Static x @ The Northcote Theatre
20 Years of Evil Disco: Static-X's Dystopian Musical Odyssey
Review and photos by Brittney McCarthy of BM Images
Melbourne’s industrial thrash 4-piece Witchgrinder shot some flames up our arses right off the bat with their punchy and grisly sound. An outstanding performance from start to end, each of them making an effort to not just perform well but connect with the crowd. Their forthcoming album, set to be released later this year, was teased with the unveiling of their latest track, Dead By Dawn, which was met with enthusiastic headbanging from the crowd.
You never would have guessed this was SoiL's first live show in three years. Forming in the late 90s they blanketed us with nostalgia. Chicago’s heavy rock group took to the stage and pulled out a tight and high energy delivery of their 2001 album Scars. Starting with Breaking Me Down a nu-metal track with lots of groove had the crowd jumping and dancing along early on. Halo, the pinnacle of the performance was saved for last. Singer Ryan McCombs jumped into the pit to share the mic with the eager crowd to sing along.
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This Static-X tour is a belated celebration of the 20th anniversary of Machine, released 2001. While they did open their set with four tracks from the album, they continued on by playing a smattering of songs across various albums. Showcasing Wayne Static's impressive discography of ‘evil disco’ spanning 20 years.
The LA quartet are back with Xer0 since 2019, serving as a living homage to the late frontman Wayne Static. Xer0 debuted an upgraded mask this tour by Diety Creative mastermind Eddie Yang it was a flawless upgrade to the cyborg punk frontman with a cabled mohawk and ominous red eyes that pierced into you from the furthest corner of the room. Between his movements and voice Xer0 is an impressive stage presence and the dedication to respect Wayne’s memory and body of work is evident. What a cool fuckin’ voice though right? I wouldn’t be mad about a podcast where he just pumps me up with one liners like, “you’re going to kick the day’s fuckin’ ass” because I would feel pretty empowered. He was constantly keeping the crowd moving and engaged amidst continuous, superfluous demands requesting the crowd to ‘fucking jump’ as the room was already pulsating, pushing the floor of Northcote Theatre to its limits. Calling for torches and lighters to fill the room for Just In Case the crowd buzzed at the invitation to participate.
Guitarist Koichi Fukuda bounced around the stage full of energy, drummer Ken Jay clearly having a blast as he murdered his kit. The group are no strangers to a stage, giving their all for the entire set, I found there’s something amusing about a robot staying hydrated between songs.
For their second last song I’m With Stupid the room filled with giant balloons adding another sensory layer to the already intense visuals we had been experiencing over their set. To introduce their final song Bassist Tony Campos stepped up to thank the crowd and introduce each member referring to Xer0 as ‘V2.0’ and drummer Key Jay as ‘Wayne’s original partner in crime’. This was easily the best show I have ever been to at Northcote Theatre, the meticulously designed light show and backdrop, featuring lyrics and visuals, elevated and personalised each song, transforming the space from an Edwardian-style ballroom to a futuristic dystopian venue for performance art. The sound was spot on which can sometimes be a hit and miss at the 111 year old venue. From the moment they took to the stage until they left there was not a person around me who was not moving, moshing or jumping, the group is not one to miss if you get the chance to see them.
