TrophyKnife had just pounded out their last track by the time the bouncer had finished harassing the kid in front of me about his suspicious ID. Given the fact The Gov’s own website advertised only two bands on tonight’s bill, it was a surprise that the first band were on so early. The Gov was crawling with people coming out to say goodbye to the institution that is/was I Killed The Prom Queen. Even a Tuesday night wasn’t enough to keep people away, proving that given the right band, Adelaide punters will support live music.
Craterface from Adelaide were second up, bringing their brand of 90’s thrash-driven hardcore to the packed out venue. After fucking around with the soundcheck for a good twenty minutes, the guitar and vocals were still dead in the water when the band hit the stage. I suppose this band wins points for the fact they aren’t doing the death metal hardcore crossover.
Melbourne’s Abandon All Hope were a more hardcore version of Tasmania’s Psycroptic or a less meth-related-pissed off Damaged. If you calibrate the scene these guys roam in, then I suppose they’ve got a bit going on. After stepping up after a 90’s throwback thrash band, these guys blitzed it with fast drumming and plenty of crunchy guitar.
The moment I Killed The Prom Queen started soundchecking, the crowd started stocking up on beer so they could stake a claim on the floor. When the band finally hit the stage, the dancefloor cleared and the fly-kicking and windmills started. People fell over, beer was spilt and the screams of young girls rang throughout the venue. There were numerous cheeky punters taking any opportunity to jump off the stage, with one punter obviously not understanding the mechanics of the craft resulting in a face plant. The set was peppered with tracks that spanned all of their releases, including their first EP Choose to Love, Live or Die. Anyone that was there was probably more caught up with the sentimentality of theat moment rather than the fact that Michael Crafter could barely be heard over the drums and bass. I have seen some well mixed shows at The Gov, so I couldn’t understand why tonight’s sound was so poor.
Goodbye and farewell Prommies.
