Architects – Gig Review & Photo Gallery 8th August @ The Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane QLD

Architects
The Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane QLD
August 8th, 2019
Supports: Polaris and While She Sleeps

It’s no secret, Architects are the BEST band in the heavy/metalcore scene right now and they’ve consistently got better and tighter on stage with age… last night was a true indication of this as they took the crowd for being the first HEAVY band to play at Brisbane’s Fortitude Music Hall alongside Polaris and While She Sleeps. I’d like to say the evening was flawless, but there was one moment that I’ll be addressing during my spiel about Architects towards the end of this review, but first, the openers.

While She Sleeps took to the stage with their brightly colourful screen banner with their logo smack bang in the middle and those of us who decided to watch from the mezzanine looked down at the enormous crowd who had made their way into the venue for the lads. As we reported after the Adelaide show, the guys were a man down with frontman Lawrence ‘Loz’ Taylor still absent after this exit from the band’s European Tour earlier in the year, however, his replacement/fill-in, Griffin Dickinson of SHVPES did an incredible job of keeping the crowd in the palm of his hands screaming life into the band’s new songs from their latest offering SO WHAT? In interviews we’ve conducted with Bullet For My Valentine and Fever 333, they both stated to keep an eye on this band so I was keen to see, what they saw in him and after hearing those opening screams for ‘You Are We‘ and ‘Anti-Social‘, I’m officially calling myself a SHVPES fan. The rest of the band played on point, drawing their attention to those who were up in the stands getting into their entire set. There were plenty of times where the entire moshpit split down the middle, creating a battlefield with bodies bashing into each other shortly after the drop of the song. Before ‘Silence Speaks‘, Griffin cheekily told the crowd to crowd surf and give the security guards some work as they look bored standing around (and to be honest, I agree with him, they were pretty chilled for the majority of their set) so bodies, left right and centre started making their way over the barries towards the security with two unfortunate souls being tossed over onto their arses with no one to catch them (no injuries sustained, they walked it off back into the mosh) and one lady who was pretty much legs straight up in the air (like the titanic at full sinking peak) being passed to the front of the crowd. It was heavy, it was fun and it was a fucking great way to open the show.

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Sydney KINGS Polaris hit the stage next and there was no way I wasn’t getting amongst the action for this set which included fan fav tracks like ‘Lucid‘, ‘Relapse‘, ‘Consume‘, ‘Regress‘ and, of fucking course, ‘The Remedy‘ which saw this old boy fling himself off a human step/launchpad into the crowd and successfully crowd surf (a goal of mine I’ve wanted to do to that song for years). The mosh for this band was intense. From start to finish, EVERYONE was moving, whether it be running into each other, starting two massive circle pits within inches of each other or flinging their bodies into the air for a surf, we were loving every second of it and we could tell the boys were feeding off our energy. We did find out just how slippery the Forty Music Hall’s floors can be once wet with many (and I mean almost every second person) slipping over while running alongside their mates/fellow fans. At one point a tall, longhaired guy was having a bit of trouble getting back up after taking a tumble, I swiftly picked him up, only to realise it was one of my own Wall of Sound writers Kurt Boldy who had a laugh upon realising who had saved him from the grasp of the floor before bouncing off into the mosh, never to be seen again for the rest of the night. Frontman Jamie Hails‘ screams were incredible in the new venue, the sound was crisp and you could hear every single growl coming out of his mouth, however, honourable shout out to Jake Steinhauser who also added his own personal screams on the band’s brand-spankin’ new song ‘Hypermania‘ which sent the fans into an absolutely frenzy due to it’s sheer heaviness and that fucking djenty breakdown? Oooft! That song is going to be an instant classic upon release so get fucking keen to hear it. Ryan, Rick and Daniel all absolutely nailed their parts with smiles on their faces that no one could wipe away for any reason.

Prior to the main event, a friend of the band, named Richie Hardcore took to the stage to address a serious issue of domesticated violence in Australia with a map of the country and a startling example of just how many people have died at the hands of another. Richie, from New Zealand, is an advocate for mental health, drug and alcohol abuse and sexual consent and when he got on that stage, it was great to see everyone giving him their attention before the Brighton boys took to the stage. He urged us to look after those around us, ourselves and to do what we could to put an end to the violence in Australia as well as the “lad/bro culture” of making jokes about serious topics like rape. At the climax of his speech, he was met with applause across the room and I feel this was a great initiative for the show to reiterate the importance of being better people, not just in society, but also in our friendship circles. If you missed it or want to find out more, head to Richie’s website OR Instagram.

But next, the entire room darkened, lights flashing and Architects hit the stage without waiting and jumped straight into ‘Death Is Not Defeat‘ with bodies flailing and the entire bottom floor moving. This didn’t stop for the entirety of the evening too with SOOO MANY people running into each other, jumping or what seemed like a constant circle pit actively running towards the back of the room. ‘Modern Misery‘ and ‘Nihilist‘ followed before frontman Sam Carter announced they were playing a song they haven’t played in a little while, ‘Gravity‘, which resulted in one of the biggest sing-a-longs of the night. Sam addressed the crowd telling stories about coming down under for the first time ten years ago supporting Parkway Drive and playing Riverstage, Brisbane’s biggest outdoor venue to now, playing a sold out 3,500 cap venue, something with the band absolutely lapped up every second of (as they so rightfully deserve). ‘Naysayer‘ was next and (as expected) the BLEGHS! were loud and ferocious after he belted out the lyrics “You can’t stop me giving a fuck” which was sung/screamed by almost everyone in attendance (its no secret why that song came in at #1 on our Top 14 Best BLEGH’S List here).

This next part of the review is where I need to have a word with you and that one word which is ruining all gigs across Australia… “Shooey”. The unrelenting chanting from the back of the room for Sam to drink from a shoe was fucked. Despite him clearly stating he won’t do it, they kept going, to the point where he grabbed a bottle of Patrone, took off his shoe, threw the shoe away and drank from the bottle whilst flipping off the crowd and not succumbing to peer pressure which (unfortunately and embarrassingly) resulting in boos from the mob. You might remember a little while back, I made a call for the end of the shooey after it ruined the moment/vibe of their UNIFY performance in 2018 and here we are, once again, having the vibe ruined because of this shit, outdated fad. It needs to stop, we need to be better people and stop “forcing” this upon musical guests. Video supplied by Kody Palczewski.

Please 😭

— Sam Carter (@samarchitects) August 8, 2019

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‘Holy Hell‘ followed and I have to say, I haven’t mentioned it yet, but the entire band were on fire tonight. Their performance sounded just like a recording; crystal clear with special mention to drummer Dan Searle who didn’t slip up once and proved why he is fast becoming one of metalcore’s BEST bongo players in the world. The stage went dark again before a bright pink light shined upon us all and with that, Sam Carter said nothing but “Royal Beggars” as they launched into that track, much to the approval of everyone around me who, once again, took part in one of the heaviest sing-a-longs of the evening that took us straight into one of the heaviest moshing moments of the night with ‘Gravedigger‘. Bodies were flying all about through the crowd back and forth with punters on the balcony screaming and throwing their hands in the air too. ‘Mortal After All‘, ‘Downfall‘ and ‘A Match Made In Heaven‘ kept the tempo cranked with this guy heading back up again for a crowd surf courtsey of the three blokes who had formed a human stepping launch with their own bodies lifting those wanting a surf up and away in succession. The first act was brought slowly down (with plenty of heavy undertones) as the band powered through ‘Hereafter‘, ‘A Wasted Hymn‘ and even ‘Memento Mori‘ making an appearance again before the band exited the stage amidst a roar of cheers and the expected “one more song” chant.

The guys came back on and it was time for the most emotionally driven climax none of us were prepared for. They kicked it all off with a memorial/tribute to Tom Searle, reiterating the reason why they’re doing what they’re doing, is for him and for those who have lost someone in the past. ‘Gone With The Wind‘ began and you were either moving, crying and singing along as loud as you could. It was surreal to look around and see almost everyone in the venue getting stuck into the song, any way they could, but the band saved the best for last and when they launched into ‘Doomsday‘ it was on for young and old. Drummer Dan Searle, lead guitarist Josh Middleton, bassist Ali Dean and rhythm guitarist Adam Christianson were all thanked by Sam prior to the song beginning, showing the love and commitment they all have for each other be the best they possibly can and keep their former bandmate’s legacy alive, as well as becoming unofficial champions for those who have lost someone. It was the PERFECT way to wrap up the evening with not a single body standing still for its duration. The song ended, the band thanked us all, left the stage and we slowly made our way back into the world again after witnessing one of the best performances these lads have ever given us.

It was an incredible night for Brisbane’s heavy music community to break in our newest live music venue and what a band to do it. Architects right now are at the peak of their game in both a recording and live music setting and it is bloody awesome they continue to come back to Australia so frequently so we can get our fix. Thank you Architects, you’ve certified yourselves as honourary Australian’s and we’ll gladly have you back sooner than later preferably…

Gig Review by Browny @brownypaul 

Setlist

Death Is Not Defeat
Modern Misery
Nihilist
Gravity
Naysayer
Holy Hell
Royal Beggars
Gravedigger
Mortal After All
Downfall
A Match Made In Heaven
Hereafter
A Wasted Hymn
Memento Mori

Encore

Gone With The Wind
Doomsday

Revisit our Top 14 Best BLEGH’S In Architects Songs article to relive your evening OR get keen for the next show right here

Photo Gallery by Ophelia Symons. Insta: @opheliavictoria
Please credit Wall of Sound and Ophelia Symons if you repost photos.

While She Sleeps

Polaris

Architects

Architects – Holy Hell Australian Tour 2019
with While She Sleeps and Polaris

FRIDAY AUGUST 9 @ BIG TOP, SYDNEY

SATURDAY AUGUST 10 @ BIG TOP, SYDNEY – SOLD OUT

SUNDAY AUGUST 11 @ FESTIVAL HALL, MELBOURNE

Tickets Here