21 June 2014 at The Tatts Hotel Backroom
Not only was Lismore a buzz due to the annual Lantern Parade on Saturday 21st of June it was also the place to be for any metal head or so the 90 odd people thought in attendance. A huge 4 band line up of pure Aussie metal representing Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Murwillumbah and Ballina was definitely one of the heaviest line ups the Lismore area had seen in quite some time if not ever.

There was a great vibe in the room with bands and fans mingling and catching up as Siv prepared for their onslaught as the opening act. The crowd packed in for the local group and they certainly delivered with a nice mix of old and new songs. Heretic, Hand of Death, Hiding Behind the Cross & Psychotic Psychosis were some of the awesome tunes played out of their 8 track set. The fans banged their heads along nicely to Siv's demonic sound and gave them a big round of cheers and applause as everyone was up & out of their seats, ready for the next 3 bands.

A quick wander over to the merch section was met by a little taste test of David Lang's own creation- Siv chilli sauce (Heretics Blood!) I was assured that 666 virgins were killed in the making of the product and with that in mind I was keen as mustard (or maybe some chilli sauce) for Decryptus. These crazy looking dudes brought plenty of aggression to their performance. With the set list looking like this: Hatred Evolved, Nightmares Made Flesh, I Am Berserker and The Necrotic Design part 1, 2, 3 it was no wonder that the music was brutal! Drummer Sam Phillips was exceptionally fast and front man Will Magnusson started a small circle pit himself and went nuts. The crowd also appreciated some of the blistering guitar work Decryptus put on and I know for a fact that people are keen for a debut album/EP.

The big bad ass looking guys from AZREAL were up next and I was pleasantly surprised to find out that deep down they are an easy going, chatty bunch of well-mannered men. That is until they go up on stage and they play about 3 times faster live compared to their studio work. Faster and spot on. The ladies present at the show came out in force for these guys and long hair was flying around everywhere. Another cool part of the AZREAL show was Chris Dennis the drummer. When he got stuck into it, it's as if he was putting on his own performance! I'm talking eyes rolled into the back of his skull, violent head banging from side to side and huge smashes on the cymbals… and no mistakes. They played some of their killer tracks off the amazing new album PREMONITION such as Fall to Pieces, Cease to Be, Grave and Rot.

Three absolute killer bands down and one to go- Inhailed!!! These guys play some great metal. Live they seemed very focused on the job at hand and went for it full throttle. The big crowd went hard as well and not even a little game of who is the tougher man between two intoxicated individuals dampened the positive and appreciative spirits of the other fans. Inhailed killed it with a 10 song set supporting their metal as hell album Demon Within. We were treated to tunes such as Reborn, Venom of the Gods, Sadistic Majesty and Execute the Damned. Guitarist Rob Stanley was drenched in sweat afterwards and it's no wonder as the whole band gave the fans a great show and an ultra-heavy ending to a heavy night of metal at the Tatts.

The night ran smoothly thanks to Southern Discomfort Touring and was a huge success. I did feel sorry for the venues PA system as Siv, Decryptus, Azreal and Inhailed showed it no mercy. As the night finished up the metal had done its job. The metal heads of the Northern Rivers were connected once more, friendships were made and everyone walked away in anticipation for the next big show.

Line-up: Inhailed, Azreal, Decryptus, Siv

Reviewer: Metal maN

31 May 2014 at The Tatts Hotel Backroom
Lismore's most metal room (The Tatts Hotel Backroom) got a little bit more metal recently as Brisbane's Tria Mera, Byron Bay's Prowler and Lismore's own Hammers smashed out an amazing night of heavy music!

Hammers kicked things off for the 40-50 strong crowd with their solid, heavy riffing and hard hitting style. Think Black Sabbath meets ACDC mixed with their own gritty sound and you have a band that can easily fit in on any bill weather its opening or closing. With a set list comprising of such songs as; "Pocket Soup" and "Hanging Tree" it is clear that Hammers just love to have fun and rock out on stage. Their front man who is a little energetic son of a gun buzzed around happily with the odd stage jump thrown in for good measure. For a band that doesn't necessarily come off or promote themselves as pure "metal" there is certainly a lot of head banging going on from the crowd including the guy wearing the Kreator shirt. Hammers finish off with "Speak of The Devil" and the room gives them a warm roar of approval.

Next up we were treated to the sounds of Byron Bay instrumental metal band Prowler but hang on, what's this? They have brought a singer a long! This was their first live gig with a vocalist and the room was full of whispers trying to figure out what was going on. Once everyone had settled and was ready to hear the band with its new member a handful of Prowler's young fans begun clearing bar stools and tables then commenced pumping themselves up as if it was some sort of hardcore gig! In a bizarre twist to the night, as soon as Prowler started playing, their young fans began swinging arms and kicking the air as well as each other. (Just remember kiddies if you want to dance/ mosh like that, respect the people that do NOT). What made it even stranger is that Prowler sounds nothing like a hardcore band. Drummer and backbone of the group Deon described their sound as having a healthy blend between Jane’s Addiction, Gojira and Mahavishnu Orchestra. The new singer seemed to gel well with the band and his singing style was more alternate than screaming/shouting. Prowler performed some new songs including "For You" as well as an older instrumental "Number 6" which featured some old school thrashy heavy riffing! They played with real purpose and impressed the people with a great yet interesting mix of METAL.

Brisbane's Tria Mera had the honour of topping the bill and they were well impressed with the Lismore turnout. One of their fans even made the 2 hour south journey just to see them shred. These guys have just released a new EP titled Extinction and once you've heard it there is no questioning why they got a spot on the 2011 SOUNDWAVE bill. They played loud and fast and had the room head banging to all the tracks off of their new EP including favourites "The Sacrifice" and "Waiting for Destruction". They also played one of their older songs called "A Burning Horizon". It was clear that they won a few people over as the bands merch was already being worn proudly and the EP sold a few copies which was great to see. After meeting each member it was also nice to hear how appreciative Tria Mera was to have played their first rural show outside of their traditional Brissy hunting grounds. Like most metal heads they are great bunch of guys and very approachable which is why Lismore will definitely want them back!!

To sum it up the night was a great success. The bands and fans walked away a little happier (and drunker). A night full of metal infused sound at The Tatts is always fun and we can't wait for our next show!

P.S- A special shout out to the old, grey and very intoxicated legend of a bloke who got in the pit for each band and shook his ass while he head banged! It was well deserved that he got to keep the Tria Mera guitar pick thrown off the stage after the last song. \m/

Line-up: Tria Mera, Prowler, Hammers

Reviewer: Metal maN