It's all going down heavy as lead for metal-loving punters at The Triffid in Brisbane.
Inside the familiar confines of the venue hanger (15 February), Outsider open a can of metal whoop on our collective asses. Unleashing their set upon us they are embraced with thrashing arms and banging heads by the early arrivals and a bunch of eager fans familiar with their music.More punters arrived during their set and quickly joined in the fray or watched along with nodding approval of the beats blasting about our ears. With sweat now mingling with the air, more bodies pressing in close as the sold-out show attendees make their way indoors.
Outsider - image © Clea-marie Thorne
Locals Diesect waste no time in making their presence known, stomping onto the stage with the kind of energy that demands immediate attention. Their sound is an unrelenting mix of razor-sharp riffs and gut-punching breakdowns throttling us. Each track is hammering home their place in our heavy metal hearts.
'Paralysis' rips through the crowd like a shockwave, sending the first bodies flying in the pit. 'Second Guess' follows suit, a crushing anthem that has fists raised and heads snapping forward in rhythmic unity.
By the time they drop 'Too Many Scars', the temperature in the room has skyrocketed, the walls reverberating with the sheer weight of their sonic assault. We are invited to go crazy as they wind up with the primal energy of 'Loose Ends'.
A storm was brewing. . . well it arrives in full force and the crowd is already well and truly locked in. As the final words "you'll f...ing die alone with nothing!" shreds our ear drums, it leave us frothing for the carnage ahead.
Diesect - image © Clea-marie Thorne
Germany's Half Me pick up where Diesect left off and immediately turn up the intensity crashing in with 'Exit Wound'. Their sound is a calculated fusion of thrash, hardcore, and metalcore, twisting together breakneck aggression and eerie, melodic undertones.
'Fatalist' sees the middle of the floor erupt into a swirling mass of chaos, circle pit in action with a brutal efficiency. Zühlke's vocals are a mix of raw screams and venomous delivery, while anchoring the madness are pulsing basslines that hit like a sledgehammer.
'Quitters Talk' blends haunting melodies with bone-crushing grooves, pushing the crowd to the limit as bodies collide in the pit. The entire set feels like a controlled detonation, each song tightening the grip they have on the room until there's no escape.
Half Me - image © Clea-marie Thorne
The only reprieve is the short break and anticipation for what's to come. I take these minutes to catch our breath. We are patient and before too long, it's happening!
Thrown step onto the stage one by one in the dark. All bodies are present and in an instant, The Triffid is no longer just a venue – it's the scene of a metal skirmish.
Marcus Lundqvist grips the mic like it's an extension of his own rage, and as their furious sound rips apart the anticipatory chatter 'Backfire' detonates the crowd into chaos. The pit becomes a maelstrom of limbs, each riff from Johan Liljeblad and Andreas Malm slicing through the air like a blade, while Buster Odeholm's drumming feels like the earth itself is trying to shake us loose.
'Nights' follows, the heaviest storm of the set, its breakdown dragging the audience into an inescapable downward spiral. By the time 'Look At Me' hits, its electronic elements twisting through the chaos, the room is in complete submission to Thrown's sonic brutality.
The breakdowns slam harder than a bogan kicking off at the footy, and the vocals I feel in my soul; at times they sound like they're being emitted straight from the mouth of something unholy.
Thrown - image © Clea-marie Thorne
'Guilt' arrives like a punch to the gut, Lundqvist's anguished scream of "I can't forgive myself for the things I've done," reverberating through the venue, hitting harder than any stage-dive. It's the kind of track that latches onto your bones and refuses to let go.
The set list (14 songs by the end and 1 with a guest appearance) barrels forward without mercy. 'Bitter Friend' pulsates with trap-infused beats woven into its aggression and has die-hard fans swinging limbs like they're fighting off a swooping magpie.
'Dislike' and 'New Low' pummel the senses with an unrelenting rhythm section that leaves no room to breathe. The pit is an absolute battleground – flailing arms, flying boots and a teddy! I retreated to the mezzanine after seeing one poor bastard cop an elbow to the chops – he was ok as he grinned through the blood.
Thrown - image © Clea-marie Thorne
Those of us not getting decked in the pit, were screaming every word like our lives depended on it. 'On The Verge' is a beast of its own, the crowd feeding off its dynamic transitions and Lundqvist's venomous delivery (I lost what I had left of my mind).
The pit churns violently, an unrelenting storm continuing within the venue, before 'So Done' arrives to deliver a devastating blow. However, just when it feels like the madness is over and we might be knocked out, Thrown launches into 'Grayout', a final, crushing crescendo that ensures no one leaves unscathed from the instrumentation and the vocals that are so guttural they've likely scared any living creature within that hide in the hangar rafters.
The outro's beatdown is pure annihilation, bodies colliding as exhaustion is ignored for one last moment of relished chaos. The lights come up signalling there is no encore to be had.
Punters look around disoriented; they've just gone from moshing under strobing lights that pierce the darkness to a mongrel mix of ear-splitting chaos amongst sweat-soaked live carnage, and a stage presence as unpredictable as a pub punch-on to ungodly music over the speakers and ugly lights. All in the blink of an eye.
Thrown - image © Clea-marie Thorne
We exit gasping, bruised, deaf, and utterly spent. The only thing on many minds I'm guessing as I watch punters stagger towards one of the nearest venue bars in desperate need of anything liquid, even good old tap water I reckon.
Thrown? More like launched us straight into the depths of sonic brutality and I will never be the same again.
More photos from the concert.
