Glass Animals at John Cain Arena
Originally meant to perform on Aussie shores back in 2020, before the world shut down and live music screeched to a halt, indie poppers Glass Animals finally made their return to Melbourne. Hot off their Glastonbury performance, and with three albums under their belt, the English four piece toured their latest release Dreamland at John Cain Arena.
Opening the show was Brisbane’s own Sycco, whose psychedelic pop has won the hearts of punters across the country, after snagging a nomination for Triple J’s Unearthed Artist of the Year back in 2020. Opening with bop Superstar, latest single Jinx follows shortly after, which the audience already knows every word to. Before we know it, Sycco’s set is ending, but not before she ends on a high with the song that started it all – Dribble.
Rushing to the stage after their retro PC graphics ‘load’ the show, it’s clear to see how excited Glass Animals are to be back. The audience goes absolutely crazy when the set is kicked off with their classic hit Life Itself, which leads into catchy single Tangerine. Vocalist Dave Bayley is in top form, bouncing around the stage with unending energy, as the band launches into Poplar St and The Other Side of Paradise from their second album How to Be a Human Being.
The dance party keeps going with mammoth hits Your Love (Déjà Vu) and I Don’t Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance), while the nostalgic anthem Youth results in a mass singalong from the audience. All the while, the four piece give us one of the best shows we’ve seen in a long time, with their contagious good vibes, rounded off with fun retro neon lighting and graphics. Hit single Gooey from their debut album brings on a gentle sway from the crowds, before Bayley waves a pineapple around on stage, singing Pork Soda’s catchier than anything chorus, ‘pineapples are in my head’.
With the set drawing to a close, the band are offstage when a computer pop-up appears onscreen reading ‘do you want to install Glass Animals’ encore?’ The audiences screams are deafening when the cursor selects ‘yes’, and the band run back onstage. The hip hop heavy Tokyo Drifting starts off the encore, with its thumping breakdown sending everyone into a frenzy. Before the band play their final song of the night, Bayley gets emotional; telling the audience how the next song has found its home in Australia – leading into the opening notes of their Triple J Hottest 100 winning track Heatwaves. The stadium goes into an absolute frenzy, with all punters singing and jumping along to every word of the hit single. With good vibes all round, it’s good to have them back.