If the announcement of James Hatfield going back into rehab instead of coming to Australia on a package tour with Metallica and Slipknot, well allow Metallise to offer you a remedy of several international and domestic shows popping through the region in the next couple of months from sludge to symphonic death.
Mark of Cain hit the Basement in Belco October 19th with the 30th anniversary tour for their album Battlesick. Ex Fugazi alumni The Messthetics are our for this national tour and you can hit Oztix to pick up your tickets for the birthday party.
Munt Are a 5 piece band our of Melbourne whom blend black, modern death metal and grind core to great effect and have put the fruits of their brutal labor into their 4th release, an EP called Towards Extinction and are taking it up the east coast in celebration of its launch. Warpath from Adelaide are also on board with their new EP Out of Fear for this jaunt and they will be joined by Blight Worms, Tenchknife and Facecutter at the Basement on the 25th of October.
Crowbar, one of New Orleans heaviest bands of all time postponed their winter Australian tour, but’s its just around the corner now on December 6th and the local supports were just announced with Arrowhead and Canberra’s Mental Cavity on board for all them riffs.
It must be a thing because Mental Cavity have also been announced as the local support for New Orleans other heaviest band’s November tour Eyehategod happening November 11th and clearly my must see pick for gig of the month at the Basement. Black Rheno have the national support for the tour and it’s been 7 years since the NOLA sludge kings bludgeoned the ANU bar. Going to be a sensational show.
Also vying for your November concert dollar is Itallian symphonic death band Fleshgod Apocalypse. The band will be closing out their 6 date run of Australia here in Canberra in celebration of their new album Veleno (The Italian word for “Venom”). Also performing at the show are Unholy Vendetta, Black Mountain and Freedom of Fear. Soundworks Direct and Oztix are your options for tickets.
If you’re up for a cruise up the Hume, a great excuse for a road trip is the Steel Assassins festival in Sydney at The Bridge Hotel. Running over 3 nights if you count the Thursday night warm up show – there’s a whole lotta metal from a fest that bills itself as “Australia’s truest metal fest”. Thursday night show is November 7th in Glebe at the Steves Brewery and features Japanese thrashers Riverge, Sydney acid metal Sabire and long time Sydney act Hazmat. Friday the 8th moves to the main event with locals Witchskull headlining Tyrant, Riverge, Temtris, Shadow Realm, The Plague and Triple Kill. Saturday is even more stacked with Black Majesty, Elm Street, Mason, Envenomed, Hidden Intent, Snake Bite Whiskey, Bulletbelt, Wartooth, Canberra’s Mattesphere, Head In A Jar, Medics of Pain and a “special secret performance”. That’s a whole lot of metal and you can get your tickets at Moshtix.
Witchskull also appearing at Sun Burn festival with Pod People, Lucifungus and a cavalcade of great slow riffing Aussie bands at the Tote in Melbourne on the 30th of November. That will be their last show before going into the studio December 1st to record their third album with a look to an early 2020 release.
Opeth are out in Australia for 5 dates in December. So if you’re looking for an early Christmas present you could hit up the State Theatre in Sydney on the 14th to catch them bring forth some classics as well as material from this years In Cauda Venenum.
