Some might say the The Butterfly Effect are utterly perfect. This certainly was the feeling on Friday night at the sold out Hi Fi bar show.
Support quintet, melodic hard rock band Repeat Offender, charged their way to some crowd acceptance with musical extremities from their very own melodic rock realm. Their harder cover of Mr.Mister`s Broken Wings was, on my part, the first recognizable song played. Nonetheless it was catchy and some anonymous people found themselves singing the words, even if it didn`t seem very blokey to do so.
As many gathered behind raised glass on the second level enjoying a tipple and lounge at the bar, numerous late entrants swarmed in and filled the now teeming venue chock-a-block. Then, as drums thundered, they let rip with Teenage Millionaire. Immediately, camera phones were whipped out with blue screens glowing and this was to last all night through. Next up was Everything Falls, which kicked off after a joking plea from front man Ryan Wilson to us Melbournites to “be gentle”.
The desired “going off” in the front row was not happening until the final song of the set which rounded of with an encouraging clap, meaning, get the hell off the stage perhaps. It`s fair to say that these Triple J unearthed winners were on fire for a little while there.
The hazy, smoke filled stage was enchanting and chaotic to look at, even without the talent up there, and we all knew what we were in for. Over and over, testing, testing to ensure that fantastically captivating sound that The Butterfly Effect possess. Having attended numerous gigs of theirs over the years, you grow to really appreciate their dynamic sound, powered by killer guitar, booming bass and devilish drums. There was never any of that bullshit squealing treble that Karnivool laid down at their last Hi-Fi gig, and I was assured that this one would be no exception.
As per usual for a band of their calibre, the show starts late, and so we stand and sway to the likes of Back In Black and You Shook Me All Night Long. Other than listen and nod, all punters could do was drink and smoke like chimneys. ‘Filling Silence’ aside, the crowd had crammed a venue that some hours ago was not overflowing to the top with carcinogenic chemicals. Talk about being fashionably late, The Butterfly kept us craving.
Clint Boge made himself subtly known as a roar went up with the lights still dim - it was a Maynard Keenan type entrance, standing to the side of stage like an ominous shadow. A blithering drunk guy scrambled down the stairs in front of me, beer frothing over in hand, only to trip and spray booze over about three people including myself. Bloody idiot.
A Slow Descent was an ironic title for the first track as this was no slow show, “Picture yourself by yourself, no tomorrow yesterday”...
Clint revved the vibe to an instant climax that was as hypnotic as ever. A swarm of lights turned on from green to purple as scores of arms flew up signifying gratified approval as the following song Always erupted in yet another frenzy.
Aisles of White, while not as hard hitting as others, became a personal favourite off Imago that was built up wondrously, “Don`t fall, we could have had it all…” pleased elated crowd surfers who seem to always get that little bit more excited than the rest of us no matter what song is playing.
A hybrid humidity plagued the air, the lights then fell blatantly as Clint hurled out “I`d do anything for you, always”. Always…
Clint then got down on his knees to sing “I`ve got the sun in my eyes” off Imago`s track Gone. The pinnacle of the show came when Crave started and then settled in with blazing vocals, “burn and burn and burn”. What was to follow was reminiscent of a Korn mosh pit at the height of their popularity in Australia as hundreds of souls bounced to the searing vocals of “take it away” with fervent passion.
Clint taps on his temple, directing us toward the creative talent that lies within, now being played out for all to see and hear. It all slows down to rhythmic beating and some truly punk style circle dancing follows to the middle right of crowd, fists and shoves all round. Not a good sight considering the death of a Korn fan and the hospitalisation of fifteen maniacal Tool fans in similar situations recently.
Beautiful Mine came on to provide us with a slower pace, toning things down until the chorus hit and there was nothing but glee. As if things weren`t insanely hyped enough, One Second of Insanity proceeded to resound.
“One, one, one second!”
This one turned into a highlight of pure musical madness.
By this time Clint had literally stepped up and placed his feet on a pedestal as he hammered on, adorned with a black jacket till things got too hot. Expectedly, the shirt came off and the tattoos were on display through a thick layer of sweat.
Before too long, the band left the stage with an air of crave still resonating. “We`ll see you soon” was but a temporary parting word before a brief couple of minutes saw the band cheered back on for a Phoenix encore. The unmistakable riffs and tune more than whetted appetites. After the marvellous musical mayhem was over, it was the ascension from downstairs into cleaner air and the instant recoiling of more treasured memories, having just experienced The Butterfly Effect gig number five.
