11 January 2024 – The Zoo, Brisbane – words by Lucas Bell – pictures by Richard Boltron
Happy New Year! In what was expected to be an incredibly exciting night, my first concert for 2024 I don’t think could have been a better lineup of bands. The postponed Australian tour for New York based deathcore act The Acacia Strain is finally here! And they definitely stacked the bill with some interesting and exciting bands. Portland metalcore group Dying Wish have been a band that snuck on my radar the last six months, so getting to see not only their debut Australian tour, but their debut Australian show had me pumped. Adding in Newcastle metalers Volatile Ways and Brissy’s own Crave Death, this was expected to be a killer show.
And speaking of Crave Death, they were the first cab off the rank for 2024 for me. For an act I knew nothing about before tonight, absolutelyI loved this band so much. While the mosh was kinda dead until right at the end, I think they immediately set a high bar for the night. The band felt very deathcore-ish on the first song, until the hardcore vocals kicked in, which is a blend of vocals I wish someone would have done sooner. The hardcore/punk vibe, with sick gutturals is a fantastic combination.
Crave Death – The Zoo – photos by Richard Boltron
Up next was Volatile Ways, who immediately out the gate set the tone for their set. Pure annihilation. I wish I knew the name of some of their songs, because I want to throw them on and just open pits at home in my living room. Special shout out to lead singer Emilly Beekmans, because holy hell I haven’t heard a guttural tone like hers, I think ever. Every member did their part for this performance, and I can’t wait to see them again.
Volatile Ways – The Zoo – photos by Richard Boltron
With encouragement to push the mosh up to the stage, Dying Wish immediately blasted into a fantastic set of songs, opening with a freaking banger in ‘Symptoms of Survival’. ‘Enemies in Red’ was dedicated to “those that have waited to see Dying Wish for a while”, which was definitely a set highlight for me. The energy this band has is so infectious. ‘Torn From Your Silhouette’ sounds even more impressive live with the switches between cleans and harsh vocals from lead singer Emma Boster. After dedicating ‘Lost in the Fall’ to The Acacia Strain, for bringing them on their debut tour of Australia, Dying Wish closed strong on ‘Bound by Contrition’, to an insane round of appreciation from the Brisbane crowd. They could have played all night, and I would have been a happy little Vegemite.
Dying Wish – The Zoo – photos by Richard Boltron
After a quick changeover, the lights dimmed as The Zoo turned raucous for the headliners, as the stinging single guitar note to open the show signaled it was time for ‘Beast’. I’ve seen a few shows at The Zoo, but I’ve not felt the floor almost fall out of the place, with how much the crowd was moving. The opening five songs were crazy too, with ‘Crossgates’, ‘The Hills Have Eyes’, ‘Feed a Pigeon Breed a Rat’, and ‘Send Help’ all opening crazy pits and crowd surfing. The show was a really good set of hits across the board, with old stuff like 4×4 and Dr Doom mixed in with new stuff like Is ‘This Really Happening?’ and ‘Crippling Poison’.
The Acacia Strain – The Zoo – photos by Richard Boltron
My favourite part of the night though, was an amazingly heartfelt speech from lead singer Vincent Bennett, who talked about how metal was a safe space for him, and that he encourages a community of weirdos and nerds to come together for a few hours, and put all the bullshit outside the door and just enjoy music. It was a great message, and one the crowd agreed with. Unfortunately, there was no encore, as the show ended with ‘Carbomb’, before the lights came up out of the blue, to a somewhat confused venue all chanting for one more song.
The Acacia Strain – The Zoo – photos by Richard Boltron
Regardless of encore, or no encore, the show was an incredibly stacked bill of talented bands we were lucky to share a night with. I’d definitely implore everyone to check out every band from tonight, because they’re all worth your time.
