It’s easy to like mighty Perth prog titans Karnivool for no other reason than their excellent taste in support acts. The sublime instrumental work of Sleepmakeswaves sets the atmospheric tone for the evening, delivering peerless post-rock that posits them as Australia’s answer to Mogwai or Pelican. If your mind jumps to (fictional) creatures reading that sentence, then you really owe it to yourself to investigate them further. Especially in the live setting where their cathartic builds are all the more visceral.
Melbourne’s rock trio Redcoats however, take a more simplified, if stylish approach to their muscular tunes. Occasionally, their stoner rock lite is more Wolfmother than Zeppelin, and new single “Raven” feels overly familiar, but when they burn on all cylinders – like on closer, “Dreamshaker” – they’re a riot. Emilio Mercuri angling his microphone for an imperious wail, as he’s flanked by the long-haired chugging of the guitarists.
By now, the Karnivool live show is a well-oiled machine. Though they’ve taken several extended breaks (to cater for side-projects and recording), they never fail to use a tour or a festival as the starting plinth to charge straight back into the action.
As if to prove the point, the quintet arrive on stage to a wash of blue, frontman Ian Kenny offering a simple “Hello, Melbourne”, before erupting into one of their most sprawling numbers, “Change Pt. 2”. Winding and layered, it’s perhaps alienating for all but the fans going ballistic mere minutes into its tribal drumming and machine-locked riffs; besides there are clearly more of the band’s dedicated following in attendance than not.
Typically a set-closer, they instead segue its usual drum solo ending into a brand new track which is equally cinematic yet forceful; featuring some brutal riffage and screamed vocals from bassist Jon Stockman complimenting Kenny’s melodic singing.
The first of four new appearances tonight, the new material shows Karnivool heading into a more aggressive direction, without sacrificing the complex structures and atmosphere they formed with Themata; and arguably perfected with Sound Awake two years later.
“Goliath” from the latter, and its titanic thrashing groove – like a dinosaur fighting its own extinction – sounds born for the stage. All the while drummer Steve Judd’s shirtless frame hypnotises in the backdrop as he hammers his kit into surgical submission. They follow with the fierce rhythmic economy of “Simple Boy”, complemented by the light show: four coloured totems flashing against a series of fractured spotlights.
It’s a display as dazzling as the dual sonic smithery of guitarists Drew Goddard and Mark Hosking. Bearded and bold-sounding, they lace newer songs with fitting grandeur and invention, while still igniting the fan favourites. The syncopated pulse of “Coté”, for example, spurning a venue-sized singalong and the ol’ ‘miss-the-beat’ mosh. It’s also a fitting reminder of what a uniquely engaging frontman Kenny is, as well as a terrific vocalist.
Soaring during “All I Know”, the breaking white wash of its coda suggesting a life-affirming anthem, and the audience complies. They equally grind on every turn and prog tic of “Set Fire To The Hive” and “Roquefort”, each channelling intensely heavy, complex shapes without forgoing intelligence or sheer groove.
“It almost feels like a second home now,” remarks Kenny of the Hi Fi. He’s begin modest, when Karnivool are in the house they should be hailed as ‘artists in residence’.
– Al Newstead
