Live Review: I Declare War, Graves, Iconoclast, Monolith, Illuminator

Hardcore metal as a genre is the musical equivalent of a magic eye puzzle; at first it is just a bombardment of audio information, endless screaming over insanely loud amplifiers. But slowly and surely, as your ears un-focus, relax and surrender to the onslaught, the songs begin to stand out like shapes in sound. Unfortunately for opening acts Illuminator and Monolith, it took the Academy audience a little too long to adjust, and their sets played out to barely a ripple in the crowd.

By third act Iconoclast it was becoming a serious concern that all the bands were identical: five dudes playing two guitars, bass, drums, and a vocalist wearing his baseball cap backwards. Fortunately everyone's ears had started to settle in, and the crowd got right into Iconoclast's more rock-influenced beats. Combined with a lack of reliance on slam breakdowns to drive the music, the set was a standout of rhythmic and engaging songs.

Wollongong band Graves took the stage next, but instead of picking up where Iconoclast left off and playing songs with substance and definition they fell right back into the old faithful double-kick slam beat with chug-along guitar/bass combo. Despite a few electronic effects and triggers layered in, Graves sounded almost exactly like their name – like being buried in a big pit of dirt or, more appropriately, gravel.

It seemed impossible, but headliners and US hardcore contemporaries I Declare War somehow managed to crank up the volume even further, and their set was like trying to escape an avalanche that eventually overwhelms you. Every drum hit came down like thunder, every note lashed out like lightning, an endless and inescapable storm of power and noise and electricity. It was a brutal set of intense songs that drilled you into the floor. Afterwards, as the crowd trickled out, you could see the thousand yard gaze in their eyes – they had heard the shape in sound.