The Church concert at the Belly Up Tavern was really amazing. Steve Kilbey, Marty Wilson-Piper, Peter Koppes, Time Powles, and Greg Wilson surpassed my expectations for the show with the instrumental talent,  creative lyrics, and swooning vocals. All the way from Australia, The Church is on tour in the U.S. promoting their new album, “Untitled 23.” The tracks they played off of it included, “Happenstance,” “Dead Man’s Hand,” and “Pangea” (to name a few) were more like musical journeys than songs. They also played several old songs such as “I’m Almost With You,” and “Under the Milky Way.”

Kilbey’s voice is deep, hallow, and crisp, which adds an air of eeriness to the sound. Wilson-Piper’s guitar was insane. Whether he was featured in a guitar solo, or combining with the other guitar and bass, his talent was off the charts. Powles on drums was also truly incredible, and what’s worse is he made it look so easy. The Church began as almost a "New Wave" band and with a sound that was rather progressive for their time. Some of the New Wave remains, but there is also some classic & pyschadelic components. They all had great chemistry on stage, as well, and were witty and sarcastic, although friendly & thankful in between songs.

The Belly Up was packed with Church fans--noisy, noisy Church fans. Men and women alike were screaming in between songs; shouting requests,  confessing their love, thanking the band for playing a certain song, complimenting the band on their creativity, confessing their love for the band,  asking the band if they were having a good time…it was actually quite annoying. However Kilbey, like the pro he is, took it all in stride. He joked back with the crowd, called them out on their obnoxiousness, and commented on how noisy everyone was. He and his band mates were definitely a class act. It almost felt like watching a more obscure version of U2 on a smaller scale. The Church has been touring for more than twenty five years now, and yet they still manage to bring the house down, and produce relevant albums.