Bury the Existence - at first glance I didn't know what was to come, but these young fella's pumped straight into a hardcore brain thumping set. The three guitarists ripped together as one, which had the moshpit amped with driven beats and great time fluctuations from fast to slowed pumped riffs to make the hairs on your neck fall off, making way for the insane moshfest to come. Bringing the old school hardcore death metal to the table... Hard to draw comparisons? Conclusion= awesome set

Countdown to Armageddon - the lights dimmed and they cut into the soundscapes which slowly brought in their set, great effects for the journey, and then BOOM! the moshpit erupted, the guitarists’ hair whip, and the bassist’s growl blended perfectly with the the vox that rivaled Max Cavalera. Fuck these guys set the stage alight. Being a drummer I did appreciate the all-round tightness of the group with the bass drum copping a double pedal pounding like a hooker at happy hour, great all round performance ..

Shadowmill - these guys from the Central Coast NSW went OFF, great sound nice and heavy, embossed clear vocals with occasional well timed scream from the drummer that addressed the metal-pumped riffs well. It very much gave me the feeling of Machinehead’s Burning Red spliced with Killswitch but also The Butterfly Effect with severely swollen gonads made of metal. It was a style all on its own, but I must admit from the second song I knew I had to get their album as these guys have great stage presence and are a as tight as they come. I thinks this band will gain fame - no doubt about it. If you get a chance to see these guys LIVE or pick up a CD you will not be disappointed 11 out of 10 for me ....... Speechless .....

Embrace Eternity - the singer hit the stage oozing energy like a power line falling into his hands, and the band was the nuclear power plant... hard distinct vocals and drums , they took me on a journey out of the hard core metal into the second coming of Metallica with balls. I swear there was smoke rising from guitars at one point from shredding overload. Awesome set , in between tunes they had the crowd laughing, which lightened the mood before they took you on a big journey of metal again.... pumping stuff.....

Idle theory took the stage hard and heavy , awesome guitar work and a well developed vocal scream , the drums ripped and those cymbals got what they deserved. Melodic solo's, and musically it was like getting Phil Anselmo to jam with Kirk Hammett(Kill ‘em All era) and Lars Ulrich after 50 Redbulls(before the pussy Lars era). Nice set, power enough to accidently set a suicide bomber’s explosives off in Iraq. It left my eardrums ringing but begging for more, even though the bassist was fresh to the tunes(much praise to him reading the guitars like a TelePrompTer - fucking awesome job) they all held it together nicely. This metal evening All Ages gig from MIA Entertainment is giving every metal head what the so thoroughly deserve, with each band showing their best. Idle Theory awesome stuff.

 

4 Arm - thrash band From Melbourne who have toured through Sydney Adelaide, Perth and now QLD. These guys reminded me of Slayer with a distinct vocal but the band had Slayer/Metallica/Machinehead feels rolled into one. One song into the set the band wasn't happy with the feed back and wanting to give the crowd their best they stopped to sort out sound which scored big points with me, it showed how much the well-oiled unit respected their fans - awesome! Being a fan of Slayer, it was easy for this band to impress me, also in certain songs they had breakdowns to a Black Sabbath feel, and they had great stage presence. They were very tight, the bassist had a lightning fast ‘4arm‘, the twin guitars worked and fed of each other, the drummer was working the kit to the fullest, awesome musical talent from each member makes a full moshworthy thrash metal band. I wanted the album but due to the hole in pocket, I couldn’t get a copy but will if available online. This band as with Shadowmill will for fill any metalhead’s thirst for a Springy neck from moshing the next morning, finishing hard and fast and left on a high!

A very special thanks to Mic from MIA Entertainment for bringing Metal to the Sunny coast. And I hope to see more Bands at Black Box in future ... this is Charlie from (plug) "The Minor Elite", signing off on a Great Night.

Charlie