Live Review: The Brave w/ Deadlights @ The Triffid
It was a brisk Friday night at The Triffid, so what better way to warm the soul and mind then with some good ol’ Brisbane hardcore. And what better to warm our freezing bodies than the distorted guitars, crunching drums, and screams of The Brave.
However, before the headliners hit the stage local lads Take Us To Vegas took to The Triffid for a special one-off performance, giving the crowd a welcome hit of pop-punk. Providing a lethal dose of upbeat punk jams with an energetic live performance, it was a pleasing sight to see a band come out of retirement to give fans a killer nostalgic performance.
Next to battle the cold were Brisbane metal up-comers Deadlights. Making the most of an unexpected replacement for She Cried Wolf, the metalcore outfit played a set filled with tunes from their upcoming, yet to be titled, album. A mix of melodically driven guitar and guttural screams, the songs were nicely broken up with incredibly catchy clean sung choruses and brutal breakdowns.
Deadlights used the opportunity to showcase their latest work to the modest crowd and gain a following, rather than play songs that only die hard fans may have otherwise known. It’s often difficult to find a diamond in the rough with a densely populated heavy music scene, where aggressive verses and clean choruses are the easy method of choice. Having said that, Deadlights ability to combine brutal heavy sections and unpredictable clean melodies was a pleasant surprise that should see them experience success in the future.
Once Deadlights had done their duties, on came The Brave. The Brisbanites, fresh off a recent signing with Australian heavy label giants UNFD, opened proceedings with Searchlights. With a far from packed room, The Brave made it a point to work over the crowd with a trippy light show and engaging live show. It was clear that nerves made their way into the set, particularly with newer tunes, leading to awkward off beats making the guitars sound out of time with the drums, luckily the majority of the crowd completely unaware of the unintended mistakes.
The band then tore into hot new single Escape. The chugging guitar riff translated well to the audience, sending the pit into orbit, circulating the floor as it spun quicker and quicker. It then came time to roll out the old hits, the classic metalcore jams from their debut EP ‘Endless’.
Wake Me Up was an evocative moment of the night, with the slow jam a coming together of the crowd and connecting vocalist Nate Toussaint to the clearly emotional front row, as they grasped for the mic to out-sing the frontman. Thick or Thin was a highlight of the night, providing the perfect amount of seamless heaviness mixed with the anthemic – like clean style of Toussaint.
With sweat dripping down our backs and our larynxes worn out from trying to out-scream the bands the night came to an end. Fans were not only left satisfied but extremely excited about where the raw and powerful sound of The Brave will take them next.
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