Bands Friday: Russian Circles, Tangled Thoughts of Leaving, Treebeard, Myriad Drone
Bands Saturday: Russian Circles, Tangled Thoughts of Leaving, Mushroom Giant, Bear the Mammoth
Venue both nights: Max Watts, Melbourne, Australia (Naarm, Woiwurrung country)
Dates: 09 & 10 February 2024
Review Friday: Ziggy Thunders
Photos Friday: Dave Collopy
Review Saturday: Dave Collopy
Photos Saturday: Ben Eldström
One venue, two nights and six bands delivered an incredible post/prog metal experience in Melbourne.
Myriad Drone
Myriad Drone provided the perfect start with aural cinematic tones as they took the stage, clearly riding the high after two shows supporting Russian Circles in New Zealand. The energy between the band was downright infectious as they graced the Max Watts stage for the first time, with shared smiles between members as they delivered a set full of the most gorgeous highs and brutal lows.
They showcased their unique way of creating a nostalgic, emotion-fuelled experience by combining vocal melodies, flowing arpeggiated chords, chugging riffs and bass and drums that provide the perfect bedrock to pull everything together.
A personal highlight of their set was a stellar performance of their latest single Forlorn Hope, which features a trademark style of other-worldly vocals and harmonies. Introduced with high tremolo guitars with a steady yet complex drum pattern relying heavily on toms, which then flows into a slow bass groove with dreamlike vocals. Journeying through dreamlike states with a reprise of the intro, into a more straightforward chorus before descending into the end with a maddening, galloping breakdown layered with vocals that sound like they’re breaking through from the afterlife.
Keep your eyes peeled for more shows, new merch and a new record from Myriad Drone later in the year.
Treebeard
Treebeard opened with their latest single, Great White, for their first time ever on the Max Watts stage. As soon as the pulsating main riff kicked in, the audience immediately followed, with heads bobbing and swaying along to the beat.
We were treated to two performances of unreleased songs, Incognita being one of them, with a slow and steady intro, powerful guitars and a slow, heavy rhythm section provided a moment of groundedness in the set.
The debut performance of another new song, Mountain of Madness, featuring a harsher style of vocals for the first time throughout the song, brought a new sense of excitement to the audience in an otherwise mostly instrumental evening. Guitars and drums brought out a more metal-based sound to the band, from that point on you could sense the band’s excitement and confidence with such a strong reaction from the crowd, driving the rest of their set to great heights. Rhythmic guitar patterns and an exhilarating tom-based groove, and screaming vocals that cut through like a knife set the foundation for what is Treebeard’s heaviest song to date.
For now, go listen to their latest single, Great White, and keep an eye out for new releases and more shows throughout the year.
Bear the Mammoth
Bear The Mammoth kicked off the second night with their trademark walls of reverb drenched guitars and beautifully executed clean lead picking, using a lot of odd time signatures in their music they definitely blur the line between post rock and prog. Their songs ebb and flow between states of grace and build into crescendos of heavier distorted guitars and steadier drums, emphasizing a sense of groundedness that helps with transitioning through songs with an ease that the post-rock genre yearns for.
Some of the more prog-influenced elements shine through with tighter syncopated rhythms trading off between each member, towards the end of these sections it can descend into a chaotic reverb and synth heavy wall of noise, with looped guitars slowly building with a distortion that gives the band the space needed to prepare the next song.
Some of the influences I can hear in their music stem from some of the delayed guitars with memories of Pink Floyd or an early iteration of Porcupine Tree, specifically the Voyage 34 era.
Other influences especially in the drumming I hear a lot of Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater fame.
All in all I can say Bear The Mammoth are one of Melbourne’s seminal post/prog-rock bands and their latest release Purple Haus is a must listen for any fan of the genre!
Mushroom Giant
Mushroom Giant are a very unique band. Forming in 2002 they have released four albums, with their latest being In A Forest released in April 2023.
Mushroom Giant have a fantastic way of creating heavy rock infused soundscapes with an expert knowledge of bass guitar effects trading off the more commonly used effects in post-rock music by trading when to use reverb and delays between the bass and guitars.
They premiered a new song as well which unfortunately I didn’t catch the name of. It’s a slower awesome mix of a more bluesy bass line and drum rhythms with a droning lead guitar that flows throughout the entire song with a complementing rhythm guitar line of cleanly picked chords and a slower more ambient breakdown with an introduction of Rototoms for the drummer which adds a more progressive feeling to what could be an entirely blues based song, taking it to that next level that Mushroom Giant are so brilliant at bringing to this scene.
Another one of Mushroom Giants draw cards is the addition of projected backdrops adding stimulating visual elements of nature to their music. Like in their song Aire River Rapids, the visual element of heavily edited action camera footage of white water rafting combined with the venue’s exceptional lighting drew the audience into another world entirely.
Mushroom Giant have been and will be around for a long time to come, and with good reason. So Make sure to check them out next time they’re around!
Tangled Thoughts of Leaving
Ziggy’s Perspective – Night One
Tangled Thoughts of Leaving – I have never experienced anything like this band before, being able to be fully transported to a different world through sound, the ability to transform an entire venue into some distorted, frantic but equally beautiful landscape was nothing short of awe inspiring.
The audience looked on in a trance as they followed these moments of chaos, building and building in intensity through layers of frantic keys, distorted guitars and bass and complex, controlled drum movements. These moments created a tension that filled the room, it felt like there was an alarming sense of unease and isolation that lingered until we would be lulled into more tender, delicate moments with sparse jazz inspired piano, gentle guitar and bass and sensitive drums.
Incorporating percussive elements added in creating this experience that imitated the wilderness. A string of bells sounded like bird calls, wooden shakers painted an image of shimmering leaves caught in the wind, chimes that glistened like rain – all coming together to bring these moments of a natural beauty amongst destructive chaos.
Check out Tangled Thoughts of Leaving’s latest record Oscillating Forest if you want to go on one hell of a memorable adventure.
Dave’s Perspective – Night Two
Watching Tangled Thoughts of Leaving is like a fever dream. It’s the kind of sound that I imagine plays in someone’s head with a severe anxiety disorder. With a real heavy emphasis on piano and improvisation for a lot of their music, they manage to create something unlike anything I’ve ever heard before. An unlikely pairing of piano and a completely fuzzed out bass tone and an almost Buddy Rich style of snare and tom work from their ridiculous drummer Gracie, who manages to mix an early form of jazz/bebop style of playing with a lot of modern techniques moving into even a lo-fi hip-hop style drumming at times, she expertly managed to hold it all together and signal with the rest of the band, and hold their chaotic music together with an expert grace of an accomplished conductor.
The keyboardist Ron Pollard brought a sensitivity to the music at points with arpeggiated moments, enfolding a beautiful mass of ambient swelling guitar parts, jazzy ride cymbal and percussion heavy drums that ends in a mass of shakers and synth noise that has a really naturalistic feel. Slowly building to heavier backbeat heavy drum patterns, that bring the audience on a real journey to what at times can feel like a hypnotic almost other-worldly place, only to end the song and have us crash back down to reality.
The whole band takes turns using different kinds of percussion, from chimes and bells to shakers and even natural elements like tree branches to create the sense of being out in the wild and experiencing the growth and destruction of nature over time.
While this music may not be for everybody, you really can’t help but be enraptured by the scale and scope of the soundscape this band creates. They really bring the audience along for a hypnotic journey of beauty and chaos.
Russian Circles
Ziggy’s Perspective – Night One
The venue was packed as the audience eagerly waited for post metal legends, Russian Circles to take the stage. This would be their first time back in Australia since 2019, and also since their highly praised record Gnosis was released in 2022.
A roar of applause filled the room as they appeared, and flew into the fast paced, rhythmic introduction of Station which unleashed the energy of the audience. This kicked off a setlist to remember, with a wide variety of songs from their discography, there was something for everyone to sink their teeth into. From the incredible Harper Lewis, intense Quartered, the blast beats of Betrayal and energetic Mládek, this was a journey through the incredible, diverse career of Russian Circles.
The stage show was unlike any other, featuring an immaculate light show that was tailored to each and every song, which added a whole other dimension to their music. Flickering white lights added a layer of frenzied anxiety to a lightning fast percussive stick section by Dave Turncrantz in Harper Lewis, warm tones lit up the room with a state of bliss as guitarist Mike Sullivan played the uplifting introduction for Afrika, and we were pummeled with an intense light show that matched the ferocity of Brain Cook’s bass playing as he led the charge into Conduit.
A highlight of the show for me, personally came in the form of a single, flickering orange line in a pitch black room above the drummer as Russian Circles built up the anticipation of the audience. An ambient drone filled the room, a chilling, delay soaked guitar rang out and we all knew what we were in for as Gnosis kicked in. The guitar, bass and drums build and create this mystical, ancient world: it feels as though you’re about to witness some sort of sacred ritual. This is a personal favourite track of mine from Russian Circles, and to see this live made me appreciate it even more. If you’re ever having a bad day and you need a song to make you feel powerful, this is the one.
I could write a thesis about this performance, but for the sake of the review I’ll leave it by saying this was one of the most incredible shows I’ve had the joy to see. Russian Circles are a must see band for any fans of the post metal genre.
Dave’s Perspective – Night Two
Russian Circles are one of those bands that come around who manages to break free of a genre that has such an amazing backlog of music. Having formed in 2004 and after releasing their 8th album Gnosis, they have created a massive discography of consistently brilliant music. Ever since the beginning of this band they’ve had their sound down, and use it and evolve it as time goes on. Creating brilliant post-metal masterpieces such as Harper Lewis, Conduit and Mládek, all of which were included in the tours setlist.
Mike Sullivan’s Guitar tone is so clean and precise, yet has such an awesome heaviness and distortion to it.
Brian Cook’s bass is unlike any I’ve heard, with an incredibly tight distortion that complements the guitar tone so well they almost sound like one person in certain sections.
Last but certainly not least is Dave Turncrantz, who’s drumming has instantly become a huge inspiration for me personally. He has a feel about the way he plays that seems to flow so effortlessly, yet has such power and precision that brings the whole package together.
Mike’s clean guitar work using loop pedals is absolutely flawless, using guitars to layer underneath sections or over parts to create a lead tone that forms seamlessly with heavy rhythms set in motion by Brian’s rhythmic and expertly controlled Bass and Dave’s inhuman drum patterns.
Russian Circles’ brilliant lighting is another hero of their stage show, with each member getting personal lighting it creates a scene that feels completely their own, every now and then lighting the full stage and venue, which creates a feeling of oneness with the audience.
Gig gallery
It was an honour to be welcomed by Birdsrobe to review and photograph these shows. We’d like to say a special thank you to Mike for allowing us to do this, this was a truly special weekend of music. And a massive thank you to all the bands who played, for being so welcoming and lovely to work with, and for all the effort they put into making these gigs happen.
Thank you so much for your kind words! And that song, btw, is called “Celestial Parallels of Fine White Dust” 🍄