It’s Friday, 1 November, in the City of Angels, and there’s a buzz in the air surrounding the historic arena many know as “the fabulous” Forum, where King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are set to kick off their fall 2024 tour. The Australian psychedelic rockers have grown into a genuine phenomenon in recent years, with a diverse and prolific output of studio albums to propel high-energy shows with a vast live repertoire. Fans are increasingly inspired to follow them on tour since they know each night will have a unique setlist and varying high points.
Fandom also seems to be boosted by how King Gizzard have been webcasting their entire 2024 tour for free on YouTube, enabling fans to keep up and draw further inspiration to catch as many shows as possible. This populist approach has again marked King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard as a genuine band of the people. Their bold songwriting has also won them acclaim as socially conscious eco-rebels who aren’t shy about speaking truth to power, reviving a tradition dating back to the golden age of rock’s socio-cultural musical revolution in the 1960s.
This reporter has thus been inspired to catch King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard’s entire California run of four shows in four cities in four days (Los Angeles to San Diego to Paso Robles to Palo Alto), followed by a more recently announced bonus show in San Francisco billed as an old school “rave” set on 6 November. California Gizz fans have eagerly awaited this run all year, and the anticipation is tangible.
Yet the mood is uneasy, with a Presidential election looming on 5 November, between fascist grifter Donald Trump and a Democratic nominee, Kamala Harris, who was more anointed by party insiders than by popular consent. If Trump can snake the election, he and his cronies have pledged an authoritarian agenda that could well spell the end of days for what’s left of American democracy. Trump often plays the role of a clownish yardbarker. Still, Americans should take him seriously when he makes comments suggesting that his cultish supporters won’t need to worry about voting again after this election.
The fact that America’s fate has come to the edge of such a cliff is a stinging indictment of President Joe Biden and his Attorney General Merrick Garland, who let Trump and his criminal cabal run free with no real consequences after the sedition of 6 January 2021. But if this election is to herald the last days of democracy and freedom in America, then what better way to spend the week than on tour with the most exciting rock band of the 21st century? Here follows a PopMatters special report on King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard’s California run.
Friday, 1 November @ the Kia Forum – Los Angeles, CA
Originally billed as a standard show, the format was amended to make the Forum into a three-hour “epic” like the sensational Berkeley Greek and Hollywood Bowl shows of the prior two years. Fans know this is a formula for a memorable night. “We’re about to rock very hard, so you know, don’t pace yourself; just go 100 percent from the start,” guitarist Joey Walker advises as the group takes the stage near 9:00 pm. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard come out blazing with furious heavy metal power and make a genuine statement to set the tone for the tour by opening with “Mars for the Rich” into “Planet B”.
Appearing on 2019’s Infest the Rat’s Nest album, “Mars for the Rich” takes cynical aim at oligarch Elon Musk’s oft-stated goal of colonizing Mars. Musk’s megalomania has been an ongoing target for King Gizzard, and rightly so, with his overt efforts to swing the presidential election to Trump. “Red Mars / The czars / Live large / Red Mars for the rich / Mars for the privileged / Earth for the poor / Mars terraforming slowly / Earth has been deformed / Just forget it, ya ain’t coming here / The ticket’s too dear / I stare sadly into my beer / That world has no place for me,” sings guitarist Stu Mackenzie in an angst-filled lament over a furious rhythm.
“Planet B”, also from Rat’s Nest, doubles down on King Gizzard’s noble efforts to warn against the exploitation of the Earth by the greedy fossil fuel powers that be. Mackenzie sings out here on how “There is no Planet B”, followed by wicked guitar solos over a thrash metal groove. The audience is amped up with the growing legend of the King Gizz mosh pit circle catalyzed early and often on the metal songs, yet with some sense of order as the fans even have their own mosh pit guards in yellow construction vests to help maintain safety.
It’s one highlight after another as King Gizzard shifts gears into a bluesier psyche-rock mode on “Slow Jam 1” from 2014’s I’m in Your Mind Fuzz. It feels like a friendly jam session as the bluesier vibe carries into “This Thing”, which picks up steam into a glorious jam on “Am I in Heaven?” Whether or not King Gizzard have come to qualify as a jamband continues to be debated, but what’s apparent is the group’s skill for connecting songs with seamless segues and flow. At one point, Walker and Mackenzie banter about Stu’s amplifier, which he says he scored “for 29 bucks”. It’s one of those little mini-amps that guitarists use for practice in their bedroom, which makes it amazing to see it being used to power an arena rock show here.
Another scintillating sequence of metal tunes keeps the show lit with “Self-Immolate”, “Dragon”, and “Flamethrower”, getting the mosh circle going again like a force of nature. The lead guitar attack from Walker and Mackenzie is a force as well, as it seems either of them could sub in for Iron Maiden or Metallica in a pinch. The final song from 2023’s PetroDragonic Apocalypse, “Flamethrower”, paints a picture of a Gila monster turned dragon that scorches the Earth in a disgruntled Godzilla-style response against the petro state powers that be. “The Gizzverse”, as it’s known to fans, is a deep rabbit hole, with many of the songs feeling like visions from a dark future based on humanity’s currently destructive path. “Nuclear Fusion” is another gem with its blend of a dark theme over a deep and intricate groove.
A handful of tunes from King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard‘s newest album, Flight b741, provide another sonic flavor with what’s been billed as the group’s most collaborative effort yet, resulting in an upbeat collection of more straight-ahead songs inspired by the classic rock era of the 1970s. “Daily Blues” stands out here as a particularly zeitgeisty tune for the 2020s as MacKenzie sings, “Everybody’s gettin’ ready to fight, ‘Cause everybody thinks that they are right, Faith only binds ideology, That ain’t peace, and that ain’t free.”
Mackenzie has an antidote, though, and it’s a theme the rock ‘n’ roll counterculture has been promoting since the 1960s: “Flying through clouds of hate / Fly through clouds of love / We ain’t that different / Lay down your weapons / What you gotta do is / Find that person you hate / Grab ’em by the hand, look ’em in the eye and say ‘I love you’”. The groovy jam gets a festive vibe going. “Ice V” from 2022’s Ice, Death, Planets, Lungs, Mushrooms and Lava is another highlight, as one of the group’s funkiest tunes. With a syncopated beat, propulsive groove, and infectiously funky guitars, it’s incredible to watch King Gizzard shift gears between genres so seamlessly.
The three-hour rager steams toward a grand conclusion with “The Lord of Lightning” and “The Balrog”, a pair of scintillating psychedelic metal songs from 2017’s Murder of the Universe. It feels like King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard have conquered California, yet it’s only the first night of the tour.
Saturday, 2 November @ The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park – San Diego, CA
It’s a different vibe on Saturday evening with a rare King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard acoustic show at the Rady Shell, aka “the Egg”, due to the futuristic eggshell shape of the stage area. It’s a gorgeous outdoor venue bordering the San Diego Bay, with a spectacular view of the city’s downtown skyline. It quickly becomes apparent that the Rady Shell is a world-class venue with fantastic sight lines from front to back and crystal clear sound as the tour’s opening act, King Stingray, rock out. Another Australian band with a more straight-ahead melodic rock sound, King Stingray generate an uplifting vibe each night with catchy tunes like “Lookin’ Out” and “Best Bits”.
San Diego is known for having the best year-round weather in America, yet some sporadic cold rain threatens to put a damper on the show. That leads to fans huddling in the sheltered bathroom area during the break. Those with the foresight or luck to have scored pit tickets find they can gain shelter by crowding in toward the rail, though, just under the overhang of the Egg (the cold rain falls for about half an hour before it thankfully subsides.)
“Witchcraft” from PetroDragonic Apocalypse sets a mystical tone, demonstrating King Gizzard’s skill for transmogrifying metal songs into blues. The group’s talent for morphing songs is further displayed on a series of acoustic debuts with “Chang’e” from 2023’s electronic album The Silver Cord and a trio of tunes from 2017’s multi-dimensional Polygondwanaland. Drummer Mickey “Cavs” Cavanaugh and bassist Lucas Harwood are key players here, maintaining a tight rhythm section for the guitarists to play over. “Sense” from 2015’s Paper Mache Dream Balloon shines as a melodic deep cut with the group stretching out for a gorgeous jam, featuring intoxicating guitar interplay and the audience singing along with Mackenzie on the song’s “oohs”.
“Iron Lung” is one of the evening’s top highlights, with the whole band clicking on a tight jam that exceeds 10 minutes of sonic goodness. Multi-instrumentalist and secret weapon Cook Craig is an x-factor, like glue in the band’s magnet to help the sonic layers mesh together. Digging through song histories at KGLW.net, one can also learn things like how it was “Cookie” who discovered the obscure music sampled for the groovy “Kepler-22b” on Omnium Gatherum.
“God is Calling Me Back Home” is a big crowd pleaser, with the deep cut from 2013’s Float Along Fill Your Lungs inspiring singalong action on the “She’s calling me back home” chorus section as the group rocks out. The acoustic debut of “Magma” is a jammy crowd-pleaser with a deepening groove. The set’s impressive diversity continues on the acoustic debut of “The Silver Cord”, which works nicely here with the audience digging the mystical vibe. It pairs well with “Theia”, as Mackenzie seems like a shaman from an alternate reality as he sings “Theia, a force of destiny, Fate intertwined with that of earth, A ticking clock of new reality, A spiritual rebirth…”
Closing out the night with “The River” from 2015’s Quarters makes for a triumphant conclusion, a King Gizz classic with a jazzy sonic journey that lends itself well to the acoustic format. It’s a perfect encore as King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard keep it classy in San Diego, despite Mother Nature’s earlier attempts to rain on the fans’ parade.
Sunday, 3 November @ the Vina Robles Amphitheater – Paso Robles, CA
The next day finds fans on a lengthy drive to another outdoor venue in central California’s wine country in Paso Robles. It might seem like an odd tour stop for a heavy band like King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, but the fanbase is fired up and ready to go, much like when the band played the Gundlach Bundschu Winery in Sonoma, California, in April of 2022. Temps are in the mid-50s and forecast to drop to 49 by the show’s end, so they must come out blazing (which, of course, they do.)
“Doom City” from 2017’s Flying Microtonal Banana is a short but sweet early highlight, a high-energy rocker reportedly inspired by Mackenzie’s impressions on a trip to the heavily polluted city of Beijing. “Billabong Valley” from the same album features Amby going into the crowd for a lap around the venue as he sings the song but avoiding high fives due to having injured his elbow in a skateboarding mishap shortly before the tour.
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard dig deeper on “Hypertension” from 2022’s Laminated Denim, a smoking tune about time traveling that’s been described by Cavanaugh as “a space rock odyssey”. It’s a great song for a night like this, cranking up the energy on a killer jam that lasts more than 15 minutes. Mackenzie acknowledges the cold afterward as they invite fans to move closer into the pit to get warmer. “Antarctica” seems fitting here, even though it was played at the Forum in LA, as it rocks with a vibrant energy to keep fans grooving.
“Ambergris” is a sweet, deep cut from 2022’s Omnium Gatherum, slowing things down with a sultry psychedelia on a tune about a whale’s perspective of being exploited by humanity. One of the weekend’s big moments occurs when King Gizzard brings out their synth table for electronic songs, with Walker leading a debut performance of “Intrasport” from 2021’s K.G. album. Walker has described his idea for the song as “a Turkish version of a 1990s house song”, a testament to what a diverse talent he is considering how he shreds lead guitar on metal songs. The crowd loves it, with a vocal enthusiasm for the track.
The “Intrasport” jam segues seamlessly into a groovy synth trance dance jam on “Set” from The Silver Cord, as it seems the group is warming up a bit for San Francisco’s rave set. The song references Egyptian mythology and features a rap from Amby before the group jam deep for more than ten minutes to conjure a crowd-pleasing sci-fi dance party that feels like it could soundtrack a techno-pagan rave scene in The Matrix film series.
The rave vibe keeps flowing on “Extinction”, though the energy level seems to wane a bit down the stretch. Thus, it’s necessary to crank things back up, as it’s getting really cold now. King Gizzard accomplish this in electrifying fashion with a powerful sequence that strings together four of their heaviest songs. “Converge” amps up the metal factor before they drop a bomb with the incendiary “Gaia” to ignite the chilly night. “Gaia” paints an intense picture of Mother Earth’s mighty dominion over humanity and gets the mosh pit raging. The anthemic “Gila Monster” raises the intensity higher before more metal mania on “Motor Breath” and a killer “Gaia” reprise to conclude the show at maximum firepower.
Few bands can step up their game to meet challenging weather conditions in such a way since most bands play the same show every night. But a band with a vast repertoire like King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard can dial up the intensity with specific songs to pour more gas on their sonic fire when needed. This climactic metal mayhem saves the day here in chilly Paso Robles.
Monday, 4 November @ the Frost Amphitheater at Stanford University – Palo Alto, CA
Mondays can be a tough draw, but it’s King Gizzard & the Wizard Lizard’s first time back in the Bay Area since the genuinely “epic” show they performed at the Berkeley Greek Theater in October of 2022. Anticipation has, therefore, been running high, and fans are amped up to see what the band can do to approach the energy level of the Greek show. It’s another chilly evening, though the temperature is five vital degrees warmer than in Paso Robles.
“Superbug” and “Supercell” deliver some heavy apocalyptic riffage to open the show. But it’s a hot jam through the “I’m in Your Mind”, “I’m Not In Your Mind””, “Cellophane, and “I’m in Your Mind Fuzz” sequence from the group’s seminal 2014 album I’m in Your Mind Fuzz that really lights a fuse to get the party going. The energetic groove and fiery guitar lines conjure instant energy across the Frost, with Amby’s harmonica adding fuel to the fire.
The political flavor of “Daily Blues” is a worthy repeat from the Forum show, here on the eve of what many have come to view as quite possibly the most consequential election in modern American history. The upbeat vibe also keeps the party going in groovy fashion, as does “Cut Throat Boogie” with Amby on lead vocals for a raucous throwback to 2012’s debut album 12 Bar Bruise. Mackenzie adds some tasty jazz flute to the rocking “Trapdoor”, displaying his multi-instrumental virtuoso talent as few other Earthlings can.
The synth-driven “Gondii” from 2022’s Changes provides a trippy change of pace, with Mackenzie singing about how he can’t get a message to his brain or control himself. The trancey jam lasts more than ten minutes, conjuring a deep psychedelia. This leads to one of the most delightful moments in King Gizzard history when Walker dons an acoustic guitar as Mackenzie mans the synth table for a first-time bust out of “Interior People” from 2021’s Butterfly 3000 (King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard’s first to be composed entirely in major scales.) “Psychedelic! Melodic! Prismatic! Every brush stroke is considered! Does Butterfly 3000 sound like a 50-year-old relic? Or 50 years ahead of its time? It doesn’t matter. This is a Gizz record that folks will listen to in 3,000 years,” the sticker on the record’s brown paper slip cover proclaimed upon release.
The coveted fan favorite has never been played before, with Mackenzie stating in 2022 that the group still needed to learn how to play the songs that were uniquely crafted on synths during the pandemic. It’s one of the most infectious, uplifting songs in the catalog, and King Gizzard have decided to debut it tonight at the Frost! The song conjures a wave of ecstatic euphoria that rolls across the audience as fans instantly recognize the opening notes, taking glee in their good fortune. Walker takes the lead vocal, with Mackenzie harmonizing on backing vocals as he joyfully bounces back and forth through the pulsing jam. “Thank you my friends / ‘Tis an honor,” Walker declares upon the resounding applause after the six minutes of sonic bliss concludes.
“Thanks for all these presents,” Mackenzie says as fans toss t-shirts, fashion suggestions, and even a fuzzy leopard trench coat on stage, which he puts on, noting, “It’s cold as shit up here.” King Gizzard rocks on through the raucous “Hog Calling Contest”, the infectious “Field of Vision” and vibrant “Raw Feel” for a stellar sequence from Flight b741. A fully electrified “Magma” serves as the vehicle for a hot jam, a tune written in the rare Phrygian mode that gets very psychedelic here with extended guitar trills over the hypnotic beat.
“Ok, we’ve got one song left, but it goes for ages, so don’t worry,” Walker says assuringly. “The Dripping Tap” – the 18-minute opening track from Omnium Gatherum – is clearly the most fitting tune for the moment, a jammy rager about humanity’s doomed addiction to oil. “Let’s go crazy,” Walker and Mackenzie urge after Amby sings the intro about how “the dripping tap won’t be turned off by the suits in charge of the world and our future’s hanging on by a thread with our heads in the sand”. “University’s for suckers,” Mackenzie adds playfully before letting it rip. The smoking jam only gets a 12-minute treatment due to coming up against the venue curfew. Still, the fan-fave anthem provides an ever-electrifying and cathartic conclusion to the long weekend with its incendiary warning about man-made climate change.
“Hey, make sure you go vote the orange baby out of office tomorrow,” Harwood says as the band takes their bows. “Fuck fascists, eh? Fuck fascists,” adds Mackenzie matter-of-factly, in an ever-endearing fashion. This Monday evening has turned into a special night at the Frost, a celebration of the fact that there’s some good in this world, and it’s worth fighting for.
Wednesday, 6 November @ The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco, CA
It’s a dark day for America. Progressives are dealing with the worst sort of emotional hangover, as Donald Trump has been declared winner of the election after apparently sweeping the swing states that currently decide American presidential elections due to the outdated Electoral College. “It’s a sad day for people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, women, those with disabilities,” the group wrote on Instagram stories before further elaborating on the environmental implications. “It’s a sad day for planet Earth, the climate, the soil we grow our food in, the air we fucking breathe. As a band of six white dudes, I acknowledge the privilege that we have. We work really hard to create a community which is inclusive and progressive. We’ll keep fighting for you. We love you.”
The only saving grace in the Bay Area is that King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are still here for a bonus “rave” show at San Francisco’s Regency Ballroom, billed to perform The Silver Cord in its entirety. “It’s scary times; let’s just all be scared together,” Amby says in acknowledgment of the situation as they take the stage. It’s a comforting sentiment that reveals these Australian rockers as noble princes among men here in this world gone mad.
Joey Walker sports a San Francisco Giants T-shirt, winning some local points as the group gather around the synth table to open the show with “Theia”, which sparks the dance floor with a groovy jam. “Yeah, we’re gonna drown our sorrows,” says another member as the audience revels in the energetic vibe. “The Silver Cord” drifts into a blissful ambient territory as King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard experiment with different layers of sound before Cavanaugh pushes the beat forward with his endless energy on the drum kit.
“Set” amps up the vibe as it did in Paso Robles with a groovy psychedelia that shows how good King Gizzard are at this electronica thing. Amby pumps up the vibe with his hip-hop stylings, while Walker also serves as a ringleader MC as the swirling jam ripples into yet another dimension. “Change” is a highlight with its uplifting tale about a benevolent Chinese goddess of the moon as Mackenzie sings, “If you dare to touch the voids, Ride cerebral asteroids, Swim the vast cosmic sea, To find the key to set us free.”
It feels like King Gizzard has found a musical key to set the fans free, at least for a couple of hours. A trippy sonic journey through “Gilgamesh” leads to “Swan Song”, a techno-driven tune with a menacing vocal from Mckenzie that speaks to end times from climate change where “The clock has ticked its final tock, A barren lifeless rock”.
“Look on the bright side, Trump’s gonna die pretty fucking soon,” Walker suggests, winning a big cheer here in a state where the orange swine lost by a landslide. The album’s closer, “Extinction”, is an upbeat tune despite the dark theme, with a trance dance vibe featuring many sonic tricks. A tease of “Shanghai” from Butterfly 3000 brings hopeful cheers, but “Intrasport” is the set’s dance party finale instead. The audience is into this, too, clapping in unison during the opening sequence before the song surges with Walker pumping up the vibes.
“Don’t you fucking go, go get a drink, but we’re about to get lit as fuck,” Walker advises at the end of the set, regarding his techno side project Bullant that will follow after a set break. It’s a rare chance to see Walker in solo DJ mode, and it’s a fun way to keep the festivities going on a night no one wants to end since this is the end of the road for King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard’s California run as the tour moves on to Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Albuquerque next.
It’s looking like dark days for America and the world with the Trump regime’s gang of grifters set to sell off every aspect of American governance while also reversing course on any action against the climate change crisis in service to their fossil fuel overlords. But it’s been a sensational week in the Golden State with King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard providing musical catharsis for the psychedelic rock counterculture. The future may appear grim, yet fans can take stock of the fact that an incredible band like this is still here to represent the Rebel Alliance even as they document The Empire’s impending global ecocide. Hope for a better way will live on as long as bands like King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are here to help provide spiritual fuel for the Resistance.
