The streets of Melbourne were blemished with emptiness on Sunday night and it was not difficult to figure out why. It’s not the best day of the week to support a gig but then again, it could have been worse. Nevertheless, there was a fair crowd of black huddled out the front of the Hi Fi bar entrance to witness I Killed The Prom Queen officially say goodbye to their fans and destroy the stage with ruthlessness. The punters were pouring in beyond the front doors as soon as they had opened. Despite there being two under 18’s shows sold out over this weekend at the same venue, this was the second over 18’s show to be held as well, after the first had also sold out and this night most certainly would have been close to full.
I strolled downstairs just missing The Ghost Inside but in time for second supporters The Red Shore who were graciously welcomed and were sincerely acknowledged for their strength to pursue touring after the tragic fatality of their initial front man Damien Morris in late 2007 and his replacement was doing a stellar job. Movement to the bar was difficult in the early stages of the event and what was even more difficult was the motivation of the atmosphere. As What Doesn’t Kill You and I Only Smile When You’re Bleeding, were thrown in the mix amongst others, the air was as stiff as a corpse. You could have dropped a coin in the centre of the pit and heard it bounce, which is exactly what had occurred later in the night.
Moving right along, it was time for British metalcore act Bring Me The Horizon to formally support IKTPQ. This was the second time I have seen this teenage-looking five-piece live at the Hi Fi within a twelve month period, touring solo and also supporting Megadeth at the 2007 Gigantour. I believe that their performance this time around was no setback to that of their previous tour. As slim as he may be, vocalist Oliver Sykes sure can swing a fistful of energy into his stage movement but I could see a sigh of disappointment from him as they opened with Braille and Tell Slater To Wash His Dick. He was given little reaction in return. Maybe the odd two or three contributors were throwing their arms and legs around on the floor but it nothing more. They soldiered on as IKTPQ drummer and Deez Nuts vocalist JJ Peters joined Oli on stage. JJ’s brief claim to fame was cut short with the brutality of Pray For Plagues and Diamonds Are Forever. Intermittent distortion throughout the set was their disadvantage but thirty minutes or so later had seen the boys wrap it up with a couple of new tracks, which possibly could have been unreleased. The job had been done and done with nothing short of pure aggression.
It was time for the Prom Queens to pick the vibe up a little. Decorating the stage was their snake symbol banner on each side and a bunch of VIP crew peering from the corner stage curtain. Founding member and original vocalist Michael Crafter skipped out to confront onlookers with a powder fire hydrant, spraying it from left to right and revving the crowd. The rest of the members followed and positioned themselves appropriately with their weapons of choice in hand. Opening with When Goodbye Means Forever was also appropriate as it has been some time since Australia had heard live material from this earlier LP. It was evident that late and now departed vocalist Ed Butcher’s absence didn’t seem to create uproar as I think most were here to support the original line-up. After €666 had followed, I believe Crafter was also feeling the stagnant air and he attempted to convince the crowd to “Wake the f*ck up” but it wasn’t really effective at all. Maybe he could have felt more welcome in the Big Brother house. Though a rather overweight fella responded to the call, running from the corner stage curtain, off the barrier and into the mosh and as far as I could see. There weren’t too many who were keen to catch the poor bastard as he hit the floor pretty hard.
A dose of Your Shirt Would Look Better In A Columbian Necktie circled the pit with the minority. But it took a cocktail of Bet It All On Black, Neverland and My Best Wishes to really send the crowd bezerk. It was a frenzy increaced by Day Of Contempt’s vocalist and South Australian comrade Ben Coight making a guest appearance and ripping through One By One. Circle pits from the side of the floor began to form and the innocent were getting knocked over left, right and centre. At least something provoked the mood.
Say Goodbye then kicked in and Coight followed the stage diving journey but to his benefit, he was much lighter than the other earlier diver. The “one more song” chant rose and the encore cliché was rolled out with Sharks In Your Mouth giving the fans a final opportunity to show IKYPQ their love. A Sunday night gig isn’t the best of ideas, but I still felt the boys didn’t receive the appreciation from the punters that they deserved for their swansong.
