18 April 2026 – The Tivoli, Brisbane – words by Tarynne Ambrosi – pictures by Bec Harbour
Saturday night at The Tivoli had that kind of electric, slightly unpredictable energy that only a packed room and a stacked lineup can deliver. There’s something about this venue—the history, the acoustics, the way the crowd leans in—that makes even the opening act feel like they’ve got something to prove. And kicking things off on the evening of 18 April 2026, Supernew didn’t just warm up the stage—they staked an early claim on it.
From the moment they launched into their set, it was clear Supernew weren’t interested in easing anyone into the night. Across roughly eight songs, they delivered a tight, confident performance that felt both raw and oddly polished. The frontman’s voice carried a familiar but hard-to-pin-down quality—somewhere between Evan Dando’s laid-back melodic drawl and Robert Smith’s emotive edge—giving their sound an immediately distinctive hook.
Supernew – Tivoli – photos by Bec Harbour
Musically, they sit in a space that’s difficult to label neatly, but that’s part of the appeal. Think post-punk energy colliding with sun-bleached surf rock—like Ratcat and The Church had a baby… and that baby grew up restless, chaotic, and just a little bit dangerous. There’s a jittery, almost combustible quality to their sound—unpredictable in the best way, like it could veer off the rails at any moment but never quite does. It’s early days, but if this set is anything to go by, Supernew won’t be staying in the “support act” lane for long.
If Supernew set the tone, Chimers came in and turned the dial all the way up.
Hailing from Wollongong and formed in the strange, pressure-cooker days of 2020, the two-piece wasted no time making their presence felt. With just Padraic on guitar and vocals and Binx behind the drum kit, Chimers delivered a set that felt far bigger than the sum of its parts. There’s a raw economy to a duo like this—nothing to hide behind—and they leaned into it completely.
Chimers – Tivoli – photos by Bec Harbour
Drawing from the jagged edges of no wave and the driving urgency of post-punk, they tore through roughly nine songs with relentless momentum. The sound was abrasive in all the right ways—angular riffs, pounding rhythms, and a sense of barely-contained chaos that kept the crowd locked in.
Padraic was a force. Explosive, unfiltered, and completely commanding, he drove the set forward with an intensity that never let the room settle. Every track seemed to build on the last, pushing the energy higher until the crowd had no choice but to meet it.
By the time they closed with ‘Red Chair’, the room was fully ignited. It was a blistering finish to a set that didn’t just support the headliner—it elevated the entire night. As a second act ahead of Helmet, Chimers felt less like a stepping stone and more like an essential part of the experience.
By the time Helmet took the stage, the room was primed—but this was a band that never needed much help in that department.
Helmet – Tivoli – photos by Bec Harbour
Formed in 1989 in New York by guitarist and vocalist Page Hamilton, Helmet carved out a sound that would come to define a huge slice of ’90s heavy music. Built on precision riffs, stop-start rhythms, and a stripped-back, almost mechanical aggression, their style sits somewhere between alternative metal and post-hardcore, with flashes of noise rock woven through. Over the years, Hamilton has remained the constant driving force, with the current incarnation of the band continuing to deliver that same tightly wound intensity that first put them on the map.
Their influence runs deep. Bands like Deftones, Tool, Korn and even Nine Inch Nails have all, in different ways, carried traces of Helmet’s DNA—whether in rhythmic experimentation, tonal weight, or sheer attitude.
Helmet – Tivoli – photos by Bec Harbour
The last time I saw Helmet live was at the Livid Festival at Davies Park in 1994—a performance that still ranks among the best I’ve ever witnessed. Taking the stage around 9:45pm, they wasted no time, launching straight into ‘Role Model’ with that signature, bone-rattling force. A few songs in, ‘Milquetoast’ hit—and with it, the front-of-stage chaos. That was my cue to bail. After a few knocks from the sweaty, boozed-up masses, I made a tactical retreat to the back, where the view was calmer but no less compelling.
Fast forward 30-odd years, and not much has changed where it counts. At The Tivoli, they moved through the set with the ease of a band that knows exactly what it’s doing—’Dislocated’, ‘Ironhead’, ‘Holiday’, ‘Gun Fluf’—each track delivered with surgical precision and unrelenting weight. There’s a confidence in the way Helmet play; no frills, no wasted motion, just riff after riff landing exactly where it should.
Helmet – Tivoli – photos by Bec Harbour
Of course, the crowd wasn’t letting them go quietly. After plenty of chanting and pleading, they returned for an encore that hit just as hard—’Just Another Victim’ (a nod to the Judgment Night era) before closing out with ‘Meantime’, a finish as fitting as it was ferocious.
Absolutely scorching. Even after three decades, Helmet remain one of the best live acts around. If you’ve got any love for that ’90s metal sound, make the effort next time they roll through—you’ll get your money’s worth… and probably a reminder in your back the next day.
10 Betty’s out of 10.
