Viagra Boys

Viagra Boys and Private Function live at Fremantle Prison | 23 January 2026

The genre of punk met the film set of The Shawshank Redemption at Fremantle Prison. Who played host to Viagra Boys first ever Perth show. Having only toured on the Australian east coast in the past. With Private Function playing alongside as supports, it made for a delightfully chaotic evening. With punters treated to a live show enthused with anarchic unpredictability.

Private Function’s set was brash and it was outrageous. With members of the crowd mirroring their on-stage antics. With one punter waving a large cut out of a supersized VB (Victoria Bitter for the uninitiated) bottle whom others surrounding gestured to sip out of imaginarily.

Brandishing large bottle of Jameson whisky, lead singer Chris Penney frequently engaged the crowd in a way that made the stage boundary non-existent. Whether it was making a request for finding out what were the cheapest cigarettes in Perth (they were Manchester Blues, apparently). Penney proceeded to light on up there and then, exclaiming he couldn’t get by a single day without one.

Proceeding to pour out shots of Jameson to a lucky few at the front, and then shaming a punter for using his phone in the crowd by requesting the crowd to chant the punters name Brian (it was Brendan) loud and repetitively. It was clear that is was impossible for most to keep up with the pact of the band. Showing that whichever direction they wanted to go, you just simply had to ride with their intense, anarchic waves of spontaneity.

Private Function’s songs ranged from the cynically political, to simplistically fund references to cultural Australiana. With one song involving the band brandishing finger guns at the crowd (I wish Australia Had It’s Guns Again) and another centred around dancing and putting your arms around someone like a koala(lalala). It was like being simultaneously at a political protest, but simultaneously having that protest turn into the wiggles. Some fun was had with the drummer and lead singer swapping, and singing about a town called Allbrook(?) in a ‘Storytime’ format.

When Viagra boys emerged onto the stage, immediately they displayed a penchant for wry, dry observational wit. A trait seen across many Swedish rock bands, coupled with rambunctious extraversion.

With frontman Sebastian Murphy donning a full piece tracksuit. Immediately, the top half came flying off, and Murphy did a Flea and played the entire set shirtless, baring his tattooed covered torso to the crowd. Also donning a black pair of shades, a punter cheekily labelled him a junkie, and another attempted to donate him clothes. To which he respectfully declined.

There were ridiculous wax solos, and synthy keytar. And an improvisational bongo solo. It was hard to say whether the Viagra boys were merely punk in personality, but everything else in instrumentation. A fun anecdote was shared by Murphy, about a time when he tried to steal from a medicine cabinet and filled his pockets with old coins. Whilst being a high school student in America. Only to find he sank to the bottom of a swimming pool during his futile escape attempt.

The set was constant mosh all the way through. And it wasn’t hard to find where it was in the crowd. Following the other curious punters. It made finding the mosh like finding Narnia, where you had to work backwards, and let the most find you.

Anyway, it was chaos. And the odour was this strange atmospheric mixture of body odour and doobie smoke. Which, when mixed with the crazed instrumental antics of Viagra Boys. Pushed the human limits of perception. As one moment the crowd would pause to enjoy the music, and the next moment you were immediately trying to avoid getting you head swallowed into the mass throng of bodies being pulled back and forth to the side of you. Still, there were perks to sticking it out in the mosh, as the constant elbowing made for an impromptu back massage.

The end of their set was met with the prompt from the band to form a large circle of death. To which everyone launched themselves into a chaotic bodily mess of childlike thrashing and fun. After a quick encore, and more mosh. The band were met with cheers and applause, as they bowed to Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes Up Where We Belong. With two punters in the crowd complaining they didn’t play Dirty Boyz. It was met from smiles and satisfaction all round, as punters limbered out the venue. Surviving another mosh once more.

Review by Joe Wilson

Photography by Chris Symes

Viagra Boys

Private Function