Well, folks, if you thought JET was just that band you vaguely remember from that iPod advert back in the day, boy, do we have news for you. Their recent gig at Manchester’s Ritz was a not-so-subtle reminder that we’ve all been sleeping on these Aussie rockers for far too long. And yes, we’re including ourselves in that – mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.

Celebrating 20 years of their debut album Get Born (these anniversary shows make us feel older by the day), these Melbourne lads delivered a set that was part time machine, part “I can’t believe I forgot how good these guys are” wake-up call. For a band that many might remember as “oh yeah, that ‘Are You Gonna Be My Girl’, guys“ JET proved they’re about as far from a one-hit wonder as we are from being The Rolling Stone.

Kicking things off with Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is, JET took no prisoners in reminding us why we all owned skinny jeans and leather jackets in the early 2000s. The setlist was a Get Born love fest, with over half of tonight’s 21 song strong setlist coming from their debut. It’s like they knew we all needed a refresher course in Why JET Rocks 101.

When that drum intro to Are You Gonna Be My Girl hit, we swear we saw a few millennials clutch their chests in nostalgia-induced panic, but panic they needn’t as every word flowed forth from the crowd who took the lead for the opening verse. But here’s the kicker – that wasn’t even the high point of the show. Bangers like Rollover D.J., Cold Hard Bitch, and Look What You’ve Done had the crowd reeling. Turns out JET has more hits than we have excuses for not going to the gym.

Let’s talk about the band for a sec. Nic Cester‘s voice? Like a fine wine, if wine could scream rock ‘n’ roll. The rest of the gang – Chris Cester, Mark Wilson, and Cameron Muncey – were tighter than those old 00’s skinny jeans after lockdown. They channelled everything from The Stones to The Who, but with a swagger that screamed, “You weren’t really just going to forget about us huh?“

The real shocker? How fresh the Get Born tracks sounded. Get Me Outta Here and Take It or Leave It hit as hard as they ever did. It’s almost annoying how well these songs have aged – unlike some of us in the audience (looking at you, mirror).

They wrapped up with an acoustic Shine On that had us all swaying like we were in a field with a warm cider in 2006 again, before blasting through Seventeen and Rip It Up like they had a point to prove. And prove it they did.

So, here’s the deal: JET isn’t just another band from when Myspace was cool. They’re the real deal, and Get Born deserves a spot right up there with the classics. If you missed out on appreciating them the first time around, or simply let it slowly slip away out of your musical hemisphere, consider this your second chance. Don’t blow it like we nearly did – JET’s still got more than enough fuel to light you up.

Photo Gallery by Alex Cropper

JET’s tour continues now. Tickets and information here.