The Temper Trap – 4th December 2019 @ The Forum, Melbourne VIC

The Temper Trap
The Forum, Melbourne VIC
December 4th 2019

There’s something about The Forum that makes every gig feel like a small piece of mythology. Maybe it’s the faux sky glowing above, or the way sound wraps around you instead of bouncing off the walls. Whatever it is, it suits The Temper Trap perfectly. They’re a band built on atmosphere, nostalgia and those big, heart-swelling moments that make you forget you’re standing shoulder to shoulder with a thousand strangers.

But this wasn’t just another Melbourne homecoming. This was Conditions, played start to finish for the first time. A full-circle celebration of the album that took them from local indie favourites to global fixtures, and a reminder of how timeless it still sounds. Those songs remain untouchable, their mix of hope, ache and cinematic scale as powerful now as ever.

They opened with Love Lost. That looping riff, that slow build, it all came rushing back. The crowd leaned in instantly, and when Dougy’s voice soared into the chorus, it felt like the whole room exhaled. Rest followed, delicate and unhurried, giving his falsetto space to breathe and settle into the night.

By Sweet Disposition, the place was electric. Phones were up, hands in the air, people singing like they were back in the summer they first heard it. The band stretched it out, letting the moment breathe, the crowd taking over. Then, out of the side-stage light, walked Lorenzo Sillito, their former guitarist, to join in. The reaction was pure elation. For a few minutes, time folded in on itself. The chorus hit, the lights flared, and nostalgia cracked open into something transcendent.

Then came Down River, and everything softened. Bassist Jonathon Aherne stepped forward with an acoustic guitar, dedicating the song to his sister. He took lead vocals, warm and unpolished, and suddenly the song carried new weight. It wasn’t performance anymore; it was connection. The crowd fell quiet, as if the walls themselves were listening.

From there, Soldier On and Fader reignited the room, those shimmering guitars bouncing through the old theatre. Fools, Resurrection and Science of Fear carried that signature Temper Trap momentum, vast but intimate, emotional yet perfectly measured. By Drum Song, it was pure rhythm. The lights flashed, the floor trembled like a heartbeat, and the whole venue moved as one.

They closed the album with Hearts, that slow-burn closer that still feels like a quiet promise. But the night didn’t end there. For the encore, they reached back before Conditions, pulling out early tracks for the die-hards. It was a grounded, generous finish, less about legacy and more about where it all began.

Walking out onto Russell Street afterwards, the city felt different. The air was warm, the chatter soft, the echo of that final chorus still drifting above the tram wires. Conditions hasn’t lost a thing. If anything, it’s grown into itself, wiser, surer, but still full of light.

The Temper Trap didn’t just revisit their debut. They reignited it. A band returning home, an album reborn, and a reminder that some songs never stop growing. They just wait for the right room to come alive again.