21 August 2026 – The Triffid, Brisbane – words by Lucas Bell – pictures by Zachen Wiki
On the band’s third tour of Australia in 14 months, there seems to be no stopping England’s South Arcade from coming back and dominating Australia. Opening for Bilmuri last year, I came to know the band from that tour, and after a quick return for Good Things, and two sold out side shows, it was a matter of when, and not if, that the inevitable headline tour would happen. And just eight months removed from Good Things 2025, they’re back with more tunes, and more time up their sleeves to show why they will be a top contender for live band of the decade, in my opinion.
Out first was Brissy rockers Whitt’s End. A name I’ve heard floated around, but never had the chance to see. And I need to admit something, I regret having slept on them for so long. The set was filled with absolute guitar wankery of the highest degrees, in the most complimentary sense. For the 30 minutes they had the stage, Brisbane was wrapped around their fingers. The opening tracks ‘Impending Doom’ and ‘Corner of My Eye’ has some meaty solos from brothers Saxon and Jarvis Whittaker, and the drum work from their touring drummer (who’s name I don’t know) reminded me of a very young Josh Eppard from Coheed and Cambria in just how fun he is to watch play.
Whitts End – Triffid – photos by Zachen Wiki
Cracking jokes about pit stains on white shirts, and giving guitars away just because a string broke, the set hit over drive when they ripped out an insanely fun cover of ‘Can’t Stop’ by Red Hot Chili Peppers that had The Triffid crowd rocking and singing along. They played a deep cut in ‘Is This A Reality’, which was the band’s first ever written song, and asked the crowd to follow them on socials if they had a mildly good time, which is the exact kind of self loathing comedy that appeals specifically to me. I feel completely blindsided by just how good these three were together, and I hope I see them on more shows in the future. Strap the rocket to their backs. The complete package of skill, charisma, fun, and silliness that I just love.
A quick break in the set, and the lights dimming, meant it was time for the main event. Despite a door time of 8pm, I’m so glad there were two bands because after a full day of work I was so tired. But the moment South Arcade hit the stage, I felt every molecule of sleepiness shift out of my body, as we got treated to an incredible fourteen song set that delivered deep cuts, incredible song selections, and maybe more that one shoey? Now that’s some foreshadowing for you.
As the intro robot voice asked if Brisbane was ready to rock, the band blitzed out on stage with the set opener, ‘HOW 2 GET AWAY WITH MURDER’, with arguably the craziest mosh I saw all weekend (the next night, I was at Ocean Grove). Vocalist Harmony Cavelle led a lot of the chatter to the crowd, getting everyone amped before ‘FEAR OF HEIGHTS’, encouraging the energy to not let up. With a kiss to the crowd, and massive thank yous, we got ‘Supermodels’, which was probably the most fun song of the set to watch, as they did the Ollie Green bass player singalong bit that always goes viral on Tik Tok.
South Arcade – Triffid – photos by Zachen Wiki
Cavelle asked if Brisbane was ready for the best night of their lives, as they kicked into ‘Nepo Baby’, and had the crowd singing the intro as loud as I’ve ever heard in The Triffid for ‘DANGER’. Before the track, someone threw a paper airplane on stage, and as Cavelle went looking for a sharpie to write something on it to send it back, someone threw a teddy bear to her, that also was wearing the exact same outfit as she was tonight, even calling the bear her twin for the night.
Cavelle asked what it would take for guitar player Harry Winks to jump into the middle of the craziness that was Brisbane, and he said Brisbane needed to keep ramping that energy. And on the most guitar heavy song on the set, they played my favourite track, ‘Bleed Out’, with Winks jumping in towards the end and getting a circle pit running around him as he smashed out the big riff at the end. I love cool shit like this, and it shows that the love South Arcade have for their audience is just as big as the love the audience has for them. Brisbane even got a “bloody lovely” from Winks when asked to rate how that circle pit around him was.
Cavelle then asked if anyone knew ‘Drive Myself Home’ as it kicked in, and with another gift from the crowd of a Mango Monster (also my favourite), Cavelle checked in with the crowd to make sure everyone was good. She asked for those that had seen the band live before, and then asked for the first timers, which was actually a pretty decent chunk of the crowd. Cavelle encouraged more singing for ‘SUPERMAN’, before we got a new track track ‘F.A.M.O.U.S.’, and even teased the idea of coming back next year for Good Things, that’s how much they love Australia. I’m really pumped to hear a studio version of this soon. The chorus had the crowd smashing together in the put, there was a mini breakdown on the bridge, and the end of the song had the crowd moving their phone lights up and down with zero stage lighting which gave a sick effect from a visual standpoint.
The round out of newer songs came with ‘DEADMEAT’, as Cavelle took off the sunnies she’d been wearing all night. The “cringe part” as Cavelle called it came next, talking about how despite being so far from home, being in Australia is unreal and makes them feel like they never left home. And that being half a world away, she might forget some of the lyrics, but knows Australia will always remember them for her. ‘Riptide’ got massive circle pits and clapalongs, with Cavelle saying mid song “this is why I love Australia”.
South Arcade – Triffid – photos by Zachen Wiki
Cavelle asked if they could play an old one, with ‘Sound of an Empty Room’, and in a raw, unfiltered moment from the band, the crowd sang the chorus loud as hell. On the bridge though, the band, especially Cavelle, seemed taken aback with just how loud Brisbane was for this song, which was the deepest cut in the catalog, and in real time, I watched Cavelle just take it all in. This had to have been an incredible moment for the band, and it was awesome to watch all of this happen in my city.
The inevitable shoey chant rang out, and Cavelle tried to palm it off to Green, Winks, and drummer Cody Jones. But, with encouragement from Brisbane, the band instead did a synchronized shoey, as all four members downed beers on stage in their shoes, with some of the crowd joining from the floor. This led into ‘stone cold summer’, before a final goodbye and close out on ‘2005’, which erupted the crowd to the peak loudness of the night. I try to look at shows without the recency bias on if it was a great show or not. But this is going to be a tough gig to beat this year for my favorite. Two bands, insane amounts of fun, a crowd that knew the assignment, and two bands that are incredible at what they do, sharing their time and energy to make sure Brisbane had a hell of a night.
