Soundwave 2011

The merits of music festivals can be a contentious issue, in Australia this is especially true of Soundwave. I myself have had very different experiences at Soundwave over the years, ranging from the thrifty delight of my first time in 2007, to the utter shit fight that was the 2010 edition. I think it's pretty easy to agree, however, that Soundwave fills a sizeable gap in our festival season, and if you're willing to fork out $150 it allows you to see a whole host of bands we wouldn't have dreamed of a few years back. Lets not mince words though, last years festival was a disaster. The festival had clearly outgrown it's Bassendean  home, enormous 18+ areas at a predominantly under 18 event meant that every inch of the all ages area, y'know the most important bit, was as crowded as the Faith No More moshpit. This, on a 40+ degree day was an unbearable, amateurish move.

I'm oh so happy to say that Soundwave 2011 got things right as much as the previous edition got things wrong. Upgraded to Claremont showgrounds, trimmed drinking areas, the festival was a breeze to navigate and easy to get a decent spot for most acts without having to get to their stage hours in advance. This may not be true of stage six, which seemed completely swamped for Bring Me The Horizon, however I'd assume that given the nature of that bands fan base most punters who really wanted to see them did so. Given the aforementioned ease of getting about coupled with a stellar lineup, I packed a lot into my day, but given how much I've already written I'll try to keep the rest of my review as terse as possible.

I managed to catch Trash Talk, The Sword and Amity Affliction early on in the day, and while I wont go into details the bands did their reputations no harm, but I suspect they probably stopped short of blowing too many minds. Devil Driver, somewhat to my surprise, set the early pace with a triumphant greatest hits set which solicited banging heads and smiles in equal measures from a near capacity crowd. Devil Driver cop a lot of flack, which initially was to be expected given front man Dez Fafara's nu metal history, but surely this should soon be a thing of the past, seeing him live I have no doubt he is a metal lifer. While I'm personally not their biggest fan, I can't for the life of me see what makes them less "True" or "Kvlt" than other stock standard metal bands like Daath or Darkest Hour. Whats more, their new album sounds pretty solid, and they slay live. no kidding, if they do something like this again, swallow you're imagined credibility and go see them, you might be surprised.

In the next little while I caught Slayer and Dimmu Borgir, who were, you know, Slayer and Dimmu Borgir. Not much to report, other than smiles throughout. Kylesa hit the stage to a surprisingly modest crowd in the early evening, also surprising was the brevity of their set. Officially they were slated in for thirty minutes, it felt like ten. Don't get me wrong, they were great, much better than on record in my opinion, but the length of the set was jarring and a real shame. Hopefully they will be out here again during Spiral Shadow's touring cycle, because these songs really shone live.

The best, however, was saved for last, and I'm not talking about Iron Maiden. Sheduling clashes meant that I missed the Irons, but what I've heard from those who did see them didn't fill me with envy. I struggle to think of a better contemporary punk double header than Fucked Up and The Bronx, and I'm glad to say that both bands exceeded my expectations. I've had it out with a number of friends over The Bronx, I've since stopped trying. I love their albums, though I think the latest record was a slight misstep, and they are hands down the most reliably exhilarating live punk band I've known. Singer Matt Caughthran is the human embodiment of rock and roll, terrorizing stage and crowd alike while playing, then filling every moment between songs with banter that is either genius or the ramblings of a misguided drunkard. I suspect sincerity is the primary issue a lot of neh sayer's have with The Bronx, no one who witnessed this set would have any doubts about whether these guys are for real. Oh, and a drunk as shit Spencer from Pennywise cut himself to ribbons on stage during the set, but you've probably heard that already.

As brilliant as The Bronx were, I enjoyed Fucked Up a lot more, but I suspect this was one for fans. I've read before that in the bands' early days vocalist Damien Abraham's punk moniker was "Father Damien", which makes complete sense to me now as he took fifty or so rabid FU fans and held a kind of Psychedelic Hardcore mass for forty minutes. No doubt most of those up the front for this band have been waiting, like me, to see Fucked Up for two or three years, and it was written all over their mic sharing faces for the whole set. Damien jumped into the crowd somewhere during the first song and never left, running riot through the crowd and leading them in what equated to a mass celebration of their brilliant back catalog, music and life in general. I'm not kidding, this band are that good. To say they deserve your attention is an understatement, you need to give it to them and it must be undivided.

Draged Into Sunlight - Hatred For Mankind

Fact; despite how popular it seems at this moment in time, most people have a healthy dislike of heavy metal, and do their best to avoid it altogether. This musical anonymity affords metal bands a level of creative freedom not afforded to musicians of any other genre, if close minded types aren't listening then they can't be upset. Despite this ideal platform for artistic expression, so little of any real substance is said. All genres have their cliches, but given the outlandishly creative nature of our music it's shocking just how unambitious metal bands can be. This is not to say that bands need reinvent the wheel to be relevant, we have our themes for a reason, but within these paradigms something greater can emerge. A metal band with b-grade politico punk lyrics would still be unoriginal and trite.

Dragged Into Sunlight's recently re-released Hatred For Mankind reinvents nothing, their crushingly heavy doom meets death sound is fresh but familiar. I must say before i continue that the album is patchy, the first track is by far the best track on the album, but at twelve minutes long i find it hard to care that the remaining five aren't as good. Nobody spends time quibbling over lackluster pieces from visual artists so long as they produce the odd masterpiece, surely now that it is no longer compulsory to buy music the same standards should apply to metal. This record has something to say, you may be able to guess from the title, and it says it so powerfully on opener "Boiled Angel/Buried with Leaches" that you will feel it for days. The track begins with some of the most potent doom I've ever heard before delving into more death like territory, ranging from a powerful swagger to absolute desperation. The message is consistent throughout; unrelenting misanthropy. Add to this song Justin Bartlett's stellar cover art, a series of overused yet still effective Charles Manson soundbites and the result is one of the most singularly powerful statements metal has produced in years. The rest of the album shouldn't be overlooked, were these songs on any other album they could well be stand outs, but the albums opening is deserving of a reverence usually reserved for art forms other than music.

This too IS one of the dark places on earth

Beginings are difficult, but mercifully unimportant in this case. At this stage i'm unsure what this page will be, but for the time being I'll be commenting on metal, hardcore and related forms from a largely West Australian perspective. This will likely include international acts playing in Perth, and maybe their recorded works. If you're reading this already, fuckin weird dude, let me know how you stumbled on my page, or recomend anything you think deserves coverage.

Cheers,
Zac