Review by Ebony Story

Setlist

Desolation
Above The Clouds
Out Of Reach
Dragged Down
Lost To The Night
Through The Dark
Aura (Reimagined)
Ethereal
Searchlights
Goodbye
Burn
Dreamless
Technicolour