All the insanity is in the gallery

An early starting time and a long line outside the venue meant that this reviewer missed local openers Gallows For Grace, winners of the Perth heat of the Summer Slaughter Battle and almost definitely the best technical death metal band on the West Coast at the moment. The band members were spotted around the venue however, looking a bit shell-shocked, so it can be assumed that the set went well – they have developed quite an affectionate following in Perth.

California sci-fi metallers The Faceless were up next, after a speedy stage changeover. Nailing arpeggio-laden guitar solos so intricate they could almost be called delicate – in a different context, of course – guitarist Michael Keene looked like he was concentrating hard, fingers moving almost alien-like over the fretboard of his luminescent green axe. Unfortunately however, their set was cut to just four songs with the band being booted off just as vocalist Derek Rydquist announced they had one more song to play after the awesome Xenochrist, meaning the crowd didn’t even get a chance to cheer for them. Obviously time is tight in such a packed bill, but given that the final act finished well before midnight, The Faceless appear to have gotten the raw end of the deal this time around.

After another super fast changeover – props to the crew responsible for that – Aborted took to the stage. This Belgian five-piece didn’t waste any time, ploughing through tracks from 2008’s Strychnine.213 and some earlier material. Vocalist Sven de Caluwé commented that he’d heard that Australian crowds were intense, but suggested that’s not what he was seeing this evening – and proving that sometimes all you have to do is ask, got some fairly brutal circle pits going and a moderately successful wall of death. Their set was tight, but given the other top class acts on the bill Aborted didn’t particularly stand out.

Quick switcheroo three resulted in the appearance of Dying Fetus. After announcing that this was their first trip to our shores, the much-anticipated US-based trio got stuck into material spanning much of their back catalogue without saying much else. Guitarist and only remaining founding member John Gallagher shared vocal duties with bassist Sean Beasley, their heavy technical style not suffering for lack of an extra guitar.

In stark contrast to Aborted’s detailed instructions, the crowd received neither direction nor encouragement from Dying Fetus – and none was needed. This is a band that is not scared to ride out a groove when they hit one – unlike many technical acts that jump from riff to riff so fast that nothing sticks – and their quite sparingly used breakdowns resulted in outbreaks of maniacal moshing and spontaneously-forming circle pits throughout the set.

A longer break preceded the final band of the night, due to a complete drum kit change for headliner Necrophagist. This German quartet again sent the needle flying into the “technical” end of the extreme metal gauge, and the crowd behaviour changed accordingly – rather than small violent pits full of flying fists that cause most punters to stay well back, the front of the stage was crammed in tight with people whose heads were nodding along to the onslaught at what were surely faster-than- medically-recommended speeds.

Frontman and founder Muhammed Suiçmez came across polite and jocular, announcing that Australia “rules” and they would like to come back, but had to play a few songs first – which they proceeded to do, pulling tracks from 1999’s Onset of Putrefaction and 2004’s Epitaph. He also let on towards the end of the set that they were recording a third album, and that Summer Slaughter would be back touring Australia next year.

Blisteringly fast, exceedingly technical and but with an underlying brutality and heaviness, Necrophagist tick all the boxes and are a worthy headline act. Somehow, though, they’re not as exciting to watch as some of the other bands on the bill – perhaps because they make it all look so easy.

Soundworks Touring have shown some guts, putting on an extreme metal tour In Australia as large and ambitious as Summer Slaughter. Apart from some scheduling hassles, it appears to have gone well for them – and hopefully this success will lead to more technical and brutal metal acts including our country in their touring schedules. Bring on Summer Slaughter 2010!

All the insanity is in the gallery