Metal Screamed, Thrashed and Pounded the University of Canberra Union (UCU) Refectory on Wednesday night 27 February; the storm was a large enthusiastic crowd combined with polished and energetic performances of From Autumn to Ashes, Divine Heresy, Shadows Fall and Killswitch Engage.
The UCU Refectory hosted what some Metal Heads described as the best Canberra Metal show since Metal for the Brain. The line-up, From Autumn to Ashes, Divine Heresy, Shadows Fall and Killswitch Engage, was described in no uncertain terms by members of the audience as inspiring and, I was told, that if Killswitch Engage did not win me to Metal, nothing would, raaaarrr! The crowd arrived early and lined up outside the Refectory in a flood of black shirted anticipation. The night had also attracted entire families of Metal Heads, with dad, mum and the kids all lining up for some screaming and thrashing.
From Autumn to Ashes started the night’s engagement with a solid performance that combined Melodic Metal with some great screaming and growling that the steadily growing crowd enjoyed. Differing from the subsequent bands, From Autumn to Ashes wore their Punk roots on their sleeves with Francis Mark’s vocals having an often distinct punk melody; songs like Daylight Savings combined some screaming with generally more open lyrics. This engaged the crowd with the band to the full and an active mosh-pit featured as the five-piece took everyone through their vigorous and focused set that included Everything I Need and Long to Go, then ended with the staccato rhythm of Brian Deneeve and Rob Lauritsen’s Guitars, Jeff Gretz’s drumming and Mike Pilato’s Bass all thumping the crowd into a frenzied finale.
Divine Heresy had a violent but controlled energy, though tempered by the do-it-yourself empowerment of their Punk and Metal heritage that complimented From Autumn to Ashes. Vocalist Tommy Vext charged the stage at a run and he did not let up for the entire set. Between his high paced and massive presence, the rock solid Dino Cazares on guitar, and the support provided by Tim Yeung on Drums and Joe Payne on Bass, Divine Heresy took the crowd on a metal eruption which would have left the audience sated, if they did not already have such high expectations of the two bands still to come. Vext had the audience from the outset, getting them jumping, setting the Circle Pit into frenzy and leading the way for the night on splitting the crowd into two before having them merge themselves in a rush. Vext was also happy to jump into the crowd to have them carry his large frame across the audience. With Brian Fair from Shadows Fall occasionally jumping in to accompany his buddies Divine Heresy was instrumental in establishing the comradely and energetic tone that most of the audience took up for the night.
Shadows Fall took up the mantle left by the two previous bands and combined the Metalcore of Divine Heresy with the vocal Melodic Metal of From Autumn to Ashes. Shadows Fall was far more focused on their music than they were on their audience, but this did not worry the crowd in the slightest. Crushing Belial and Of One Blood highlights as Brian Fair screamed and sang his way through a sweat-filled set that had the crowd again moshing with intensity.
But, after all those great bands, it was obvious that the crowd was there to see Killswitch Engage’s Metalcore.
Killswitch Engage members Howard Jones, Joel Stroetzel, Justin Foley, Adam Dutkiewicz and Mike D’Antonio took the stage amidst a cheering welcome and immediately set about whipping the crowd. Vocalist Jones was intent on the crowd demonstrating as much enthusiasm as possible and throughout Killswitch Engage’s, set including Holy Diver and Daylight Dies, he demanded more and more of them, splitting them to charge, setting the Circle into a frenzy and climbing a massive stack of speakers to drop into the arms of the waiting crowd. Jones was not let down by anything other than the awe with which many in the crowd held the band; which focused them more on watching Killswitch Engage than throwing themselves in with the abandon that many had done to Shadows Fall and Divine Heresy and which he was calling for. Still the crowd jumped and thumped each other. Shirts and shoes went flying into the air. The bouncers and audience fought over crowd surfers and, Jones combined screaming with some beautiful vocals, as Killswitch Engage smashed together more soaring riffs, thumping rhythm and staccato blasting than any metal head could want, ending, the crowd on a high, with metal heads left sweating, shirtless, shoeless and battered, the UCU Refectory hosted a metal rampage.
