Live Review: Fear Factory, Twelve Foot Ninja

Melbourne act Twelve Foot Ninja have been busy building a strong following, including a successful crowd-funding campaign for $50,000 to produce their next video and regular gigs around the country in support of their debut album Silent Machine. Some local acts struggle to step up to a big stage and lack the presence to make a real impact, but that's definitely not the case here. Twelve Foot Ninja are seasoned performers and look very comfortable, playing their excellently crafted songs extremely well, with an unusually good mix considering they're the opening act. Given their genre-mashing Faith No More-like approach, some may have considered them an odd choice for this gig, but when they launch into frequent sections of heavy, lurching riffs, all becomes clear. Melbourne metal crowds are notoriously tough to win over, but Twelve Foot Ninja put on a strong show and make a great impression. This is a band going places fast, and there's no doubt we'll be hearing a lot more about them as word spreads.

Fear Factory are here for the second time in a year with a special run of shows for lucky Australian fans, playing the entire Demanufacture album live for the first time. Demanufacture is a groundbreaking album, fusing industrial elements with thrash and death metal – enhanced by dark, futuristic samples – and it still sounds as innovative and relevant today as it did back in 1995, even after being imitated by countless acts. The promise of hearing it in its entirety has ensured a strong turnout and this is a gig with the potential to be a landmark performance, the kind of show people are still talking about years later. Unfortunately, it's not quite up to that level, for a number of reasons. The mix is the first: the vocals are too loud and the guitar is audible but not loud enough, which robs the songs of some of their bite by blunting the razor-sharp attack that is such an integral part of the band's sound. Burton C Bell's voice is swathed in delay and his guttural roars serve well enough in the heavy parts, but he has real problems when changing mid-song to the melodic passages, particularly during Body Hammer, with his voice breaking and failing to reach many of the notes. The high vocal level in the mix only serves to highlight the shortcomings. It's disappointing and – whether Bell's voice is suffering due to technique, nodules, fatigue or otherwise – it's not the performance we'd hoped to see. On the positive side, hearing Demanufacture played all the way through in sequential order is brilliant and Dino Cazares's performance is awesome, his machine-like right hand flawless as always and his backing vocals helping smooth a few rough edges. Bassist Matt DeVries also does a great job and drummer Mike Heller hammers out the relentless double-kick barrages propelling so many of the songs with consistency. The first four tracks are live staples and predictable highlights, but it's hearing some of the album's infrequently played tracks such as New Breed, Flashpoint and atmospheric finale A Therapy For Pain that really makes this show worthwhile. Once the main event is complete, Shock and Edgecrusher from Obsolete keep the crowd pumping, and are more than a match for any of the tracks from Demanufacture. What Will Become? is a less obvious choice, and the inclusion of Archetype is a real surprise, given it was written with Christian Olde Wolbers on guitar during Dino Cazares's exile from the band.

There's not a lot of time wasted with talk between songs, and it's only at the end that Bell really engages with the crowd, explaining that Australia gave Fear Factory their only gold record for Demanufacture. It's obvious Bell and Cazares genuinely love playing here and this tour is a fitting gesture of appreciation for the support Australia has always shown. Timeless favourite Martyr provides a strong finish to an entertaining show, but ultimately tonight's gig is something of a missed opportunity. It's good, and the majority of the crowd lap up every moment with fanatical appreciation, but a few glaring flaws prevent it from being the standout historic performance it could have and really should have been.