Birds of Tokyo to end Rockin’ the Regions tour at Queens Park Theatre

It’s not often big acts come to Geraldton, but Birds of Tokyo are capping off their tour of WA’s regions with a sold-out gig at Queens Park Theatre tomorrow night.

The Perth rock band kicked off their Rockin’ the Regions tour on August 7 at a packed Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre.

It might be a bit of a departure from their usual arena gigs, but keyboardist Glenn Sarangapany is just happy to be back on stage.

“Any chance we get to tour, we’ll take it, and it’s great to be back in the regions,” he said.

This won’t be Birds of Tokyo’s first time in Geraldton.

Local music fans might remember the young group making appearances at the Wintersun Hotel, back when “we were cutting our teeth”, according to Sarangapany.

While he couldn’t give too much away about Saturday’s show, Sarangapany did let the Guardian in on a little surprise in store for lead singer Ian Kenny. “Kenny does an acoustic song, where it’s just him,” he said. “We haven’t told him, but we’re gonna jump on in the last chorus and do a metal version.”

Following the release of their latest album Human Design in April 2020, the band have had the chance to tour more extensively than most. “We were just in the right State at the right time when it all hit ... we’ve been very lucky,” Sarangapany said.

Touring with the likes of Cold Chisel, you might forgive Birds of Tokyo for becoming accustomed to big crowds.

While the 656-seat QPT isn’t exactly a colosseum, Sarangapany said there was a certain charm that kept them coming back to the regions.

“In an arena, it’s almost like the crowd disappears ... it’s much more intimate at smaller venues,” he said.

As for new music, Sarangapany was tight-lipped, although perhaps a sneak peek can be seen on his Instagram feed, where he’s been experimenting with a metal sound and swapping the keyboard and synths for a Fender Stratocaster he’s named Old Blue.

“The riffier it gets, the happier I am,” he said.

The West Coast Eagles have recently adopted a club song reworked by the two Ians from Birds of Tokyo — Kenny and bassist Ian Berney — so we couldn’t let Sarangapany leave without asking about a possible Perth grand final appearance.

“I’d lose my mind if we got a grand final here,” he said.