The crowd poured into Magnet House for a night of metal heavyweights, with very little space left between the people in the audience. Up first on the lineup were American metal band BOUNDRIES, hailing from Connecticut in the US, Boundaries. Even though they were opening the night ahead of Ocean Sleeper, Stick To Your Guns and While She Sleeps, Boundaries didn’t hold back and delivered a body slamming set that had the whole crowd moshing and jumping along! The people who make up this heavy hitting band are vocalist Matt McDougal, Cory Edmond and Cody DelVecchio on guitars, Nathan Calcagno on the bass and Tim Sullivan smashing the drums. The insane over driven riffs and the thundering drums saw the crowd moshing along and circle pits formed throughout their set. Boundaries were moshing along from the stage, commanding the sea before them as the wave of moshers obeyed. If you want a heavy metal band you can listen to on repeat, check out Boundaries.
Follow Boundaries: @BoundariesCT | Website | Facebook | Spotify
Melbourne band OCEAN SLEEPER are no strangers to the Perth metal scene, having played here previously a number of times over the last few years. Their last visit to the West Coast was playing at Lynott’s Lounge with Lil Lotus and Darkmatter. Before that, they played October 2023 in Freo Social with Sunk Loto and Amberdown. They are always well received by the Perth crowd and tonight was no different. Vocalist Karl bounced around on stage, despite having a cast on half of his leg, not letting anything hold him back. It came as a surprise to Karl and the crowd when the rest of Ocean Sleeper sang him Happy Birthday, celebrating with a cake.
Their set featured all hits and crowd favourites, including Forever Sinking, and Your Love I’ll Never Need, perfect tracks to showcase their pop-punk style and metal elements. They introduced a new track, Maybe Death Is All I Need, from their upcoming EP by the same name, resonating with fans eager for fresh material. Their track Light In My Dark had the audience singing along and jumping along with a nice little high energy mosh pit forming in front of the stage, as they rolled seamlessly into King Of Nothing. Ocean Sleeper ended their set on Never The One, which had the crowd singing the lyrics back to the band on stage, in a serendipitous moment of energy and connection. A great first half of the night by Boundaries and Ocean Sleeper!
Follow Ocean Sleeper: @OceanSleeper | Website | Facebook | Spotify
American hardcore band STICK TO YOUR GUNS were up next, coming out onto the stage in a whirlwind of energy. This was their first time playing at Magnet House and the crowd ate up every second of the dynamic stage show. As a five-piece, featuring vocalist Jesse Barnett, guitarists Chris Rawson and Josh James, bass player Andrew Rose and drummer Adam Galindo, they commanded the stage with their presence. Right from the start, they were immediately jumping around on stage and getting the crowd energised as mosh pits and circle pits formed. This was a nice heavier change from Ocean Sleeper’s pop-punk vibe and the crowd were loving it! One of their crew members was also celebrating a birthday and all of Magnet House sang the embarrassing birthday song to their photographer as another cake was brought out on stage.
They transitioned seamlessly between songs, keeping the energy high with the double kicks and over driven riffs, taking the crowd on a journey with the heavy riffs and equally heavy breakdowns. The raging guitars ignited a circle pit once more, as the band launched into their final song, speeding up in a race against time and building into their heaviest breakdown yet, leaving the crowd wanting for more. Stick To Your Guns gave the Magnet House crowd an awesome set and a fantastic live experience.
Follow Stick To Your Guns: @STYGoc | Website | Facebook | Spotify
With a short wait before British metalcore band WHILE SHE SLEEPS came out, the heavy metal crowd at Magnet House was energised and ready. While She Sleeps hadn’t graced Perth shores since the 2013 Soundwave Festival and it had been a long 11 year wait for them to come back. The stage fell into darkness as the crowd fell silent, eagerly awaiting what was to come. Two bright spotlights pierced through the darkness, illuminating the crowd like eyes, as the band stepped onto the stage. Vocalist Lawrence Taylor jumping around the stage wearing a black leather jacket and sunglasses, flanked by guitarists Mat Welsh (also vocals) and Sean Long, bass player Aaron McKenzie and Adam Savage on drums. While She Sleeps were instantly high energy from the get-go, with a commanding stage presence and dynamic energy that you just couldn’t look away from, nor did you want to. The stage presence was intense and the air was electric!
While She Sleeps really put the heavy in heavy metal at Magnet House. There were circle pits and moshing throughout their entire set, while Taylor executed perfectly timed fly kicks and jump kicks across the stage, to the cheers of the crowd. At one point Taylor stepped off the stage and onto the shoulders of the crowd, reaching out and high fiving punters, holding hands with others, in a touching heavy metal moment. His vocals were like gravelly chocolate breaking into pieces, as his screaming lyrics mixed with the clean tone vocals soared over the crowd. The heavy over driven guitar riffs, thick bass tone and punishing hard hitting drumming keeping everything in check from song to song. While She Sleeps had truly brought an infectious energy to their set and the crowd could not get enough!
The engagement with the audience continued as they were encouraged to raise their arms, swaying like a wave and moving together as one, captured by the melodic raging riffs being laid out before them on stage. A revolving door of crowd surfers kept the security busy, creating a fun and lively interaction with the band as they reached the stage and got high fives before vanishing into the mosh pit again. This really showed the connection that While She Sleeps have with their fans. There were multiple guitar changes throughout the set, a shout out to their crew and guitar techs for assisting the band with the exchanges so smoothly.
At one point, Taylor took a moment to talk about an interaction he had with a fan at the merch desk who was having bad anxiety. Taylor addressed the crowd, speaking about those who struggle with anxiety but still muster the courage to attend shows being braver and stronger than they think they are. His words were heartfelt, emphasising that this community embraces bravery, making it a welcoming space for everyone, whether attending solo or with friends. The band also took this moment to sing yet another happy birthday rendition alongside a cake for one of their crew.
Their set continued with electronic elements complimenting the heavy riffs. A fake finish left fans changing ‘one more song’ with anticipation. They then performed a rare cover of a Chemical Brothers track, with shredding guitars, and invited everyone to join the circle pit. There wasn’t much encouragement needed as chaos soon ensued with circle pit and mosh pit galore. With an electronic intro reminiscent of a Blade movie fight scene, the crowd’s energy surged as the lights from the ceiling cascaded in waves of pink and green. This was a perfect ending to a night of heavy metal heavy weights, leaving the crowd wanting more and While She Sleeps promising to return again soon.
While She Sleeps continue their world tour, info here.
Follow While She Sleeps: @WhileSheSleeps | Website | Facebook | Spotify
OCEAN SLEEPER & BOUNDARIES GALLERY
STICK TO YOUR GUNS GALLERY
WHILE SHE SLEEPS GALLERY
