Astrodeath
Baroque Room, Katoomba NSW
Saturday 3 June 2023
Supports: Red Bee, Mountain Wizard Death Cult, Celestial Oath
RIFF!!!!
The Australian metal scene is stacked. Stacked to the gates of Valhalla with some of the most driven, loud, riff heavy bands on the planet. Sydney’s Underground is armed to the teeth with an enormous cache of talent that is set to collectively burst onto the international scene and join the growing roster of Australian talent already conquering the globe. One such band is the two headed monster Astrodeath. Tonight isn’t just any other Astrodeath gig. Tonight we raise our glasses and celebrate the launch of their incredible second album in the icy tundras of Katoomba.
It’s a wee trek to the heartland of the Blue Mountains but absolutely worth it as we get to the Baroque Room just in time to catch the start of Celestial Oath. Despite being in Katoomba, one of the coldest f*cking joints on the planet, the bass player has decided that his shirt can get f*cked. There’s not a lot of singing to start because they’re too busy serving up their fair share of RIFFS!!! It’s not until they tear into ‘House of James’ that the two blokes up front start to scream. The guitarist barks like a lost soul screaming for help and the bass player sounds like the demon keeping him chained to a rock in the lowest pits of hell.
Mountain Wizard Death Cult being listed third on the poster for tonights show is a solid indication of the caliber of this lineup. The lads are here in the midst of their headline tour of the east coast and they set the bar high. Almost daring those to follow to have a go. The lads rip into ‘Putrid Light’ which sees Tony deliver the coolest bass line intro that feels like walking slowly down the back alley of a town you have no business being in. The lads tear into a set that so high energy that guitarist Chapo breaks not one, but two strings in one song. He gives me excuses for it happening but I reckon his guitar is buckling under the abuse. He puts down his Fender, picks up the Hamer and gives it a thrashing. Halfway through the next song he faces the Fender that lays abused on the ground, shows it the Hamer as if to say “this is how you f*cking do your job”. Even the drummer from Astrodeath goes forth and bows down at the pedal board of Chapo.
Grab a beer and talk to a couple of legends that, once a week, have a “bad movie night”. They essentially find an almost unwatchable movie and see who taps first. They said they came close during a viewing of the Twilight series, but refused to give in. They’re both the worse for it. I suggested they rip into Peter Jackson classic BrainDead but they’re way ahead of me.
Local legends Red Bee take the stage for perhaps the last time this year as they’re gearing up to record their first new album since their 2018 belter Silent Enemy. Frontman Daniel Silk grabs the mic and yells “We’re Red Bee, this is our home fucking town and we’re going to tear your f*cking balls off” before ripping into ‘Killing Time’. As always their energy levels are high and their loyal fans have turned up in droves to catch this final appearance before they hibernate for the winter. Their set is a solid mix of the old with the likes of ‘Dead Inside’ and‘Angelos School Of Arms’ while throwing in a bit of the new with the very smooth ‘Gutter Christ’. But it’s closer and old fave ‘Through To You’ that has the punters on hand give this elegant venue a thrashing. I look up at the nice chandelier hanging in front of the stage and I’m surprised that someone isn’t swinging from it Muppets style. Red Bee fans are some of the best dressed people in this town. Some people dress for the weather, some to make a statement, plus there’s the bloke in the mask. But stealing the show is the old bloke at the front of the stage in the Bathory top sipping a Cab Sav from a nice glass, all while head banging like it’s 1985. The lads finish to a rousing applause and I pity the blokes that have to follow that act.
The handful of beers I’ve had kick in so I make use of the facilities on hand. I walk in and find myself standing next to the drummer from Astrodeath, who is having a nervous piss. He says Red Bee are so good. It’s gunna be hard following that up. He walks out mumbling something along the lines of “why the f*ck do we keep getting these killer bands to open for us….”
Astrodeath come out and it’s like someone yelled out “Free beer”. The mob on hand immediately lose their collective sh*t as drummer Yoshi Hauser launches into 'Permafrost'. His kit is already copping a flogging and it’s hard to keep your eyes off of the bloke who is a blur of arms, sticks and hair. Singer/guitarist Tim Lancken strolls out casually before turning everything up to a million and joining in. There’s only two blokes up on that stage but the wall of sound coming from the front of the room is enough to blast the filigree off the walls. ‘Leviathan Rising’ starts and the room is churning. I have seen a handful of gigs in this joint but this is starting to turn out to be the most hectic. This isn’t a large venue by any means and the pit is starting to spill. One drunken bloke dressed like a leopard-scarfed grunge-cowboy hits the deck and the old Bathory wine dude picks him up off the floor as Astrodeath rip into ‘Red Weed’ and ‘Ceremonial Blood’. They’re playing the new album in full and there’s not a single inch of filler to be heard. It’s a monster from start to finish and already easily in my top five albums for the year.
The lads stop for a second to thank the openers for kicking everyone's arse as Tim reiterates Yoshi’s bathroom sentiment that they should stop getting these brilliant bands to open for them. He then starts to mention that they have merch to sell before stopping himself. “You guys have brought enough. We’re happy. Thank you. This is a song about Giants” as he tears into ‘Neo Nephilim’. ‘Golden Death Machine’ follows and it occurs to me that this is the second time I’ve seen them, both times resulting in a frenzied crowd. “Yoshi” chants start echoing from the crowd as the siren sounds for ‘Invasion’, before closing out the album section of the show with the aptly titled ‘The End’.
Tim invites the punters up onto the stage for a full room rendition of the Black Sabbath classic ‘Children Of The Grave’. Through the sea of bodies, Tim and Yoshi are locked in. They’re brothers trading licks, kicking arse and it’s bloody fantastic to watch. They boot the punters off the stage as they kick off old favourite ‘Mountain King’ to a churning room. Tim takes a minute to reflect on the night while proudly letting us all know he’s now 12 months sober. A feat to be admired, but not achieved by many in this room. “Have a drink for me” he says as they finish off with ‘Relentless Beauty’ and make their way back to the busy merch table to sell what’s left of their gear.
It’s only night one of their tour and the excitement behind this duo is already going through the chandelier’d roof. After having signed deals that will see them being promoted here and overseas, seeing Astrodeath in a venue as intimate as this may soon become a thing of the past, and good luck to anyone looking to get hold of any merch on night two of this tour because I reckon we snagged the lot.
As for the night in total, what a belter. The calibre of talent that are on show in Australia at the moment is next level and tonight was exemplary of that. Well in lads.
Review by Duane James @duanejames666
You can still catch Astrodeath on tour! Grab your tickets here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylFcy7Hr30Y
.webp)
