Emerging from the residential suburbs of Perth, The Southern River Band has brought back the groove in old-school rock ‘n’ roll.

Carving inspiration from iconic Aussie rock acts AC/DC and Cold Chisel, the boys put a bluesey-rock spin on their performance, with hints of ZZ Top and Stevie Ray Vaughan.

After supporting British rock band The Darkness on their recent Australian tour, TSRB has been gaining world-wide attention for their song “Stan Qualan”.

The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins even gave them a special rap on his YouTube channel, describing Callum Kramer as “all muscle, guitar and hair”.

But first, Reckless Coast

Brisbane trio Reckless Coast initiated the party with a high-energy performance.

Drummer Jono entered the stage first, striking into some high-voltage drum fills, with frontman Jaeden and bassist India quickly joining him to rip into their first tune, “Gossip”.

In typical Reckless Coast fashion, Jaeden jumped off the stage mid-song with his guitar and continued to play in the crowd.

He then took two stubbies of beer from the stage and handed one to a local legend in the middle of the pit, and they began downing the drinks together.

Jaeden then started squeezing his way through the compelling crowd, while performing some sweet guitar licks.

Venturing his way to the back of the Kings Beach venue he sat down with more revellers and performed a sick solo right in front of them.

Meanwhile, India has a front row of fans in awe of her bass-playing abilities, with many unable to take their eyes off her, despite Jaeden’s antics.

With their combination of gritty guitar, heavy bass, and buzzing drums, overlapping Jaeden’s powerful and raw vocals, Reckless Coast has some serious rockstar quality, showing all the signs of being Australia’s next big thing.

The Southern River Band after gallery:

Straight from an 80s vault

The Southern River Band boys started their set with a bang, putting down their drinks, grabbing their instruments, and striking into one of my favourite songs, “Cigarettes (Aint Helping Me None)”.

With frontman Cal looking like he came straight from an 80s vault, in tight-leopard flares, no shirt, and swinging an impressive long mullet, they got straight into their heavily-influenced, blues-rock tunes.

Drummer Tyler brought so much fury when playing the drums, you could FEEL every hit just charging the band’s passion.

Between a couple of their songs, Cal used his Aussie charisma to endure the crowd, while gesturing to the bar staff to bring more drinks.

Soaking up a shot of tequila, they continued with more hits, “The Streets Don’t Lie”, “Watch Yourself (You’re Gonna Hurt Somebody)”, and “Are You Up”.

They were loving every moment with both guitarists leaving room for one another to shred a perfectly-structured guitar solo within each song.

Closing on a heartfelt song, “Chasing After Love (I’ll Burn a Hole in Your Shoes)”, TSRB finished off their second round of drinks, and teasingly walked off stage.

But wait, there’s more!

Hang on, they haven’t yet played their iconic, “Stan Qualan” song – the name of the tour!

The restless crowd began yelling “ENCORE” and “ONE MORE SONG”.

Surely you can’t do a “Stan Qualan” tour and not play “Stan Qualan”?!?!

Walking back onto the stage to a relieved crowd, they start strumming into the introduction of “Stan Qualan”.

A belter of a song, with its perfectly structured instrumental introduction and minimal lyrics, it changes pace through the middle, and after a subtle solo exchanges, the night’s entire energy is released in one fell swoop.

TSRB is a true Aussie rock band with Bon Scott-like vocals, solid guitar sounds, bass solos, and explosive drums beats and fills.

Many people say “rock and roll is dead” but I can tell you it’s not. And you don’t have to look much further than you own backyard.

Bands like TSRB and Reckless Coast are a prime example of modern bands bringing back the revolutionary influence of pure rock ‘n’ roll!

Be sure to support our homegrown bands and of course the great venues that bring them to us.