Nasum, Psycroptic @ The Hi-Fi Bar, Melbourne (19/08/2012)
Heathen Skulls touring are, in my opinion, establishing themselves and becoming known to book some of the most immaculate line-ups for their Australian tours of international underground bands. In true fashion, on the 19th of August at Melbourne’s The Hifi, this was no exception. Psycroptic, Dsycarnate and Captain Cleanoff were the supporting acts for Swedish grindcore band Nasum’s first, and last ever tour of Australia in this ultimate combination of grind and death that goes hand-in-hand together.
Nasum had parted ways after the tragic death of their vocalist Mieszko Talarczyk in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami disaster. However, after much deliberation and debate, they’d decided to get together for one last tour with old friend Keijo Niinimaa of Finnish band Rotten Sound taking on vocals. Nasum had promised this tour was to be a final goodbye to the fans and Mieszko after 20 years of influential grindcore mayhem. “No cheesy reunion, no new albums, no epitaph for Mieszko” – just a live and unruly onslaught. Kicking off in Sweden in May this year, they’ve gone on an extensive tour, playing only a handful of selected shows and some of the most prominent metal festivals around Europe and the US. They’ve graced us in Australia, and will wrap up their tour in October with their final ever show ripping up Stockholm, Sweden.
Australia’s own Captain Cleanoff kicked the night off with one of their vicious sets that has undoubtedly cemented them in the heart and core of Australian grindcore. They warmed up the crowd, giving them a taste of the disorderly chaos that was to come.
As The Hifi began to fill up, Dyscarnate were about to take the stage. I was unsure what to expect and was absolutely gobsmacked by what their forty minute set brought. Hailing from Horsham UK, this three piece death metal outfit absolutely tore the stage a new one with one of the most powerful and tight sets I’ve ever seen from a trio. Henry and Tom (on bass and guitars respectively) shared vocals and somehow managed to synchronise their duties so impeccably in a truly mesmerising attack. They sent the audience into a fixated trance with their overwhelming stage presence and I can honestly say without a doubt that they had definitely won over a slew of new fans - myself included.
Main supporting band and Tasmania’s Psycroptic were up next unleashing a torrent of technical death metal and enticing the crowd into partaking in the pandemonium and chaos that took place in the mosh pit. Psycroptic never fail to pull an impressive crowd and play an even more impressive set with tracks ranging from their thirteen year history. Chants of “Croptic! Croptic!” reverberated through The Hifi as the band wrapped up their roaring set, preparing the audience for what was to come next.
Giving it their all for one last time during this tour, it was evident by the chemistry and energy on stage that these guys were not putting Nasum to rest without an electrifying bang.
The stage had been decked out with banners of the amazing artwork depicting Mr. and Mrs. Gasmask as the lights dimmed and the intro prompted Nasum chants that echoed throughout the venue. The band were hell-bent on giving the fans a mixture of the old and new, the classics as well as the personal favourites in a dynamic set list that stretched throughout Nasum’s 20 year history.
Kicking off with ‘Mass Hypnosis’, for the next hour, Nasum terrorized Melbourne and lashed out a grindcore blitzkrieg onto every single person at The Hifi, particularly the die-hard hordes in the pit who belted out the lyrics to every single one of their songs.
The band looked like they were genuinely having an amazing time on the stage and the audience definitely fed off the vibe. Nasum’s guitarist Jon had incredible amounts of stage presence and energy, windmilling his way around the stage with fellow guitarist Urban and bassist Jesper. 'Shadows’ stirred up a few stage dives with Keijo urging on a circle pit. Admittedly, it was a relief to see that the Hi-fi security had relaxed their policy on stage dives and crowd surfing since the start of the year, particularly relating to the more extreme gigs.
Keijo jokingly made a cheeky dedication for their track ‘The Smallest Man’ before belting out the opening line “You’re such a whore!” with a large, mischievous grin on his face.
‘Time To Act’ began a crown chant of “So do you think you make a difference?” that resonated throughout the venue before ‘Inhale/exhale’ led the fans into an absolute frenzy with stage divers and one young fan getting up on stage to share the vocals throughout the song. Keijo dived into the pit and was absolutely hounded by the crowd who were battling it out for the mic for what seemed like a good 60 seconds.
The band hit the stage again for a three song encore, wrapping up their thunderous set with a classic – “The Idiot Parade” before taking a bow and thanking Melbourne for its energetic atmosphere. The band hung around the stage after their set, chatting to the fans and signing some merch.
I feel really fortunate to have seen Nasum play for one last time before they officially call it quits. I mean, what else can I write about what was one of the best metal shows I’ve seen in a very long time. It’s gigs like these that are a breath of fresh air in Melbourne’s music scene that brings great international metal bands so few and far in between. With only some dates left of their tour, I highly suggest checking out Nasum’s insanely energetic and incredible show for one last time if they come to a town near you. Don’t miss out; this is definitely the grind finale.
Clara Söukarcharge
Nasum had parted ways after the tragic death of their vocalist Mieszko Talarczyk in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami disaster. However, after much deliberation and debate, they’d decided to get together for one last tour with old friend Keijo Niinimaa of Finnish band Rotten Sound taking on vocals. Nasum had promised this tour was to be a final goodbye to the fans and Mieszko after 20 years of influential grindcore mayhem. “No cheesy reunion, no new albums, no epitaph for Mieszko” – just a live and unruly onslaught. Kicking off in Sweden in May this year, they’ve gone on an extensive tour, playing only a handful of selected shows and some of the most prominent metal festivals around Europe and the US. They’ve graced us in Australia, and will wrap up their tour in October with their final ever show ripping up Stockholm, Sweden.
Australia’s own Captain Cleanoff kicked the night off with one of their vicious sets that has undoubtedly cemented them in the heart and core of Australian grindcore. They warmed up the crowd, giving them a taste of the disorderly chaos that was to come.
As The Hifi began to fill up, Dyscarnate were about to take the stage. I was unsure what to expect and was absolutely gobsmacked by what their forty minute set brought. Hailing from Horsham UK, this three piece death metal outfit absolutely tore the stage a new one with one of the most powerful and tight sets I’ve ever seen from a trio. Henry and Tom (on bass and guitars respectively) shared vocals and somehow managed to synchronise their duties so impeccably in a truly mesmerising attack. They sent the audience into a fixated trance with their overwhelming stage presence and I can honestly say without a doubt that they had definitely won over a slew of new fans - myself included.
Main supporting band and Tasmania’s Psycroptic were up next unleashing a torrent of technical death metal and enticing the crowd into partaking in the pandemonium and chaos that took place in the mosh pit. Psycroptic never fail to pull an impressive crowd and play an even more impressive set with tracks ranging from their thirteen year history. Chants of “Croptic! Croptic!” reverberated through The Hifi as the band wrapped up their roaring set, preparing the audience for what was to come next.
Giving it their all for one last time during this tour, it was evident by the chemistry and energy on stage that these guys were not putting Nasum to rest without an electrifying bang.
The stage had been decked out with banners of the amazing artwork depicting Mr. and Mrs. Gasmask as the lights dimmed and the intro prompted Nasum chants that echoed throughout the venue. The band were hell-bent on giving the fans a mixture of the old and new, the classics as well as the personal favourites in a dynamic set list that stretched throughout Nasum’s 20 year history.
Kicking off with ‘Mass Hypnosis’, for the next hour, Nasum terrorized Melbourne and lashed out a grindcore blitzkrieg onto every single person at The Hifi, particularly the die-hard hordes in the pit who belted out the lyrics to every single one of their songs.
The band looked like they were genuinely having an amazing time on the stage and the audience definitely fed off the vibe. Nasum’s guitarist Jon had incredible amounts of stage presence and energy, windmilling his way around the stage with fellow guitarist Urban and bassist Jesper. 'Shadows’ stirred up a few stage dives with Keijo urging on a circle pit. Admittedly, it was a relief to see that the Hi-fi security had relaxed their policy on stage dives and crowd surfing since the start of the year, particularly relating to the more extreme gigs.
Keijo jokingly made a cheeky dedication for their track ‘The Smallest Man’ before belting out the opening line “You’re such a whore!” with a large, mischievous grin on his face.
‘Time To Act’ began a crown chant of “So do you think you make a difference?” that resonated throughout the venue before ‘Inhale/exhale’ led the fans into an absolute frenzy with stage divers and one young fan getting up on stage to share the vocals throughout the song. Keijo dived into the pit and was absolutely hounded by the crowd who were battling it out for the mic for what seemed like a good 60 seconds.
The band hit the stage again for a three song encore, wrapping up their thunderous set with a classic – “The Idiot Parade” before taking a bow and thanking Melbourne for its energetic atmosphere. The band hung around the stage after their set, chatting to the fans and signing some merch.
I feel really fortunate to have seen Nasum play for one last time before they officially call it quits. I mean, what else can I write about what was one of the best metal shows I’ve seen in a very long time. It’s gigs like these that are a breath of fresh air in Melbourne’s music scene that brings great international metal bands so few and far in between. With only some dates left of their tour, I highly suggest checking out Nasum’s insanely energetic and incredible show for one last time if they come to a town near you. Don’t miss out; this is definitely the grind finale.
Clara Söukarcharge