Army of Darkness: 8 FootSativa, Frankenbok, FullScale, Sunk Loto @ WollongongUni, 13/5/04

Mon 17th May, 2004 in Gig Reviews

Roaring vocals, raging guitars and cranking speakers saw the Army of Darkness Tour come to life at Wollongong University’s Unibar last week. The line up included pumping heavy bands 8 Foot Sativa, Frankenbok and Full Scale, who successfully prepared the crowd for headliners Sunk Loto.

8 Foot Sativa were underway within 15 minutes of doors open. Unfortunately, the crowd were far from welcoming and for 8 Foot Sativa, almost failed to show up. Nonetheless 8 Foot Sativa rocked on in what seemed more like a band rehearsal than a professional gig. Their set proved to be hardcore and energetic despite the lack of response from the sober audience and are to be commended on playing so enthusiastically with style.

After a half an hour set, it was time for 8 Foot Sativa to call it a night and join the growing crowd of metal fans on the floor ready for the presence of Frankenbok. The guys from Frankenbok graced the crowd with more heavy tunes, and a slightly louder set. If the sound guy was trying to be subtle in cranking each band up louder as the night continued on, he certainly failed. Frankenbok were alarmingly louder than 8 Foot Sativa, perhaps a desperate attempt at a more reactive audience involvement.

After Frankenbok’s half an hour set, it was time for Full Scale. Now the crowd began to stir. I was about to discover what all the commotion was about. The atmosphere as Full Scale came on stage became disturbingly welcoming. It wasn’t until Full Scale began to sing The Rapture that I realised, these guys were really something. Unique, energetic and full of emotion, they connected with their audience in a way almost indescribile. The analogy of an onion and its layers can perhaps be associated with their music. On the surface are chunky guitar riffs, elaborate and technical solos with a stage presence that captures the audience, but internally, Full Scale’s lyrics are layered in political and social angst, captured in the soothingly coarse voice of vocalist Ezekiel Ox in songs such as Sixteen Today and Five Six.

The unibar floor was almost half full by the time Sunk Loto began their set. Surprisingly there was plenty of room to move around, but it was made obvious by screaming and drunken slander that the majority of those present for the Army of Darkness Tour, were indeed there to see headliners Sunk Loto. The boys quitely made their way on stage as an almost angelic soft tune silenced the crowd. The silence ceased and was overcome by screams of appreciation and arms in the air as Sunk Loto dove straight into their opening song Public. The sound had now been cranked from being able to talk over the top of 8 Foot Sativa, to not even being able to hear yourself think. Earplugs would have been a good investment at this particular gig, I must say, the sound quality was quite an improvement from The Butterfly Effect who had played there just weeks before, however the volume of the instruments almost made the concert a little uncomfortable.

I was absolutely astonished to discover in two songs, vocalist Jason Brown uncannily began to sound like Brandon Boyd from Incubus. His harmonies have definitely improved since the release of Big Picture Lies in 2000. Jason was sure to throw in some old material such as the still popular Sunken Eyes. Unfortunately the guys were only able to play a one hour set due to time restrictions held by the venue.

Overall the concert was worth while and could have been improved with perhaps a slight adjustment to the volume of sound. The roadies needed to be more prompt in setting up each following band in order for Sunk Loto to perform for more than an hour in total. The lighting seizured into complexities with a strobe being synchronized with catchy bass and guitar riffs, but made it hard to take clear photographs. The atmosphere of the night was full of energy and appreciation for some great metal talent, but the best performance of the night had to come from Full Scale with their incredible energy and raw idiosyncrasies in every song.