It might have taken them well over a decade, but British indie rockers Amber Run finally made it to this corner of the world for their first ever Australian shows, and what better an occasion than to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their debut album 5AM.
Kicking off the night with an atmospheric and emotional acoustic set is Australian singer-songwriter Ellis King. An intimate performance enveloped in the warm orange haze of the stage lights, Ellis delivers a collection of songs of love and heartbreak with vulnerability and honesty, and maybe a touch of nerves. There is a moment where she has to restart a song after realising she is playing it in the wrong key – it is a real and endearing moment, and the audience is fully on her side. When the song restarts it is with an encouraging cheer from the crowd and a renewed energy in the performance. I’m sure Ellis has made more than a few new fans tonight.
When Amber Run take to the stage, the energy in the room is noticeably amplified. This crowd has been waiting a very long time for the band to make their way to our part of the world, and the excitement and expectation crackles in the air. Thankfully, the band themselves are equally excited to be playing their first ever show in Melbourne and immediately launch into their set with explosive energy.
Tonight is a celebration, and there is a party atmosphere to proceedings. Debut album 5AM is played in full, with a smattering of songs from across their whole catalogue scattered throughout, including the title track from their new EP Sunflower making a welcome appearance during the encore. The set list leads the audience through the full emotional landscape of their music in a way that feels perfectly calibrated, and the crowd are with them the whole way.
From early anthem Spark and crowd favourite Noah to viral TikTok hit I Found and the melancholic beauty of 5AM and Amen, the night is an emotional journey anchored by lead singer Joshua Keogh’s phenomenally raw and powerful vocals and supported flawlessly by the rest of the band who are on blistering form throughout.
Also, special shout out to the lighting tech tonight, the visual aspect of the show is stunning and adds to the already high energy, enhancing the atmosphere even further – just take a look at the photos!
It is always a joy to watch a band that is genuinely having a great time on stage, who appreciate that live music is as much a conversation with an audience as it is a performance, and Amber Run might just be one of the most authentic bands I’ve seen for some time. From the interplay of the band members between songs that effortlessly highlights just how much they enjoy performing together, to Joshua Keogh’s frequent interactions with the crowd – both the playful banter and the obvious gratitude he expresses towards these people half way around the world singing his songs back to him – this feels like a band with no pretensions, only a pure joy in the act of making and performing music.
This authenticity becomes apparent during a beautiful solo performance of Amen as Keogh relates to the crowd that his grandmother died just 2 days before they embarked on this Australian tour, and that during the performance of this song the previous night he cried through the whole thing. He manages to hold back the tears tonight (just about) but the deep emotion in his shimmering voice is hard to miss.
For fans waiting a decade plus for Amber Run to grace our distant shores, and even for those fans who made the international journey to be here tonight (of which there were a good number based on the cheers that went up when Keogh asked who had seen them play live before), this was a night well worth the wait.
Let’s just hope we don’t have to wait as long for the next show.