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Live Reviews : The Amity Affliction, A Day To Remember, Hands Like Houses & Motionless In White @ Riverstage, Brisbane 19/12/2015

By on December 21, 2015

In September 2010, I drove 40 minutes to meet a friend at a local pub to watch a band that him, and all my other friends at the time had been raving about. On that night, I saw The Amity Affliction perform for my first time to a room of about 30 people. Fast forward five years and the band has progressed a long way since then, returning home to headline their own Big Ass Tour and selling out one of Brisbane’s largest venues. But before we discuss the nights headliners, we will discuss the other bands that performed on this stellar lineup.

The Amity Affliction - Big Ass Tour 2015

To begin the Big Ass Tour, Canberra’s Hands Like Houses took to the stage with the modest crowd that had already arrived. Having been pulled into the lineup due to the late withdrawal of The Ghost Inside, they performed admirably for the curtain raising time slot. They played really well, however the only things that rubbed me the wrong way with their performance were the fact that there was only one guitarist that actually seemed to enjoy the performance (Stage Right, I salute you) and that there was a continual pause inbetween every song to talk to the crowd. It’s good to let people know who you are, and the reason why your there, but after the first few times it gets a bit tiring.

Motionless in White were next, and I was kind of conflicted with their set. Visually they all looked great, coming out in their dark hoods, black paint or dressed like horror star Mike Meyers, but I couldn’t help but feeling that performing at dusk hurt their atmosphere a bit. This isn’t taking away anything musically from the band, which, I might add was tight, and by all accounts, one of the better performances they have done in Australia, but at night time this would have been something else entirely. Roaring through their songs at what seemed like a break neck pace, and even including a cover of Linkin Park’s “One Step Closer” in their set had the band leaving to rapturous applause from some very happy fans.

Putting Florida’s A Day To Remember on a bill is always a surefire way to get a large crowd to a show, and tonight they didn’t disappoint. With the crowd instantly flooding the front when the band took to the stage, their set was easily the most energetic that I have seen in a long time. With the crowd going crazy with fans crowd surfing on crowd surfers (yes surfers on surfers), the energy levels were like nothing I have ever experienced live. It’s little difficult to see why this band has such a massive following when you watch them live, as they aren’t ones to shy away, and actually welcome crowd engagement during their sets.

Performance wise, it’s very difficult to fault A Day To Remember. They put on such a good show that it’s so easy to get lost in (even if that’s in the confetti launchers or the inflatable beach balls), and even after that there are still small nuances that the band does that are just ridiculous to think of on a live level. You can tell this isn’t a band that doesn’t run to a script, but performs their craft flawlessly.

Shining through some of their most popular songs, and even including a little acoustic interlude, only enhanced the platform that the band laid down for their audience – and furthered their appeal as one of todays great current live acts. Sadly for many fans, the band had to wind up too early, and closed with a few crowd favourites before departing the stage.

By now, the Riverstage had descended into darkness to signal the entrance of The Amity Affliction. To describe the roar from the crowd as anything less than thunderous would be a gross misrepresentation. The Amity Affliction has come a long way since that small show I saw, and to their credit deserve every bit of respect and adoration that the Brisbane crowd gave them.

Opening with ‘Open Letter’ set the perfect launchpad for their setlist. An instant classic that got the crowd involved immediately. Performance wise, you can tell that these guys have come a long way. Ahren now has a stage presence that I would place into the upper echelon of bassists, particularly in this genre, making it difficult to take your eyes off him. But tonight wasn’t just a performance from the band – true credit must also be given to the fans as this show was one big party that kept all passengers outside its gates.

While the setlist didn’t stray too far from their crowd favourites and newer material, it didn’t need to. With their setlist, The Amity Affliction has found that perfect formula that appealed to old and new fans alike.

Rounding out the night with their more anthemic tracks gave everyone an opportunity to get involved one last time before the night was over, before the band got some happy snaps in front of the crowd with all their Big Ass Tour compadres.

Five years ago I saw a band that had just taken massive steps towards superstardom, and last night I watched them perform in front of a capacity crowd at one of Brisbane’s largest venues. Anyone that argues that heavy music in Australia isn’t making waves needs to take a long hard look at what we are growing here. The Amity Affliction has climbed these heights in five years, by taking every opportunity that has presented itself and has acted as a torchbearer for heavy music in Australia. With the recent demise of Soundwave festival and the concern about what will happen with heavy music in Australia, all I can suggest is to get out to any local shows you can; because if a band playing pub shows here can climb the heights with their drive, and our support in five years, then there might be other gems out there waiting to be unearthed.

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