Gig Review: Bleeders @ House of Vans, Shed 10, Auckland – 20/01/2018

So this event kind of took everyone by surprise. The global entity that is House of Vans announced a music/skate festival to be based at Shed 10 on Auckland’s waterfront. Tickets were free but were only available online and limited to one per application.

Then you had a choice, the daytime event which focused more on skateboarding workshops or the evening one which was strictly R18 and focused on music. Lot’s of people were complaining online as tickets for the evening event were allocated very quickly. There was a reason for this which wasn’t apparent at the time.

Shed 10 is enormous. Last time I was here was to see The Specials along with about 5000 other people. Tonight I am greeted by skaters (obviously) and handed a very cool two-tone wristband. Yukon Era are halfway through a set that has 300 or so people dancing or swaying, the vibe is very relaxed. I head to the bar and find out why the tickets were so strictly limited. Free beer all night!!

First time I saw the Bleeders was back around 2004 at Brewers Bar in Tauranga. I was told by the promoter it was a straight edge gig which was news to me coming from a background where I thought music was all sex drugs and rock ‘n’ roll. That night the Bleeders rewrote the rule book for me. Most people in the bar were drinking water and this band was playing the most exciting and explosive music I had heard. Punk meets pop with a hardcore energy that just… well… made people drink more water.

Fast forward to 2018 and here in Shed 10, most people are getting pissed. Angelo, the Bleeders lead singer, is sporting a nice new pair of Vans and the rest of the guys look focused. Unlike most of the crowd.

We are treated to a set of all the Bleeders classics. Tight, fast and the energy they had over 10 years ago is still there. It is like this band has never been away. The music hasn’t dated and the crowd is going nuts, although not always in time with the band and that could be partly down to the reverberation from this huge venue or maybe it’s the free beer! Their set was intoxicating and over all too soon. Let’s hope that the Bleeders are going to come back soon with some new music. They are too good to disappear again.

_{Review written by Paul Goddard
Photo provided by Antonia Pearl Photography/Nikita Weir}