The energy was buzzing from the second I entered Northcote Social Club for the first night of Adelaide band Swapmeet’s sold-out Mount Zero tour. With Ebop and DogWorld opening the evening, the room was already filled with excitement and energy before the headliners even took the stage.
The energy was buzzing from the second I entered Northcote Social Club for the first night of Adelaide band Swapmeet’s sold-out Mount Zero tour. With Ebop and DogWorld opening the evening, the room was already filled with excitement and energy before the headliners even took the stage.
Kicking things off, Adelaide artist Ebop (Ethan Brandwood), joined by a few of his collaborators, brought sharp, dynamic guitar riffs and laid-back vocals, combined with a humorous and exuberant stage presence. Canberran four-piece DogWorld were similarly energetic and chatty, and played lots of unreleased material, much to the enjoyment of the crowd.
By the time Swapmeet opened the set with the distinctive My Heart Breaks II, the room was closely packed, and even in its early stages the audience was a pleasure to be part of, with everyone engaging with those around them, whether screaming along or putting their all into moshing. Indeed, what makes Swapmeet’s music such a joy to experience is their skill in ebbing and flowing between quiet, more restrained passages and swelling guitar-driven layers, gradually building tension before bursting into full energy. In the mosh pit, it was especially fun to move with those shifts, from the encompassing Bonny to the personal Halfway. The playful nature of the band, who often stopped to chat both among themselves and with the audience, kept the room feeling spontaneous and intimate, feeling like a friend’s gig in a crowded basement.
While primarily playing songs from Mount Zero, the band’s inclusion of Collision from their 2024 EP Oxalis was met with immense enthusiasm, revealing the crowd as avid listeners. Following the usual calls for another song, Swapmeet returned with another longtime fan favourite, I Wish I—led by Venus O’Broin’s restrained vocals, the track gradually intensified before an explosive finale, where bassist Joshua Doherty leapt into the crowd to play as the mosh entered its final surge.
It was a fitting end to a chaotic and energetic night, a testament to Swapmeet’s ability to craft an earnest and explosive atmosphere, which they will undoubtedly carry into the US, UK and European legs of their tour before returning to support English rock band Wolf Alice on their Australian tour in December.
Photography by Jeven Wang