Live Review: Nothing But Thieves @ Margaret Court Arena

Indie-rock four-piece The Moving Stills perform a short but sweet set to get the mosh pit warmed up and breaking a sweat with their warm, coastal-soaked melodies.

They share tracks from their debut album, Sunshine Corner and last year’s Wabi Sabi, two collections of coming-of-age stories filled with nostalgic sounds, vibrant melodies, and melancholic choruses. They connect with the audience through their relatable lyricism, which is filled with experiences and stories about life lessons, heartbreak, emotional struggles, self-realisations, and reflections.

Their triple j Like A Version cover of Ladyhawke’s My Delerium breathes new life into the timeless track with their own unique energy. They leave us with Volcano as they thrash their guitars while swinging their long hair around the stage. The lead guitarist gets so caught up in his solo that his baggy pants fall down to his ankles, but he powers through unphased until the end.

“We’re live in DCC; give it up for Nothing But Thieves,” says a voiceover as the band explode onto the stage, doused in thick smoke and red lighting. They welcome us with Welcome To The DCC, the first song from their latest record, Dead Club City, to pump up the audience with the stylistic, heavy, guitar-driven rock anthem.

Hailing from Essex in England, the five-piece group have built a big fan base visiting Australia over the last ten years and continue changing their sound as they experiment with different styles widely embraced by the audience. “We’re constantly fucking around and finding out with our music,” reveals lead singer Conor Mason. Nothing But Thieves are excited to share that they have a lot of songs to play for us because they’ve got four albums now, so they waste no time and charge forward with amazing force.

“That was the best start to a show ever, hands down!” says Mason. This is a dream—look how many people are here for us in Melbourne, Australia. Did anybody come to the Ding Dong Lounge?” he asks, recounting the time that’s passed since they first toured here in 2016 and played much smaller venues.

Mason is an incredible vocalist with a huge range. His unwavering falsetto reaches soaring heights as he blasts through the energetic performance, sending the mosh pit into a frenzy. Everyone in the seats get up on their feet to rock out for City Haunts.

An instrumental medley of Ce n'est Rien, Gods, and Number 13 conjures up a frenetic energy in the arena as the band thrash their distorted guitars around and smash them together with loud drumming to create a massive sound that bursts eardrums.

Their latest concept album explores a dystopian futuristic city with an exclusive, divided, members-only club. It’s got a retro ‘80s vibe with disco-infused rhythms, so they’ve added plenty of synth and nostalgic guitar riffs to their high-quality production to bring their sound to life in this live setting. 

Their dynamic stage presence keeps us engaged the whole time. They maintain a steady pace throughout the entirety of their powerhouse set with just the right amount of light and shade, allowing audiences to appreciate their softer side as they slow it down for a few emotionally beautiful ballad-like songs, including Sorry and Impossible.

“Is anybody getting cooked tonight?” Mason asks as the crowd cheers. “Gonna end up like a fucking bin chicken,” he jokes as he looks at the crowd, who are ready to dive into anything they serve up. They take it back to the very beginning with a song called Lover Please Stay, which Mason performs almost acoustically. 

They blast through Futureproof and have total control over their audience. Just before the last chorus, they stop in dead air, and the arena goes dark for a few seconds to build excitement before they launch back in with an explosive finish.

“Melbourne, that was so fucking good! I think I speak for the rest of the band when I say this is my favourite city in Australia. I love it and it somewhat reminds me of home in London, but people are actually nice here. Thank you for allowing our band to write whatever we want to write, and you still come back and see us and support us,” says Mason.

The encore starts with a bonus track from the Dead Club City album (Oh No :: He Said What) from their latest deluxe release to re-ignite the crowd’s enthusiasm, followed by fan-favourite Amsterdam.

“Honestly, that might’ve been one of the most fun times I’ve had on a stage in my entire career,” Mason announces as he catches his breath before leaving us with an extended version of their euphoric track, Overcome, to end an unforgettable evening.