Atvena's Wake EP launch @Amplifier Bar

Tue 7th Apr, 2009 in Gig Reviews

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After their humble beginnings as just another metalcore band on the local scene, Atvenas Wake have certainly come a long way. Tonight finally, sees the release of their debut EP, Hermetica.

Catching the last few songs of newcomers Arturo Chaos, it was apparent something was lacking. No bass player. Word has it he quit merely hours before their set. With no time to find a replacement, the rest of the lads were forced to soldier on, and they did, with little-to-no effect on the crowd. Suffering from a terrible mix and a very tinny sound, you can’t blame the boys as they did their best.

Next up were another relatively new fixture to the local metal scene, Sworn to Thanatos. What’s a thanatos? Who knows. They seemed to have a good following though, and it was relatively easy to see why. Their strong immovable object of a frontman commanded the stage with a great presence. Great stuff. Their songs however, all seemed to be at the same tempo, and only broken up slightly with a few breakdowns here and there, so their set was something of a blur.

The same simply cannot be said for Gallows For Grace . Fontman Blake started out having a few problems with the wireless mic and once he figured it out, declared “Howzit goin, we’re Gallows for Grace, we’re all wasted and we don’t give a fuck!” That statement pretty much set the tone for one of the most entertaining sets we’ve seen on the local scene in a long time.

From some punter throwing a hat at Blake and his improv lyrics: “Stop. Fucken. Throwing. Things. You. Cunt!” to the general tightness and quality musicianship of the band, it seems even when half cut these guys still destroy most. After some drum issues in the last song, and a impromptu jam, Gallows pulled it together and finished off in style, entertaining the crowd from start to finish.

With some intro music rumbling through the PA system, Atvenas Wake took the stage to a pretty decent turnout.The addition of a keyboardist and under the watchful eye of local knob-twiddler Adian Barton, Atvenas Wake have improved their sound and musical outlook tenfold. A tight polished act with a strong, confident frontman; TJ Sinclair and ripping lead Guitarist Shaun Mcllroy , they did well to entertain their fans with a decent length set comprised of the aforementioned EP.

The only thing that let them down was the slightly out of tune clean vocals. It seemed to be a foldback or hearing-related issue not ability related, as bass player Scott Doig seemed to be In-tune during quieter passages. If they can rectify this, those big epic melodic parts will translate better live and push them on to bigger and better things.

A great EP launch which many said was long overdue, but clearly the right time for them to develop their sound as they saw fit.

Missed it? L-Train has got the goods