Bar Four5Nine
Friday, May 1, 2015
Breaking Punk has fast become a staple of the Perth music scene. Running bi-monthly and popping up at a number of venues the nights have become favourites of both bands and punters alike. The first band of the night, Push Me Under were straight up hardcore punk. The amalgamation of modern and dynamic songwriting mixed with raw, grating guitar tones and call and response vocals are a reminder of what makes hardcore so much fun in the first place.
After a support slot with UK band Funeral For A Friend, it must be jarring for Longshore to come back to the cramped Four5Nine bar, but they do it with grace. Having recently parted ways with their drummer the band has temporarily delegated the role to a laptop for their live shows. While it seemingly goes against the aesthetic of live music, the nature of post-hardcore music lends itself towards this sort of thing, and even allows the band to extend a certain level of production value to their show. Something I really like about Longshore is their dedication to performance. They are a BYO moshpit, vocalist Ross Day and guitarist Ryan Noble jumping and thrashing amongst the crowd with vehemence. Performing a few new tunes that blended elements of deathcore and ambient rock, they continue to show great promise, both as performers and songwriters.
Full Effect were next on stage and furiously smashed through their set from start to finish. Combining hardcore with a hint of street punk their sound is extremely well-developed – you can’t help but feel you’re watching veterans of the genre. The Light The Dark have had an interesting ride since their formation in 2013. After touring South-East Asia and releasing a debut album under the name Medicine the band was forced to change their name. The energy of their songs and the presence they bring to the stage makes for a hell of a show. Their combination of metal and hardcore is only intensified by the ferocity of their vocalist, who feverishly prowls the stage and floor – at one point climbing onto the bar, strutting the counter and stepping over drinks.
El Capitan are a full-throttle hardcore band with a penchant for the unapologetically brutal. Their fast paced music is accented by dynamic guitar riffs, syncopated drumming and intermittent breakdowns. The crowd revelled in their performance, pushing closer and closer to the action throughout their set.
All of the bands of the night had made as much use of the floor as they did the stage, and closing out the night were Winterfold, who were no exception. Though the crowd had started to dwindle slightly, it did nothing to diminish the potency of their show. Winterfold are favourites of the Perth scene, their music is unrelentingly aggressive, a chaotic menagerie of hardcore and death. The band called the crowd forward, demanding they get involved in action at the front of the room. With barely enough room to stand they played right up in the faces of the audience. It was a strong finish for a great night, a true showcase of some of the best hardcore Perth has to offer.
DAVE MULLINS
