Review Scene: Catfish and the Bottlemen, Festival Hall – 21st July 2017

Photo by Maisy Chatterley

British rock band Catfish and the Bottlemen captivated crowds on Friday the 21^st of July at famous Melbourne venue, Festival Hall. The booming drums and the vibration of the electric guitar sent the crowd into a frenzy, moshing wildly and singing in harmony with the rocking quartet.

The crowd, mixed with people of all ages, set the stadium alight. It’s easy to watch but harder to describe the roaring energy that filled the stadium that night, as front man Van McCann rocked his way into the hearts of many. McCann has posed the band as down to earth and unpretentious – it is more than clear that this has worked out in their favour.

Before the band started, an instrumental tease set a high tone for the night, giving the crowd a small taste of what they were in for with their hit song Homesick from the debut album The Balcony. McCann hit the stage with uncontrollable energy, swinging his guitar and microphone around the stage as the crowd moved with admiration and passionate aggression. The venue complimented the show greatly, with sound booming and echoing around the room, while crazed fans still had enough room to enjoy the night, hopping on each other’s shoulders to get a better view of the suave boyband.

Photo by Maisy Chatterley

Each song from both albums The Ride and The Balcony built on the vivacious atmosphere, a short show of only one hour left everyone wanting more, “Encore! Enco

Photo by Maisy Chatterle

re! Encore!” the crowd roared after McCann and his trio left the spotlight. Unfortunately, there was no encore – a move that could be seen as strategic, leaving the fans to go home wanting more.

Rock music has taken a backseat for the last couple of decades, with bands like AC/DC and KISS taking storm in the late 70’s to 90’s – we haven’t seen much around since. But now Catfish has smashed their way back into the rock scene, bringing people back together through the electricity of their music, and it is more than evident that the romance of rock and roll shone through into the souls of everyone in the stadium that night.