8 November 2024 – Riverstage, Brisbane – words by Lucas Bell – pictures by Carlie Bryce
Brisbane Riverstage played host to probably one of the most insane metal shows of 2024. And not insane because of any particular thing that happened, but rather, who was in attendance. In honour of the 10th anniversary of the bands biggest record, Let the Ocean Take Me, Gympie’s kings of metalcore, The Amity Affliction promised to play the record in full, plus some career highlights. But that’s not all. Boston horrorcore icons Ice Nine Kills were also making their long overdue return to Australia, playing their first shows in five years. Also on the bill are We Came As Romans, fresh off a nice little tour of Japan, and HEAVENSGATE, a band I believe are the next wave of metal in Australia.
Out first were Melbourne hardcore band HEAVENSGATE. I’ve been a fan of this band for quite a while. They were supposed to be on the August Burns Red one off show last year, but travel issues prevented them from getting to Brisbane. So finally, I had a chance to see them, and it was well worth the wait. Sometimes, you can look at a band and see the future of a scene. And HEAVENSGATE are the next evolution of the metalcore/hardcore scene in Australia, alongside bands like Alpha Wolf, Ocean Sleeper, and Inertia. The set was super fun, with songs like ‘Violent Joy’, ‘Ginsick’, and ‘Chemical Heaven’ absolutely popping the crowd off. During the break between Ice Nine Kills and Amity, I actually ran into the band and had a quick chat with them about just how good it was to finally see them. I also promised lead vocalist, Nazareth Tharratt that I wouldn’t mention the microphone fuck ups, so here is me, telling him, I didn’t mention them.
HEAVENSGATE – Riverstage – photos by Carlie Bryce
Off the back of their Japanese tour, We Came As Romans were out next, and the baseline of craziness set by HEAVENSGATE continued to rise with these guys. I’ve been a We Came As Romans fan for years, but this is the first time I’ve been able to catch them live. Opening with ‘Darkbloom’ was so cool, that’s probably my favourite song of theirs. They blitzed through probably the most perfectly curated set list for me, with tracks like ‘Doublespeak’, ‘Cold Like War’, and ‘Plagued’ all getting loud reactions from both the crowd, and myself. ‘Lost in the Moment’ was a cool moment (pun intended) dedicated to former clean vocalist Kyle Pavone, who tragically passed away in 2018. The set closed out with ‘Black Hole’ and ‘Daggers’, as the crowd chanted for more.
We Came As Romans – Riverstage – photos by Carlie Bryce
For those that know me, outside of being probably the biggest Coheed and Cambria fan in Australia, my other deep rooted love is for Ice Nine Kills. So seeing them live for the first time was a huge deal for me. And by god, this set did not disappoint. Opening with a video package of an old TV showing ads and horror movie clips, the iconic Umbrella Corp logo from Resident Evil appeared on the screen as the band walked out for ‘Rainy Day’. The band didn’t talk to the crowd much throughout the show, but instead was a solid hour of just metalcore performance theatre. ‘Meat & Greet’ started up with the intro of the music video playing on stage, as Hannibal Lecter was wheeled on stage with a security guard. Hannibal broke out, and killed all the actors on stage, while the band played and thrashed around them.
‘Ex Mortis’ had lead vocalist Spencer Charnas bring out the Necronomicon to read from. The band’s cover of ‘Walking on Sunshine’ had someone walk out on stage in a sun outfit that was super funny, as it was crazy hot, before we got probably the most insane thing of the night, with the live debut of the brand new song, ‘A Work of Art’, for Terrifier 3. This involved Art the Clown coming out on stage, reenacting some of the music video, including bringing out a baby on stage, before swinging it around by its umbilical cord, and finally, killing poor bassist Joe Occhiuti, who seemed to take it in good spirits. The rest of the set, to blitz through it, was awesome. ‘Funeral Derangements’ being part of the setlist took me by surprise, as that song is crazy heavy. ‘Hip to Be Scared’, ‘The American Nightmare’, ‘The Shower Scene’, and set closer ‘Welcome to Horrorwood’ were all expected songs though. The crowd begged for more, but we had unfortunately run out of time. I hope they come back soon with a full headline tour. Australia needs it.
Ice Nine Kills – Riverstage – photos by Carlie Bryce
The lights dimmed for the main event of the evening, as the Riverstage hill only seemed to have gotten more packed than it was for Ice Nine Kills, as Amity walked out on stage, opening with the brain rattling lyrics of ‘Pittsburgh’, “I’ve been searching for an exit but I’m lost inside my head”, as Brisbane sang it loud with lead vocalist Joel Birch. The full playthrough of Let the Ocean Take Me had officially begun. I’ve fallen off being an Amity fan. I was massively into them around the Severed Ties/Youngbloods era. But Chasing Ghosts was where I started to fall off being super into them. Let the Ocean Take Me I think was the first album I didn’t really like. So to have the ability to sit with these songs live, really for the first time, and digest it all with thousands of people singing along, has made me really want to go back and listen to the record. There were some massive songs off the record the crowd went ballistic for. ‘Death’s Hand’ was one, as was ‘Don’t Lean on Me’, and album closer ‘Give It All’ drew a massive applause to close out the album portion of the show.
The Amity Affliction – Riverstage – photos by Carlie Bryce
The band played on to kick off a massive five song encore, as the crowd erupted for ‘I See Dead People’, from the new record Not Without My Ghosts. Joel yelled for ‘Drag the Lake’, which if you could even imagine, was the moment that drew the biggest reaction of the night, before ‘All My Friends Are Dead’, and ‘Like Love’ were given love. The encore closed with the oldest song of the evening, ‘Open Letter’, which was the only song played that was released before Let the Ocean Take Me. Amity wasn’t done yet though, as they came back for another two songs. ‘It’s Hell Down Here’, and the show closer ‘Soak Me in Bleach’ sent the Brisbane crowd home very happy.
The Amity Affliction – Riverstage – photos by Carlie Bryce
This show is probably the most talent loaded metal show Brisbane has seen in quite a while. HEAVENSGATE is a band on the rise. WCAR showed now more than ever, just how important they are to the scene. INK provided escapism through horror and metal like no other band is doing right now. And Amity provided a set that was a pure love letter to their fans, forever showcasing why they are the most important metal export out of Queensland to the Australian metalcore scene.
