A sold out night at Hordern Pavilion feels right for G Flip’s return to Sydney. And what a line up they had for the Dream Ride Tour. 

Kicking off the night’s preceding’s is Ayesha Madon, who is one of Australia’s fiercest ones to watch in the pop world. The star of Netflix’s Heartbreak High has come out of the gates with a collection of sultry and infectious pop songs deeply rooted in great songwriting. Joined by two band members, Ayesha delivered a slick set highlighted by her tracks “Eulogy”, “Blame Me”, “Michelle Obama” and“Jonestown”, as well as a taste of what’s to come. Her personality shines through in the in-between song moments, and overall it’s a promising set from one of Australia’s future pop stars.

Next up Canadian favourites The Beaches exploded onto the stage with an undeniable energy for opening track “Last Girls At The Party”. Their 45 minute set was a masterclass in pop-rock musicianship. Lead vocalist Jordan Miller commanded your attention as she strutted up and down the catwalk, but then your eyes constantly darted over to Kylie Miller and Leandra Earl who just looked like they were having the best time on the stage. Their setlist was split between their debut record “Blame My Ex” and their recent album “No Hard Feelings”, and it was clear they had some big fans in the crowd who were screaming along to songs like “Me & Me”, “Did I Say Too Much”, “Can I Call You In The Morning?”, “I Wore You Better”, “Edge Of The Earth” and “Sorry For Your Loss”. Closing out their set with the viral “Blame Brett”, it felt like a cathartic release of everyone’s romantic trauma’s, and left you wanting another 45 minutes from The Beaches. 

As the venue reached its capacity, G FLIP brought it home for a big 90 minute celebration of their career-to-date. Opening with “Disco Cowgirl” on top of the drum riser, they ran across the stage and got the crowd ready for a night of high energy and big singalong’s. Waving a big LGBTQIA+ flag for “Gay For Me”, playing the saxophone for “I Don’t Wanna Regret”, and jumping into the crowd for “Drink Too Much”, every song seemed to have a moment embedded into it. Some of their greatest hits were packed into medleys throughout the show like “Real Life”, “Hyperfine”, “About You”, “Killing My Time”, “I Am Not Afraid”, “You + I” and “Queen”, which in theory were great, but every time you got into a song it switched to something else. 

Taking to the drums throughout the show for some drum solos and songs like “Good Enough”, and their triple j Like A Version of Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer”, they reminded you of the incredible musician they are. Some surprises in the show came in the form of Keli Holiday appearing for a performance of “Dancing2”, a new song with The Beaches called “Lez Go”, and an acoustic rendition of “Dream Ride” album track “Let’s Take This Show On The Road”. Rounding out the show with “The Worst Person Alive” and “In Another Life”, it felt like the perfect climactic end to their biggest production yet, and a hint of what an arena tour could look like for them in the not-so-distant future.