“Tourzilla” is a joint tour of Last Dinosaurs and Vacations co-headlining each stop. Both bands have already toured Texas on their respective tours prior to this show. Considering the two bands have similar sounds in the indie genre, they meshed beautifully.
Last year, in the summer of 2022, Last Dinosaurs played a gig in Austin at Antone’s Nightclub, a venue much smaller than the Aztec Theater, yet the audience’s energy was that of an arena. They brought that same vibe back to Texas again, except in River City for the first time. The lead singer from the Australian band, Sean Caskey, mentioned San Antonio “is a very beautiful city.” As the Dinosaurs jammed through their set list with upbeat songs like “Apollo” and “Italo Disco,” they radiated a powerful and groovy atmosphere for the entire venue to embrace. The band announced that for the US tour stops, they were changing their setlist a bit and added a few covers. Tracks like “Move Your Feet” by Junior Senior and “Lady – Hear Me Tonight” by Modjo had the crowd jumping for joy.
After the meteor struck and wiped out the Last Dinosaurs, the stage was vacant, awaiting the other Australian music group, Vacations. Once those lights went out, the voices never seemed to let up. Fans in the audience did not hold back on their cheers as the musician group cycled through mellow tunes like “Home” to more upbeat ones like “Avalanche” with the audience even moshing to the slower tracks. This took the band by surprise with Campbell Burns, lead singer, exclaiming “Are you guys moshing at a Vacations show?” Later on, The band peers into the audience and scouts any concert-goers in costume for Halloween, with mentions of Luffy from the popular anime One Piece and a subtle reference to the anime stating that “the One Piece is real!”
Vacations’ shows are jam-packed with dedicated fans with Campbell complimenting the Alamo city with a “hats off” to us for having such strong energy. Last Dinosaurs being added to the roster was a great addition to the entire experience since they pair so well together. The crowd began to mosh and crowd-surf one another towards the end of the setlist. One band member reached towards the barrier and dapped up another guy. Vacations sentimentally proclaims that San Antonio is like a second home to them now.
Between both of these co-headliners, it is impossible to decide if one or the other put on a better show. What can make or break a show sometimes is seeing how engaged an artist is with the audience. If they fail to have crowd engagement or stage presence, it can lead to a lackluster show. However, Last Dinosaurs and Vacations certainly exceeded in this department. The two groups would take pauses in between songs to talk to the crowd, laugh with them and thank them for coming. Aside from what were already static performances, this just put a cherry on top and made the night more special for the audience to remember.
Vacations and Last Dinosaurs are both Australian bands that release indie-esque music. Next time they are in town, do yourself a favor and head to their show. More info about Vacations and Last Dinosaurs can be found on their websites.
