PUP and Teenage Joans turn Sydney’s Metro Theatre into a Cathartic Punk Frenzy
If chaos could be bottled and sold as pure, unfiltered joy, PUP’s sold-out show at Sydney’s Metro Theatre would be the flagship product.
From the moment Adelaide’s Teenage Joans ignited the stage, the air crackled with the kind of energy that transforms a gig into a communal exorcism of pent-up angst.
The duo delivered a set that was equal parts ferocious and infectious, whipping the crowd into a singalong mosh pit.
Their chemistry was electric, trading grins and vocal hooks like seasoned punk veterans, proving why they’ve become one of Australia’s most thrilling live acts.
Then came PUP, Toronto’s masters of melodic mayhem, who detonated the room with opener No Hope, a blistering anthem that felt like a collective scream into the void. Crowdsurfing not encouraged, but demanded.
Frontman Stefan Babcock was a whirlwind of sarcasm and sincerity, pausing between songs to toast the crowd’s resilience in “this fucked-up world” before diving back into the fray.
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The setlist was a greatest-hits barrage: DVP’s breakneck riffs, Morbid Stuff’s shout-along nihilism, and Scorpion Hill’s sprawling intensity all thrived under strobe lights that sliced through the sweat-drenched haze.
The band’s tight musicianship, Zack Mykula’s thunderous drums and Steve Sladkowski’s razor-sharp guitar, turned every hook into a weapon.
With each track bringing us closer, and closer, to uncontainable chaos, it felt almost dangerous to be in the room.
Until, the crowd (and band) erupted for an explosive finale that found some attendees walking home with one shoe.
As drenched fans spilled onto George Street, hoarse and grinning, it was clear we witnessed something special.
