American band Wallows have been on the road for many months now. After touring through Europe and the UK, the band came down to Australia to debut their latest album, Model. 

The crowd was ravenous with anticipation as the band hit the stage, with excitement sweeping all over the venue. The band, consisting of 13 Reason Why star Dylan Minnette alongside Braeden Lemasters and Cole Preston, have developed a loyal fan base since transitioning into music around 2017 and their show at the Hordern Pavillon sold out instantly with thousands of fans eager to see them in the flesh.

The band instantly launched into some of their big hits, performing “Scrawny” and “Quarterback” in quick succession, as the crowd sung along. Minette established himself very much as the leader of the group as the set progressed, taking the lead on conversational interludes and vocals. 

“I love being in Sydney,” he said, “I like Hyde Park and the Gardens”. 

While the band certainly had a cohesive sound, they seemed a little uncomfortable and shaky in some of their vocals, especially in their mid and lower registers. The songs that showed off their higher registers, like “1980s Horror Film”, were generally a little more secure but still lacking some of the power and pizzazz of their studio recordings. The vocals were particularly exposed in the rest of the short acoustic set that the band played at the back of the venue, with pitching and tuning issues especially apparent in “Pictures of Girls.”

Overall, the band was just lacking in some stage presence and charisma which meant that the wild cheers of the audience at the start of the show became increasingly muted as the show drew on. A brief scroll of the internet reveals a prevailing sentiment among fans that the band has lost some of its shine since it moved away from its alt-rock roots and this was on display in this set. 

It was clear that a large part of the audience still had a great time at the concert and thoroughly enjoyed the music and performance on display. All band members had great control of their instruments and there was enough love for the music in the crowd to build an atmosphere that could move beyond some of the vocal issues in the set. But even in saying that, there was a portion of the crowd who seemingly lost connection with the band as they progressed through the set, with the sea of camera phones that littered the venue as the set commenced gradually falling away. 

It wasn’t that the band didn’t try. At one point during “Uncomfortable”, Minnette tried to get two members of the audience on stage who were dressed in Spiderman outfits. However, it took less than thirty seconds before they were trying to get a number of selfies and getting into his personal space and so he politely but firmly set them back down to the mosh pit. It just felt a little bit awkward, even though there were good intentions underlying.   

There was a long pause before the encore, but, as some members of the crowd started to leave, the band returned to perform “I’m Full” which was chosen by the crowd and their biggest hit “Are You Bored Yet?” which was an energetic way to finish off the night. 

This was a solid concert that would have pleased the many hardcore fans in the audience. However, it felt as though this was a band that was a little unsure of their identity and this seeped into their execution to some degree. This is not to say that there weren’t exciting moments in the concert, but rather, that once the band finds and hones its style and sound, their concert experience will only continue to rise to new levels. 

Rating: ★★★

Wallows – Hordern Pavillion – 12^th December 2024

Photo credit: Aidan Zamiri