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Live Reviews : sleepmakeswaves, The Contortionist, Tangled Thoughts of Leaving & Dumbsaint @ The Corner Hotel, Melbourne 07/08/2016

By on August 8, 2016

 

Words: Bailey Graham

Images: Mark Hoffmann

It’s no secret that Melbourne loves its progressive music scene, with internationally recognised progressive metal bands like Periphery and Tesseract often selling out venues across the city over multiple dates, so it’s no surprise that Australian progressive post-rock sensations sleepmakeswaves are doing two nights in this fine city. Tonight’s leg of their ‘Traced in Constellations’ tour is at the iconic Corner Hotel, with prog fans gathered in full force to witness the Aussie prog juggernaut that is sleepmakeswaves. Along for the ride are American prog-metal heroes The Contortionist, and Australian support from Tangled Thoughts of Leaving and Dumbsaint.

Sydney’s Dumbsaint were first to hit the stage a mere 15 minutes after doors. I had never seen Dumbsaint before so I did not know what to expect, but never did I think I’d witness what I just saw. The band brought in a massive screen and a projector to display a video of what was various scenes of film depicting human interaction, coupled with the band’s atmospheric, down-tuned progressive phrasing. I have never witnessed something so enthralling in a support band before. Their post-rock influenced rhythms provided a magnificent soundtrack to the film, creating atmospheres of serenity, calm, fear and curiosity, sometimes all at the same time. Despite the small number of people in attendance, the progressive art-rockers gave the crowd something truly memorable.

dumbsaint tic 2016

Dumbsaint

Hailing from Perth, Tangled Thoughts of Leaving bombarded the venue with a sonic assault like no other. Their piano-driven, instrumental post rock sound entranced the crowd into complete submission, succumbing to the incredibly loud low-end sound and almost spell-binding piano/keyboard phrases of Ben Pollard. Whilst their sound was massive, the variety in their performance was not, which at times felt repetitive as many sections of their tracks containing one single riff or phrase repeated continuously, sometimes over minutes at a time. But all and all, my indifference towards their songwriting can not take away that fact that Tangled Thoughts of Leaving are an incredibly atmospheric and excellent post-rock band with incredible potential.

ttol tic 2016

Tangled Thoughts of Leaving

The crowd began to gather towards the stage en mass, as they knew what they were about to witness. Making their journey to Melbourne all the way from Indianapolis, USA, progressive heavyweights The Contortionist initiated their set like true prog musicians, with an ominous backing track coupled with the slow, arpeggiated phrasing from the guitars and bass. Barefoot vocalist Michael Lessard wandered around the stage in what seemed to be in a trance, mimicking the atmospheric sound from his fellow musicians on stage. As The Contortionist’s set progressed from soft vocals and reverb-ridden phrases to a barrage of heavy progressive riffs and distorted vocals, which at times were very reminiscent of early Tesseract. The American six-piece had come on stage with only the intention of performing flawlessly, and not only did they do just that, but they went above and beyond my expectations as to what this band can pull off. The incredibly tight playing of the entire band, ranging from some of the most serene and captivating progressive music to some of the most invigorating, aggressive and well crafted prog-metal tracks. I have no doubt in my mind that when The Contortionist choose to visit Australia again, that they will be welcomed wholeheartedly by the Australian prog scene with open arms.

the contortionist tic 2016

The Contortionist

Fresh off their recent sold-out tour with Cog, Sydney’s sleepmakeswaves were ready to take Melbourne on and assert themselves as one of Australia’s premier progressive acts. Wasting no time, they jumped  straight into ‘Perfect Detonator’ to thunderous applause from the crowd. Only a minute into their set and I am already understanding why this band is regarded amongst the very best. Unlike the rest of the lineup, each member of sleepmakeswaves demonstrated incredible amounts of energy with their performance, making the visual aspect of their performance equally as enthralling as their audial aspect. Jumping straight into ‘The Stars Are Stigmata’ and ‘A Gaze Blank And Pitiless As The Sun’, sleepmakeswaves held a firm grasp on the crowd with their intrinsic rhythmic playing  and captivating melodies. What’s incredible about their performance tonight was the level of depth within their sound, as it gives off an almost-ethereal vibe to it, a sound sleepmakeswaves can truly claim as all their own. After delivering ‘Great Northern’, the band continued their surreal assault on the senses with ‘We Sing the Body Electric’ and ‘Keep Your Splendid Silent Sun’.

sleepmakeswaves tic 2016

sleepmakeswaves

As we approach the final moments of their set, the band take a trip down memory lane with the title track of their 2011 release ‘…And So We Destroyed Everything’, followed by the title track for this tour – ‘Traced in Constellations’. After a touching thank you speech from bassist Alex Wilson, their last song of the night; ‘Something Like Avalanches’ tore through the crowd with such a tight sound from all four members. sleepmakeswaves are a band held in high regard by newcomers and  veterans alike within the Australian progressive music scene, and after witnessing a performance like that, I can see why.

The entire night was a marvellous success, not a single technical difficulty in sight, nor was there any point in time I felt disengaged by any of the bands on the lineup. Dumbsaint’s unique, soundtrack-esque approach to post-rock music was sensational, Tangled Thoughts of Leaving showcased their piano-driven excellence to a captivated crowd and The Contortionist completely owned the stage with their more aggressive approach on the progressive music spectrum. As for sleepmakeswaves, after a series of critically acclaimed releases over their 10 year career, the instrumental powerhouse are showing no signs of rust or fatigue in their quest to produce quality material and execute incredible live shows, and in regards to the latter, tonight’s headline performance is testament to that statement.

sleepmakeswaves next hit Cambridge Hotel in Newcastle, NSW for the next part of their ‘Traced in Constellations’ Australia tour. Tickets from sleepmakeswaves.com. Don’t miss out!

sleepmakeswaves tic tour poster 2016