Perth Metropolis, 25 September

"I have to thank Jarvis, Steve, Nick, Candida, Mark and Richard and everyone else for making September 25th the best day of my life! The whole day was brilliant. It started as I was walking through Perth city centre, and there was Jarvis walking right in front of me! I'd just bought the tour edition of This Is Hardcore so he kindly signed it for me and tried to chat about the concert that night; unfortunately I was a bit lost for words, but I'm still very happy to have met Jarvis.

As for the concert, it was all I could have wanted and more. It made the years of waiting crash around me in awe of how brilliant Pulp are live. It started with The Fear, sending a chilling wave through the audience...they played tracks from the past three albums, which was a relief to a lot of older fans. As usual Jarvis had the audience in the palm of his hand and his finger in mine, when, during Party Hard, I had my arms outstretched to him from the front row where I'd managed to stay all night...he crouched down on the edge of the stage, looked at me, then looked back again; then he put his finger in his mouth, reached out to me and slid his finger through the palm of my hand and down my fingers. That had to be the highlight for me, and no-one else touched him all night so I had a lot of grinning girls looking at me.

There were a few problems as Candida's keyboards broke down before Glory Days, also Jarvis had a sore throat and other band members apparently had bad chests...I don't think Jarvis could have sung better though and he chatted quite a lot between songs..he was having quite a bit of fun, joking with the band a lot. One of my favourites was Seductive Barry, I couldn't believe the power that song had; Jarvis indulged himself in pleasure from a small keyboard with suitable grunts and squeals, which left the audience motionless. Then he laid, after the song had finished, , for quite a long time with his head hanging motionless over the back of the stage, then suddenly jumped up for the next song - the moment was over.

They finished with Common People...Nick threw his drumsticks, Jarvis said goodbye, and then it was over. I haven't felt quite the same since and I hope they come back soon because once you've seen Pulp right there in front of you you're always going to need more and more...(Tegan Simpson)

"So the countdown is finally over. Since hearing the news of Pulp's live show in Perth and getting up early to be first in line for tickets, the countdown in my head has not stopped. Until now that is...I have waited and waited for this day to arrive...it is Friday, 25 September 1998. After sitting at the airport for three days with my double vinyl copy of This Is Hardcore and a silver pen waiting for them to arrive, and somehow missing them on Thursday because I had to leave, I am now...ready and willing and able to make all my dreams come true...

We arrive really early at Metropolis City to make sure we get up the front...I figure this may be my only chance to see Pulp in Perth so I may as well make the most of it...to my great satisfaction, we get right up the front against the barrier. To my absolute delight I begin to hear the first haunting strains of The Fear, to which I turn to my sister and say "I told you so", because she has lost the bet. I knew that would be their first song. I say, "You're about to witness every female in this room go totally wild". And how right I was. It was at that point that I gave in and, to my later disgust, became a total teeny bopper. Not caring what anyone thought, and screaming out for Jarvis with the rest of them...after all, if you didn't come to party, then why did you come here?

I can't explain the feeling I felt when I got my first glimpse of Jarvis...most of you probably know the feeling well. It didn't stop all night, and over a month later it still hasn't. I hope it never does. Jarvis was metres away looking every bit the Sex God I knew him to be, and more...in tight, shiny dark grey trousers and grey button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up, open toed sandals and one of those groovy watches we all know so well...I don't know where you got those clothes, but you can take them off if it makes you feel better...

That night, Jarvis had never looked better. He didn't look gangly or awkward as he is so often described. He was extremely sexy...when he complained to the crowd about the wet weather, saying he needed a tan, the crowd screamed, letting Jarvis know that he looks better without one. 

The rest of the band were exactly as I expected them to be. Mark looked as youthful as ever, Nick oozed personality, Candida was eye catching in one of those spangly outfits of hers, and Steve was very 'Steve', stylish in black, and almost cracking a smile when Jarvis said that they went to the beach upon arrival, it was freezing cold but Steve jumped in anyway. Richard also joined Pulp on stage in Jarvis-like glasses, he seemed to fit in well...

The show was going great, Jarvis being the perfect host, talking, entertaining, dancing and making sure everyone was having a good time, even toasting the crowd with a glass of red wine. Then, just after the encore performance of This Is Hardcore, Candida's keyboards decided to stop working. Just as Jarvis had made an executive decision to play Laughing Boy instead of Glory Days, the keyboards were fixed and they played on to complete an outstanding set, ending with Common People.

Ever since that night when Pulp became real to me, I have been on the biggest high of my life. Even though I didn't have much luck at meeting them, seeing them live was more than I could ever ask for. It was all so surreal. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever expect Pulp to come to Perth, but they did, and for that I am so eternally grateful. I look forward to many more Pulp encounters, but know that I will always remember the first time. Do you? (Amanda Iannuzzi)