It’s been six years since High Tension formed in Melbourne. They’ve toured with bands like Refused and Sick Of It All, and received praise from the likes of Henry Rollins himself. Some bands might slow down a little in that time, but on blistering new album Purge, the quartet sound as fierce and confident as ever. On tracks like ‘Bite The Leash’ and ‘Veil’, frontwoman Karina Utomo howls over dissonant guitar chords and a bone-rattling rhythm section – it’s the band at their most coherent and realised. It’s also the first High Tension album to feature guitarist Mike Deslandes and drummer Lauren Hammel, both of whom joined in 2015.
While previous album Bully was primarily recorded in Adelaide with James Balderston, for Purge the band took considerably more time to get everything right. “We definitely had more time, but we also approached it in a very different way because we had different members in the band”, says Utomo. “Mike being the main songwriter reset a lot of our methods; it made a huge difference.
“I was really happy with the process, especially the fact that we were able to explore a lot of avenues. I feel like this record really pushed each of us – especially Hammel and I.”
In order to dedicate the time the project needed, High Tension took a breather from performing. “For that entire year, apart from touring with Refused in January we didn’t really play a single show,” explains Utomo. “It was good to just focus on putting Purge together.”
Growing up in Jakarta, it wasn’t until moving to Canberra that Utomo says she was first exposed to heavy music through going to punk and hardcore shows. “Because there’s very few bands in Canberra there’s always a lot of mixed bills,” Utomo says.
Watch the clip for ‘Ghost to Ghost’ by High Tension
It was also in Canberra that Utomo formed noisy post-punk outfit Young and Restless with guitarist Ash Pegram. Following the band’s dissolution, the pair would go on to play in High Tension together until Pegram’s departure from the band in 2015.
Utomo notes a particular inspiration in seeing 4 Dead; a legendary, now-defunct Canberra hardcore band known for their frenzied live presence. “I think if you know 4 Dead, you get it. They were quite affirming of that sentiment of what gets you into hardcore.”
I feel like I’m at a point in my life where there’s been time to reflect and time to do more work and take action where I can.
Indeed, there’s a similar level of intensity and aggression when High Tension perform live, and it’s unsurprising to hear that the band’s songs are written with the stage in mind. “Playing live and being able to do these shows is such a fundamental aspect of High Tension,” says Utomo. “If we weren’t writing for that realm I don’t know if it would feel right. I feel like we’ve always been writing for the songs to be played live.”
Lyrically, Purge directly addresses the mass killings of 1965-1966 in Indonesia, an anti-Communist purge during which hundreds of thousands of members of the Communist party were murdered. It’s a topic that Utomo has addressed previously in High Tension recordings, but became the primary focus of this album after Utomo returned to Indonesia in 2017.
“I feel like I’m at a point in my life where there’s been time to reflect and time to do more work and take action where I can, and it came at the writing of this album. After we toured with Refused I went back to Indonesia and spent a few days there documenting stories, something I’d wanted to do for a long time. I had a bit more fuel for the writing of this album.”
Watch the clip for ‘Rise’ by High Tension
To that end, Utomo says that when recording Purge, she was unable to sing about anything else to get the same level of execution. “I got very emotional because I felt like I could only write about one thing, but it feels right for me. High Tension has this medium to talk about and confront things I’ve been reflecting on for the past ten years. It’s the most authentic way I could express myself.”
For the uninitiated, it’s easy to perceive metal lyrics being an undecipherable scream. But heavy music has always been a powerful tool for reflecting on and articulating difficult emotions.
“I think I always had a bit of a fear of being assertive with these things,” says Utomo. “Having that outlet in metal, the medium is a really effective way for processing and analysis. I get so much out of it, not just from an emotional sense, but also having to do the work to be able to put it down into a song. You need to do work in order to be able to execute it in the way it should.
“The really valuable thing is having these revelations. Through this process, and over the past 10 years I’ve had a few really rewarding moments. Every time I uncover new information it’s another piece of the puzzle.”
Given the personal nature of the new work, Utomo says she had some concerns about how an Australian audience would react to the album – “it’s not like Collingwood. It’s so far away” – but has been pleasantly surprised by the response so far.
High Tension has this medium to talk about and confront things I’ve been reflecting on for the past ten years.
For Utomo, who has been playing in bands since high school, finding a sense of purpose in the music has been pivotal to her sustained enjoyment. “There’s so many times when you feel exhausted. But you just have to do it – you keep going.
“I think since I’ve gotten older, I make sure I enjoy the work and that the work has meaning. It’s also really important to be around people. It’s all collaborative; everybody’s working together and contributing. I’m still doing it because I feel like I haven’t done it all yet. There’s still so much to be done.”
Listen to ‘Bite The Leash (Burn)’ by High Tension
Purge is out now through Cooking Vinyl. The band’s national tour continues in Sydney and Brisbane this weekend.
