Bands: The Ocean, LLNN, Lo!, Spook The Horses
Venue: The Corner Hotel, Richmond, Australia
(Naarm, Woiwurrung Country)
Date: 15th June, 2024
Review by Ziggy Thunders
Photos by Dave Collopy
The Corner Hotel was home to a feast of Pelagic Records bands last night, showcasing some of the incredible talents from across the world on this label, including Spook The Horses (NZ), Lo! (AUS), LLNN (DNK) and The Ocean (GER). Along with celebrating the anniversary of The Ocean’s acclaimed record, Pelagial.
Spook The Horses galloped over from New Zealand for this pelagic records showcase, and their second time in Melbourne proved to be nothing short of incredible.
Immediately setting the tone for the evening by filling the room with their intense brooding sound, swinging between in your face aggressive riffs and sparse, despairing drone like moments.
With harsh, growling vocals cutting through the soundscape of lingering melodies or frantic low riffs, bass lines weaved underneath in a droning rumble and drums shifted from solid and steady to characterful and intricate, everything worked together perfectly to transport us to this desolate environment that Spook The Horses music evokes.
The guitar at points has a certain tone to it that is alarming, like a tension cable about to snap, groaning along with a distorted fuzz bass that reinforces the unease. Powerful vocals suited this compilation of dread, reminiscent of post metal legends Cult of Luna, the harsh delivery left the audience in a trance. The drums feature tom driven tribal like rhythms, incredibly mixed, this takes the live experience of this band to a whole other level.This was one hell of a way to start the night.
Go check out their latest record Empty Body and give them some support!
Lo!
I don’t even know where to begin with Lo! so if you ever get the chance, just go see them. You won’t regret it. Watching these guys command the stage was nothing short of a spectacle to me, the music, the presence, the captivating shape shifting movements of frontman Sam Dillon – I was hooked within the first ten seconds of their set.
The chaotic energy of Lo! was infectious, the crowd immediately turned into a sea of head banging and horns in the air as they churned out one of the most in your face sets I’ve seen in a long time. The onslaught of heaviness came in the form of soul crushing vocals, relentless riffs that were either at ferocious black metal speeds or slow gritty grooves, lightning fast, technical drums and dark menacing bass served as the sinister foundation for this barrage of horror.
With some unforgettable performances of Rat King and The Gleaners to which the crowd let loose, Lo! clearly satisfied existing fans and won over some new ones. Even in a lineup of ‘worst band names to google,’ a humorous remark from Sam, but I’m sure everyone in attendance will remember the name Lo! after this wonderfully disturbing set.
Give their most recent, acclaimed record The Gleaners a listen and check out this music video for Orca (or just watch all of them) to get an idea of Lo!’s unique artistic perspective.
LLNN
LLNN brought The Horror to The Corner as they started their set with a powerful opener, the vocalist took to the stage armed with a microphone and a single flashing light that pulsed along to the eerie, dark synthwave track. Haunting the stage with a ghoulish, other-worldly presence and at one point, shrieking into the void without a microphone that left the audience either in awe or sheer terror.
The mosh pit started the second they ripped into Imperial, a track off their most recent record Unmaker, and rarely stopped throughout their set. You could tell there were fans in the audience that had attended last night’s gig at 170 Russell, from the banter in the audience to the shirts worn in the mosh – to see LLNN two nights in a row on their first international tour added another layer of excitement to the crowd.
LLNN gave a masterclass in rhythm, atmosphere and tension as they burned through their cinematic sounding, sci-fi horror, dark heavy synthwave inspired set. The Vangelis inspired synth intro of Desecrator led into some of the most punishing rhythms and vocals, with bass that shook the very foundations of the venue and drums that tore apart reality. Parallels revisited their 2018 record Deads, which provided a rumbling build up on drums and riff before dropping into chaos. The four members played in sync as they shredded through the unending barrage of riffs, shrieking vocals and thundering bass.
You could clearly see LLNN relished in every single second onstage and the crowd loved every single moment. We can’t wait to see more from these guys in the future, and hope they come back to our shores again soon.
THE OCEAN
The moment everyones been waiting for. The red curtain drew back, blue lights flooded the stage, a delicate, moody piano introduction of Epipelagic filled the venue as the audience erupted into cheers. The Ocean was going to plunge us into the darkest depths, taking us on a journey through the different oceanic zones – from the surface to the abyss – via one of their most loved and acclaimed records, Pelagial.
One of four 10 year anniversary shows worldwide made this an incredibly special night, and you could feel that in the room as soon as the first hopeful notes of Mesopelagic: Into the Uncanny echoed throughout the venue. The iconic main riff kicked in with a nostalgic sounding guitar tone that somehow made you feel like you were being rocked by the waves, supported by soothing bass and drums and beautiful vocals that added to the calming feeling. Until it wasn’t so calm anymore. The tides turned as the mood grew darker, a faster, frantic riff destroyed all sense of peace as vocalist Loic Rossetti tells us “There’s no comfort in this place.” The audience were okay with that, as they screamed every lyric back to the band as the song grew faster and more intense as we delved deeper into Pelagial.
Into the realm of Bathyalpelagic, we find three parts – I: Impasses, II: The Wish In Dreams and III:Disequilibrated, where faster, brighter free flowing rhythms flow as traces of the darkness seep in. All the songs in this section feature lighter guitar leads, roaring drums and chordal rhythms with a hint of progressive metal in the structure. The delicate moments that shine in these songs provide a light in the dark, with the entire crowd singing a line full of hope – “I don’t believe in nothing but I believe in you, take my word and move on” – with Loic before the song drops back in the darkness. III: Disequilibrated sends us somewhere darker, showcasing the iconic guitar capabilities of Robin Staps and David Ramis Ahfeldt with heavier black metal inspired riffs.
We descend to Abyssopelagic I: Boundless Vasts and II: Signals of Anxiety, as the darker moods take over and the bleakness of the depths set in. The iconic riff from Mesopelagic is recycled and returns in a much heavier, gritty tone, symbolizing the change in the oceanic zone. Loic’s vocals range from harsher screams to hopeful cleans, sometimes sounding like a foreboding warning with lines like “This must be the most forlorn place in the world,” a lyric that immediately creates goosebumps. An even more menacing moment appears when Loic crowdsurfs, and perched on top of the crowd of raised hands, screams into the abyss.
Hadopelagic I: Omen of the Deep and II: Let Them Believe deliver slower, heavy moments with theatrical, strummed guitars – providing a slight relief from the heaviness. This section is home to one of the most memorable vocal parts of Pelagial, proven from the way the crowd screamed along with sheer joy and the lyrics provide moments of reflection and questioning the way our minds work – a consistent theme throughout the record.
Demersal: Cognitive Dissoance begins by showcasing the incredible talents of Paul Seidel on the drums as a strange delirious drum and guitar combination makes you question your sanity. With a guest vocal appearance from legendary Lochlan Watt (R U N), whose incredible harsh vocals complimented Loic’s so well they seemed like one unit, as they tore the stage apart as the intimidating riffs sweep through underneath, dragging us further into a claustrophobic place unlike we’ve ever seen.
Benthic: The Origin of Our Wishes – the final song on Pelagial, one of the darkest, most hopeless songs I’ve ever heard. The audience was completely lost in this experience. And live it hit even harder as the band charged on, following a devastating plodding drum and horrifyingly low bass line delivered with devastating energy from Mattias Hagerstrand. The tempo kept slowing to an overwhelming, menacing drone as the monumental performance of one of the best metal records of all time came to an end to a rapturous applause.
To close out the night those we remained were treated to an encore performance of two supposedly greatly unrehearsed according to Robin (which I greatly disagree with – they were phenomenal) of Miocene/Pilocene from Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic/Cenozoic and Silurian: Age of Sea Scorpions.
This was truly a once in a lifetime concert and we’re so bloody happy to have been a part of it. Thank you, The Ocean.
Gig Gallery
THANK YOU to The Ocean, LLNN, Lo! and Spook The Horses for making this one of the best concerts we’ve ever had the privilege to attend. Thanks to The Corner Hotel, Destroy All Lines, Dallas Does PR, Pelagic Records and everyone involved in putting this show on. We sincerely cannot thank you enough.