r/s4lem

Lol I made this song and video. felt like larping today. Lmk what y'all think!

This blank is so cheap compared to all my other supreme tees not to mention it was 48$. Super thin, stretchy and basically see through where as others are thick and pure cotton. Don’t waste your money if you’re thinking about buying resell fr

Thought it’d be cute to do a short recap as people seem curious as to how the night went…

In terms of context I think it is important to mention that as a local it has been a lifelong struggle growing up in Sydney, in a music scene that has been aggressively shut down by the Government and police. Any sort of interesting cultural experience, particularly when it comes to music and particularly when it comes to the underground has struggled to survive in the last decade or so. However, over the past few years our state government has really been trying to spruik Vivid Festival with its pretty nighttime projections on the Opera House sails and various buildings in the city etc. There’s a lot of money involved and overall it’s a pretty family friendly idea, but the musical program really does provide, and there’s obviously a lot funding that has recently brought some amazing artists to the Opera House (Arca, DJ Sprinkles (tomorrow), Oneotrix Point Never etc). Im still quite cynical but I think it’s safe to say a lot of us locals as well as a lot of people who would come from out of state were pretty stoked to see Salem billed as for the festival despite the steep price tag ($139 AUD).

I arrived on time to catch Endless and Jawnino. The theatre was less than half full and both sets only lasted about 30 minutes each. It was a seated gig which is awkward but usually at these events people stand once the music gets to a certain level. Unfortunately, the sound never got turned up so if the organisers were aiming to position the supporting acts as some sort of ‘lobby’ music as the crowd came in, then they were successful. Would’ve been good to have a little bit of lights/production and louder sound to catch the other two acts, especially due to the price tag. Jawnino did his best but likely didn’t vibe the crowd since people were half in and half out and unceremoniously walked off stage.

A few moments later the stagehands placed a tall white statue of the virgin Mary in the centre of the stage accompanied by a flower arrangement of white roses. The lights dimmed and it started… Started with noise, smoke and lights. Flashes from bright strobes positioned in four or five places above the stage felt like robotic machina hypnotising us. Causing us all to get up out of our seats and cheer. Two figures paced the sides of the wings and behind the statue as smoke, strobe and sound continued to grow and build. I wondered whether I should put my earplugs in or just cop the onslaught of sound as it rose louder and louder.

Jack and John appeared behind the partition and walked out into rapturous applause. It took me a while to realise that Jack was wearing a South Sydney Rabbitohs training kit. For context this is a beloved local rugby league team that most locals would immediately recognise. Even if you aren’t a Bunnies supporter, or you don’t watch rugby league most of us would understand the lore and mythology behind such a team. You kind of have to be a local to understand it, but it was a very flattering touch. Truly a class act. Whoever suggested he wear the kit deserves a round of applause. But maybe I am biased - as a Bunnies fan I went giddy with joy.

As soon as they started it really dawned on me how crazy it was that Salem was playing in Sydney. On the other side of the world. In a city I have such a love hate relationship with as we (hopefully) emerge from a culturally stagnate and unsupported period of music and nightlife. Here we all were about to witness such a rare performance. It just made the night so fucking special for all of us. I never would have thought when listening to them back nearly 16 years ago that I would be able to catch Salem on home turf and at the Opera House of all places. But the Joan Sutherland theatre did not disappoint. The sound system was loud, and seemed to be red lining. Live edits of familiar tracks had surprise drum samples with high hats and snares so loud they rattled you to your core.

Jack opened up the set first, energetically walking around the stage while John kind of stood there with a mic, looking slightly lost. When it came to John’s turn it almost looked like he wasn’t gonna make it through the set. They had there backs turns from the audience, and Jack had his arm over Johns shoulder giving him some sort of pep talk. We were only 5 to 10 minutes in and I seriously wondered if the show was going to fall apart. But John came back to the mic, looking nervous or nodded out. He rubbed his face in his hand and proceeded to deliver us a heavenly and washed out rendition of ‘Star Moth’ while Jack went off to the corner to sink another beer. Throughout the set Jack came up behind him a few times and put his hand on his back almost as if he was holding him up. Or maybe just a friendly touch. A particularly noisy interlude of sound gave them respite and John started to walk off stage but another track came on and he realised he was meant to sing. He ran back to the mic to make his cue. Sheesh, what were we in for?

Jack continued to sink beers and get progressively drunk, missed his cue on ‘Train’ and told the sound guy to reload the track. In between verses during he giggled and laughed. Before ‘Red River’ he said something about how he was ‘going to get through it’. At points I thought they must be taking the piss. Laughing straight to the bank kind of thing. For the most part I was there for it. As long as they could hold out for the whole performance, I would be satisfied. Maybe halfway through the set, fake snow started to fall from the ceiling and it was very entertaining. Bringing a bit of the Mid-West to Sydney. John got on the mic again to sing ‘Starfall’ and I nearly cried with fake foamy snow dripping on to my face. Jack drank more.

They pretty much ‘finished’ with King Night and the strobes changed from white to an assortment of bright flashing colours; red, purple, green, blue. The show reached a crescendo with the boys grabbing flowers from the base of the statue and throwing them in to the crowd. They aimlessly walking around on stage for a bit longer with the track playing and then stumbled off stage arms around each other’s shoulders. One friend said he saw them kiss but I didn’t see it. Despite being relieved that they made it through the whole show and a full hour, I would’ve loved to hear a few more songs. In this era an hour headline show seems to be the norm. And to be honest any more songs would’ve likely pushed their capabilities in maintaining an appropriate level of professionalism. In saying that it truly was an incredible experience and I loved every moment of it. It will stay with me forever.

It would have also been nice for them to stay on stage while we listened to ‘Not Much of a Life’, but they were done. Johnboy had made it through despite looking rough. Jack’s drinking didn’t fuck anything up. They must be happy their cheque cashed. Hype sufficiently raised. Who knows how long it will be before the next live show, merch drop or surprise album/compilation. We all feed off it, regardless of whether we like the music, the clothes or the vibe. As much as I love Salem, with the words ‘it’s not much of a life you’re livin’ repeating again and again as we looked on to an empty stage, awkwardly applauding the silent virgin Mary, I couldn’t help but wonder if I was the joke or if I was in on it…

I’m so glad this was the venue they performed at because honestly it was amazing, this was also “restricted view” seating

I found this on my camera roll. Sorry about the angles I was really fucked up. Missing them like a mf while watching Sydney clips

This needs to drop