With the onset of a freezing winter well and truly in effect, it was time to rug up and head out to Badlands Bar for an evening of live Heavy Metal with some of Australia’s best Metal acts on offer. Featuring a mix bag of genres including Rock infused, Thrash, Death and Power Metal, Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival once again delivered an epic showcase of heaviness and skill at one of Perth’s leading live entertainment venues.
Taking advantage of the wide range of beverages at the bar, I grabbed a Dark N’ Stormy for ten bucks and headed toward the stage just in time to catch Diamond Sky fire up right on schedule. The band launched the event with a track called “Providing the Fuel” which instantly warmed up the room and energized the growing audience. These guys were a perfect opener for the evening and their fun stage antics and groovy guitarwork ensured that the crowd was hooked from the get go.
I was keen to hear them after seeing their vocalist Freddie perform some killer SOAD covers with live tribute band “System of a Downunder” recently and my expectations were exceeded as the band played a variety of well written original Rock/Metal songs such as “Paradise” and “Outlaw City”. These guys are worth checking out and I especially liked their last song “Shortcut to Heaven” which left me feeling like I had just ridden a highway into the sky and beyond.
Before long, Divine Ascension had taken to the stage and were ready to surge forward with their national tour and promote their new album “The Uncovering” which has just been unleashed upon the world. As the lights dimmed and an endless stream of misty smoke filled the cave, a haunting cinematic ambience echoed throughout the venue, introducing the story of this four-piece outfit from Melbourne. All heads turned toward the stage as vocalist Jennifer began to sing with the kind of orchestral vocals that literally sends shivers down your spine.
I was impressed with all their songs including “Vultures”, “New World” and “One Step from Here” which somehow felt like an endless journey throughout time and space. I particularly enjoyed Karl’s catchy guitar riffs which were backed-up with sensational leads and solos while Jason’s unique bass tone stood out well and complimented the dynamics of the overall sound. Luke provided a steady beat behind the shared double bass Pearl drumkit while vocalist Jennifer continued to psyche up the crowd with her stage antics and breath-taking vocal range. The band ended their set with tracks from their new album such as “The Fallen” and “Beyond the Line” and once again the crowd roared with sincere appreciation and I noticed a few punters heading straight to the merch desk after the experience.
Heading back to the bar, I decided to try out the house red and was rewarded with a glass of St Johns Brook Shiraz right in time to catch Orpheus Omega warming up with their first song “In Time” which started out with increasing gloomy ambience followed by a massive call to arms from lead guitarist/vocalist Chris who passionately yelled out “ARE YOU READY TO MAKE SOME NOISE!!?? while the crowd responded with devil horn salutes and fist pumps. I especially loved Keyboardist Keswick’s antics as he brought the performance to life while chanting vocal choruses alongside Chris who was busy entertaining the crowd with endless varieties of vocal stylings and melodic guitar work. The interaction with the audience was a clear stand-out for me and it was obvious that this Melodic Death Metal Band from Melbourne goes above and beyond the call of duty to ensure that everyone has a good time with jokes and banter thrown about in-between songs.
I also noted the addictive cymbal catches and groovy beats by drummer Matt between riff changes which were perfectly timed. The band blasted out a few more songs including “Tomorrow’s Friends and Yesterday’s Ghosts” and “Karma Favours the Weak” and finally ended a glorious set with their fast-paced track “Sealed in Fate” which resulted in an energetic wall of death and several mosh pits which we thoroughly enjoyed by everyone up the front. This band have just released a brilliant new album called “Wear Your Sins” and I can see why they are considered by many as a rising star in Australian Metal.
Next up was Truth Corroded, a Death/Thash Metal band from Adelaide who recently toured across Europe with Misery Index to promote their latest album “Bloodlands” which has been well-received across the Metal community worldwide. These guys have previously visited Perth back in 2016 for Metal United Down Under and were keen to make some noise in the West as part of their current 2019 Australia Tour. As a first-time listener, I was blown away by the intensity of their first song “To the Carnal Earth” which was polished with abundant guitar shredding, explosive drumming and topped off with blood curdling vocals straight from the burning pits of the abyss.
Truth Corroded were clearly the heaviest band of the night with a limitless assortment of head banging breakdowns blended with face melting solos and blast beats. Greg’s vocals decimated the audience with song titles such as “Leave Nothing Alive” and “Crown the Apocalypse” which filled the venue with a relentless wall of distortion throughout their entire set. The crowd were loving every minute of this band and as their final song “The Disfiguring” was announced, a volley of heavy riffs was hurled at the audience who responded with mosh pits, neck breaking windmills and devil horn salutes.
The band on everyone’s lips was the mighty LORD from Sydney who previously appeared at Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival back in 2015 and are well known as one of Australia’s longest running and most successful Metal acts. The band kicked off with their first song “The Dreaming” and the entire room filled up with a sea of ecstatic fans jumping around, dancing and moshing hard as the band released a bombardment of penetrating guitar riffs, thrashing drums and an impressive mix of clean and thrashy vocals.
Before long, vocalist Tim had the audience singing along to many memorable choruses and as this roller coaster ride of riffs progressed, the band threw in a few new songs from their upcoming album such as “Fallen Idols” and “Kill or be Killed” which just goes to show the fresh originality of these old school Aussie Metal legends. The overall guitar work was mind blowing and I couldn’t get enough of those nail-biting solos and swift drumming combined with stunning vocal ballads throughout every song. The band appropriately wrapped up their set with an intense song called “Through the Fire” and the audience cheered with clapping and loud applause.
There was now an exciting feeling which had built up throughout the venue as the lads from Red Empire Media prepared their cameras to record the last act of the evening. Perth’s favourite Power Metal band Silent Knight were quick to deliver the goods, commencing their set with an epic military sounding intro which flew straight into their opening song “Prisoner”. Guitarist Cam did not hesitate to show-off his incredible guitar skills with solo after solo while his wingman and event organiser Stu McGill laid out the rhythm work and rallied the crowd in between each song. Dan Grainger’s kick drums effortlessly cut through the mix with pulsating triplets and lightning fast double kicks which seemed to bind together this wild storm of epic guitar shredding and powerful vocal choruses.
Smoke continued to fill the stage as the band announced the song title of their upcoming video clip “Blood In The Water” and the crowd erupted in excitement as Silent Knight performed the new track loudly and flawlessly with extra credit to the band’s song writing skills which seem to get better every time I see them. After a relentless attack of powerful vocals, galloping riffs and thunderous double kicks, the band closed the event with their last song “Power Metal Supreme” which went off like a fire cracker and although the crowd rallied for an encore, the show had to finish on time with bellowing applause and cheer from an extremely happy audience.
All in all, Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival is an amazing annual event which all lovers of local Metal should consider penciling in their calendars. It has a bit of everything from all over our great Country and the atmosphere is always welcoming and extremely fun. Thanks to everyone who helped make it such a spectacular experience and I can’t wait to see what else Stormrider Touring has to offer in future. Until next time, see you at the next gig!
PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by Sharon Burgess Photography
