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Live Reviews : Lacuna Coil, Orpheus Omega & Drown This City @ Max Watt’s, Melbourne 13/10/2016

By on October 15, 2016

Words: Bailey Graham

Images: Sonja Maglicic

(Click here to view the full gallery)

It’s been seven years since Italian gothic metal visionaries Lacuna Coil visited Australian shores, so it was safe to assume that even an hour before the doors opened, that there was a line into the venue going for a city block. It was truly an incredible spectacle to witness such dedication from Australian fan to the bands of the night. I was fortunate enough to be one of many in the near sold-out crowd witness Lacuna Coil’s notoriously intense performance – a night that lived up to my expectations and then some. Despite numerous line-up changes, it’s clear that Lacuna Coil have come to make a statement that they’re back, and stronger than ever. Along for the ride were local post-hardcore heroes Drown This City and national support from Melbourne’s own melodic death metal titans Orpheus Omega.

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Drown This City

A mere thirty minutes into the night, Drown This City made their presence known. Their impressive display of heavy riffs and downbeat rhythms definitely struck a good chord with the audience, with heads banging in glorious synchronisation. Vocalist Alex Reade gave off the demeanour of a confidence and excitement, which intense distorted vocals and a wonderful upper-range clean vocal registry. Showcasing a brutal selection of tracks from their latest EP False Idols, Drown This City certainly walked away from the night with a ton of new fans in tow.

No strangers to the intimidating task of providing national support for some of the world’s biggest, Orpheus Omega wasted no time in delivering their fast-paced, melodic brutality to the sea of anxious metalheads. Whether it was a lack of prior sound checking or just a few hiccups, the sound mix felt very one sided, which resulted in a very lopsided sound mix in the first few minutes of the set. This issue would quickly dissipate as their sound began to consolidate and refine as the tracks went by. Performing a large number of tracks from their latest release Partum Vita Mortem with a smattering of old-school hits for the Orpheus fans in the room, front man Chris Themelco orchestrated the first mosh pits of the night, especially in the final track, where bodies collided with bodies to the infectious grooves of ‘Sealed in Fate’. True veterans of the Melbourne stage, Orpheus Omega were quick to dispel any initial hiccups and gave Melbourne a right good arse-kicking.

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Orpheus Omega

As the lights dimmed, the crowd lost their minds in pure euphoria. Donned in strait jackets and facial makeup, the long-overdue Italian powerhouse made their way on to the stage. As ‘Ultima Ratio’ led straight into ‘Spellbound’, vocalists Andrea Ferro and Cristina Scabbia gave Melbourne the vocal delivery they’ve been waiting many years for. Truly a spectacle for all, the performance of both Scabbia and Ferro felt like a sublime clash of opposites, a real Yin-Yang scenario, as Cristina’s serene-yet-intense soprano blended perfectly with Andrea’s psychotic, energetic charisma. Going straight into the hits, Lacuna Coil made up for seven years of absence on our shores with a back-to-back performance of ‘Die and Rise’ & ‘Heaven’s a Lie’. Staying true to the reason for their tour, tracks from their latest release Delirium laid waste to the audience from all part of the night, whether it was the infectious chorus of ‘Blood, Tears, Dust’ to the crowd favourite ‘You Love Me ‘Because I Hate You’, Lacuna Coil stood there reaffirmed in the belief that their latest studio efforts has not only been received well by the fans, but is regarded as one of the band’s greatest.

Covering all bases, Lacuna Coil gave the crowd every ounce of energy they could. Whether it was the intimidating presence of bassist Marco Coti Zelati, the energetic drumming display of Ryan Folden or the technical precision of guitarist Diego Cavallotti, Lacuna Coil’s instrumentalists proved to be just as valuable their two enigmatic vocalists. ‘Trip The Darkness’, ‘Kill The Light’ & ‘Our Truth’ saw a sea of bodies thrash against one another with utter passion and love for the band before them, as hit after hit was performed almost flawlessly. To many people’s surprise, the crowd-favourite cover of Depeche Mode’s ‘Enjoy The Silence’ made an appearance on the set, spending smiles across the venue. As their primary set concluded, the screams of hundreds of people echoed through the audience, begging for an encore, and an encore they received. ‘Delirium’, ‘Zombies’ & ‘The House of Shame’ gave the crowd one final performance to remember.

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Lacuna Coil

As the crowd funnelled their way into Melbourne’s ever-lit streets, I think I speak of all of those there that night when I say that the night’s proceedings could not have been more incredible. Whilst harnessing a sound that is quite different from that of the main act, both Drown This City and Orpheus Omega gave Melbourne the wake up they needed, both with enormous receptions from the sea of punters below. As for Lacuna Coil, their sensational, almost flawless display of some of metal’s most unique and addictive music gave us all a night to remember. My only wish is that is doesn’t take another seven years for the Italians to visit our shores again.

For those in Brisbane, you can catch Lacuna Coil on their final date tonight at Max Watt’s, Brisbane!

Tickets: www.tickets.destroyalllines.com