Live Review: Thy Art Is Murder, Cattle Decapitation, Aversions Crown, King Parrot, Disentomb

A stacked extreme bill has The Rev packed and Disentomb get things underway with aplomb. Taking a page from the book of acts like Dying Fetus, Disentomb's tunes focus on throwing memorable riffs into a maelstrom of brutality.

Maybe this reviewer spends too much time around words, but it shits him immeasurably that Aversions Crown don't have a possessive apostrophe in their band name. So it's not until after a couple of stiff drinks that their noisy and inventive take on deathcore can really hit home. When it does though, it really hits. The Gothenburg-y guitar work and bass-driven atmospheres are too much to ignore.

The Australian grindcore scene's answer to Psy, viral virtuosos King Parrot enjoy screams of recognition when they take to the stage. Then the hack'n'slash riffs of the band's Bite Your Head Off completely justify the band's hype.

It's hard not to consider Californian deathgrind crew Cattle Decapitation the headlining act tonight. And if there's any Thy Art Is Murder fans waiting for the actual main act, by the time Cattle Decapitation are in the thick of it, it's hard to imagine they're not converted. The band is utterly relentless and precise to a level not heard outside of the extreme metal elite. With riffs and blasts that seem to stop and change on a dime, onstage Cattle Decapitation seem like Suffocation's younger, wilder, brother. With boundless energy and chops that seem unfathomable, tonight's set is probably the coolest extreme metal show we're going to see for a while.

Following on after the sheer might of Cattle Decapitation is no easy task, but Sydney's Thy Art Is Murder make a pretty convincing run at it. Throwing all of their weight into breakdowns, the five-piece get the packed area in front of the stage jostling. Primarily working with the material from this year's Top 40 release Hate, because the music business is so crazy now death metal bands can rule the ARIA charts, there's plenty of recognition among the audience for the band's material. That communal sense of recognition translates to numbers like The Purest Strain Of Hate and Doomed From Birth feeling like epic counterparts of their recorded versions. As the crowd does their best to match vocalist CJ McMahon's howls and grunts, even the more ardent Cattle Decapitation fan has to concede that the dudes up on stage are doing right. And so, when Thy Art Is Murder's set draws to a close, it's clear that these guys have earned their headlining slot, but it would still be nice if Cat Decap got their act together and came back some time soon for their own shows.