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Sisters Of Mercy // Photo – Dapperdan Photography

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THE SISTERS OF MERCY
+ Elko Fields
@ Enmore Theatre Sydney
30th October 2022
(Live Review)

Review by Amelia Torresan

Photos by Dapperdan Photography

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Sisters Of Mercy // Photo – Dapperdan Photography

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Twas the night before Halloween, and the Enmore was bright. Goths of all kinds gathered in the night. With a drink in their hand as they arrived early, they eagerly waited for The Sisters of Mercy.

The night began with Brisbane rockers Elko Fields. Their music was dark and angsty while also holding a vulnerability and delicate element, perfecting a yin/yang balance that suited the vocals of frontwoman Kellan Vee. Watching them perform was almost nostalgic as they performed like a jam band, like a bunch of friends making music together purely because they loved and enjoyed it. Elko Fields’ sound can be described as the musical personification of a trash polka tattoo: it’s a beautiful chaos that portrays emotion and rebellion and reflects the artist creating it. After watching Elko Fields perform onstage, it’s too easy to be instantly converted into a fan of the band. They perfectly established the theme of the night and were delicious appetisers that prepared the crowd for the main meal to come.

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Elko Fields // Photo – Dapperdan Photography

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As the crowd waited between sets, I asked the veteran fans ofThe Sisters of Mercy about what would be in store for me that night and they collectively said the shows were full of theatrics and were always an absolute blast.

The lights dimmed and the band entered the stage to the soundtrack of screams and cheers from their fans. Judging by the music the band walked out to, I could tell that they were spooky and mysterious but also a little electronic which made them the perfect choice of band to play a show on Halloween weekend. The band began playing their first song of the night, one of their recently released, ‘Don’t Drive on Ice’ that was promptly followed by ‘Crash and Burn’ and ‘Ribbons.’ The songs definitely all gave the impression that The Sisters of Mercy would probably be on a Spotify ‘On Repeat’ playlist for Dracula and The Addams Family: spooky, powerful and passionate.

Can’t wind the windows down

From the wrong side

Don’t drive on ice

One element of The Sisters of Mercy’s music that stays constant in all their songs is the strength and talent of their guitarists. Lead guitarist Ben Christo and rhythm guitarist Dylan Smith were on fire the entire night, Interacting with the crowd and standing in some badass power stances all the while absolutely creating musical mastery throughout the night. Ravey Davey played the keys, computer not piano, creating the thundering drum beats and echoing bass that supported the two guitarists along with lead vocalist and founder of The Sisters of Mercy, Andrew Eldritch.

The presence that the band had, particularly founder Andrew Eldritch, communicated clearly that they were classic rockers, even if their sound is a little different to mainstream rock from the 80’s that features on our radio. There was such a depth to his performance that can only be perfected over time, it was professional and effortless. It’s no wonder they are mentioned as an inspiration for many bands that came after, such as Metallica, Nine Inch Nails and My Chemical Romance.

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Sisters Of Mercy // Photo – Dapperdan Photography

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The band then performed ‘I Will Call You’ and, what I chose as my favourite song of the night, ‘First and Last and Always.’ You can always tell when a song is one of the band’s most popular releases because the crowd comes alive as soon as they hear the first few chords. The guitar riffs and solos were highlighted in this song and gave Ben and Dylan the chance to be in the spotlight and have fun with it.

The high energy continued through the next two songs ‘But Genevieve’ and ‘Alice’ with even more dancing and clapping along to the beat. The former began with a haunting and echoing intro before dropping into a grungy rock song with distorted guitars. The musical style reminded me of ‘Rebel Yell’ by Billy Idol but if it stayed in the style of the first verse for the whole song.

After all the high energy songs, ‘Giving Ground’ was a perfect contrast. With a slower tempo and passionate lyrics, the song provided a more personal and intimate moment between the band and the crowd. The additional vocals provided by the guitarists provided a stunning depth to the song.

I hear you calling Marian

Across the water, across the wave

‘Marian’ opened sounding like a traditional 80’s rock song until Andrew Eldritch’s vocals entered and provided a spine-tingling, haunting tone that gave me goosebumps and allowed the listener to get lost within the darkness. If I was to recommend a song to first-time listeners, this would definitely be the one.

‘More’ and ‘Show Me’ had the crowd screaming bloody murder as their intros played, with ‘More’ being a clear staple in The Sisters of Mercy’s discography. The passion behind the vocals in ‘Show Me’ brought the song to all new heights as the songs previously were sung more nonchalant and effortless.

‘Doctor Jeep’ and ‘Detonation Boulevard’ brought the high energy back to the show with amazing guitar solos while ‘Eyes of Caligula’ took the show down a darker and more sinister musical turn that flowed into their acoustic songs ‘Something Fast’ and ‘I Was Wrong’. The two acoustic songs had almost a country twang to the guitars which was a nice contrast to the hard and grungy tone they normally possess.

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Sisters Of Mercy // Photo – Dapperdan Photography

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‘Here’ was the next song on the setlist before an incredible guitar duet interval. Ben Christo and Dylan Smith pulled every trick they had out of their bags, showing off incredible riffs and guitar harmonies with the support of Ravey Davey and his digital mastery on laptops. The whole ordeal sounded like it could be the soundtrack to an intense car chase at night in a classic 80’s thriller movie.

After the guitar break came one of their pandemic-created songs ‘On the Beach’, an anthem of power and angst, which made its live debut that night. In classic ‘The Sisters of Mercy’s style it had a thundering rhythm guitar, deep haunting vocals and a killer guitar riff that tied it all together. One thing I enjoyed about the music of The Sisters of Mercy was that their music, no matter if it was released in 1980 or 2020 it stayed true to their style and was easily recognisable.

And when I stand and raise my hand

There is no god but where I am

And I know

When I’m on fire

‘Summer’ and ‘When I’m on Fire’ “rounded out” the show with a blinding light show that made me wish I had brought sunglasses along. A quick game of peekaboo with the audience (they walk off and come back for an encore), The Sisters of Mercy ended the night with arguably three of their most popular releases of all time. ‘Lucretia, My Reflection’ was the beginning of the end. The excitement of the crowd seemed to bring lead vocalist Andrew Eldritch out of his shell, as he performed with such enthusiasm and passion it made the performance even better.

If you didn’t think these guys were seasoned and classic rockers, ‘Temple of Love’ would leave you with no doubts that they were. The power stances, the use of the windmill move on guitar (which I had really only seen in the movie ‘School of Rock’) and their genuine enjoyment for theatrics and performance was really ending the show on a high. Rounding out the night was ‘This Corrosion’, a passionate and overall intense song with a performance to match. The crowd was ecstatic and by this last song, so was I, becoming a new fan of the band.

The Sisters of Mercy are living proof that if something isn’t broken, it doesn’t need to be fixed or changed. Their haunting and passionate sound is timeless, lasting through decades and generations of fans. Their music utilises 80’s elements to keep a retro and nostalgic sound while also being ahead of their time when they first started, allowing them to effortlessly adapt to the music of today.

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Sisters Of Mercy // Photo – Dapperdan Photography

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Check out Dapperdan Photography’s full gallery of this event HERE

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Follow THE SISTERS OF MERCY
Facebook – Website

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Sisters Of Mercy // Photo – Dapperdan Photography

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Press Release October 2022 (below) HERE

SBM PRESENTS:

THE SISTERS OF MERCY

Supports Announced For 
Australia & New Zealand Tour 2022

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AMNPLIFY – DB