Concert Review: The Church ‘Starfish’ 30th Anniversary Tour at 3TEN: Aussie alternative stalwarts conjure vintage and contemporary charm during residency at Texas capital.
Last year marked the 30th anniversary of Starfish, the classic 1987 album that launched Australian psych rockers The Church into the mainstream, and became a beloved musical touchstone for many fans of the burgeoning alternative rock scene.
Click here for The Church’s Starfish turns 30
The band are celebrating the 30th anniversary with their current U.S tour, including last Saturday’s sold out show at Austin’s 3TEN (the band also played another packed set there this Monday).
The first set saw the group playing Starfish in its entirety, offering a rare treat to hear deep cuts that aren’t often featured in their set list. This extended to the moody and mournful opener Destination, which kept the audience under its dark spell of billowing guitar figures and vocalist/bassist Steve Kilbey’s enigmatic lyrics.
Under The Milky Way followed next, and the band’s biggest single has lost none of its poetic charm three decades in, a dreamy lullaby for wanderers the world over.
Lost remains a shimmering beauty, sounding like Purple Rain by way of Pink Floyd, featuring wonderful dual guitar arpeggios from guitarists Peter Koppes and Ian Haug, whose musical interplay was strong throughout, aided by Jeffrey Cain (Remy Zero), who added additional guitar and synth textures throughout the set.
Kilbey revealed that Koppes came up with the sonic travelogue North, South, East and West during a sound check at a Dallas gig pre-Starfish, and its Lone Star pedigree added a new sonic wrinkle to its mysterious soundscapes.
After a stirring rendition of Reptile, Koppes lent his pipes to the chiming A New Season, while Kilbey added his own take to the jaunty garage rocker Spark (which originally featured ex-guitarist Marty Willson-Piper on lead vocals), before ending on Hotel Womb, an epic, cascading composition featuring some of Kilbey’s finest wordplay and melodies.
After a brief intermission the band returned with a second set that offered a deep dive into the rest of their near-40 year career, kicking off with 1990 college rock hit Metropolis, and included the likes of early 80’s chestnut Constant in Opal, and a stirring rendition of Sealine (off their vastly underrated 2003 album Forget Yourself).
The band’s staying power is clear with more recent material like Another Century (off 2017’s excellent Man, Woman, Life, Death, Infinity) sounding just as strong as their 20th century output work, while the inclusion of fan favorites like Ripple (off 92’s masterpiece Priest=Aura) and Louisiana drew warm cheers.
After the ramshackle psychedelic workout of Heyday, the band disappeared before returning for a three song encore, including the moody Block, their first single The Unguarded Moment, and the cinematic Miami, which ended things in dizzying hypnotic fashion.
While The Church’s performance confirmed that Starfish is one of the best albums of the Reagan era, they pulled off an impressive high-wire act that balanced nostalgia with contemporary cool, proving that they are a timeless musical institution ready to welcome old fans and capture new listeners, just as strong as intoxicating now as upon their formation in 1980.
Destination
Under the Milky Way
Blood Money
Lost
North, South, East and West
Spark
Antenna
Reptile
A New Season
Hotel Womb
Encore:
Anaesthesia
Metropolis
Another Century
Toy Head
Sealine
Constant in Opal
Day 5
Ripple
Louisiana
Tantalized
Encore 2:
The Unguarded Moment
Block
Miami
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