An unseasonably humid Brisbane night became a time capsule as UK megastars Pulp brought Britpop theatre back to life at Riverstage.
Punters lose themselves to the music at Pulp in Brisbane last night.
Part nostalgia, part revelation, the set leaned into the band’s strange ability to feel both distant and immediate. On a long-awaited return tour to Australia, songs written about youth were now sung by an audience who’d lived enough life to finally understand them.
Jarvis Cocker paced, pointed, narrated and danced like a man still fascinated by human behaviour. Beneath theatrical lighting and a sweep of fabulous tailoring, the band carried their unmistakable Britpop zest, turning the open-air amphitheatre into something closer to a late-night lounge-room confession.
Past and present met in the space between crowd and stage.
Rather than chasing the past, the show felt like a reunion between people and the feelings they used to have. It was awkward, funny, romantic and slightly tragic, delivered with wit, warmth and zero cynicism.
This is Pulp at Brisbane Riverstage by Dameeka Middleton
