The return of Rise Against to Australia’s shores has been a long time between drinks for fans of the American rock band from Chicago, Illinois. The release of their latest and most successful album, Appeal to Reason, debuted at #7 on the ARIA charts, and reached out to a new group of fans with its perfectly mixed fierce social lyrics and fast paced guitar riffs. Festival Hall was packed, almost to capacity, as soon as the doors opened with legions of fans bolting to the front of the stage to have the perfect view of the headline act that they had been waiting patiently for months on end.

Opening the show were home-grown Melbourne rockers, A Death in the Family, who kicked of the nights proceedings with a selection of songs from their latest CD, Small Town Stories Not many support acts these days seem to catch the audience’s attention; these guys did it without fail. They deserve their growing profile and soon depart Melbourne for America in support of The Gaslight Anthem.

It was barely 8pm, and already the crowd had begun to pre-mosh in anticipation for the night’s big act. Adding as a main support were Swedish rockers, The (International) Noise Conspiracy. When the purple uniformed rockers came on stage, I was not sure what to think. One minute later, my views were changed. I firmly believe that they are without a doubt, the best support act I have ever seen at a concert.

From the get go, they had the crowd in their grasp, and never them escape, busting out hits like Hiroshima Mon Amour and I Am The Dynamite. The unreal, circus-like microphone stunts performed by Dennis, the lead singer only made the show even more enjoyable, adding insanity to an already brilliant set. His enthusiastic, onstage shenanigans would have put Mick Jagger to shame. One thing is for sure, I will never, ever question the musical abilities of a Swedish man in purple pants ever again.

At 9:30, right on cue, Rise Against, took to the Festival Hall stage, to the piercing loud screams and cheers of their most dedicated and loyal fans they could ever imagine. The opening tunes comprised of the amazing Drones, Give it All and State of Union, which in no surprise took the crowd by storm; intense mosh-pits, and crowd-surfing were the clear favourite ways for fans to get involved in the atmosphere throughout the night.

A short ten seconds later, and Ready To Fall and Injection were locked, loaded, and fired towards the crowd, who responded with intense cheers of pure excitement and adrenaline. The atmosphere was undeniable, Rise Against had the crowd exactly where they wanted them. Lead singer Tim insisted on making as much noise as possible, to let the rest of Melbourne know exactly what was going down in Festival Hall. Naturally, we followed his lead.

When the crowd didn’t think the show could get any better, the first single, and somewhat anthem of Appeal to Reason, Re-Education (Through Labour) began, with its unmistakeable first riff securing the frenzied cheers of the fans. Like any loyal, true fan of Rise Against, the crowd rocked alongside and every word sung exactly in tune with Tim as he shook the foundations of the venue to its core.

Chamber of the Cartridge, Stained Glass and Marble and Behind Closed Doors followed closely, and fans could not get enough of it. The amount of crowd surfing would have seen at least 50+ people pulled from the mosh-pit by security. Many fans were aching to be a part of the action. So much so, that some desperate (and most likely intoxicated) individuals were leaping from the upper balcony to reach the pit. In the lead up to a new crowd favourite, Life Less Frightening and Like The Angel were performed to a strong reception, followed by the rockin’ Collapse (Post Amerika) and Heaven Knows.

However, the very best were being saved for last. With two songs left in the set, Rise Against set out to close an unforgettable night with the amazing Long Forgotten Sons and The Good Left Undone. Rise Against departed the stage, but there was still a little bit more to come…

Crowd cheers of ‘RISE! AGAINST!’ brought the Chicago rockers back to the action, where Tim reminisced about the first time he played Festival Hall five years ago, surveying the crowd to see if any of them had attended the show. A few cheered out, but that was ok, with Tim reassuring us that being there that night was the most important thing we could be doing for the band.

Encore time had arrived for Rise Against, and the noticeable presence of an acoustic guitar meant only one thing: Hero of War and Swing Life Away. Tim and Zach entertained the crowd as Brandon and Joe took a break from the electrified show. A short and sweet set of acoustic songs calmed the crowd, but surely didn’t ruin the atmosphere. Lighters and mobile phones were pulled from pockets, and waved left to right, illuminating Festival Hall in an eerie glow.

As these songs concluded, Tim announced that there were three more songs left in the night, and that now is the time to truly show how passionate you are about Rise Against. The crowd responded enthusiastically, and as Survive and Audience of One played, circle pits were formed; crowd surfing become a craze that everybody had to become a part of and one crazy fan even managed to dive off the stage. Don’t ask how he got there, but he did it twice in ten minutes.

The last song of the night arrived. All would soon be over, and a long wait for Rise Against to return to Melbourne would already begin counting down. Closing the set, Prayer of the Refugee boomed throughout Festival Hall, and the rock ballad began, ending a night no Rise Against fan will ever forget.