Review and gallery: JD Garrahy
Its 1999 and you’re about to graduate high school. Then a movie comes out that will forever be etched into your memories. That movie, was American Pie. For a movie that surely offended the censors back then, and probably wouldn’t get made today, it still stands the test of time. Tonight however, is not only about the iconic movie that paved the way for the raunchier teen comedies, but more about one of its stars, Thomas Nicholas, or Kevin in the flick if you cast your mind back to then.
As I roll into Mo’s Desert Clubhouse,a place fast becoming THE venue to play on our wonderful Gold Coast, I’m greeted by the man himself and if there is an award for being a nice guy, then Thomas is definitely very deserving of it. Taking the time to chat while he sets up his veritable smorgasbord of merchandise options, this multi-talented gent seems not only excited to be playing a set here tonight, but to also connect with some fans that have followed his career since Rookie Of The Year came out in 1993 (me, I’m THAT person).
Sitting in Mo’s is like a sauna tonight (fuckin’ Queensland, am I right?), but that doesn’t distract from the sheer brilliance of watching American Pie on the big screen. Oh, the nostalgia is high amongst the punters tonight, my friends. As we sit through every bit of angsty teen awkwardness, its not too long and the movie comes to an end. Cue Thomas’ return to the stage with friend of Everblack, Heavy Mags own Kris Peters, to assist in a Q&A session with our guest of honour. Touching on everything from “Why don’t we ever see Kevins parents in the film?” to questions about what ended up on the cutting room floor, the insights into this iconic film are plentiful tonight. Even the bible (not the real one, calm the fuck down), but the one from the film, gets a bit of focus tonight with one punter asking how to best execute the “Tongue Tornado”, one of the most notable scenes from the movie. The Q&A wraps and withing 5 minutes, its time for some epic tunes.
Now, you may not be aware of this, but Thomas is a VERY accomplished musician. With 7 albums released and over 100 songs currently available to stream, it’s fair to say that Thomas knows his way around a fretboard. Kicking off the set with a variation of Fountains Of Wayne’s song Stacey’s Mom, entitled Stifler’s Mom, we’re in for a hefty setlist of pop punk covers and some brilliant originals from Thomas’ back catalogue.
As stated before, the nostalgia is high, and when you have tunes in your set like Blink 182’s All The Small Things, Sum 41’s In Too Deep or Jimmy Eat World’s The Middle, every single bit of retro brilliance is met with great fanfare. It’s not long before everyone is throwing themselves full tilt into the festivities. Now, covers are great, but when you have a back catalogue as extensive as Thomas’, it would be damn rude of me not to mention just how accomplished a musician this man is. Tomorrow’s Gonna Hurt comes with a story of every time he sees a certain friend, he knows that the title of said song will ring true. Never Enough is perfectly placed within the set, hitting the emotional side of Thomas’ songwriting abilities and he follows it up with Back For More, off his 2024 album We’re Gonna Be Okay. As I said before, he’s got some amazing tunes that drag up some nostalgic feels and it also shows that pop punk isn’t one bit in the grave yet.
The end of the set approaches and a reworded version of Bowling For Soup’s 1985, entitled 1999, blares through the PA with lyrics encapsulating the events of American Pie and it’s interesting to learn that Jaret Reddick of BFS had a hefty hand in this songs creation and has also performed it on many occasions with TNB. Fantastic. We are given a choice, either have Thomas depart the stage and come drink some beers with us or play some more songs. We option for choice 2, but you know what, Thomas is such a nice, accommodating fellow that he promises to do both.
Flagpole Sitta by Harvey Danger was just as iconic as tonight’s choice of movie, and to learn that it’s also one of his favourite songs from that era just makes it all the better. We all know the words, don’t deny it, you KNOW you do, and with a hefty crowd singalong, the finality of tonights performance sets in hard before the “unofficial American Pie theme song” pipes through the speakers. James released Laid in 1993, but it’s still a song that digs up old memories from your high school days. What a perfect way to close out Thomas’ first performance on the Gold Coast.
As the cool night air touches the skin the moment you get outside the Mo’s perimeter, every bit of sweat was more than worth it. Thomas Nicholas is a performer of the highest calibre, and he definitely needs to come back down here very soon, as I’m sure he will. Clutching our merch, we all know that we have had a wonderful trip back down memory lane and will remember this night for the next 25 years. See you at the 50th anniversary of American Pie in 2049.
– GALLERY –
