Alex Lahey at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Alex Lahey has slowly, but surely, become a household in Australian indie music. She stepped on the scene in August 2015 with her debut single “Air Mail” and with her critically-acclaimed debut album ‘I Love You Like A Brother’, she flew around the world playing sold-out shows in the UK and US, even landing her first US television appearance on Late Night With Seth Meyers. Now, Lahey comes home with her Huge and True tour, selling out three Melbourne shows, Brisbane and her only Sydney date at the Factory Theatre. With that in mind, it’s obvious that tonight would be a special one, for Lahey and everyone about to pack out the 800 capacity room in Sydney’s Inner West.

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Bloods at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Electronic duo Micra were first up on the stage, starting off with an unknown song to fans and punters alike. On stage, Micra became a sextet, which made the set up quite squashed and movement was very limited for the members, but this didn’t stop them from producing fantastic sounds that made the audience bop along.

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Bloods at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Frontwoman Ivana Kay seemed nervous on stage, her stiff movements and lack of between-song commentary was definitely on display, however her airy vocals could defiantly be heard from the back of the room. Micra may only be young, but their wonder makes it intriguing and it’ll definitely be interesting to see where they go from here.

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Bloods at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Supporting Alex Lahey nationally are punk rock quartet Bloods, who definitely turned the crowd into a wave of mosh. Their set starts with vocalist/guitarist MC as a lone wolf, singing and strumming along to the first verse of “Bodies” from their critically-acclaimed 2013 EP ‘Golden Fang’. However, it’s not until the rest of the band kicks in with the chorus that you see Bloods in their full form. And it’s absolutely fascinating to watch.

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Bloods at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Bloods smash out song after song from their intense discography, but still keep the set fun and comedic with their banter in-between songs. It started when vocalist/bassist Sweetie excused herself to her glass of wine “…because I sing in this next song”, which caused a giggle from the audience. However, that immense sarcastic humour kept rolling between MC and Sweetie, which made it impossible not to love them.

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Bloods at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Bloods had everyone both in laughter and in awe, and by their time their closer “Nothin’ But Time” ended, everyone in the audience was determined to check out more of their music after the show.

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Alex Lahey at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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The roar from the crowd began when Alex Lahey’s backing band began to walk onto the stage. But the true wrath of Lahey came when she entered the room, guitar in hand by her amp, ready to kick off her gigantic set with “I Love You Like A Brother”.

Lahey is a tyrant on stage. She swirls up a storm from every inch of the stage and the crowd adores it, to say the least. She smashes through 2017’s “Let’s Call It A Day” to 2014’s “Ivy League” from her EP ‘B Grade University’ and you can’t help but admire Lahey’s relatable lyrics and catchy riffs.

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Alex Lahey at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Lahey’s music isn’t the only part of her that’s charming. Her anecdotes she presents onstage like the time she watched Coco on a plane from Abu Dhabi to Brussels have people laughing along with her. And the fans in the room empathise when she urges to buy Bloods’ merch, “even if they’re double XL, ‘cause they’re really good to wear to bed”.

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Alex Lahey at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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There’s a shift in the crowd once Lahey begins to play her first ever release on triple j unearthed “Air Mail”. Whether it’s due to the rockier direction the set heads in with “Lotto In Reverse” straight after, or whether the fans know we’re heading towards the end of her set, there’s something different in the air.

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Alex Lahey at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Lahey kicks everyone’s nostalgia to overdrive with a cover of Avril Lavigne’s “Complicated”. There’s failed crowd surfing attempts during “Every Day’s The Weekend”. There’s people on shoulders for “You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me”. And once Lahey begins her closer in “I Haven’t Been Taking Care Of Myself”, you know absolute chaos is about to ensue. The crowd becomes a sea of jumping bodies and all you can do is imagine the absolute elation in Lahey as 800 people scream back the lyrics to her finale.

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Alex Lahey at The Triffid – by Mike Wotton

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Alex Lahey is a true rockstar. She’s built herself the bottom up and are as humble as they come. She’s an icon for women trying to succeed in Indie Rock. But most of all, Alex Lahey is still that 25-year-old girl from Melbourne who sold her beloved ’99 Toyota Corolla, just so she could record music to give to the world. And to be honest, that’s what makes Alex Lahey “HUGE AND TRUE”.

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CHECK OUT MORE FROM MIKE WOTTON’S GALLERY HERE!

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AMNPLIFY – GD