Bad Omens @ The Triffid, Brisbane
Review by Dayna West G
BLOOM (Sydney)
Sydney’s melodic hardcore band ‘Bloom’ lovingly warmed up the Triffid stage for Bad Omens tonight. The band treated us to new songs from their upcoming album ‘’Maybe in Another Life”, including track ‘carve yourself into my lungs’ which bode well with tonight’s audience. Bloom was an enthusiastic and energetic bunch, and a more grateful band could not have been bestowed upon opening tonight – shout out to bands who drop the ego show and aren’t afraid to display graciousness and elatedness. Bloom’s front man Jono Hawkey spread a definite warmth through the crowd as well as some nasty (!!) vocals. We in bris, sure love a good growl. One thing that stood out to me was the percussion section. Bloom has some of the most impressive live drumming I’ve seen in hardcore in a while. Never downplay the importance of the rhythm section, and bloom have not. It really added such interest and depth to their performance amongst the other solid instrumentation and backing vocals. The break down in track ‘Daylight’ was my highlight of their set this evening. kudo’s to them for pushing hard and playing a solid set.
BAD OMENS
Welcome to the Concrete Jungle afterparty, Brisbane. It’s going to be an intoxicating ride….
Virginian alternative metalcore outfit, Bad Omens played their first Australian show, (headlining) this Tuesday the 22nd in honour of the highly anticipated, first ever, KNOTFEST Australia approaching steadily this Sunday.
Flying out of the gates with track “Concrete Jungle”, the aura of the Triffid was almost intoxicating as Bad Omens filled the space. The crowd was in a general buzz as anticipation for their first ever sold-out AUS show was absolute, and the impending pleasure of seeing them all over again on the Brisbane leg of the festival. The contrast of front man Noah Sebastian’s alluring quiet confidence and falsetto melodies against the harsh backdrop of trad metalcore is a methodical choice. Bad Omens song structures are great at showcasing the range of vocalist Sebastian, by allowing a zone for catchy hooks and crowd sung melodies, knotted with genre familiar growls and screams. Sebastian + Bad Omens proved themselves to Brisbane crowd’s tonight - a seasoned vocalist with clear ambition, dedication, and stagecraft.
The light’s dimmed and beamed once again to reveal Sebastian dressed in an all-black ensemble, symbolic ski mask, it was “Artificial Suicide” time and a captivating electricity under the tin triffid roof ensued. Bad Omens know how to structure a set, framing older heavier songs around their new “The death of peace of mind’ sound flowed so well and clearly showcased their enormous growth as a band, while keeping the energy sustained through the night. I was an all-encompassing journey between the two, as most of the setlist contained hits from their 2019 ‘Finding God Before God Finds Me’ and blended their genre bending sounds, keeping fans elated, both old and new.
“Glass Houses” was a crowd favourite… as soon as the words “I see through you” sunk out of Sebastian, everyone was singing back to him 10-fold. Arms raised in the air as a beautiful blue hue fell over everything like a shared symbolic blanket….as communally moving ‘betrayal’ song even had the security asking me for the name of this one! I tried to muster up enough voice to reach him, but there was no chance over the collective singing.
Maintaining their ‘Off the rails’ energy throughout, with an ear-splitting, cult like audience behind them, it didn’t seem possible for Bad Omens to dig even deeper for their 3-song encore…. but they delivered. ‘THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND’, ‘Dethrone’ and ‘what do you want from me?’ were like three separate seismic explosions that almost blew our well-loved tin roof off…. The celebration of the last concrete jungle show, with their current set list, had finished - as we were privy enough to find out – and Brisbane was the afterparty. We hope the Brisbane X Bad Omens love affair has only just begun, as we demand to see them again, and count down the days until our glorious reunion come Sunday 26th for Australia’s first KNOTFEST.
Big thankyou to Destroy All Lines for the opportunity to cover this killer Knotfest side show. Catch them again in Sydney Tonight at the Factory theatre & during Knotfest Australia.
