Cosmo’s Midnight On Party Etiquette & What’s On Their Party Playlist
Party ppl
By Natalie McGowan | 10th November 2025There’s no denying Cosmo’s Midnight has soundtracked many a night out in Australia. Which is why, for our Party issue, we caught up with twin brothers Cosmo and Patrick Liney to chat all things nightlife overseas, house party do’s and don’ts, and their ultimate party playlist. Here’s a snippet from our conversation.
You were playing some shows in Asia earlier in the year, you said.
PL: We did a festival in Korea and a headline show in Tokyo, then went back to Korea to write some K-pop. So, we were just posted up there. We have a few friends there.
What’s your fan base like over there? I hear Japanese crowds are notoriously very respectful.
PL: It is very much like they’ll be standing there and kind of politely clapping, and, you know, not so much jumping around. But then, after the show, they’ll tell you that was the best thing they’ve seen. We’ve had shows in the past where it was a lot more reserved, but I feel like this concert, because we had this local artist pop up with us, his name’s Sirup, and he’s a bit of a star over there, he was really working the crowd. It always helps to have a star come along and just get everyone into it – let their hair down. On the opposite end of the spectrum, in Korea, the crowds are crazy. They jump around and have the best time. Each country has different etiquette. In Korea, I feel like it’s a little bit more casual. Do you feel like that as well, Cos?
CL: Japan, I feel like it is harder to meet people because people are very much going about their lives, and they have their hangouts in the calendar. They’re like, “Okay, I’m seeing you in a month and a half. See you there.” So it’s a little less spontaneous in that way.
PL: The friends we’ve made in Korea – and the nightlife in Korea – is very spontaneous. People go out at midnight and don’t come home until six o’clock in the morning or something. And I feel like Japan, especially Tokyo, is kind of the opposite. A lot of people really want to get those last trains home, which I think happen at midnight.
CL: On that note, though, I went to a really fun party in Japan. It was very spontaneous. I was going to see my friend Manny, Skin On Skin – he’s this DJ from Brisbane – and he was living there for a while and was at this karaoke event that was happening. I went and saw him, and the guy who was running it was way too drunk. We were like, “Oh, we’ll just go home then.” Then he just locked in, and we went to this bar he owned – this tiny bar – and he started working behind the bar like he’d never had a drink. It was sick. So much fun. It just made me realise that there is spontaneity to Tokyo, but you have to be in the right crowd of people.
PL: Usually, it’s all people who work in music or the service industry, because they just go on and on and on and never go home. It’s the hospo language all around the world – they kick on after the shift. They just know how to put the game face on and get it done. There are so many good clubs in Tokyo. I feel like it’s like that in Seoul as well, where you kind of need to be a little bit plugged in. Having a resident advisor in general is pretty good in any city you go to.
Other than Seoul and Tokyo, do you have another city that you feel does nightlife really well?
PL: I don’t really feel like it’s for me personally, but I can appreciate Berlin. There’ll be something on every night in Berlin, and in an incredible, industrial space. Like a rave that starts at 2am. We got to Berlin and I was too tired to go out, but Cos and the rest of the band went out at like 1am for a prog techno event.
CL: What’s so cool about Berlin and New York in general is that the cities themselves aren’t the reason why they have such good nightlife – it’s because they’ve allowed it. And any city in Australia or the world can have that too if we just allow it to exist. It’s such a shame to know that you could have the sickest nightlife in Sydney or Melbourne – obviously, there are places to go – but just the free rein that people have… the agency to set up an event wherever they want and it won’t get shut down by the government.
PL: Yeah, I feel like Australia, and especially Sydney, is a bit of a nanny state. It’s so hard to run an event without jumping through a million hoops. If you don’t do it legally, you get shut down, and so a lot of grassroots stuff doesn’t really ever get off the ground. I feel like we were just coming of age when nightlife was kind of dying in Sydney. It’s kind of coming back, but I feel like we’ve lost that in Sydney, which is really sad. It’d be like if Fortitude Valley just turned into cafés and apartments only. You can get that anywhere. It’s sad to lose the kind of essence of a place, even if it’s not necessarily appealing to everyone.
So, speaking of the Valley, do you guys have any memorable nights out there?
PL: We used to go up for BIGSOUND when we were starting off. That was intimidating – just seeing the armies of people on the street going from venue to venue. We used to play a bunch of venues that I think don’t really exist anymore, but there was one called The TBC Bar. The Flying Cock, we played The Met… we’ve done so many gigs in the Valley. I feel like I’m more intimately familiar with the Valley than anywhere else in Brisbane. I don’t think I’ve even been to the CBD – I’ve always just been in the Valley.
CL: We were in Brisbane last year and I was like, “Where is this in relation to the Valley?”
Definitely. And I feel like your music has been the soundtrack to many Australian nights out and festivals. What do you think are the top ingredients that make the perfect party or night out, in your opinion?
CL: For me, usually I’ll go out, but I won’t stay out. So, the thing that makes me stay out is a stars-aligned moment. Usually, I go to dinner with a group, and you have the perfect combination of food and drinks, and the drinks just pull you into this headspace of a little bit boozy but optimistic and ready to go out. And then you immediately have to capture that. Otherwise, you’re like, “I’m full of food and I’ve had a drink, I’m going home.” And then, wherever you go, the right friend is important. I just don’t like bad energy. And then the final bit is that the music has to be right.
PL: It’s momentum-based for sure.
CL: You can’t force it. That’s the thing. It has to be natural. I spent a long time forcing nights out and being great at it and having a great time, but I just can’t do it anymore.
PL: For me, I’ve thought about who’s going and who’s playing. I feel like the last thing that I really enjoyed was a friend of ours playing at Carriageworks – his name’s Moktar – and it was just a huge crew there. I felt like I was just dancing with all my friends around me. It’s such a good feeling because you can truly let your hair down. Some people love to be in a room with strangers because there’s that whole aspect of being in a dark space and it’s just the music – you can really abandon… You don’t have to pretend to be anyone; you can just be free and all that. But I love finding those spaces where you kind of know everyone and have that real sense of community and being with your best friends. To this day, that’s what draws me to a party.
One hundred per cent. Thoughts on house parties? If you picture a house party and all the different rooms, what resonates most? Is it a DnM in the bedroom? Out the back playing beer pong?
CL: For me, it’s usually inside, but not central. It’s not the living room because everyone will be in there. Maybe the kitchen – it’s a great spot. You’re close to all your drinks. And in most of my friends’ houses, it’s in a good spot between the outside area and the main areas.
PL: It’s loud enough that you can enjoy the music, but quiet enough that you can still have a chat. I’m less of a dancer and more of a yapper. I want to be somewhere that’s the perfect mix of not too loud and not too quiet. For me, house parties and day parties – smaller, more intimate events – are what I really love.
CL: Beach parties.
PL: Yes, I love a beach party. There are ones in Sydney that are such a good vibe. Everyone’s kind of half swimming, half dancing. That is the peak event for me. That’s what Sydney is made for. If we’re not going to have a banging, past-midnight rave culture in Sydney, then we have to take advantage of the one thing we’ve got, which is really good beaches.
What about top tips for throwing a good house party?
CL: You have to be willing to spend a little bit of money, because a good party is when people enter and they feel like they’re being provided for. Even though most people will bring things, it feels really good when you enter a party and they have drinks for you, and food, and they provide all the things, so you can just come in and all you need to do is bring your vibes. Also, I think the perfect house party probably has a DJ to some extent. Depends on the mood, but I think the best parties do have DJs and a speaker setup that’s actually good. Doesn’t have to be professional, just loud enough. And a dark and big enough space for people to dance. Like, if you have a DJ and there’s nowhere to focus that energy, I feel bad for the DJ. You want to have a space for people to actually dance with the DJ, so it feels like a bit of a community moment. Also, leaning into a theme – I always think themed parties are ten times better than unthemed ones, even if it’s just stupid.
What’s been your favourite theme?
CL: I went to one that was fantasy-themed, like knights and fairies, and that was fun because everyone was very ye olde, but they were playing crazy tunes, and everyone was dancing in their costumes and talking in that way. It was really funny.
It’s a good icebreaker, too, a theme. Do you guys have any party faux pas?
PL: Man, I feel like it’s when you take the plus-one liberally and you bring a whole crew. Like, when it’s a really small, intimate party and you’ve just doubled the number of people coming through and shifted the whole vibe. I feel like sometimes maybe I’ve been that person who has been the add-on that wasn’t necessarily welcome.
