Live Reviews : Astriaal (Melbourne) – 14/08/2010

Astriaal @ The East Brunswick Club, Melbourne
w/ Ignivimous, Disentomb and Stormbane
14th August 2010

The long-awaited follow up to Astriaal’s brilliant 2003 release Renascent Misanthropy is one that Australian black metal fans have been patiently waiting for, for far too long. Thankfully, the time has come, and the legendary black metallers hit the live scene once again.

After a couple of drinks in the main bar of the East Brunswick Club, quickly becoming more and more of a regular metal venue, I made my way into the somewhat empty band room to catch Stormbane, a band I was completely unfamiliar with. And how I wish I still was. Playing a fairly sloppy brand of traditional straight-forward black metal, the band lacked in both energy and inspiration. With a couple of failed starts of a particular song, and zero stage presence, it wasn’t exactly the greatest start to the night. Judging by the bored faces of the few scattered crowd members, I wasn’t the only one who found the music stale. Apart from the reaction to the announcement of a cover song, the crowd reaction said it all.

Thankfully by the time Brisbane’s Disentomb hit the stage, the crowd had built up a bit. Playing both “Subterranean Burial” and the simply titled “Gutted” off their 2009 demo, as well as a bunch of tracks from their upcoming debut full length, the band proved that they really are one of the most brutal bands in the country. While some of the more technical guitar parts were a bit lost in the mix, the rest of their set was faultless with an incredibly tight performance, and killer overall sound. Jord’s consistently guttural vocals might not be to everybody’s taste but the fact he can keep up such a deep, smooth growl so well is sure to impress. The only thing that could have made the band better would have been a smaller venue, which would’ve bumped the intensity up that extra notch. While it’s unfortunately a couple of months away before they make the trip back down south again, their new album is just around the corner. Death metal fans; keep an eye on this band.

A quick trip up to the servo for a pie and a few beers in the beer garden were next up, where I got completely distracted by the comfortable couches and cold ale that I missed Ignivimous’ set. Although having seen them before and not being overly impressed, I wasn’t fussed.

Finally, the time had come, for the mighty Astriaal to hit the stage. While the crowd wasn’t quite as big as I had expected, the room had filled up nicely, and I grabbed a comfy spot near the sound desk with ample leanage. While tracks like “Ode to Antiquity” and the incredible “Glories of the Nightsky” were absolutely awesome, the new material was what everyone was there to hear, and it didn’t disappoint. While the track names were lost on me, the sound of the new tracks was much more refined and showed a definite overall improvement in the band’s writing skills. The new-new track, which I assume will appear on the next album, was an all-out black metal attack in its most traditional form, which was not what I expected. The sound wasn’t the clearest, and the lack of a smoke machine really dragged the atmosphere of the room down, but the band themselves put on an impeccable set, faithfully performing the classics while showcasing the new, and quite awesome, material. I, and I’m sure all those who witnessed the band, patiently await their return back down south. And seeing as the band have really hit the ground running with a string of live shows and a another new album in the works, I can’t see it being too far away.

Astriaal really are one of the greatest black metal bands to ever exist in this country.