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Articles : CD/DVD Review: In Malice’s Wake – Visions Of Live Destruction

By on April 1, 2015

Filmed at the Legions of Steel event at the Bendigo Hotel last June, the live CD/DVD dubbed ‘Visions of Live Destruction’ from Melbourne-based thrashers In Malice’s Wake is in some respects an exploration and showing of Australia’s live music scene, and in others, simply a wild ride through this band’s music and their adoring fans. Opening with the welcoming chants of “Malice!” a wave of lights run across the shadowed expanse; painting red, green, and violet hues over the venue. Before long, frontman Shaun Farrugia roared across the crowd “Onslaught!” as the opening eponymous track kicked in.

One of the standout aspects to this release is the production value. It has been wonderfully mixed and mastered, and despite being a locally released live DVD, it is crisp and sharp. Things really kick off once “Fuel for the Fire” kicks off. With the crowd beating along to the chorus, the drumming is relentless and the fuel for the crowd as such is apparently aplenty. Following this, Shaun offered thanks and then gave an anecdote on the band’s legacy: “So, we’ve been doing this for a really long time, and this band’s been in existence for 12 years.” He then went on to dedicate the night’s show to the crowd themselves, “to all of you people in Melbourne that have supported us over the last 12 years.”

This band sound incredible when they’re all together. If it’s not in the infectious grooves of their rhythm section, or in the relentless beats of drummer Mark Farrugia, the shredding and soloing of Leigh Bartley is simply phenomenal. Furthermore is Shaun’s vocals the catalyst to some unarguably brilliant metal. It’s melodic, it’s fast, and it’s clearly – and deservedly – beloved by all those who assembled in the crowd that night.

The track, “Hear the Howls” (which is set to be released with In Malice’s Wake’s upcoming new album, to be released this year), was a whirlwind of intense melodic riffing. It provided an insight into what is to come with the new record, and got me excited to see what they conjure next. But it is this style of guitar-playing where a great deal of In Malice’s Wake strength resides, also. It is in their ability to merge the intensity and speed of thrash metal with the sullen, quiet melody and drone of melodic death metal. This isn’t to mention either that the live setting perfectly suits Shaun’s vocal approach. His rasps echoed in the Bendigo, and travelled over the crowd with the damning ferocity of a chained beast.

The audience lapped up every moment of it. Crowd surfing, thrashing, and even the odd guy singing into his empty beer bottle as if it were a microphone (no kidding, I saw that in one scene), In Malice’s Wake set left the crowd feeling excited and pumped.

It is a tough call to choose a stand out track from the set, but I do feel “A Sign of the Times” would have to be up there — followed closely by the closing solo to “Mental Disarray”. The band sounded their best; Shaun’s growls were downright fearsome; and it captured some of the best and most interesting crowd footage.

Following “Mental Disarray”, Shaun gave a dedication to the crowd and to the live scene in Australia. “I want to say a very big thank you to Dennis and Espionage Bookings and all of the bands we played with tonight. It makes me very proud to be in an Australian metal band surrounded by such fine acts in our country. I’d say just Melbourne, but we got bands from Queensland, we got bands from Adelaide. Let’s hear it for everyone who’s played here tonight!”

Rounding out their set with “Evil by Design” and “Endless Possession”, the latter of which saw Metal Obsession’s very own Patrick Emmett take to the stage and sing the final few verses to the song in hilariously awesome fashion.

It is clear how much In Malice’s Wake love what they do, and it’s fantastic to see them here in their element, and supported by a host of Aussie metalheads. At day’s end, it doesn’t get much better than that.

Visions of Live Destruction is available now. Purchase yours here.

Band: In Malice’s Wake

CD/DVD: Visions of Live Destruction

Origin: Melbourne, Victoria

Label: Independent

Year: 2014

About

Jonathon is an aspiring fantasy/sci-fi novelist and music journalist. Thanks to the influence of the music he grew up with, he has always possessed a keen interest in metal and rock. He is also a huge fan of mythology, legend, and folklore from all across the world. You should follow him on Twitter.