Suicide Silence – Gig Review and Photo Gallery 9th September @ Amplifier, Perth WA
SUICIDE SILENCE
Amplifier, Perth WA
September 9th, 2016
Support – Graves, Boris the Blade & Iconoclast
Well it’s been a couple of years but the kings of deathcore, namely Suicide Silence finally returned to Australian shores with a cheeky Perth leg to top things the ‘Straight Outta Hell’ tour. With the calibre of bands supporting the Californian outfit, it might be fair to label the evening “deathcore gig of the year” – I know big call, but seriously.
Droves of metalheads poured through the doors of Amplifier bar the second they opened to get the beers flowing on a Friday night. Very promptly, Perth heroes Iconoclast leapt on stage, delivering a monstrous set. The band were instrumentally primed for success with Mitch Macari’s vocal chords warmed up from the get go; somewhat reminiscent of a Motionless in White sound. Iconoclast deservedly played to an impressively full room considering how early it was still the evening. Punters were already engaging in some movement as a stretch for what was yet to come.
After over a years’ absence, Melbourne band Boris the Blade returned to the west and delivered the grimiest, dirtiest and most brutal set yet. The Victorians blistered through tracks from their back catalogue coming from ‘The Human Hive’ and ‘Tides of Damnation’ EPs. Their blast-beats and breakdowns were deafening and incited a swarm of punters letting off some steam.
Before the main event, Perth was in for a treat with one more east-coast import ready to take some bodies. Reigning from Wollongong, Graves have been taking the Australian metal scene by storm. The riff factory are releasing debut album ‘Monster’ next month and were certainly doing some marvellous promotion with their performance. Vocalist Rhys Benn channelled an Oli Sykes persona in appearance and really immersed himself in his role as he produced a consistently bellowing clear roar. The band delivered well-layered djent and progressive breakdowns that moulded in really well with their broad structure.
Finally, after the warm-up, no – heat-up - that the crowd had experienced, the royalty of the genre were about to show us how it’s done. The lights dimmed, punters secured their spots and sculled their drinks. After playing a recording of Korn’s ‘Blind’ to open the set, Suicide Silence presented on stage to an enormous reception.
The amps were turned up way beyond the recommended max, as this band don’t do things half-assed. Launching into ‘Unanswered’, the guitarists’ fingers became machine guns with muscle memory and they tore the roof off Amplifier. Immediately, circle pits erupted and vocalist Eddie Herminda squealed wildly into the mic. Of course Herminda only joined Suicide Silence in the last couple of years and is known for his tenure with American outfit All Shall Perish – who had a deeper vocal growling appeal in comparison. With this in mind, hearing Herminda unleash the highs reminiscent of the late Mitch Lucker was absolutely tremendous. The front man has blended in so perfectly with the rhythm of the band that each intersection bridges like butter – emphasising the breakdowns even more.
The setlist was a well-balanced portion of the band’s back catalogue with a sensible influence from their latest record ‘You Can’t Stop Me’. Each song was heavier than the last. Tracks like ‘Wake Up’ and ‘Inherit the Crown’ would have had your grandma headbanging. The structure of each song endured such joy and endorphins as the bridges are so strong that the breakdowns are simply preposterous. Herminda was an absolute animal on stage, bouncing around and channelling his deepest cannibalistic capabilities, piercing lyrics into the crowd.
Many bands of this nature are urged to meddle with the infamous pole in the middle of Amplifier, so Herminda encouraged circle pits all the way around it as well as a wall of death at the crescendo of ‘Disengage’ – ending up in some blooded noses and limping veterans. The band barely even stopped before their encore, and closed with a menacing rendition of ‘You Only Live Once’. It would have been hard to leave that venue feeling anything less than amazing.
Review by Ricky Aarons
Suicide Silence Set List –
Revelations
Unanswered
No Pity for a Coward
M.A.L.
Inherit the Crown
Wake Up
Fuck Everything
Cease to Exist
Sacred Words
Disengage
Slaves to Substance
You Can’t Stop Me
Destruction of a Statue
Bludgeoned to Death
You Only Live Once
Shooting the night was Den Rad, his awesome gallery is below – simply click on an image to enlarge.
Bands feel free to share
Others – please do not use without permission
Suicide Silence
Graves
Boris The Blade
