Old Mervs review: How The Fark Are Ya? Aussie tour rocks out at Fremantle Arts Centre

The warmer weather is fast approaching and if the weekend was anything to go by, summer and more live music can’t come soon enough. WA’s homegrown indie duo Old Mervs rocked out to thousands of fans on the South Lawn at Fremantle Arts Centre on Saturday night and that summer festival vibe was certainly in the air. The huge all-ages sold-out event was not only Dave House and Henry Carrington-Jones’ biggest headline show to date, but it also featured a stack of WA acts handpicked by the stars, including Ra Ra Viper, Fool Nelson, Ullah and Hey So Hungry. With Old Mervs taking the stage just before 9pm, they began their 60-minute set with Be There from their 2022 EP Get Better. The larrikin that he is, Henry greeted his fans with a cheeky welcoming: “Jesus Christ, how the fark are ya?” He went on to thank the 3500-stong crowd which was a fair upgrade to the 33 people they played to for their first gig at the Rosemount Hotel a few years back. Later in the evening, he joked how the huge crowd was more than the people living in the best friends’ hometown of Kojonup. One highlight of the gig was hearing new songs What You’ve Lost and Forget It live for the first time. The tunes may have only just been released in June and September respectively but it seemed their die-hard fans already knew all the lyrics. Other songs the audience were more than delighted to belt out included Leave That, Honey, Out of Luck and OG banger Cellphone. Old Mervs also performed a cover of Stealers Wheel’s 1972 song Stuck in the Middle With You. Joining them for the song on guitar was The Southern River Band’s Cal Kramer and Henry’s dad who was a big influence on him pursuing music after school. While Henry and David weren’t as chatty during their set as I’ve previously seen, the way they commanded the crowd showed age beyond their years. Another highlight of the night was just watching Old Mervs bask in their success and progress since forming the band in 2017. I’ve been listening to them for about four years now and it’s incredible to see how far the boys have come, especially since their first sold-out show in Albany two years ago. They’ve catapulted from intimate environments like Six Degrees and The White Star in Albany to now touring the world. The Freo show comes after Old Mervs played in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch and the Snow Machine Festival in Queenstown. They will now jet off to the east coast for the rest of their Aussie tour in Brisbane, Sydney, Hobart and wrapping up in Adelaide next Friday. It is also worth mentioning how the chilled atmosphere was set by Fool Nelson and Ra Ra Viper with both bands punching out a few hit songs. If people weren’t hanging out in front of the stage, they secured a spot on the venue’s hill until it was time for the main event. To sum up, Old Mervs rarely disappoint and their inaugural curated gig was certainly a night that fans will remember. As they move up the indie rock ranks, I can’t wait to see what the future holds for the two-man band. The verdict 3.5/5 stars