It was the final show on the Australian tour for innovative metal juggernaut The Acacia Strain with Kublai Khan joining them for the ride. A hot day in Perth and even hotter at Amplifier bar as the sweat was passed around from band to stage, we witnessed this last show on a tour that blazed through like an Aussie fire.
First to take to the stage was Daybreak and they brought a ton of energy to the table giving the early punters something to talk about in every sense of the word. A really solid band taking tracks from this year’s album “Death Dreams”, by now the crowd are well and truly packing into Amplifier and with good reason.
Next up grindcore/ hardcore punk brutes Unravel took to the stage. Now I don’t know if it was just me but this band’s sound reminded me of a brutal incarnation of another great band, Nails – tracks like “Mogul” “Fear Tactics” and “Trickled Down” were like witnessing a baseball bat straight to the face it, was as simple as that! Yet again well worth a listen on my recommendation.
Now here is where the show got kicked into over drive with the emergence of Texan first timers to our city, Kublai Khan. The thing that really stands out for me as a fan and punter is this band’s monolithic guitar sound, frontman Matt Honeycutt like a snapping pitbull let loose off it’s leash. The tracks “The Hammer” and “8 years” were a perfect illustration of this point, the rest of the band followed seamlessly and the bursting crowd were in full voice and hanging off every word. I’ll tell you this much, this band’s opus “Nomad” made my top ten for 2017 sure to have your attention from tonight onwards.
Last but by no means least was the main attraction, The Acacia Strain with frontman Vincent Bennett hell bound from the moment he and the rest of the band took to destroying the stage. A shirt
I saw at The Accacia Strain merch stand had emblazoned across the back in huge letters
“TUNE LOW DIE SLOW” and this seemed to be the mantra they brought with them in every sense of the word.
Stand out tracks for me were “Send Help” and “Beast”, these were spat with such vigor and vitriol it was insane! What more could I possibly say, fans and casual punters alike would have left here tonight like cats that took the cream. Certainly a night I won’t forget in a hurry, that’s for sure!
PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by Linda Dunjey Photography
