Review by Meghan Player
It’s been a long time coming for fans of Finnish band Apocalyptica to finally catch the band on Australian soil for the first time in their 16+ year career – and it was well worth the wait.
As the band take to the stage to a roar from the local crowd, the first thing you must remember is to forget everything you know about ‘traditional’ metal bands and their sound. Apocalyptica not only redefines what makes a great metal band, but the manner in how the sound is achieved.
Arming themselves with cellos [yes, cellos], the band whip through melodic frenzies of gorgeous noise – willing the crowd into an incredible sense of awe. The head banging, hair twirling spectacle doesn’t cease through the bands entire set – never disengaging, never boring, never predictable.
Continue reading Live Review: Apocalyptica @ The Hi-Fi, Sydney – 31 August 2012
There is little more satisfying on a Sunday evening than experiencing some really top-notch live music, and the show put on by Kate Miller-Heidke and The Beards at Brisbane’s Hi-Fi last night did more than fill this need. Theatrical, funny, poignant and breathtaking, the two acts complemented each other perfectly to create an evening of bar-raising, quality music memories.
Thursday night saw the return of SLASH to our shores as he kicked off his Apocalyptic Love Australian tour.
With the annual Splendour in the Grass festival letting loose in Bryon Bay, the sideshow circus around the country was in full swing. Co-headlining Splendour was the infamous 
After the successful release of their single, ‘Empty Hands’, Brisbane 5-piece 
With the local, and indeed international, alt rock/indie/folk sciences currently thriving thanks to the likes of Bon Iver, Grizzly Bear, Mumford & Sons and City & Colour – it was only a matter of time before the young Australian acts started enjoying some well-deserved attention.
On the 13th of April last year, 
Sydney four piece Breaking Orbit’s debut album The Time Traveller has been a long time coming, with a name change and some member shuffles preceding its release. The wait was certainly worth it, though. The Time Traveller has blown anything done by any other Australian progressively minded band out of the water, save for maybe Karnivool’s Sound Awake and Cog’s The New Normal. However, Breaking Orbit do things slightly differently, placing a heavy emphasis on the tribal and percussive elements in their sound. The result is a debut album of monolithic proportions.
Born Villain is the eighth full length album from 
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros have returned with their brand new second full-length album ‘Here’. The album is melodious, magical and yet sleep inducing. Having big shoes to fill after the popularity of their first album “Up from Below” (2009) and their hit single, “Home” they have made some distinct changes, some for the better and alas, some for the worst.
After the success of their break through track, ‘Counter Revolution’, 
The Ocean are one of the more interesting bands of the past few decades. The brainchild of guitarist Robin Staps, The Ocean has, over the years, morphed into one of the most forward thinking and innovative metal bands in the world. Their show at Melbourne’s Hi-Fi bar on Saturday night was the second last leg of their maiden tour of Australia, and what a night it was.
Trekking all the way out to Ferntree Gully for a gig is always an interesting experience and Thursday night was no different, with a line up boasting some of Australia’s and America’s best alternative rock bands. With Brisbane natives Dead Letter Circus having been on tour with Texan five piece Fair to Midland in the States for the past few months, it was time to bring the party (and Fair to Midland) back home for their own national tour.