16 May 2024 – The Triffid, Brisbane – words and pictures by Bec Harbour
When seminal post-hardcore band, At The Drive In imploded, out of those ashes rose Sparta. In my interview with Jim Ward we touch on how Wiretap Scars sounds like a primal scream compared with later Sparta releases and Ward said very frankly, it was, he had lost friends and a band that had meant so much to him and Wiretap Scars was the release that he needed at the time.
Fast forward to 2024 when Australia is getting the tail-end of the 20 year anniversary tour, Ward was ready to play those songs again having come to terms with the record and recognising it for what it was, a work in progress in a lot of areas but also the significance of the record, not only to himself, but to many Sparta fans out there.
The support was an interesting choice considering the crowd and their expectations – think slightly surly bearded men who take their music seriously. Houseplants were about as out of place as a house plant at this gig. Generally the support is along the same line as he headliner, these guys were a little bit post-punk at first then morphed into a more psych offering (a bit King Gizz – they say plant-based music on their Facebook account). They tried to engage the early crowd who were politely unenthused, each song met with a smattering of applause while conversations and drinks continued. Tough crowd but it doesn’t take a lot of effort to appreciate a young band who has just performed for you.
Houseplants – Triffid – photos by Bec Harbour
The live room filled up quickly in between sets with one of the politest crowds I have ever seen at the Triffid. Usually it is an epic journey from the entrance of the live room to the stage with people standing their ground and not letting you through, tonight, the crowd parted and I sailed on through to do my photo duties.
Without any pre-amble the opening notes of ‘Cut Your Ribbon’ rang through the Triffid and hearing this song live for the first time is the same visceral feeling I had hearing the song for the first time, it grabs you by the chest and almost knocks the wind out of you and with the “Triffid choir” in full force, what an experience, I could hardly keep my focus in the photo pit!
Sparta – Triffid – photos by Bec Harbour
This was a gig without much interchange with the band and the audience (possibly why the support got such unenthused reactions) with one punter telling me later how much they loved that Sparta just ripped through Wiretap Scars with little interruption.
Cut Your Ribbon
Air
Mye
Collapse
Sans Cosm
Light Burns Clear
Cataract
Red Alibi
Rx Coup
Glasshouse Tarot
Echodyne Harmonic
Assemble the Empire
When Wiretap Scars was done Ward introduced the rest of the band and said how much they loved Australia and thanked Australia for the support of the record, and then asked the crowd if they wanted a few more? Of course they did. From the album Porcelain we got ‘Breaking the Broken’ and ‘While Oceana Sleeps’.
Sparta – Triffid – photos by Bec Harbour
Ward announced that he would play ‘Empty Houses’ next, then they played ‘Miracle’ both from Trust the River. Ward then asked the crowd if they were having fun and if everyone was cool. He then spoke about the encore and how awkward it is for them to leave, make small talk out the back, work out an appropriate time to go back, could the crowd just pretend they left and cheer them as if they did? The crowd obliged. Ward said they were going to play one more song and they did wrapping up the set with one of my favourites from Threes, ‘Atlas’ and live with just the stripped back drums, bass and guitar, this sounded mighty, with Ward stepping away from the mic to allow the crowd to sing along with the soaring chorus and the quiet refrain and sing they did. What a way to finish up a great set.
Sparta – Triffid – photos by Bec Harbour
