20 March 2025 – The Tivoli, Brisbane – words by Cecilia Pattison-Levi – pictures by Nino Lo Giudice
Brisbane has witnessed awesome shows from Hoodoo Gurus, The Corrs, Pseudo Echo, Icehouse, New Order, OMD, Rogue Traders, Kylie Minogue in the last few months. I didn’t think some of the concerts put on by some of these fantastic 1980s bands and musicians still kicking it could be topped, but I think The Stranglers have just ‘bested’ everyone.
The Stranglers brought their Fifty Years In Black – The Anniversary Tour to Brisbane and fans gathered at The Tivoli to celebrate The Stranglers dark and rich musical catalogue and history. It was more than just the timeless hits, there were songs taken from The Stranglers 18 studio albums. The Stranglers had also brought along supporting musician Merryn Jeann with them to kick off the evening in style.
The evening began with a set from Merryn Jeann. She is from Mullumbimby within the Byron Bay Shire in New South Wales. She spent some time in Paris and Melbourne engaging with the study of fine arts. Merryn Jeann has been described as a multi-dimensional artist, thriving in both visual and sonic arts. It was the musical aspect of her work that she has recorded in 2019’s ‘Merryn Jeann’ and 2024’s ‘Dog Beach’ that the crowd was to sample tonight.
Merryn Jeann – Tivoli – photos by Nino Lo Giudice
Merryn Jean and her band appeared on stage. Merryn Jean played guitar, keyboards and tambourine, withLauren from France playing trumpet and Josh from Melbourne on multiple synthesisers and backing tape devices.For context, Merryn Jeann’s musical palate is very much anchored to elements of charming indie-pop and powerful female singer songwriter material. Her songs and their delivery reminded me of Lene Lovich mixed with early 1990s style of Suzanne Vega or PJ Harvey. Her voice was delicate, and sometimes veered into whoops and yelps, as she sung and sometimes laced her delivery with spoken word vignettes.
Merryn Jeann’s music could best be described as a synthesis of indie-pop and sophisticated folk-pop as she delivered songs primarily from her album ‘Dog Beach’: ‘Pigeons Are Doves’, ‘Subconscious Love Connections’,‘Talking to Angels’, ‘Nude In A Waterhole’ and ‘Nun At The Airport’. The crowd at The Tivoli were attentive and engaged in Merryn Jeann’s performance. Her final songs were well received as these songs had great melodic fluidity and witty lyrics about anxiety and airport spirituality.
The wait was not that long as the stage was reset for The Stranglers. The stage was quite functional and bare. It got me thinking about the march of time. The Stranglers were an important band to those of us brought up in the 1980s. And, now JJ Burnel is the only remaining original band member. The band’s line-up over 50 years has naturally shifted, and I realised that tonight’s performance was likely to be an emotive and poignant reminder of the band’s evolution and the lasting impact they have made across generations of music fans.
Then, the lights went down and we were treated to Edith Piaf’s ‘Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien’ which was great to sing at full volume. Then, the opening chords of ‘Waltz In Black’ from 1983’s ‘Feline’ floated across the venue and a loud cheer went up from the crowd as The Stranglers: Jean-Jacques Burnel (bass/vocals), Baz Warne (guitar/vocals), Jim Macaulay (drums/vocals), and Toby Hounsham (keyboards/vocals) came out and positioned themselves onstage.
The Stranglers – Tivoli – photos by Nino Lo Giudice
Classic Strangler’s songs from the early years were interspersed with their most successful singles and a selection of newer material across the 22-song set. The Strangler’s featured songs from their albums: 1977’s ‘Rattus Norvegicus’, 1978’s ‘Black and White’, 1979’s ‘The Raven’, 1981’s ‘La Folie’ and 2021’s ‘Dark Matters’.
In fact, 13 of the 22 songs delivered were tracks from these albums with a few exceptions: including a delicious cover of Burt Bacharach’s ‘Walk On By’, the magnificent ‘Skin Deep’ and singalong favourite ‘Always the Sun’. It speaks volumes about a band that they do not need their most popular songs ‘Peaches’, ‘Golden Brown’ and ‘Strange Little Girl’ to be the encore tracks either.
The Stranglers started their set with a fantastic rendition of ‘Toiler On The Sea’ followed by ‘(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)’ and then they delivered the splendid song ‘Duchess’. Then, they played ‘The Raven’ that was dedicated to former band members Dave Greenfield and Jet Black. JJ Burnel dedicated the song to their memory as Dave Greenfield and Jet Black had stayed with the band until ill-health and death had forced them out.‘The Raven’ both the song and album are probably The Stranglers musical masterpiece. The song represents the transition point between the punk and the post-punk music of the band and the music scene in Britain they inhabited. It also demonstrates the musical complexity and technical prowess of their work with their metronomic basslines, sweeping keyboards and angular guitar while lyrically exploring the dark isolation of Viking warriors.
The Stranglers – Tivoli – photos by Nino Lo Giudice
After this commemoration, the gig set its path to celebration as The Stranglers played through their songs ‘Nice ‘n’ Sleazy’, ‘Sweden (All Quiet on the Eastern Front)’, ‘Just Like Nothing on Earth’, ‘Water’ and ‘Don’t Bring Harry’. Baz Warne and JJ Burnell interchanged as the lead vocalist. The band were also at the point starting to get very hot on stage and the Corona beers were opened and the beer was flowing and towels were in high use.
Then, the chords rang out for the magnificent ‘Skin Deep’ and it was just so good to hear it. ‘Breathe’ and ‘Peaches’followed and The Tivoli was going off!
Lead guitarist and singer, Baz Warne was happy to be back at The Tivoli, he stated “we have been coming here for 20 years and I can still see the same faces” as he asked for the house lights to come up so he could see the crowd. He saw a shirt he liked: “were can I get one of those” he asked and a Scottish voice replied and there was much joking between the Scots in the venue and English band.
The newer members to The Stranglers: Jim Macaualy (since 2018) and Toby Hounsham (since 2021) did a wonderful job at realising The Stranglers musical vision and they brought the same quality and energy to their performances. And, this became evident when ‘Strange Little Girl’ was played. The band played with the music as the song ended and it segued into the start of ‘Golden Brown’, and well, the crowd lost it with pure joy as the best and most beautiful rock song written was performed.
The Stranglers – Tivoli – photos by Nino Lo Giudice
It was at this point that Baz Warne’s sweating and nasal discharge described by JJ Burnell “as a stalagmite of snot” was on his face. JJ Burnell rushed over with a towel mid-song to help him and it was all a bit distracting as Baz Warne was trying to deliver “the perfectly beautiful song and not destroy the vibe – and my face was covered in snot – in front of 2000 people”. It was a truly punk moment!
Then, after a bit of a laugh and more towels and beer, the band played ‘Always The Sun’ and a mass singalong ensued. It was amazing the crowd involvement and it created a fantastic communal atmosphere and experience.
At this point, the gig started to change with more unusual songs like ‘Genetix’ featuring Toby Hounsham on vocals and keyboard performed. He really did work so hard all throughout the set underpinning each track with The Strangler’s signature sound. Then, the songs: ‘White Stallion’, the blistering punked-up version of Burt Bacharach’s ‘Walk On By’, the fun ‘Hanging Around’ were performed in rapid fire succession and the totally original song ‘Tank’ closed out the regulation set.
The encore was aimed squarely at the older fans. JJ Burnel talked warmly about “the early years of The Stranglers and borrowing inspiration for their first ever song” which was ‘Go Buddy Go’. It was the B-side of ‘Peaches’ when the 7-inch single released in 1977. Then, Baz Warne thanked the crowd for coming to celebrate the 50 years of The Stranglers as a band. He spoke eloquently about the need for venues like clubs and bars “to allow young bands to play and develop – just like The Stranglers had done” all those years ago. The message to the crowd was to keep supporting live music. The evening ended wonderfully, and perhaps a little ironically, with the superb ‘No More Heroes’ and the crowd were left baying for more. Baz Warne signed off: “See you in the next 50 years!”
It was a fantastic night of great music and lovely fans, like Sarah and Adrian and all the guys down the front. Except according to security, the 8 people who were evicted for poor behaviour. Well, they missed out on a night that everyone as they were walking away from the venue thought just rocked! Very happy crowd. Here’s to the next 50 years!
