Shit Narnia

Shit Narnia, Grub and Dreamspeed live at Buffalo Club, Fremantle | 29 December 2025

Punters were in for a fun night at local rock mainstays Shit Narnia’s tenth anniversary show at the Buffalo Club in Fremantle. It was easy to get lost as you made your way up the stairs to the venue. With staff eagerly herding those who wanted to fill their punk prescriptive refills.

The venue felt like a bowls club with altitude, making way for homely vibe.

Due to the pernicious noise regulations set by the City of Fremantle, and lack of A/C, and the pesky law of thermodynamics where heat rises, and humidity increases as more bodies enter an enclosed space. One punter remarked that a cool draft couldn’t be let in (windows being opened) whilst the music was playing. Meaning the venue became an aggressive temperature binary of Finnish sauna, and cool breeze between sets. For those that needed their pores cleansed, this show was totally for them.

Dream Speed opened the night as supports. Announcing this being their maiden show, and

were stoked to be playing. Their set included intense vocals, with the vocalist letting out abrasive, and intense screams which got the punters moving. Presenting a strong sound, and intoxicating drums. Punters connected to their sound with ease, and got lost in their intensity.

Grub threw the crowd into an emotional-lyrical cascade of mood swings, 60s rock guitars and rhythms. With the crowd beginning to slowly sink into a journey of hip-swinging, induced mania. A number punters close to the front row began to contort their bodies in ways not humanely possible and would cause bone fractures for anyone over the age of 65+. Finishing off with the song ‘Hate’, Grub amped up the crowd into a heated frenzy.

There was something delightfully self-deprecating about Shit Narnia’s set. With elements of nostalgia infused between songs. As vocalist Hugh Manning shared this sentiment to the crowd. Humorously noting how despite the intention to do a ten-year anniversary show. The year it took to plan the show inevitably caused the band to do the gig 11 years after the fact.

It felt like a celebration of love for their craft, with people close to the band being present.

Manning and his band members bantered with each other, as they celebrated ten years playing in the Perth music scene. Halfway through their set, this included a guest appearance from another muso. Who belted out the lyrics of one of their songs with ease.

Musically, their instrumentation was sonically chaotic. With Manning leading the music in a loose-and-fast fashion. His cynically, reflective vocals matching the eclectic, unpredictable quality of the electric guitar riffs. Ultimately it was a performance that was rough, yet cathartic. Giving punters an audibly tangible medium to escape to.

The end of the set was met with the blurring of stage and crowd. With Manning, bandmembers and crowd alike choosing to dance the night away to their final song. It was chaotic, intimate and symbolic of the love punters have for a local rock band that have stuck at it for ten years straight.

Photography by Adrian Thomson

Shit Narnia

Grub

Dreamspeed