It had been rumoured since the last Megadeth tour in 2005 that Dave Mustaine would be bringing Gigantour to our fine shores the following year. Towards the tail end of 2006, the rumours became truth as the mighty Gigantour made its debut appearance to Australian audiences. Headliners Megadeth were backed by Soulfly, Arch Enemy and Caliban as this mighty metal machine laid waste to all who witnessed it. On a miserable and wet Brisbane night, Jamie Cook and Simon Milburn headed out to capture the tour's first show in all it's glory, and in Melbourne three days later, Daniel Hedger did the same.

Gigantour - The Riverstage, Brisbane, Australia, October 21 2006

Words by Jamie Cook and images by Simon Milburn

The week leading up to this show would’ve been the biggest week ever for metal bands to play in Brisbane. Only four days prior illswitch Engage, Lamb of God and Unearth passed through our great city, and now Brisbane and the East Coast of Australia were graced with Gigantour, which could end up turning into one of the world’s leading metal touring festivals. Unfortunately Australia was only given four bands, and only two of those were from the recent U.S. tour, that being Arch Enemy and headliners Megadeth. Sure Aussie fans would’ve rather seen bands like Overkill and Into Eternity on the bill, but as our country misses out on so many quality acts touring here, beggars can’t be choosers.

Today’s concert was an outdoor show, and that leads me to pay close attention to the weather in days coming up to the event. Earlier in the week, Mr. Weatherman predicted thunderstorms and heavy rain. Apart from today, when has the weather bureau ever got things right? On the walk to the venue, the heavens opened and down came the rain. This was going to be a long cold night, and a wet one at that.

As the day wasn’t off to a tip top start, it only got worse when first band, Germany’s Caliban, took the stage. Ripping through their attempt of a poor man’s Killswitch Engage just wasn’t enough to take my mind off getting a wet arse. In fact, I found getting wet and shivering more enjoyable than watching this uninspiring junk. I swear if I see another band with a whimpy ass emo looking guy sing tough guy hardcore vocals and a band that play repetitious breakdowns in each and every song I’m going postal. On a positive note though, some of today’s crowd seemed to enjoy what Caliban had on display, but I found their performance as captivating as masturbating with a cheese grater.

If Satan had a wife, it would be in the form of Angela Gossow from Sweden’s Arch Enemy. Whilst only a petite lady, she has a voice from the bowels of hell and one that could castrate any hot blooded male. Opening with Nemesis, the frenzied Brisbane crowd reacted like rabid dogs at feeding time. Ex-Carcass guitarist Michael Amott was in fine form and never missed a note, while drummer Daniel Erlandsson punished his kit with blistering beats. Arch Enemy carved up the crowd with songs such as Ravenous, My Apocalypse, Dead Eyes See No Future and the last tune of the evening, We Will Rise. This was the second time in less than a year Arch Enemy played Brisbane, and this time round there were still some fans of the earlier Arch Enemy that were disappointed with the absence of older songs. But having said that, one cannot deny the fact that this band played a relentless and worthy set. Sensational.

With chants of “Max, Max, Max”, this could only mean one thing - it’s time for Soulfly to wreak some havoc on Brisbane with their jumpdafuckup style of metal. Back in Australia with a new band in toe after a four year absence to these shores, metal legend Max Cavalera and Co. were about to prove they haven’t lost it after that time.

It was great to see bassist Bobby Burns (ex-Primer 55) take the stage after his unfortunate stroke just over a month earlier, as the rumour of Dave Ellefson (ex-Megadeth) or Danny Lilker (ex-Brutal Truth) would fill in while Bobby was on the road to recovery. Opening with the powerhouse Babylon from their back to form album Dark Ages, the pit in front of the stage raged with energy and intensity. Maybe all the moshing was some kind of rain dance, as it was during Soulfly’s set that the rain was at its heaviest and pelted down on the punters, even causing a good number to throw in the towel and head for home. For the many that did stay on, Soulfly belted out the favourites left right and centre - Arise Again, Prophecy, Seek n Strike, Jumpdafuckup, Back To The Primitive and for the hordes of Sepultura fans, Roots Bloody Roots and Chaos AD. One of the high points of the new Soulfly is watching new guitarist Mark Rizzo (ex-Ill Nino) flaunt his diverse talent, even showcasing his Flamenco skills during one song. As we near the climax of tonight’s set, Max brings out his son Richie Cavalera to lend his vocals to the first ever Soulfly single, Bleed. From the moment Richie steps onto the Riverstage, it’s evident he strives to be what his father is, by bounding around trying to work the crowd, but unfortunately, as many would agree, falls flat on his arse trying to do so. As another old saying goes “never send a boy to do a man’s job”. So did Soulfly deliver the goods? Hell yes they did, sign sealed and delivered. Let’s just hope next time it’s not another four years between drinks and we see them in a dryer venue.

Having only played Australia in April 2005, headliner’s Megadeth were about to do it all again eighteen months later. This was my fourth time seeing them play, and each time it has been with a different lineup. Seeing Megadeth perform on a big stage was something I’d craved since witnessing them on the Rust in Peace tour at Festival Hall in February of 1991. With the rain easing, things takeoff with Blackmail The Universe. It was almost impossible to fault Megadeth in any way, shape or form with their performance this evening. Dave Mustaine looked cool, confident and relaxed and praised our “beautiful country". The Drover brothers played the earlier material like it was their own, and new bassist James ‘J-Lo’ Lomenzo (ex-Black Label Society and White Lion) has surely been a strong replacement for James MacDonough, not only with his playing ability, but his whole stage charisma shone through like the evening star. Although the last Megadeth release was a Greatest Hits album, the setlist proved to be just that as well, and would’ve satisfied any old school metal fan. Kick the Chair, Wake Up Dead, Symphony Of Destruction, Take No Prisoners, Peace Sells, In My Darkest Hour, Sweating Bullets Mechanix, and a “song about aliens” Hangar 18 were just some of what was played, and we were even treated to a new track, Washington Is Next. Holy Wars ended the Megadeth two hour experience, which can only be described as flawless.

It was Dave’s statement “next year we’ve got something special planned for you” that had a lot of people talking. Could this mean more bands? Could this mean bands us old school metalheads have waited all our lives to see? Whatever happens, I was proud to witness the first Australian Gigantour and I’ll be making sure I keep that day free when it rolls around in 2007.

Gigantour - Festival Hall, Melbourne, Australia, October 24 2006

Words by Daniel Hedger and images (from the Brisbane show) by Simon Milburn

A monster invaded Melbourne last week. Made of metal and glistening in the half light, the Gigantour made its crushing way through the night. Sitting atop this heinous behemoth were four bands from different musical clans; but here they were, united in defiance of trends and the pointless typologising that has come to characterise metal criticism. With guitars like razorblades, drums of war and voices of fire each act slid down into the belly of the beast to play for the thousands of metal fans gathered at Festival Hall.

Germany's Caliban was the first band of the night, going on at the same time the doors were scheduled to open. Of course, due to the par-for-the-course terrible organization of Festival Hall staff (some doors even getting told to put their mobile phones in the cloak room), most people were still lining up while this band was on. Still, the band played a tight set to a small though vocal audience. Their metalcore style was played with energy and aggression, going to show that the Gigantour was not about genre or niche markets: it was about metal, all encompassing and noisy.

Arch Enemy is one of the world's premier metal bands at the moment, their live show demonstrating this beyond a shadow of a doubt. This death metal band was bursting with life, playing mostly material from the last three albums - those featuring Angela Gossow - rather than the earlier stuff. This drew a rapturous response from the crowd, though it would have been nice to hear something older like Silverwing. Despite the good perofrmance, however, the sound suffered a little from too much low-end. For a band whose guitar melodies are of such import - and for me, the band's strength - too much low end drowns out the lead work. Aside from that, the band was a well oiled machine. Angela Gossow is one of the best metal frontpersons around today. She has energy, stage presence - you could say she's statuesque but for the constant moving - and lungs of nitric acid. Truly, these Swedes were an explosive live force to be reckoned with.

There's an unhealthy trend among some older metal fans where Soulfly is mocked but Sepultura is deified as if Max Cavalera suddenly lost all his talent when he left that particular metal giant. Well, if you liked the last two Sepultura albums Max was on, it's hard to really rag on Soulfly. Case in point: at Gigantour Soulfly played two Sepultura songs (Refuse/Resist and Roots Bloody Roots) which did not, contrary to popular opinion, stick out like sore thumbs amongst Soulfly's material. Anyone that tells you that is just simply more familiar with those songs so of course they stand out. Like them or lump them, Soulfly has a sound that is unique (almost certainly Max's vision) and one that has been subsequently borrowed by many faceless bands that have come and gone throughout the last ten years. Which brings me, in a convoluted way, to Soulfly live.

While half the crowd was made up of jaded old metalheads who were there to see 'Megadeth dude! Fuck them Soulfly faggots" (I swear I saw a guy with no teeth kissing his sister all throughout Soulfly's set who only stopped to say this. Metalheads are notorious for their tolerance, right? For a genre that's supposed to provide shelter for the outsiders, this is pretty poor form), the other half was truly receptive to Max and his cohorts. The band put on a tight and professional show that drew on a more positive energy than many metal acts and their show had a musical identity separate from every other act on the bill, which has to be applauded no matter how you cut it. On stage, Max is still his fearsome self; ferocious and friendly all at once, while his band played the music with a rigour and abandon that you have to respect. I could have done without the pseudo-John McLaughlin guitar solo that went on forever and the constant chanting of the band's name, but I'm not going to pay out on a band who does its own thing (even in that isn't my particular cup of tea).

And then Megadeth entered the stage and blew everyone away. This is the sort of show that makes kids want to start bands. Watching this band, knowing its importance and legacy in the history of metal, one hopes the younger members of the audience are inspired to take up instruments and write music for the next generation of metal: the healthy way to express the frustration, aggression and energy that a band like Megadeth basically embodies. Opening with Blackmail The Universe, Megadeth proved to the few non-believers in attendance that they still have fire in the belly and can spew forth magic on cue. Dave Mustaine is as skilled live as he ever was and it's all the more impressive considering only a few years ago couldn't move his arm. The newest incarnation of Dave's backup band are no slouches either: the Drover brothers and Mr. LoMenzo on bass made it seem like there had never been anyone else.

With a back catalogue as large as a band like Megadeth has by now it is of course impossible to play everything everybody wants to hear. So despite some disappointing omissions (where was A Tout le Monde?; Burning Bridges?; Back In The Day?), all eras of the band were well represented. Particularly cool was the version of Holy Wars which included old-school anthem Mechanix in its middle section. They even included a new song, Washington Is Next.

Megadeth truly did light up the stage and the faces of otherwise sad-sack metalheads. Stoic guys that wore sour looks 24 hours a day and hadn't been laid in years, if ever, were suddenly alive and full of an excitement that none of the preceeding bands could have inspired. This was Megadeth, baby. All those lonely nights sitting at home with Rust In Peace cranked to 11 while the stale pizza became a part of the shag carpet were vindicated. This was Megadeth and, oh, how they rocked. Of course, it wasn't that Megadeth, it was Dave Mustaine plus three very talented musicians who had not been in any incarnation of the band previously. But it's the name, the legend, the goddamn entitlement to play those songs without fear of reproach. That's Megadeth.

And that was Gigantour. The bar has been set high. Let's see where the metal beast goes from here.