Have you been hearing a loud rumble? Has your house been shaking? Have your thighs been quaking? The end is not nigh, it is just Gay Paris on their national tour in support of their new album The Last Good Party. Stopping by Melbourne rock’n’roll institution Cherry Bar on their quest for total destruction, Gay Paris bring tough, dirty and uncomfortably sexy blue-rock to the panting crowd.
From the first moment they explode on to the stage, Gay Paris are impossible to look away from. Lead singer Luke Monks takes a long pull from a drink plucked from hand of a punter before unleashing that unmistakeable, Marlboro burnt voice. “Tonight isn't about good results it’s about feeling fucking terrible tomorrow morning” rasps Monks to a wall of pot glasses raised in agreement. Their sound is sharp and the work the crowd into a grinding, churning frenzy. Monks’ guttural howl in combination with Lachlan Marks sharp guitar work on “Ash Wednesday Boudoir Party” is stomach-turningly good.
While it is often hard to follow exactly which song is being played (Monks is a skinny, bearded, white Muhammad Ali when it comes to song introductions and general spruiking of the bands wares), Gay Paris are worth the price of admission just to see their onstage antics. Whether it is a slick solo or theatrics such as piggybacking a stage invader, the show cannot be called anything less but entertaining.
From the pounding drums of Adam Simpson, to the large and in charge bass of Dean Podmore and guitar of Marks, to the gravelly brilliance of Monks perfectly ravaged vocals Gay Paris are a four pronged aural assault and an exercise in misbehaviour done deliciously well. Gigging here, there and everywhere between now and late June, they are certainly a band to keep a close eye on.