Posted by Danni Le Toullec on June 20, 2011
After eight years of being one of Sydney’s favourite indie exports, Red Riders announced to the world that they would be disbanding.
They've racked up the miles throughout the USA and Australia alongside Franz Ferdinand, Jet, The Shins, Faker, Snow Patrol and The Living End. Their sold out final gig at Sydney’s Oxford Art Factory on Saturday night attracted a huge crowd, showing the support that they have amasssed from their hard yards on the road.
In 2008, Red Riders went through some changes when Adrian Deutsch left the band and was shortly replaced by Brad Heald (guitar) of The Vines. As a proper salute to their time together, Adrian came onstage to rejoin his original bandmates Alex Grigg (vocals & guitar), Tom Wallace (drums) and Mathew Chapman (bass) for some of their earlier tunes off their debut Replica Replica (2006) including the stand out tracks “My Love Is Stronger Than Your Love” and “Slide In Next To Me”.
Their experience as a live band shone through as they played tracks from their second album, Drown in Colour (2009), which was recorded, mixed and mastered in just four weeks. “Feels Like Grace” and “You’ve Got A Lot Of Nerve” were pure indie pop ear candy. With a cheeky smile, Alex introduced the next song, "Here is another one in ‘B minor’ because, well, it's easier to play".
Amongst jovial banter, anecdotes and promises of catching up for a beer after the show, it was clear that there was a lot of love in the air. One fan spent the gig leaning against the speaker with his chin in his hands, gazing up at Brad Heald, mouthing every word.
With a smile, Alex Grigg said, “Nothing lasts forever” as he opened a white box and handed cupcakes to the crowd before closing the set with the crowd favourite "Ordinary".
Red Riders, you will be missed.
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