Melbourne Australia’s Amyl and The Sniffers continue their improbable rise as they kicked off their North American tour at the Fox Theater in Oakland. No stranger to the Bay Area, what’s new this time around for the Sniffers is that they’re now headlining venues five to six times the capacity of their previous visits, underscoring not only the band’s ambitions but the appeal of their latest release, Comfort to Me.
Die Spitz from Austin Texas kicked things off with a pummeling set that left the crowd stunned and wondering how the heck they’ve never heard of this band before. Admittedly having a blast just being able to catch Amyl every night for weeks straight, Die Spitz left it all on the stage as they tore through 30 minutes of rippers that harkened back to Bleach-era Nirvana. These ladies are not be missed.
The sold-out Fox was absolutely packed to the rafters as Shania Twain’s “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” blasted over the PA—Amyl and The Sniffers walk-on music clearly raising the hype level as front-woman Amy Taylor could be seen dancing side-stage before finally striding out with smiles from ear to ear.
Any doubt that the Sniffers could command this size of a room quickly evaporated as they tore into “Control” off of their self-titled debut and the general admission floor quickly went sideways. The other thing that became immediately clear is that the large theater was by no means full of curiosity seekers, with people raging along from the seats on the balcony.
Not surprisingly, the Sniffers’ 60-minute set covered a healthy dose of the new material and left Amy Taylor with barely a moment to catch her breath between songs as she flew from end-to-end of the stage while the band rapid-fired the tunes. An absolutely jaw dropping performance.
While there were likely many first-timers in the audience, attending no doubt for a heaping dose of Comfort to Me, seeing Amyl and the Sniffers live is a whole different animal and these band of Aussies absolutely blew the roof off of the Fox.
DIE SPITZ
Amyl and the Sniffers Setlist
Control
Freaks to the Front
Got You
Capital
Security
Starfire 500
GFY
Don’t Fence Me In
Balaclava Lover Boogie
Guided by Angels
Choices
Shake Ya
Snakes
Maggot
Don’t Need a Cunt (Like You to Love Me)
Hertz
Some Mutts (Can’t Be Muzzled)
Knifey
