Aeon Of Horus, Ritual Of The Oak, Heathen Ritual and Knight Queste

Get down to the Lewisham Hotel in Sydney on April 24th, to see Aeon Of Horus, Ritual Of The Oak, Heathen Ritual and Knight Queste. This will be Rituals Of The Dark's debut performance, featuring ex-members from Lycanthia and Transcending Mortality.
This should be one brutal evening of metal, and all for only $10. See you there!! From 8pm.

Priest Feast Tour - Manchester Apollo 17th Feb

Testament: Unfortunately, due to the wonders of the M62 traffic jam, we only caught the tail end of Testament’s set but what we did see was simply awesome. The band are as good as they’ve ever been, perhaps better, and the strength of the new ‘Formation of Damnation’ material compared to the classics of yore is simply stunning. This is probably the best line-up Testament have ever had – Chuck Billy is a commanding, mountain of a frontman, Alex Skolnick is playing as good as ever and with the addition of ex-Slayer man Paul Bostaph behind the drum kit, Testament now have an extra edge to their performance. If only their upcoming special “evening with…” show was up north…
Setlist: For The Glory Of…, Over The Wall, New Order, More Than Meets The Eye, Persecuted Won't Forget, DNR, 3 Days in Darkness, Practice What You Preach, The Formation of Damnation

Megadeth:Undoubtedly the band of the night for me (and judging by the crowd’s reactions, most people). Yes, people can make all the ‘MegaDave’ jokes they like but the fact remains that Megadeth has always been Mustaine’s creation and they’ve always had an ever-changing line-up. And what the detractors certainly cannot deny is that Mustaine has more often than not surrounded himself with some brilliant musicians and the current line-up is no exception. Shawn Drover, James Lomenzo and ex-Nevermore guitarist Chris Broderick play the set flawlessly and from the opening notes of ‘Sleepwalker’ to the finale of ‘Holy Wars…’ what we get is an unrelenting and constant assault of some of the best metal songs ever written. Mustaine keeps his in-between song chatter to a minimum, preferring instead to let the music do the talking and its hard to argue with the quality of classics such as ‘In My Darkest Hour’, ‘Hangar 18’, ‘Symphony of Destruction’ and the rarely heard but criminally underrated ‘A Tout Le Monde’ which was a welcome surprise in the set.

Megadeth always put in great performances as the whole band, particularly Dave, play each show like it’s their last and that they really have something to prove. This is ironically one of the best things about a Megadeth performance but is also one of the most saddening things about Mustaine himself. Never one to miss a swipe at his former bandmates, Mustaine introduces ‘Mechanix’ by announcing that ‘it is NOT the Four Horsemen’. Seriously Dave, it’s been over 25 years. And with performances like tonight, Mustaine has nothing to feel second best about.
Setlist: Sleepwalker, Take No Prisoners, Wake Up Dead, A Tout Le Monde, Washington Is Next, In My Darkest Hour, Hangar 18, Symphony of Destruction, Peace Sells, Mechanix, Holy Wars

Judas Priest:Priest are among metal’s elite and rightly so. The band don’t put on a bad show but anyone who saw them in 2005 upon Halford’s return will probably walk away feeling a little disappointed tonight as the metal god himself is beginning to show his limitations. Don’t get me wrong, even a slightly deflated performance from Halford is better than most screaming nerks that pass themselves off as ‘metal’ frontmen could muster these days but it’s a shame when you know it could’ve and should’ve been better. His voice is beginning to fail him ever so slightly (but only compared to his previous high standards, not to anyone else’s) and you get the feeling that his slow movement on stage and the fact that he sings one song entirely seated is not just for effect…

And those who saw Priest last year at numerous festivals will no doubt have left tonight feeling a touch of déjà vu given that both the setlist and the stage show were exactly the same which is somewhat disappointing when you consider the wealth of material they have to choose from. Still, the setlist is far from predictable and we do get to hear some rarely aired Priest songs such as ‘Rock Hard, Ride Free’, ‘Eat Me Alive’ and an awesome rendition of ‘Sinner’. And of course no Priest show is complete without classics such as the mighty ‘Painkiller’ (which seems to get heavier each time the band play it and remains a lesson to all young bands in how to really be ‘heavy’), ‘Hell Bent For Leather’, complete with Halford riding the Harley, and ‘Breaking The Law’ which is still probably the most fun you can have singing along at a concert. All in all, it’s a very good performance from Priest without being great and if Megadeth had not been on such fine form, they may have nicked it. But tonight, it’s Mustaine, not Halford, who walks away with the spoils.

Setlist:Dawn Of Creation (Intro), Prophecy, Metal Gods, Eat Me Alive, Between The Hammer And The Anvil, Devil’s Child, Breaking The Law, Hell Patrol, Death, Dissident Aggressor, Angel, The Hellion/Electric Eye, Rock Hard, Ride Free, Sinner, Painkiller Encore:Hell Bent For Leather, The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown), You’ve Got Another Thing Coming

Lordi at Sheffield Academy - 16th Feb 2009

This being my first trip to the relatively new Sheffield Academy, I was intrigued to see what it would be like and I’ve got to say it’s one of the best venues of it’s size that I’ve been in. The stage is great, there are almost no viewing obstructions from what is quite a large and wide floor area and there’s a circular bar at the back which I’ve always felt was a great idea providing the logistics of the venue would allow it. The venue is also handily located about 5 minutes from the train station too.

So, on to the band. Well, there’s not much left that can be said about Lordi that hasn’t already been said since their record-breaking Eurovision win almost 3 years ago. But suffice to say that if you haven’t seen this band at least once yet, then you really are missing out (though I’ve no idea who in their camp thought £30 for a t-shirt is justifiable – I know the pound is bad at the moment but not that bad!).

Lordi will always be more about the live show than their recorded output but as any Kiss fan will tell you (myself included), if a band can put on one hell of a show then they are more than half-way there. It’s just a shame that more people aren’t here to witness this (the academy seems about half-full tonight), possibly due to the far-more publicised Children of Bodom gig over in Manchester on the same night. Alas, it is the Bodom fans that are missing out tonight as Lordi do indeed put on one hell of a show. From the moment they walk on its GWAR meets Kiss with a touch of Alice Cooper thrown in – fake blood, monster costumes, decapitations, ticker tape and a sloth-like gimp creature that is given his five minutes of fame before running off stage (no, I’m not sure what that was about either) are just some of Lordi’s stage props and theatrics tonight – and the fans lap it up right until the end.

You could say that once the theatrics and the costumes are stripped away that Lordi don’t have a great deal of good songs and that may be true. Their albums do tend to have a few standout tracks on them surrounded by a lot of filler and tonight the response to most of the songs is fairly placid when compared to the enormous cheers that greet ‘Would You Love A Monsterman’, ‘Devil Is A Loser’, ‘Blood Red Sandman’ and, of course, ‘Hard Rock Hallelujah’, but I ask you, when the lead singer is stomping around in a monster costume with giant wings sprouting from his back, does that really matter?

An Evening Of Sonic Misery

I made the two something hour trip from my home town to Canberra specifically for this event, and left very satisfied. The show was entitled 'An Evening Of Sonic Misery', but to me it was an evening of total awesome! It was also the debut album launch for bands Futility and Ironwood, and they certainly delivered.The turnout could have been a lot better, for a Saturday evening it was rather shameful actually. I had higher hopes for Canberra metal fans. But despite that all the bands played very well.

First band up was Tranquil Deception for their very first live gig. For a trio, two guitarists and a drummer, they had a great sound. Using controlled feedback quite a lot alongside some pretty awesome riffs, they were a great warmer for the evening. I was quite impressed when one of the guitarists used the feedback and a flange, or phase pedals to change it's pitch to what the other guitarist was playing. Looking forward to hearing what these these guys pull off.

Futility were awesome tonight. Their set was a decent length and included songs from the new album, which also includes a Katatonia cover of the song Murder from the Brave Murder Day album. From up the front the sound was awesome, and I caught a decent view of the energy these guys put into their show. Even though I had seen them live before, I still wasn't prepared for the great-ness of this show. Each song was played spot on, and the band wasn't uptight in the sense that whenever they made a mistake they cringed, infact they laughed about it. That was quite refreshing to see. It was worth the trip just for these guys!

The Veil put on an okay set aswell, although there were some aspects of their music that I couldn't handle. Just picky stuff like how some of the vocals weren't to my liking, but other than that they were great. I couldn't really hear the keyboards during the heavier sections which was a shame, but other than that the sound was awesome. They all played well, or so I could tell from where I was getting some much needed rest on the couch.

Ironwood were definitely a highlight of the evening. For an album launch show, this was amazing. They played awesomely all through their set, and what a talented lot they are! The mixture of heavy and clean works so well, even live. They played a few songs I recognised from the self titled EP, some of which feature on the new album titled :Fire:Water:Ash:. Ironwood are certainly by no means, one of those bands that needs to be constantly heavy, fast and aggressive to be good. They do have those moments of aggression, and even when played on stage you can see the emotion in their playing. It's refreshing to see, rather than another band of statues.

Some sections of their music uses external sounds, like rain, birds etc, and this was used live with great precision. I'd notice their rhythm guitarist, Matthew, cuing the sounds with what looked to be a portable audio device. This worked well, since the band had full control over this part of their music. In a live setting the dynamics of the bands sound really stand out, particularly with their song "The Oncoming Storm", where it goes from a soft section straight into fast riffs and solos. This was pulled off flawlessly, like the rest of their set.

One of the highlights for this set for me was 'The Raven Song", which is one if their ballads, but a very powerful one at that. And again, like last time I saw them, during one song Dan (drums) got out of his chair, picked up Matt's guitar and played a bit while Matt sang, and played a quick crescendo on a cymbal. Definitely impressive to see, since most drummer hide behind their kit almost all the time during a set.
I'll definitely make a trip like this again for a gig like this one, although I don't recommend driving home after the show ends aswell. Perhaps a hotel would be a good idea for next time.

Be sure to check out all of the bands mentioned, and give Futility's debut self titled album, and Ironwood's debut :Fire:Water:Ash: albums a listen.

Tranquil Deception: www.myspace.com/tranquildeceptiondrone
The Veil: www.myspace.com/theveilau
Futility: www.myspace.com/futilitycanberra
Ironwood: www.myspace.com/ironwoodband

Photos © Mat Newton 2009

Ironwood, The Veil, Futility - An Evening of Sonic Misery

Be sure to get yourselves down to Canberra tomorrow night to witness these awesome bands live! Ironwood and Futility will both be launching an album in this show. From 8pm at The Basement in Belconnen.

www.myspace.com/ironwoodband
www.myspace.com/theveilau
www.myspace.com/futilitycanberra

Live Review: Opeth - Sydney 6-9-08

Well, they did it again. Opeth sold out an entire tour across Australia, and, yet again, held their largest headlining show in Sydney, again, with a rumored number of around 3400 tickets sold for this event. A pretty awesome feat for a metal band in a country rarely recognized for it's huge dedication to music.
The day was cold and wet, but that didn't stop people from lining up outside the venue starting at around midday (with doors to open at 7pm). I arrived with my party at around 2:30 and met a few people and had a good ol' chat while waiting for the doors to open at 7pm.

The support act was self acclaimed goth/metal act Virgin Black from Adelaide, who didn't really seem to go down too well with most of the crowd. Like Opeth, they were diverse in style with a heavy/not-so-heavy moments, but they lacked something in between. Their intro needs a bit of working on. The crowd pretty much laughed at the track they had playing as the band entered the stage. They were interesting but couldn't keep my interest for long. Perhaps if I knew their stuff better. For Opeth's one and only support, I think they could have found a better local band.

Opeth were next, of coarse, and it couldn't have come (and gone) any quicker. They were tight as ever, I didn't even notice the lack of Peter! Fredrik did a great job, as did Axe. The whole evening was just an abundance of awesome. They opened with a Watershed track, Heir Apparent, and later they played The Lotus Eater which was flawless, as expected, and it sounded great live.
I'm still unsure if this year's set list was better than the one played in 2006. Both have their strong points. Combined, they'd make the best Opeth show ever, almost. This night's set also included Serenity Painted Death, The Night And The Silent Water, Master's Apprentices, Deliverance, and the one song that got me into Opeth in the first place, The Drapery Falls, amongst many other of coarse. The addition of Demon of The Fall was a highlight for me since we missed out on that song last tour.
During Bleak Mikael's amp decided it had enough, so while the tech crew were sorting that out, the audience got treated to a drum solo (which Axe decided to do to cover Mike's a*s), a bass solo, guitar solo and keyboard solo! A nice little treat despite the abrupt end to the song, which was continued anyway. See below for a video!

The venue, Big Top in Luna Park, was okay, same one as their sold out '06 tour. The sound from where I was (front row to the left of stage) wasn't so good, but I expected that since there was no balance and I was right in front of the bass speakers, but everything was still understandable and it came with a great view all through the show. It's an interesting setting for a metal gig though, right in the heart of an amusement park, but it is a popular choice for a lot of bands that come out these days.

All in all, it was a great night, Opeth were every bit as amazing as I would have expected, and I'm sure most of the crowd would agree with me there.

Here is the set list from my memory. Possibly not entirely correct in order, but close.

Heir Apparent
Master's Apprentices
The Baying Of The Hounds
Serenity Painted Death
To Rid The Disease
The Lotus Eater
Bleak (5 min intermission with solos all around)
The Night And The Silent Water
Deliverance
Demon Of The Fall
-----------------
The Drapery Falls

Deicide To Return To Australia This December

That's right, Florida Based death metallers are returning to destroy out ears with pure, molten hot metal! Make sure you see them at one of these shows.

Dec. 08 - Perth - Club Capitol
Dec. 09 - Adelaide - Fowlers Live
Dec. 10 - Melbourne - Hi Fi Bar
Dec. 11 - Sydney - The Metro
Dec. 12 - Brisbane - The Arena

Their new album 'Till Death Do Us Part' is now out.

Blue Moon Band Massacre

Each Wednesday night in August, 4 dark alt. Bands will battle it out at the Sando Hotel to see who gets voted to play at the “Local Legends” nights during Under the Blue Moon Festival. The shows will take place at The Sandringham Hotel (The Sando) at 387 King Street, Newtown, entry each day will be $5.
Of all the shows, you will find this particular blogger on the stage with Blatherskite on the 20th of August, so make sure you come along and show some support!

Event flier

Bands that will be playing for each night.
August 6 - Portraits of Insanity, Felix Of Exile, Beyond Shadows, Isgahaatt
August 13 - Meat Safe ,Vertigo Nation, Scarlets Revenge
August 20 - The Charles Manson Experiment, Hollow Cell, Blatherskite
August 27 - Pink Industrial Whores, Strychnine, Psych Carni

Wykked Wytch in Miami

FRIDAY JULY 18TH

WYKKED WYTCH
with special guests
AT ODDS WITH GOD
SYNAPTICIDE

@ CHURCHILL'S PUB - MIAMI, FL
5501 NE 2ND AVE
MIAMI, FL
305.757.



1807
18+ / 9pm / $10
www. churchillspub. com

Dismember - Australia Burns Tour July 2008

Proudly presented by Bleed Records, Soundworks & Riot...

Swedish Death Metal Gods are returning! On their ' Australia Burns ' July Tour 2008 !!!!!



Tue, July 15th - Perth - Amplifier
Tickets : www.moshtix.com.au

Wed July 16th - Adelaide - Enigma
Guests : Tzun Tzu & Altars Tickets : www.venuetix.com.au
ph charge 8225 8888

Thur July 17th - Hobart - The Bris Hotel
Guests : Earth, Terrorust, Separatist & M.S.I. Tickets : www.moshtix.com.au

Friday July 18th - Melbourne - Hi Fi Bar
Guests : F*ck I'm Dead, Earth, Terrorust, & Embodied Tickets : www.thehifi.com.au
ph charge 9654 7617

Sat July 19th - Sydney - Gaelic Theatre
Guests : Earth & Terrorust Tickets : www.moshtix.com.au

Sun July 2oth - Brisbane - Rosies on Edwards
Guests : Vomitor & More T.b.c. Tickets : www.moshtix.com.au

Founded 1988 in Stockholm/Sweden, Dismember were among those responsible for Death Metal's big break through. The Classic Debut album, 'Like An Ever Flowing Stream' from 1991, has resulted in their rise to ' CULT ' status.

After 20 Years of Unrelentless live performances and more classic album releases, Dismember is now back with their most crushing album to date!

The self titled Album 'Dismember' is out now through Riot / Regain.
It's the ultimate death metal album!

One of the finest Swedish bands ever formed. Dismember have lost nothing in terms of intensity over the years . The sheer pace and passion of the songs are blistering and the vocal sounds are as pissed off as ever. Powerful riffs that are not in short demand, plenty of lead works and memorable melodic harmonies are what the metal scene needed and Dismember have them in Huge Spades.
Stockholm's Death Metal Gods are back to their glory days..... back to the early 90's.
LIVE, Dismember are one of the best live bands on Earth! full stop.

If you missed out on the Australian 2005 Tour and still hear people talking about it, you know there is a very good reason why.
As long as Dismember live, Death Metal will reign!

Article & pics source, and band information: http://www.myspace.com/dismemberofficial

The Berzerker

Only one week to go until Aussie death/grind masters The Berzerker play their last Australian show before heading overseas for a select few shows.
Make sure you get down to Toddfest this Sunday (June 8th) to see them, and a few other bands live.

Flier.


Following that show The Berzerker will make their way to Europe for 2 months for these few dates, including their first ever Sweden show.

25 June 2008 Sawyers, Kettering
26 June 2008 Junktion 7, Nottingham
27 June 2008 TJ's, Newport
28 June 2008 The White Rabbit, Plymouth
29 June 2008 Ghostfest, Leeds
30 June 2008 Ivory Blacks, Glasgow
01 July 2008 Queens Hall, Nuneaton
02 July 2008 The Underworld, London
05 July 2008 Groundzero Festival - Holland (DJ PERFORMANCE) Bussloo
19 July 2008 Folkets Park - Trelleborg, Sweden Trelleborg

Be sure to witness this Aussie beast in action.

http://www.myspace.com/theberzerker

Testament Australian Tour 2008

Testament are once again reyurning to Australian shores, and just a year after their last run of show here. In 2007 they came in February to remind us of their return. Now they're returing in October yhis year in wake of their new album The Formation of Damnation which was released to the world late April.
Be sure to get out and see this awesome band perform!

Australian Dates '08.
09/25/08 The Arena - Brisbane, Australia
09/26/08 The Hi-Fi - Melbourne Australia
09/27/08 The Metro - Sydney, Australia

Lord + The Eternal, Sydney Concert Sat. May 24

Illawarra based Metal band LORD have scheduled a show in Sydney for the 24th of May. Bands included in the set will be Victoria's The Eternal (for their only Sydney show), Transcending Mortality and Darker Half. The show will be taking place at The Bald Faced Stagg in Leichhardt. Get there and check out some of Australia's finest metal in action!

Lord's Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/lordaus

Meshuggah Australian Tour October '08

Blue Murder and Triple J's Full Metal Racket, by arrangement with E.G.O present Meshuggah

TICKETS ON SALE 9AM FRIDAY 23rd MAY

Fri 10th Oct Transmission Auckland All Ages
Tix from www.ticketek.co.nz 0800 TICKETEK, Real Groovy 438 Queen St, Auckland 09 302 3940

Sun 12th Oct Arena Brisbane 18+
Tix from www.arenaonline.com.au . all oztix outlets & www.ticketek.com.au 132 849

Mon 13th Oct Roundhouse Sydney All Ages
Tix from www.ticketek.com.au 132489

Tue 14th Oct HQ Adelaide 18+
Tix from www.venuetix.com.au 08 8225 8888

Wed 15th Oct Palace Theatre (formerly Metro) Melbourne 18+
Tix from www.ticketmaster.com.au 136 100 and Missing Link 405 Bourke St 03 9670 8208

Thu 16th Oct Capitol Perth 18+
Tix from the venue 08 9321 7606, 78's 08 9322 6384 www.78records.com.au, Bocs ticketing 08 9484 1133 www.bocsticketing.com.au and all Moshtix outlets www.moshtix.com.au 1300 GET TIX

"One of the ten most important hard and heavy bands", that’s how the prestigious Rolling Stone Magazine describes Swedish sonic extremists MESHUGGAH, and for the first time in their long career they’re confirmed to tour Australia and New Zealand this October!

It is impossible to talk about experimental or avant-garde metal without mentioning this truly groundbreaking act: MESHUGGAH mix ultra-complicated rhythmic patterns with massive riffs and aggressive growls, combining Death Metal, Mathcore, Thrash and Progressive Metal to create their unique style.

"ObZen" is their newest offering and one thing is for sure: expect the unexpected. From a band that has only released classic albums since their debut in 1999 "ObZen" is once again a masterpiece of diversity and surprises.

This will be a must see show. Australia and NZ fans will know that Meshuggah do not often take to the road. When they do it’s a trip, it’s an offering – it’s paradise!

New album ObZen out now through Nuclear Blast"

Drag The Lake: Dates For Your Diary

Drag The Lake are about to play a few dates around the midlands, starting tomorrow night (28th February) at Junktion 7 in Nottingham. Not a band to be missed!

Feb 28 2008 8:00P Junktion 7 - with Lordaeron, Blood Divided Nottingham
Mar 1 2008 8:00P First Floor - with Lordaeron, Reth Derby
Mar 2 2008 3:30P Junktion 7 - MASKFEST with ETERNAL LORD/ POSTMORTEM PROMISES/ EYES OF A TRAITOR + More Nottingham
Mar 14 2008 8:00P Scruffy Murphy’s - with Last chance at Rampton, I am Colossus. Birmingham

Check out their Myspace page for more information on the band and a chance to hear their tunes! www.myspace.com/dragthelakeband