Live Review: Anberlin, The Maine, William Beckett, Masketta Fall

With a massive line staking out Metro's Freo and braving the wintry conditions the anticipation was buzzing before the doors had even opened. First up was Melbourne pop punk/ power-pop five-piece Masketta Fall, who opened proceedings fairly well. They had a loyal fan base on hand to the point where I honestly thought I was at an all ages gig with the amount of screaming fan girls – but to the boys' credit, they played an impressive set.

Next up was William Beckett, the former frontman of the now defunct indie rock band The Academy Is. Beckett, armed with only his acoustic guitars and laptop, wowed the growing crowd with his soulful, acoustic pop/rock songs. Beckett possesses an extremely talented voice and his youthful and somewhat quirky charisma entertained the crowd. Phoenix, Arizona's The Maine followed next and from the start of their set it appeared the tour had taken its toll on the band. It was a pretty disappointing performance given that their latest offering, Forever Halloween, is a gem, but the songs just didn't translate well to their live show. Frontman John O'Callaghan just looked really tired on stage and it affected his vocal performance.

As the lights dimmed and the crowd's cheers became louder and louder it became apparent who everyone had come to see as Anberlin graced the stage. They have become a band that has such a massive following in Perth and right from the outset frontman Stephen Christian and his band mates demanded the crowd's attention not by words, but by their flawless stage show and sound. They launched into crowd favourites Paperthin Hymn and A Day Late and newer songs, including Other Side and Someone, Anyone, with the band feeding off the crowd's energy and vice versa. Their performance was dashing, incredibly tight, emotional and at times ethereal. Christian proved once again why he is the best vocalist in the alternative rock scene today – the crowd left hanging on his every word as it resonated around the venue. Drummer Nate Young was a machine behind the kit, smashing his skins and cymbals with high energy. Halfway through the set the band slowed things down to play Take Me As You Found Me and The Unwinding Cable Car in succession, which provided a spine-tingling experience. They finished the set with Christian on a keyboard by himself singing Dismantle. Repair., which he delivered so intricately and beautifully he may as well have ripped his heart out and put it on his sleeve. This was followed by a massive outro in which Christian's voice was layered over, creating an atmospheric and sentimental setting. Anberlin took the crowd on such an emotional journey in just over an hour. They are a classy and talented band that anyone who was at the show will be looking forward to seeing in the not so distant future.