The Wombats | Riviera Beach Club.
@PositiveFeedback
I finished my plastic bag of beers sitting on the rocks along the St Kilda foreshore watching the waves come in and the seagulls struggle to float in the choppy bay. It was a hot day and the cold change that was coming in had left me and many others underdressed.
I walked south along the marina to the Riviera Beach Club where The Wombats were playing a DJ set to celebrate the release of their upcoming album ‘Oh! The Ocean!’ with a series of beachside shows in Australia.
The UK indie outfit was known to me for their song ‘Tokyo’ which was on the 2011 Hottest 100, a mainstay of my 2012 Minecrafting sessions. This is not an event which I would usually attend, but having been given a spot on the door and having nothing else to do on a Tuesday evening, I took the short walk from my apartment down to the marina.
I arrived before the proceedings began. There was a long line for the bar, and outside on the balcony there was a lovely view of the darkening bay. The outside bar only served redbull drinks so I lined back up at the main bar.
They let down the ropes to the main room around 6, and having secured my schooner I took a look around. It felt like a wedding venue, and could probably only hold around 200 people in the upper room. Not having much else to do I took up a seat outside on the balcony overlooking the bay. They announced over the PA system that the evening would begin with a Q&A, followed by a meet and greet, and would conclude with a DJ set. I was wondering what on earth I would have to write about tonight, but there were worse balconies to sit on as the sun went down, so I sat.
I struck up conversation with an English girl who had just moved to Melbourne, and got to answer all the questions about beaches and spiders that Europeans often have. After about 30 minutes I went inside and the Q&A with frontman Matthew “Murph” Murphy, bassist Tord Øverland Knudsen, and drummer Dan Haggis kicked off with “where did you get your inspiration for this new album”.
The Wombats / Photo Credit: Julia Godfrey
It went on for about 20 minutes, with the band repeatedly shouting out their new producer Jeff Congleton, who they credited for a lot of the finer details of the album. The title ‘Oh! The Ocean!’ apparently comes from one of the bandmates ‘standing on the beach having a metaphysical thing’. The poor guys seemed a bit beat, they’d just arrived from the UK for a whirlwind press run, with Brisbane the night before, and Sydney the day after next. The question of “do you guys have a favourite Australian specific food or snack” had the audience go quiet in anticipation. They had nothing specific, but complimented Melbourne overall as a “food city”.
The Q&A concluded, and I had some time to kill during the meet and greet before their set. I left and walked south along the foreshore for a while thinking about what I would write about tonight, but having just started a new Skyrim game my mind was elsewhere.
Reentering the venue and the meet and greet continues. I order another beer and sat back down with my English friend and a larger group of Englishmen who’d joined them (a very large UK contingent at the show). We talked Melbourne weather, when to touch on your myki and where to buy imported cigarettes. Finally at around 8pm Murph hopped up on the decks and opened his set with ‘All The Small Things’ by blink-182, followed by ‘Summer of 69’, a rousing opening combo. As the music continued and the sun set the evening was giving off stronger and stronger wedding vibes. Being a Tuesday people were taking it easy, and the dance floor was rather stiff.
The orange and pink nitrous sunset over the bay caused a rush outside to the balcony as people took photos. By now the cold winds had well and truely moved all those who, like me had left the house in shorts, back inside.
After a solid session of standing at the bar, I decided it was time to leave and as I walked down the stairs a-ha’s ‘Take on Me’ began to play.
I walked down the marina, past the jet-skis and yachts with the blue lights and the bass from the dance floor behind.
And so ends a pleasant and uneventful evening, like how most evenings are.
Charles Bukowsky wrote
“I continue to listen to the piano
this will not be a memorable night in my
life or yours.
let us celebrate the stupidity of our
endurance.”
The Wombat’s new album ‘Oh! The Ocean!’ comes out February 21st, 2025.
Pre-Save Oh! The O'cean HERE
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