King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard are one of the most prolific, talented, and popular touring bands. Recently they wrapped up their U.S. tour with an epic three-hour finale at the famed Hollywood Bowl.
The Aussie group is a rock marvel. In the 13 years the band has been together, they have produced a whopping 24 studio albums, 15 live albums, and 3 EPs.
What do they sound like? Their styles change album to album, and sometimes switch things up mid-song. They are as eclectic as eclectic can be, psychedelic, hard rocking, and even delve into the treacherous waters of hip-hop.
Friday at the Bowl they touched all those genres to an enthusiastic crowd that started moshing in the posh Garden Boxes of the historic outdoor venue.
A mere 8 years ago KGATLW were a relatively unknown band with a funny name near the bottom of the poster of the FYF in LA. But now, with zero radio play, they were able to sell out the Bowl quickly and witnessing merch lines nearly as long as Taylor Swift's.
As if the night was not special enough, the wild Aussies began the gig with a nod to one of their earlier efforts, their sophomore album, Eyes Like the Sky. The group dug down and played the title track, “Year of Our Lord,” and “The Raid” from the album - a feat they hadn't done since 2018. Then they whipped out a fourth tune from that record, "Evil Man," which they hadn't rocked live since the Obama administration.
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While many fervent fans would have eaten up these deep cuts, apparently the band thought it may have come across as self-indulgent because multi-instrumentalist Stu Mackenzie thanked the crowd for "letting them" play that quartet of oldies.
With that behind them, the Aussies ripped through 20 more tunes throughout the night, beginning with the rip roaring "Rattlesnake" into "Pleura" into "Gaia" and the subsequent "Gila Monster" with a "Gaia" reprise."
But what of their new album, PetroDragonic Apocalypse or Dawn of Eternal Night: An Annihilation of Planet Earth and the Beginning of Merciless Damnation, which was released just a few days before their US finale, did they play anything more from that thrash metal offering other than "Gila Monster"?
Why yes, they rewarded the crowd of over 17,000 with two spanking new tunes off of it: "Supercell" and "Witchcraft".
With 18 minutes left to play the band announced they would be rocking their last song. The audience, who had enjoyed the nearly three hour show, sighed. But having no fear, King Gizzard rolled out an extended version of the trippy, uplifting and wild "The Dripping Tap" which sent the crowd home with huge smiles on their faces, the weirdest cherry on top of their long long night.
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have not ceased rocking. They are flying across the seas to please audiences in Australia and Europe through September. And who knows, perhaps their next live album will be from this historic show.
