Live Review: Free Your Mind

Polaris proved themselves to be deserving contest winners. The local support's djent-infused metalcore, topped with emotive screams, made for a high-energy set.

Make Them Suffer followed with a real earth-shaker – that “bounce” imperative needed no repetition. The half-hour, which finished with Morrow and included new single, Let Me In, was packed with crushing bass and a sprinkling of chilling keys.

Chicago's Veil Of Maya incorporate unique time signatures with technical deathcore. It was a solid offering with some dark and devastating gutturals, but proved least inspiring of the night.

Led by vocal tag team Michael Barr and Gus Faris, Volumes took the reins in a more groove-laden, but still heavy direction. The rehashed formula garnered great results with the LA band enjoying an incredibly warm reception as breakdowns galore on tracks like Wormholes opened up a sizeable pit, while lighters and phones lit up the place for Edge Of The Earth.

Thy Art Is Murder served up a punishing set of unadulterated ferocity featuring, among others, The Purest Strain Of Hate and old favourite, Laceration Penetration. The band's cult following are a rabid breed who lapped up the extreme metal mayhem with great gusto – be it Lee Stanton's unforgiving drums or Sith Lord-channelling, CJ McMahon repping Western Sydney and parting blackened seas for Whore To A Chainsaw's wall of death. “Bitch, you're dead!” indeed.

Northlane are living proof that sheer musical integrity and dedicated touring can, in fact, lead to commercial success – some might even say Sydney's hometown heroes have “made it”. It's evident in tonight's colossal performance that they've polished their stage show over the years, transcending dimensions to induce a dazzling euphoria in both fans and friends alike. Be it Gus from Volumes joining them onstage for explosive party-starter, Masquerade, or the event's raging lyrical namesake, Abrasumente, Northlane went from strength to strength and concluded on a high with the massively ambient Quantum Flux.