Decapitated @ Black Bettys,Perth (06/04/10)

Sun 11th Apr, 2010 in Gig Reviews

Eagle Eye’s Gallery

After a tragic tour bus accident in late 2007 took the life of their long time drummer Witold “Vitek” Kietyka and forcing singer Adrian “Covan” Kowanek into a coma, all seemed lost for Polish death metal band Decapitated. After much soul searching guitarist Waclaw “Vogg” Kieltyka decided that it would have been his brother’s wish for him to continue what they had started as teenagers. So, after a warm-up lap with an all-new line-up in the UK, Vogg and new crew stormed to Australia, culminating the tour at Black Betty’s, Perth.

The line of metal heads trailed down Aberdeen street from 8pm onward, but doors were 30 minutes late because, it turned out, that the entire tour flight was re-routed from Adelaide. This meant that Misery Index fans would be let down in set time as half the crowd were still overcoming the security guards and ticketing procedures. Fans were not let down by the opening band’s performance in any regard though, as bassist/vocalist Jason Netherton and his entourage pushed on through their rushed set. They pummelled through a decent enough slab to satisfy most fans and gained a few new ones; drummer Adam Jarvis did most of the pummelling, hitting his drums like a man recently admitted to an asylum. A short but sweet set, but hopefully they can return to our shores soon for an extended performance.

Watching the sound check for wayward sons, Origin, it was clear the crowd was in for a treat of unbridled musicianship and virtuoso-like playing. As they kicked into their first song, the mix proved to work against them, low noted riffs were lost in a muddy mess. They waded on regardless, not letting the mythical swamp beast drag them down and swallow them up into oblivion. Guitarist Paul Ryan flicked off the mud with his blindingly fast sweeping skills as bassist Mike Flores serviced the beast sexually, utilising both hands to manipulate his instrument into a low ended rumbling orgasm. The pair backed up with high and low screams respectively to lead throat Mica Meneke, his head above the boggy quagmire keeping the rhythm clear and concise. Drummer John Longstreth sat back and ripped the kit to pieces, adding to the cleaning up of the rhythmical goodness. They spanned their four album back catalogue nicely, with notable mentions Vomit You Out and Perversion Of Hate getting much appreciation from the crowd. A great lesson of “how to play technical death metal”, class dismissed.

One needed some solace after the sensory overload of Origin, some time to just mosh and kick out the jams rather than standing still aghast at the amazing skill and technical wizardry. Enter Psycroptic. The amazing skill and tech whiz was still apparent, but with the pulsing ‘driving-down-the-main-street-in-my-commy-arm-out-the-window-sipping-a-VB-longneck’ grooves of A Calculated Effort and Horde In Devolution, the punters could let down their hair and pump a fist or two. Psycroptic have honed their live show perfectly and never disappoint, pulling out old classics like Skin Coffin, Lactarine Forest and The Colour of Sleep. Nothing can be said about this band that hasn’t before, if there is any band that has -as the old cliché goes; “really hit their stride” it is these carnivorous marsupials.. Surely nothing can threaten their survival as they spread their seed globally.

Decapitated levelled Perth back in 2007 while touring with Nile. The question in everyone’s minds was, Would the new line up be equal to that blistering performance?

A Poem About An Old Prison Man from Organic Hallucinosis got things off to a roaring start as punters assessed the new guard. Vogg attacked his guitar with vigour as new bass player Filip Halucha kept up with his fast pace. Front man Rafal Piotrowski seemed a bit green and as the set bore on, it was apparent that he lacked coherent English skills. The language barrier was crossed by the music thankfully, an Organic Hallucinosis heavy set with only Winds Of Creation and Three Dimensional Defect making the cut.

Drummer Kerim Lechner had some big shoes to fill, and did a great job, but much like a toddler in papa’s shoes, they didn’t fit that well. Lechner was out of his depth compared to Vitek; through no real fault of his own. Apart from Vogg’s great guitar skill that kept the audience in complete amazement, the overall vibe was bizarre. Punters stood relatively still, too busy watching if the new troops could match up to the now classic Decapitated line up. The silence and stale was broken slightly by the ‘hit single’ closer Spheres Of Madness, when punters created some madness of their own.

In short, the new members of Decapitated will need to do more to prove themselves in the future, as many fans left in an ambivalent mood, elated to have seen the band again, but with the niggling feeling that the two lost members were crucial to their amazing sound.

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