As 2024 comes to its end, I’ve always enjoyed being able to head out and catch a couple local bands get in their last shows for the year, as they cap off what could have been a pivotal year of change for them. In this instance, it was Annie Hamilton headlining the last of her Stop and Smell the Lightning album launch shows at The Lansdowne.
Opening the night was Maia Toakley. Admittedly unfamiliar with Maia’s sound and only catching the closing notes of her set, I was impressed with what I heard, albeit fleetingly. With a sound that reminds me of an alt-country Missy Higgins, give Maia’s tracks “House of Cards”, “Pessimist Babe” and new single “House of Cards” a listen if that description appeals.
Main support for the night came from Sydney natives Jet City Sports Club. Playing a jangly and tight 30 minute set, the Lilla Obradovic fronted band were impressive from the get-go, playing a set that was for the most part joyous and filled with sunshine. Highlights came in the form of “She Don’t Need No One” (or as Lilla explained ‘because we all know she fuckin’ don’t’), new single “Mini Skirt”, “Sunny Morning” and ‘Chamomile” (from their 2024 EP Every Single Dream). Throwing in a couple unreleased songs for good measure, I look forward to seeing what 2025 looks like for the band.
After heading overseas for a run of UK shows over the past month, Annie Hamilton and her band returned to The Lansdowne stage and put together a clever and fun headline set that will hopefully go some way to cementing her spot as one of Sydney’s best. Opening with the whirling “Exist” from her debut album the future is here but if feels kinda like the past, she quickly moved into “Kitchen” while acknowledging the traditional owners of the land, the Gadigal. Moving into “Panic”, Annie thanked everyone for turning up despite thinking no one would. Receiving the biggest applause of the night so far, I was reminded how much I loved “Panic” when it first came out in 2020; it still holds up.
Leaving behind her previous albums and EPs, the set headed into the first tastes of Stop and Smell the Lightning, with the wonky and entrancing “Dynamite” making an appearance. An early highlight, “Dynamite” was the peak of the show until its closing moments – more on that in a bit. Followed up by “Talk”, the night took a slow and more introspective turn, with her Dad’s favourite song, “Stay My Mind (Arrival)” getting a run. Next up were “From the Hotel Pool I Draw a Line” and “Seven Storeys UP”, rounding out a hat trick of slower, sadder but just as great tracks.
Throwing it back to her 2018 debut single “Fade”, Annie brought out what felt like every musician in Sydney for a charming sing-a-long. With spots from Clews’ Lily Richardson, Charlie Collins, Maddy Jane, Bec Sandridge, and the return of Maia Toakley and Lilla Obradovic, it was a wholesome way to slowly enter the closing stages of the set. The one-two punch of “Without You” and “Slut Era” was the probably peak of the night. Written following a night out after a break up, the bouncing and hypnotic “Without You” felt like it was prime for a remix, just as “Slut Era” is probably one of the best songs of the year. The pinnacle of the night, “Slut Era” was the 3 minutes of the set everyone in the room peaked, from the band and Annie, through to the couple grinding in front of me.
Rounding the show out with a small encore featuring “Whirlwind” (sans band) and an unreleased track dedicated to her friend Rosie, Annie Hamilton managed to piece together an hour long set that felt like an early Christmas present to all in attendance and helped round out what was a pivotal year for the artist.
FOUR AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Image: Pete Dovgan
