The Beaches
| Who | What | Where | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan Miller (lead vocals, bass), Kylie Miller (guitar, backup vocals), Leandra Earl (keyboards, guitar, backing vocals), and Eliza Enman-McDaniel (drums) of ‘The Beaches’, an indie-rock band originating from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. | Blame my Ex-Tour | The Corner Hotel, Richmond 3121, Melbourne VIC | 10 May 2024 |
The Show ~
Arriving around 10 pm we got ourselves water before weaving in with the rest of the crowd. The Beaches took the stage, starting with one of their older songs Want What You Got. After a few more songs they addressed the audience telling us about how on their first two nights some crazy stuff went down (i.e. someone flashed their tits). With their expectations now set high they jammed through some of their past songs, along with ones from their newest album Blame My Ex (2023). Some personal favourites included Everything is Boring and Me & Me from their new album, along with, one of their older songs, Grow Up Tomorrow.
I can assume it's difficult to dance while playing instruments, but this band managed to get in some cheeky synchronised sway, rock, and bop here and there. Individually, Jordan's vocals were wonderful, filled with passion and feeling. Her sister, Kylie, backed her up with some solid singing and wicked guitar solos. Eliza, although somewhat blocked throughout the performance, kept a solid and powerful beat throughout, and had beautiful hair (i.e. similar to mine). And finally, Leandra was quite a site to see throughout the entirety of the show. She wowed us with her high kicks, pole kissing, shoulder rides and shoey she gracefully consumed on stage (see below).
They ended their hit-filled set with their biggest song Blame Brett. Which I enthusiastically, along with the majority of the audience, sang right back to them
Review ~
Although the band was fantastic, and I had a great time screaming along to their songs, there were a few downsides. First and foremost, the facility was far too small, with the audience packed like sardines from the stage to the bar. Furthermore, the individuals squeezed next to us spoke loudly throughout the performance, which was quite frustrating given we came to listen to music, not them. There was also an incident where an audience member forced their tongue down bassist Leandra's throat when she was passing through the crowd. This was obviously without her consent and she brought it up on stage afterwards, trying to play it off as a joke, yet it obviously made her and the rest of the band uncomfortable. I don't know about the rest of the audience, but this made me uneasy and tense for the remainder of the set. It is never okay to do something like this, no matter your gender, sexuality, or state. My final criticism is that they didn't stay on stage for longer, their set was around an hour long, nor did the play my favourite song, Orpheus, since they did not have a keyboard.
The Beaches were charming and fierce, providing a memorable hour of escapism, however, other aspects reduced my overall ranking to…
See you at the next gig,
Sources The Beaches (2023) Blame My Ex; Out Now. https://www.thebeachesband.com/#music