CONCERT REVIEW: Stigmata Promotions, by Collin Brophy, 9/11/2014

DAEMON PYRE (Sydney Death Metal)

Venue: The Valve Bar (Underground) Sydney.

Date: 25^th October 2014

Guest includes: The Schoenberg Automaton, Hadal Maw, Daemon Pyre, Grim Demise and Autolysis.

I left work and headed for the city, met up with some mates, and we made our way to The Valve Bar. I arrived around 30 minutes prior to the doors being opened. I walked around, spoke to numerous band members, and had a few cold beers. Before the doors opened, the band members could be seen bringing all their gear in and setting up for the night. Everyone waiting was pumped for an awesome night of serious metal.

The doors opened just after 8pm, there were quite a few people already inside the venue, and for only $10.00 for 5 very quality Australian metal bands, who could argue. Out of the 5 bands, I had only seen 3 of them before. I have only heard the other two, Autolysis and Hadal Maw, on YouTube, so I was very much looking forward to seeing them live tonight.

Tonight the promoter of this brilliant gig, Stigmata Promotions, decided to do something very different.  They set up a big screen up against the side wall and played 3 cult horror movies (Dawn of the Dead, Halloween and Hellraiser) on repeat throughout the whole gig, and everyone loved it. It was crazy how some of the vocals and the movie images on the screen managed to coincide with each other, which made the experience even better. I had to laugh when a female fan was getting right into the music and when she turned around, she saw a scene from Hellraiser, and screamed … in tune to the music.  It couldn’t have been timed any better.  This was one of the best local gigs I have been to in a while, and by the reactions of the crowd, I wasn’t the only one who thought the same.

Autolysis (Newcastle, NSW, Australia)

Band Members: Adam – Guitar, Legion – Bass, Mitch – Guitar, Dave – Vocals, Macca – Drums.

Genre: Extreme Metal.

Set List: 1. Deacidal, 2. Total Desa, 3. Drill, 4. Cradle, 5. Death Walker, 6. Enslaved, 7. Autopsy, 8. Malignant.

Tonight was my introduction to the slaughter machine that is Autolysis. These guys were tight, hard and fast, with sick riffs from the guitarist. The drummer was awesome, some very fast drumming and he never missed a beat. The bassist was a beast of a man, who beat the crap out of his bass and ended up braking the strings, not once but twice. The vocalist was non-stop, up and down and back and forth.  He was very energetic, with amazing vocal skills. His growls went perfectly to the horror movies playing on the screen in the background. I very much enjoyed these guys set. I’d like to see these guys again, but this was Mitch’s last ever show with Autolysis and this could quite possibly be Autolysis’ last show ever, as they are struggling to find anyone to replace Mitch’s awesome guitarist skills … Or if they found another drummer, then Macca could play the guitar for Autolysis. We at Busuk Webzine wish Mitch and the other band members of Autolysis all the best in their future endeavours … we hope you find someone soon.

Grim Demise (Newcastle, NSW, Australia)

Band Members: Wretched – Vocals, Pendo - Lead Guitars, Mungo – Bass, Silence - Rhythm Guitars, Dave – Drums.

Genre: Blackened Death / Thrash / Australian Metal

Set List: 1. The cursed, 2. Evil, 3. Forgotten, 4. Decay, 5. Abandon, 6. Left with nothing, 7. Wretched, 8. Harvest.

I haven’t seen Grim Demise for a few months now and I was looking forward to seeing them and hearing some new tunes. Not use to seeing these guys play on a small stage, as they are very energetic and like to spread out, but it was great to be up close and personal.  It was good to see Wretched back up and smashing out tunes after having surgery and titanium rods/pins inserted in his right arm/hand.  You could tell that he was in a bit of pain by the way he kept swapping the mic from right to left hand, but there was no way that the pain was going to stop the metal machine that is Grim Demise from playing a great set.  The drummer was brilliant, as was the bassist and guitarist. While they smashed out their own style of metal, it suited the horror movie being played on the screen, Dawn of the Dead. Grim Demise just gets better and better every time I see them, and tonight was no exception. They’ve introduced some new music, which is heavy, fast and brutal. The crowd definitely liked the new music as well. With a new album on the horizon, things are looking up for Grim Demise.  We here at Busuk Webzine would like to wish Wretched a speedy recovery from his injury and look forward to seeing these guys in the future.

Daemon Pyre (Sydney, NSW, Australia)

Band Members: Sam Rilatt – Vocals, Andrew Lilley – Guitar, Simon Tattam – Guitar, Nathan Crofts – Drums, TBA – Bass.

Genre: Melodic Death Metal.

Set List:

This was the first time I had seen Daemon Pyre, formally known as, As Silence Breaks, since they changed their name earlier this year. I was really looking forward to see these guys tonight, as I have been a huge fan of theirs for quite some time now. From the moment they started until the very last note, Daemon Pyre were brilliant. With a new band member, who has only been with them for a short while, they played like they have been playing together for years. Changing their name and with a whole new attitude DP were brutal. They have matured so much as a band together and it showed in their performance. Playing their new music was a massive hit with the crowd who loved it all. DP has a heavier, nastier sound then when they were ASB. There whole persona as a band has changed and I think it’s for the better. A new name, attitude and focus has definitely worked for DP and with their debut album due out before the end of the year, it looks like next year is going to be huge for all in involved in DP. We at Busuk Webzine wish DP all the best with their new album and the launch once the album is released.

Hadal Maw (Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)

Band Members: Aaron Grice – Vocals, Nick Rackham – Guitar, Ben Boyle – Guitar, Jim Luxford – Bass, Rob Brens – Drums.

Genre: Death Metal

Set List: 1.Sure man, 2.Dissent, 3.Aetas De Morior, 4,Invisible Eye, 5.Hypnoguise, 6.Altar of Ire, 7.Corridors, 8.Obsequia, 9.The Lurid, 10.Coil, 11.From the Mouths of Monsters.

A week before the gig I did a search on YouTube to see if I could hear a sample of Hadal Maw, as I had never heard them before.  I came to the realisation that I have been missing out on one very talented and brutal band. These guys don’t muck around.  They got straight into their set and it was full throttle from the start to finish of non stop death metal. It was inspiring. The drummer was relentless on the skins and his drum kit copped a beating and a half. The bassist was brilliant, the guitarist smashed out some sick riffs as well and the vocalist was an amazing front man, who commanded your attention. This was Hadal Maw’s album launch and by the look of it at the end of the night, they had won over many new fans with their assault on their ear drums. Now I know exactly what I have been missing out on and I definitely can’t wait to see them again.

The Schoenberg Automaton (Brisbane, Queensland, Australia)

Band Members: Nelson Barnes - Drums, Jake Gerstle - Vocals, Shayne Johnson - Guitar, Zimi Shabanay - Bass, Damien Boorman - Guitar,

Genre: Technical / Abstract Death Metal

Set List: 1. Stopping a God Midsentence, 2. Ghost of Mirach, 3. The Woodhouse Sakati Syndrome, 4. Lost City of Embers (New), 5. All Roads Lead to Rome, 6. The Fragile Ones (New), 7. The Worm Engine, 8. Where are We, In a Cube?, 9. Vengeance (New).

I didn’t want to miss seeing these guys, as it was TSA’s last Sydney gig before leaving “The land down under” as they are relocating to Canada. I last saw these guys when they supported Aborted in June 2014 in Sydney, and tonight there was a good crowd ready for a great set and to see them off in style. I have been looking forward to catching up with TSA before they relocated to Canada to try there luck over there. TSA were awesome tonight. They played their hearts out to a very grateful crowd. It was great to be able to chat to the guys before their set and to personally wish them all the best in Canada. By the time they were ready to play, the crowd had gathered and everyone was anticipating a great set. The guys in TSA didn’t disappoint. Easily one of their best sets I’ve seen them play in Sydney. They gave their all in this performance and by the end of their set, they had absolutely demolished the Value Bar. No-one wanted to see them finish because they knew they weren’t going to see them again for a long time.  I am going to miss seeing TSA, as are a lot of other fans. The Canadians won’t know what hit them once TSA have moved over there. Busuk Webzine would like to wish the whole TSA family all the best and we hope that you guys enjoy your time in Canada and hope it all goes well for you all.  The Aussie Metal Scene is going to miss you, but know you will be working hard over there representing the Australian Metal Music Industry and will do us proud.  Hope to see you guys touring back here soon.

[By Collin Brophy for Busuk Webzine.]

CD REVIEW: Disentomb (Brisbane, Australia) - "Misery", by Andrew Sick of Sick Reviews

DISENTOMB (Brisbane, Austraia) - Misery (New Standard Elite)

After several f***ing years of waiting with a lot of pressure after an extraordinary debut album, Disentomb are back with their long awaited second release "Misery"! Disentomb is Jordan James (Vocals), Jake Wilkes (Guitars), Jim Parker (Bass), Henri Sison (Drums) and the quartet are performing a Brutal Death F***ing Metal of high standard and offers a CD of 10 f***ing songs including an intro and a Doom Death Metal song! The sound of "Misery" is still very f***ing good maybe much less at the drums in my opinion but still damn interesting, also very good mixing with a production of high f***ing quality but I think is a downside because this f***ing shit sounds too shiny with no brutality "feelings", dirty side and sick shitty f***ing soul! Jordan on vocals is f***ing good with a powerful guttural but it sounds a bit fade and getting very boring after a while, Jake Wilkes is f***ing amazing on guitars with a bunch of catchy, great and sick f***ing riffs but we can also find many weak, also a wonderful f***ing job of Jim with the bass delivering a very great performance, and finally Henri on drums which is f***ing outstanding with a brutal, diverse and perfect f***ing drumming! "Misery" is a 32-minutes hearing f***ing destruction with several great f***ing songs despite some riffs a bit less, some songs are boring and containing some weak f***ing parts but in general this album is a real piece of musical brutality! Great songs like "The Promethean Altar" and "Pyres Built from their Severed Wings", but we also find some annoying like "Vultures Descend" and "Megaliths of Despair" and also adding the fact that the great song "Forced Adornment of the Funerary Crown" from the Promo 2012 has been totally wasted on the album with backing vocals completely f***ing weak! Despite all downsides, Disentomb still managed to offer us a magnificent f***ing disk that is probably much inferior to "Sunken Chamber of Nephilim" in terms of brutality and enjoyment but still remaining interesting and f***ing excellent! "Misery" is recommended to all extreme metal fans! Excellent F***ing Shit! 8/10. [This review was first published by Andrew Sick of Sick Reviews and is used here with his kind written permission.]

Jack Frost comment: Disentomb is more brutal than a Brisbane Bronco, more dangerous than a Brisbane Bullet, uglier than Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen, and more powerful than a Greyhound bus coming full-speed down the off-ramp at Roma Street Station!

CD REVIEW: Internal Devour (Australia) - "Aborted and Slaughtered", by Andrew Sick of Sick Reviews

Internal Devour (Brisbane, Australia) - Aborted and Slaughtered (Morbid Generation)

Internal Devour come to offer us their debut f***ing album entitled " Aborted and Slaughtered" and the crazy Australians are performing a Slamming Brutal Death F***ing Metal totally f***ing disgusting and brutal completely following the tradition of f***ing slam and doing it in a great f***ing way! This f***ing piece of shit called "Aborted and Slaughtered" is Matt Turkington on Vocals, Brodie Nagel on Bass, Kyle Van Der Ryken on Guitars and the trio are doing a f***ing amazing job on almost every shitty level, the vocals are guttural as f*** with a few screams, riffs of guitars/bass are mostly f***ing excellent with a good job on drums! The production of this damn release is still very well done, good mixing, sounding like a f***ing piece of shit totally f***ing crushing, heavy guitar riffs, drums sounds fake but still f***ing good knowing it's live session worked in studio by Zeke Ferrington and the band! Obviously, Internal Devour are not reinventing the Slamming Brutal Death Metal with this f***ing sick shit but manages to give a very enjoyable first release with a f***ing good slam variety in the riffs/vocals and musically pretty damn brutal! "Aborted Slaughtered" has 8 songs (1 instrumental, 1 demo version) and all excellent but also contains some negatives points, some riffs are totally boring and f***ing weak that I think some blasting riffs instead would have solved the problem pretty well and would have given this f***ing disk a brutal perfection at all f***ing levels and also as mentioned early, the drums sound a bit fake and missing of shitty power! Internal Devour are performing 25 f***king minutes of brutal f***ing slam almost perfect in the shitty genre and is a f***ing must for every slam fan and required to be heard by others! Nothing Original But F***ing Great Slamming Brutal Shit! 9/10. [This review was first published by Andrew Sick of Sick Reviews and is used here with his kind written permission]

CD REVIEW: Inhaling the Stench of Mustard Gas (Aust) - "Nailed to the Floor and Beaten to Death!", by Andrew Sick of Sick Reviews

Inhaling the Stench of Mustard Gas - Nailed to the Floor and Beaten to Death! (Self-Released)

From Australia, Inhaling the Stench of Mustard Gas is now totally a one man band for the second f***king opus and EP of 6 songs, including a cover of Blood Duster, entitled "Nailed to the Floor and Beaten to Death"! Remaining in the same shitty f***ing vein as their debut album, Inhaling the Stench of Mustard Gas is performing a Brutal Death F***ing Metal with very marked Grindcore influences and a Goregrind f***ing atmosphere! Blaster Hansen is the damaged f***ing brain behind this band and is doing everything, Vocals, Bass, Guitars, Drums (real) and we can say he has done a very good f***ing job by giving us an enjoying f***ing piece of shit, very primitive but still nicely damn effective! The vocals are f***ing well done, nothing special but has the faculty to not bore us with a f***ing good power and guttural, the guitar riffs and bass are generally f***ing excellent and for the most part being very basic but doing the f***ing job like it need to be, same goes on drums with still a wide variety of tempos and without forgetting Damon Good who is also doing a good job on the guitar and bass for the cover of Blood Fucking Duster! The production is f***ing great, perfect mixing, a sound which is very f***ing well done, lacking much power and a shitty f***ing side but "Nailed to the Floor and Beaten to Death!" is a "do it yourself" EP and knowing it, we can say this f***ing shit is f***ing wisely made at the production! The f***ing downside of this EP is not really having a "punch" and with some annoying riffs, but always followed by a most enjoyable riff and also, a Doom song I found personally a little bit boring but still f***ing interesting! Inhaling the Stench of Mustard Gas delivers nothing new with this EP but still managed to give us an enjoyable f***ing raw shit and is therefore recommended to all addicts of Brutal Death Shitty F***ing Metal! F***ing Good Piece of F***ing Shit! 7/10. [This review was written by Andrew Sick of Sick Reviews and is used here with his kind written permission.]

CD/ CONCERT REVIEW: Whoretopsy EP CD Launch, Saturday, 19th July 2014 @ the Bendigo Hotel, Melbourne, Australia, by Michael Mifsud

Whoretopsy EP CD Launch Review, Saturday, 19th July @ the Bendigo Hotel, Melbourne, Australia

Whoretopsy is a brutal death-metal band from Melbourne, Australia, they first started in January 2011. This band has performed at Hammersonic Festival in Jakarta, toured around Australia, and shared the stage with metal legends such as Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, Dying Fetus and Kataklysm.

This 5-piece band consists of.

Storma – Vox

Poey- Guitar1

Lachy- Bass

Chrisso- Drums

Brent – Guitar2

Their new EP called While You Were Sleeping is their third official release. Their first album, They Did Unspeakable Things, was released in 2012. This was followed by an EP, Isn't She Lovely, which was released later in the same year.

Their new album consists of five songs:

1. Fiddler In The Roof

2. While You Were Sleeping

3. Bashed and F***ed

4. Nature’s Pocket

5. The Terrible Thirty Two’s

These 5 songs and 15.01 minutes of brutality metal makes your windows explode when turning up the volume. The lyrics are of a sexual nature, but the beat of the drums and guitars are awesome to listen to. I will give this album 8/10 but listening to them live 10/10.

[By Michael Mifsud for Busuk Webzine]

NEWS: AC/DC guitarist Malcolm Young is suffering from dementia. However, the legendary rock band members are not quitting.

Angus (left) and Malcolm Young, AC/DC. Best wishes to Malcolm Young and we hope he can overcome this illness.

Malcolm Young in recent times

AC/DC guitarist Malcolm Young is suffering from dementia and will likely never play again, the Sydney Morning Herald is reporting.

Reports hinted that the heavy metal legends had planned to retire after learning the truth, but they said in a statement they planned to carry on.

“That is true, Malcolm is sick,” friend Mark Gable told Australian public radio on Wednesday. “From what I understand, and it’s even been confirmed in part by his son Ross (Young), that it would appear Malcolm is unable to perform anymore.

“It’s not just that he is unwell, it’s that it is quite serious. It will constitute that he definitely won’t be able to perform live. He will probably not be able to record.”

Gable said it is unlikely the 61-year-old guitarist will ever play live again.

A family member told the Herald that while the diagnosis remained foggy, Young’s condition had deteriorated to the point where his loved ones were looking into full-time respite care.

The Herald reported that Young is having difficulty “remembering familiar faces” and is having increasing problems communicating.

“His memory loss is so bad it is consistent with Alzheimer’s or dementia although we do not know that is what it is,” the source told the Herald. “There has been talk about cancer too.”

As for AC/DC calling it quits, the source called retirement talk “pure speculation.” Yet music industry insiders say Young’s brother Angus — who helped him co-found the band in 1973 — believes “Malcolm is the band” and could be irreplaceable.

And there is a precedent for AC/DC replacing ailing — or dead — members. Brian Johnson replaced the band’s beloved frontman, Bon Scott, after the latter’s booze-fuelled death in 1980.

And when Malcolm Young was previously ill, his nephew Stevie replaced him on tour and hardly anyone noticed, the Herald reports.

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

AC/DC. Left to Right: Brian Johnson, Phil Rudd, Angus Young, Malcolm Young, and Cliff Williams.

AC/DC 1979. Left to Right: Malcolm Young, Cliff Williams, Phil Rudd, Angus Young, Bon Scott.

Malcolm Young in the early days, 1970s

AC/DC in the early days around 1975-76. Left to Right: Malcolm Young, Bon Scott, Angus Young, Mark Evans, Phil Rudd

GIG REVIEW: “Origin” - The End Of An Entity: Australian Tour 2014 by Collin Brophy

Venue: The Cambridge Hotel Newcastle (NSW, Australia)

Date: 10 May 2014.

Special Guests: Grim Demise, The Seer, Eternal Rest, A Million Dead Birds Laughing.

I finished work and then headed up the freeway to The Cambridge Hotel in Newcastle. There was a small crowd already inside the venue when I arrived. Once Grim Demise started there were a few more people in the venue. Unfortunately due to another show around 20 minutes down the road which started earlier than this gig, this amazing gig with some truly talented bands didn’t get the crowd which it deserved. I spoke to a few people who were also disappointed with the turnout, with roughly only 100 people turning up for this gig. Because of the low crowd turnout, the crowd that was there was treated to what was an amazing gig, and it felt like our very own private gig. 

Grim Demise (Newcastle, NSW, Australia).

Genre:  Blackened Death / Thrash / Australian Metal

Band Members:

RiCho – Vocals

Pendo - Lead Guitars

Mungo – Bass

Dave – Drums

Matt Ohma - Guitar

Set List: 1. Evil, 2. For They Bleed, 3. The Forgotten, 4. Left With Nothing, 5. Wretched Harvest.

I saw these guys around 5 weeks ago for the first time and they were brilliant … and that was Matt’s first gig with Grim Demise.  It looks like he has settled in very well with the band. Tonight’s gig is different as these guys stepped up to the mark big time as the opening support for Origin. From the very start of “Evil” right to the end with “Wretched Harvest”, Grim Demise were fantastic.  Unfortunately they only had enough time for 5 wicked songs. The band was having a lot of fun on stage and they even set the vocalist up with a song with clean vocals, which surprised even him as it wasn’t meant to happen.  He said, “They made me do it”.  After their set, I ended up getting their album called “Nameless Graves” which I started blasting on my way home.  I got so engrossed in the music.  It was fantastic. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going, due to head banging, and ended up driving in the opposite direction … I took an extra 30 minutes to get home … but that was OK as I got an extra 30 minutes of blasting this album.  Stay tuned for another CD review … lol!

The Seer (Newcastle, NSW, Australia).

Genre: Symphonic Death Metal

Band Members:

Ryan Huthnance - Vocals and Guitar
Daniel McInnes - Guitar
Allan Swaffield - Bass
Tom Taylor - Drums

Set List: 1. Thanatos, 2. Timeless, 3. Condemnation, 4. Demise of the Gods.

I last saw The Seer at the start of the year and they were brilliant, and tonight they were even better. With a new album under their belt, they were ready to let lose with some new songs off the album. As usual they were very tight and intense. Due to time restraints, they only had enough time to smash out 4 incredible songs. After their set, I ended up going to their merch stand and pre-ordered their new album.  I can’t wait for it to arrive.  This was The Seer’s second gig for today, as they came straight from their set at Hexham’s (Newcastle) Metal Bloody Metal festival to the Cambridge. The Seer have been pushing themselves and their music, to the limit in their performances, that they have been selected to support two of their biggest influences, the brilliant “Septicflesh” and the amazing “Fleshgod Apocalypse”, on the Australian tour, in early-mid May 2014, at The Manning Bar in Sydney.  Just goes to show that hard work does pay off.  Good luck guys and I look forward to seeing you all again.

Eternal Rest (Brisbane, Queensland, Australia).

Band Members:

Lochlan Watt – Vocals (The Racket)

Mick Hunter - Drums
Jake Kaiser - Guitars
Chris Clark - Guitars
Jannico Kelk - Bass

Genre: Death Metal

Set List: 1. Manifestation, 2. Preaching the decimation of spheres, 3.New, 4. song, 5. Onset of destruction, 6. Remnants, 7. New song, 8. Prophetic.

I haven’t seen Eternal Rest for quite some time and I was really looking forward to seeing them. Last time I saw them I really enjoyed the show.  This time was no exception.  It’s obvious they have grown as a band.  They hit the stage and just smashed it. I have always enjoyed their sets as the music is heavy.  Their stage presence was awesome and they always seem to have so much fun on stage. They played some new songs which were brilliant. For some reason I have always admired the way both Jake and Chris play guitars.  I can’t explain why, buy you just have to watch them live to see what I mean.  They have a presence on stage that commands respect.  They are both very talented guys who complement each other with their playing styles and technique.  This is not to take anything from the rest of the members in the band … the bass player is a real character, the drummer is insane and the vocalist demonstrated great range and talent.  Eternal Rest always put on a great set, but tonight’s set was just brilliant.  The time went by too fast and their set was over before I knew it.  It’s amazing how much these guys have matured in such a short space of time.  I look forward to seeing these guys live again and to any future albums.

A Million Dead Birds Laughing (Melbourne, Australia).

Genre: Death Metal/Death Grind

Band Members:

BB - Guitar.
DT - Drums.
SA - Bass.
DL - Vocals

Set List: 1. Conduit, 2. Seppuku, 3.VII, 4.Rashomon, 5. Defaced, 6. Nest, 7. Beast, 8. Fortress 9. Defiants, 10. Agony, 11.Warlord, 12. Imperium, 13. Axiom, 14. Empress, 15. King, 16. Zombie.

I know of these guys, but have never seen them live before tonight. AMDBL were fantastic, very heavy and brutal. These guys have to be seen to be believed how really good AMDBL are.  DL’s vocal range is some of the best I have heard live. AMDBL have a cult like following. From what I saw and after witnessing their brutal assault on the Cambridge, I can understand why. This was AMDBL’s first ever gig at Newcastle and hopefully they will return in the near future. AMDBL brought out a new album at the end of last year (2013) called “Bloom”.  It’s a very heavy, intense and brutal album.  They played some songs tonight off the new album to which the crowd loved. AMDBL have been playing some insane supports over the last 12 months.  They played the Sonic Forge Festival, The Australia Day Party, support for Nile & The Face Tour 2013, as well as Psycroptic’s 'Inheriting the Sickness' Australian Tour 2013 as well.  So these guys know a thing or two on how to destroy a venue or two with some seriously heavy music.  If you get a chance to see these guys, make the effort … you won’t be disappointed.

Origin (Kansas/California/New York, USA).

Genre: Death Metal

Band Members:

Jason Keyser - Vocals
Paul Ryan - Guitars/Vocals
Mike Flores - Bass/Vocals
John Longstreth - drums

Set List: N/A

This was my first time in seeing Origin, and from what quite a few people told me, I was in for one hell of a show from these guys. Vocalist, Jason, definitely knew how to work a crowd.  He is a very charismatic front man.  He is a great entertainer with a lot of energy, never stopped moving around the stage and continuously involved the audience. Drummer, John, played like a demon.  He is easily one of the best drummers going around in the Death Metal scene today and is just amazing to watch live. After watching him play, I’m surprised the drum kit still existed in one piece after the set.  Mike, the bass player, was ruthless with his bass.  He beat it, flogged it, slapped it and brutalised it, in the most musical sense of the way!!  I have never seen anyone brutalise a bass like he did tonight. He was like a man possessed.  Guitarist, Paul, was fantastic.  Some of the riffs he played were unbelievable.  The things he can do on the guitar has to be seen to be believed. 

Vocalist, Jason, said he wanted to see a one man “mosh pit”.  There were a couple of people who put there hands up.  Only one was chosen and he “moshed” by himself until others joined in after a couple of minutes. A solo “mosh pit” was the funniest thing I’d ever seen.  From were I was standing I had a very good view of the crowd and of the stage, and when the 4 person circle pit got going, I couldn’t help but laugh. The funniest part was when Jason wanted a 2 man “wall of death”.  The singer from Grim Demise, RiCho, said he would be in it.  I’m not sure what happened, but another dude got in and RiCho missed out. Jason counted down, and the 2 man “wall of death” started.  One of them got smashed, but he was ok. I couldn’t stop laughing at them because it looked so funny from were I was standing. All during Origin’s set there was 3-5 man “mosh pit” and 3 man “circle pits”.  Everyone there was enjoying themselves so much.  The band really knew how to make the most out of getting entertainment out of their fans.  Unfortunately, when their set was over, the cheering and the roar of the crowd was very loud, considering the turn out was limited. I definitely want to see Origin again when they return to our shores.  We were very privileged that the crowd was not very large, as we had our very own private performance where the band was able to interact more with the fans.

What a fantastic night of metal with some brilliant Aussie metal and Origin (USA) which at times left me speechless. I was lucky enough to have picked up 2 albums from AMDBL, one from The Seer and a Grim Demise album.  Unfortunately, I spent my “allowance” on the Aussie bands merch and wasn’t able to grab an Origin CD at the end of the night, but I will definitely be picking up the Origin CD when they release their new album in a couple of months. 

By Collin Brophy 

GIG REVIEW: Morbid Angel “Covenant” Australian Tour 2014. By Collin Brophy

Special Guest: Bastardizer

Venue: The Metro Theatre Sydney.

Date: 24^th April 2014

I arrived in the city with about 40 minutes to spare, and just as well because I got lost!  I finally found the venue (after I rang my wife) with around 10 minutes before the doors opened. I walked around the corner where the line up was and saw it was about 100 meters long. I overheard a few fans saying how they were looking forward to tonight’s gig, and by the looks of it, so was the rest of all the fans in line.  When the time came for the doors to open, there was a loud roar and everyone shuffled their way in. I was one of the lucky ones, I got in there early enough to grab a shirt and not wait in line for 10 minutes.

Bastardizer (Sydney, NSW, Australia).

Band Members:

Chris Beesley - Lead Vocals

Bill Morgan – Guitars

Jackson King – Drums

Ray McGill - Bass.

Genre: Black Thrash Metal

Set List: 1. Bastards, Bullets, Bitches & Beer, 2. Bathory & Lust, 3. Enforcers Of Evil 4, Eureka, 5. WWIII, 6. Bareback In Brazil/Baphomet's Bukkake, 7. Pentagram Of Pleasure, 8. Up The Ante, 9. The Black Scourge Of Death.

I saw Bastardizer last year and they were brilliant.  If you want any band to support Morbid Angel for their Covenant tour, then there is no better band then Bastardizer. 

From the very first song, “Bastards, Bullets, Bitches & Beer”, they spewed forth their very own brand of Black Thrash metal to which the crowd loved. “Pentagram Of Pleasure” was a crowd favourite by the sounds of the applause after the song was finished. By the end of their set they had made many new fans and friends.  A lot of people I spoke to really enjoyed their set.  The band blew me away with how much better they were tonight then when I saw them last year. They’ve really matured as a band, which was great to see.  I was lucky enough to have a quick chat with the guys after the gig and they were more than happy to sign my Bastardizer album entitled “Enforcers Of Evil” which was released earlier this year. If Bastardizer are playing anywhere near or around, even if you have to travel, I highly recommend that you catch these guys live.  They’re getting better and better and put on a great show.

Morbid Angel (Florida, USA)

Band Members:

Trey Azagthoth – guitar, guitar synthesizer, keyboards, backing vocals (1984 – present)

David Vincent – Lead vocals, bass guitar (1986 – 1996, 2004 – present)

Thor “Destructhor” Myhren – guitar (2008-present)

Tim Yeung – drums (2010-present)

Genre: Death Metal

Set List: 1. Rapture, 2. Pain Divine, 3. World Of Shit (The Promised Land), 4. Vengeance Is Mine, 5. The Lions Den, 6. Blood On My Hands, 7. Angel Of Disease, 8. Sworn To The Black, 9. Nar Mattaru, 10. God Of Emptiness, 11. Ageless, Still I Am, 12. Curse The Flesh, 13. Existo Vulgore, 14. Immortal Rites, 15. Fall From Grace, 16. Maze Of Torment.

After waiting 20 years to see this amazing album played in it entirety, is a once in a lifetime gig, and I wasn’t the only one who felt like that.  The atmosphere was electric and The Metro was packed to the seams. From the very first moment they walked on stage and ripped into “Rapture”, the crowd went ballistic with so many bodies bouncing of each other and bodies flying over the top. By the time they got to “Angel Of Disease”, I was still in awe of what was happening in front of me. The drumming was just insane. I have never heard anyone play drums live like that before and I’m not sure if I ever will again. The bass was just pounding non stop throughout the whole gig, as was the vocals. The band was just incredible. The guitarists were both unbelievable. I have never ever seen anyone play a guitar like these guys tonight and people were still talking about it after the gig.

This Morbid Angel gig would go down as one of the best gigs I have ever been to, and I have been to quite a few over the years.  I think the reason for me enjoying this gig so much was mainly due to the fact that Morbid Angels’ Covenant is one of my all time favourite albums. They smashed out 16 songs and it still left the fans wanting more.  By the time the last song, “Maze Of Torment”, finished the crowd wanted more, but unfortunately that wasn’t to be. This was a brilliant night of metal and no-one wanted to leave, but like they say, “all good things must come to an end”. By the time I walked outside the Metro, there was heaps of fans just standing around talking about the brilliant gig they just witnessed. This was truly an awe inspiring gig to witness.

By Collin Brophy