'An Evening Of Sonic Misery'

I made the two something hour trip from my home town to Canberra specifically for this event, and left very satisfied. The show was entitled 'An Evening Of Sonic Misery', but to me it was an evening of total awesome! It was also the debut album launch for bands Futility and Ironwood, and they certainly delivered.

The turnout could have been a lot better, for a Saturday evening it was rather shameful actually. I had higher hopes for Canberra metal fans. But despite that all the bands played very well. First band up was Tranquil Deception for their very first live gig. For a trio, two guitarists and a drummer, they had a great sound. Using controlled feedback quite a lot alongside some pretty awesome riffs, they were a great warmer for the evening. I was quite impressed when one of the guitarists used the feedback and a flange, or phase pedals to change it's pitch to what the other guitarist was playing. Looking forward to hearing what these these guys pull off.

Futility were awesome tonight. Their set was a decent length and included songs from the new album, which also includes a Katatonia cover of the song Murder from the Brave Murder Day album. From up the front the sound was awesome, and I caught a decent view of the energy these guys put into their show. Even though I had seen them live before, I still wasn't prepared for the great-ness of this show. Each song was played spot on, and the band wasn't uptight in the sense that whenever they made a mistake they cringed, infact thay laughed about it. That was quite refreshin to see. It was worth the trip just for these guys!

The Veil put on an okay set aswell, although there were some aspects of their music that I couldn't handle. Just picky stuff like how some of the vocals weren't to my liking, but other than that they were great. I couldn't really hear the keyboards during the heavier sections which was a shame, but other than that the sound was awesome. They all played well, or so I could tell from where I was getting some much needed rest on the couch.

Ironwood were definitely a highlight of the evening. For an album launch show, this was amazing. They played awesomely all through their set, and what a talented lot they are! The mixture of heavy and clean works so well, even live. They played a few songs I recognised from the self titled EP, some of which feature on the new album titled :Fire:Water:Ash:. Ironwood are certainly by no means, one of those bands that needs to be constantly heavy, fast and agressive to be good. They do have those moments of agression, and even whan played on stage you can see the emotion in their playing. It's refreshing to see, rather than another band of statues.
Some sections of their music uses external sounds, like rain, birds etc, and this was used live with great precision. I'd notice their rhythm guitarist, Matthew, cuing the sounds with what looked to be a portable audio device. This worked well, since the band had full control over this part of their music. In a live setting the dynamics of the bands sound really stand out, particularly with their song "The Oncoming Storm", where it goes from a soft section straight into fast riffs and solos. This was pulled off flawlessly, like the rest of their set. One of the highlights for this set for me was 'The Raven Song", which is one if their ballads, but a very powerful one at that. And again, like last time I saw them, during one song Dan (drums) got out of his chair, picked up Matt's guitar and played a bit while Matt sang, and played a quick crescendo on a cymbal. Definitely impressive to see, since most drummer hide behind their kit almost all the time during a set.
I'll definitely make a trip like this again for a gig like this one, although I don't recommend driving home after the show ends aswell. Perhaps a hotel would be a good idea for next time.

Be sure to check out all of the bands mentioned, and give Futility and Ironwood's debut albums a listen.

Tranquil Deception: www.myspace.com/tranquildeceptiondrone
The Veil: www.myspace.com/theveilau
Futility: www.myspace.com/futilitycanberra
Ironwood: www.myspace.com/ironwoodband