Words by Jamie Cook

It hasn’t even hit the halfway mark for 2010 and Australia has already been slammed with heavy bills such as Decapitated, Misery Index, Origin, Behemoth and Goatwhore over the past couple of months, and if that’s not enough bands like Napalm Death, Mayhem and Dying Fetus are yet to come for the second part of the year. Tonight in downtown West End, Egyptian inspired Tech Death Metallers Nile drop by for their third visit, bringing along with them Floridian Deathsters Hate Eternal and New York City Black Metal youngsters Abigail Williams.

Words by Kyall Robinson

Lining up before the doors open, you can tell that the Hi-Fi is going to be packed tonight. How packed? I was in a line to get in the line to get inside. That’s insane. 15 minutes before the doors open and security is already preventing people from lining further up the street. Inside is a worse experience though. When the crowd managed to crawl their way into the venue, the Hi-Fi must have been incredibly close to capacity. Barrier to bar, side to side with every attendee arse to tits, and still the mezzanine deck wasn’t open. Whoever runs the Hi-Fi, if you want people to like your venue, make it at least accommodating, it is not a good time when my choices to watch a band are be squashed or stand on my toes.

Words by Kyall Robinson and live photos by Damian Rohrlach

It's surprising the amount of draw a bill can have on Easter Sunday. Arriving at the venue half an hour before the doors were due to open, the devoted line of long haired, black shirted fans was already halfway up the street along Brisbane's Hi-Fi Bar. Things become tense when the doors finally open, and stay that way, letting the crowd shove their way in as orderly as possible before making the ritualistic march to the merch desk to support the monumental acts playing tonight.

It's not just any normal concert going on tonight. It's the biggest that Brisbane has seen in a long time. Comprising of four acts that would have no problem headlining their own shows (as two of the bands tonight have done before). What other line-up could coerce metalheads into the Hifi Bar for eighty dollars on a Sunday than one containing Origin, Misery Index, Psycroptic and Decapitated? Not many.

Words by Jamie Cook and live images by Damian Rohrlach

During the term of my concert going life, I can’t quite remember an international band touring Australia more than twice on the same album, let alone three times. Tonight in old Brisbane town, Bay Area Metal heavyweights Machine Head are back for their third time in three years to play one of the last remaining dates on The Blackening world tour which first started way back in 2007. This show entitled The Black Procession which also had their Connecticut pals Hatebreed along for the ride was originally slotted down for the 10,000 capacity Riverstage, but in the month leading up to the show saw a last minute venue change to the 1,200 capacity Hi-Fi bar in West End.  Poor ticket sales perhaps? People have had their fair share of Machine Head? Is it because music fans are constantly having their bank accounts raped due to the amount of shows coming through town? Or is it all of the above? Either way it was a given that tickets to see such a band in a small intimate club would sell out in no time, even with ordinary support bands like Bleeding Through and Emmure to open this evenings event.

Words by Jamie Cook and live images by Damian Rohrlach

For fans of the heavier end of music, there can be no complaining tonight as Brisbane were treated to three different types of Death Metal. For those who prefer the newer Deathcore style of brutality, Los Angeles based Winds of Plague might just be your thing, for the old schoolers, New York’s Suffocation were back in town to crack some skulls, and headlining this evening’s outing on their fourth trip down under was none other than Sweden’s melodic Death Metallers Arch Enemy.