Newcastle Panthers
Friday August 22, 2014 :
A journey back in time best describes the general vibe for Courtney Love’s Newcastle show; an array of 90’s punk goodness, fishnets, spikes, platform boots, leather (lots of leather), arm socks, big hair and a generous serving 90’s dance moves.
Having just made it in time for their set from a delayed flight from Brissy, The Mercy Kills definitely gave their all on the stage – incredible leads vocals, killer guitar solos, an impressive display of drumming capabilities and matching vests, yo! How sweet is that!? They absolutely loved their time on that stage, you could tell. Between the playful banter on stage and handing out free E.P’s, the band played a solid 30 minute set before departing from the stage. With the auditorium at a healthy capacity, the crowd quickly assumed their favoured positions throughout the room in anticipation for their Courtney to take the stage. The time was 9:45 when the lights dimmed.
Stepping out in a white lace dress, knee high boots and a sequinned vest, Courtney Love greeted the crowd with a loud and raspy, ‘let’s go to the 90’s!” before kicking off into ‘Wedding Day’. Straight off the bat, she captured my attention; her raspy vocals mixed with the occasional scream just made your ears prick with delight – not going to lie, I was not expecting to be so blown away but she had me fixed for the full hour and a half. Ten minutes into her set, she kindly waves the photographers in the pit away and as soon as the all clear is given, she starts to remove a few items of clothing, much to the crowds delight. Before kicking off into ‘Gold Dust Woman’, she comes down to the barricade, reads a fans poster and seems genuinely impressed. She smiles a big smile and blows the adoring fan a kiss before reassuming her place centre stage. “How you doin’, Newcastle!?” she screams into the mic, to which the crowd enthusiastically responds with cheers and hollers. “Oh, c’mon. I have a big L.A. and N.Y.C. fanbase you guys have to compete with. So, HOW YOU DOIN’, NEWCASTLE!?” to which the crowd responded even louder than before – she clearly approved of the effort Newcastle gave.
“This is about some beach property that is very expensive!” she snickers as the first chords of ‘Malibu’ kick off. This was certainly a highlight for myself, as I’m sure it was for a good number of other fans; the sing alongs were solid and there was a sea of mobile phones with lights and camera held above bobbing heads. Pulling out a ciggie shortly after ‘Malibu’ concludes and taking a few generous puffs, Courtney jumps into ‘Jennifer’s Body’ and the room quickly fills up with a concoction of cigarette smoke and sweat – the often and distinct puff of smoke rising above the heads in the crowd was not very popular with security, with the occasional punter being escorted from the room and perhaps the venue entirely.
Courtney again comes down to barrier to check her crowd is holding up alright and enjoying themselves. She then shows her full vocal capabilities in ‘You Know My Name’, which gave me goosebumps. By this point, she is showing no signs of tiring and is still busting her lungs with these big guttural vocals and the crowd genuinely appreciates the effort being given; you can hear it in the screams and the “I love you, Courtney!”. With ‘Skinny Little Bitch’ increasing the tempo, the crowds enthusiasm almost doubles and the room quakes with the stomping of dancing feet. The tempo hardly seems to lessen when ‘Violet’ kicks off and the keen sing-a-longs ensue – another shining example of some very impressive vocals on Courtney’s behalf.
With a “you’re so cute”, Courtney smiles at the crowd and then processes to strum the first chords of ‘Celebrity Skin’ (another personal favourite and crowd pleaser!). The 90’s hit comes and goes and with that, Courtney smiles, waves and departs from the stage. Several minutes later, the crowd is invited to scream out Courtney’s name as loud as they can, three times. The crowd obediently fulfil the request of them and soon, Courtney reappears in a new dress and a bouquet of roses which she then distributes amongst the fans as she travels up and down the length of the stage. ‘Doll Parts’ then kicks off much to the crowds delight and the loudest sing-a-long of the night comes in the form of “some day you will ache like I ache”, sung several times in repetition. With a mighty fist pump, she concludes her epic set. Picking up setlists, she hands them out to the crowd, waves and then playfully hitches her dress up as she skips from the stage.
All in all, Courtney Love’s set this night was impressive and well received. This having been my first time seeing her, I can happily say that she did not disappoint. A great talent and wonderful company to have on a Friday night, Courtney Love proves that girls can go hard and the 90’s will never die!
Reviewer: Ashlee Kellehear
Photographer: David Youdell
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