Pub-rock punks Private Function have dropped their third studio album 370HSSV 0773H on their own label Still On Top Records on the 31st of March.Naturally they blew into town to let us all know about it.
Sidling up to the Brightside with Smooch and locals Piss Shivers on the 26th of May, Private Function came to tear the roof off as a public service to their fans. Frontman extraordinaire Chris Penney oozes confidence and charisma. He reminds one of AC/DC’s Bon Scott and his sly playfulness on one hand and the need to constantly jump on top of the audience and crowd-surf while he was singing on the other. The banter between the whole band is superb stuff, worth the price of admission just to see them riff off each other.
Tina Turner sadly passed away two days prior to the gig and so there was a very appropriate sort of requiem for her mid-set. Penney ordered the entire room quiet for a minute of silence in her memory and furthermore PF insisted that everyone silently perform The Nutbush during the memorial silence. The crowd attempted this courageously and failed to keep the peace on several occasions, triggering a loud tongue-in-cheek rebuke from the band and a reset of the minute timer.
Australiana is inseparable from Private Function, from their cheeky merch to the scratch’n’win panels on the first three-thousand pressings of the new album (not originally available in safely buttoned-down SA - though it is now). PF are a bunch of genuinely hilarious entertainers with a powerful connection to their community.
They ended their set with a riveting pub-rock cover of Coldplay’s Yellow that went on for ages, a track they even committed to wax for new album 370HSSV 0773H. Absolutely cannot wait for their next leg through Meanjin, Private Function are one of the finest Australian touring live acts going.
- Matt Hall.