PARKWAY DRIVE // Crowd in In A Vice Grip

Parkway Drive w/ Thy Art is Murder, Memphis May Fire + The Word Alive // Festival Hall, Melbourne – 26 September 2015

It’s been two years since Parkway hit Melbourne for their 10 year anniversary shows. A lot has changed since then.

Even so, you see the same people who’ve stuck with them since the Killing With A Smile days. You can tell looking their old and faded merch, hastily covered with tour shirts as soon as they step into the venue. Younger ones wander around, taking in Festival Hall for the first time. There’s some who would buckle under questioning who Parkway Drive are, because they’re clearly here for Memphis May Fire.

Look at moi – The Word Alive // Photo: Daniel Anderson

The Word Alive begin the evening, the crowd – surprisingly – go absolutely mental. Some support bands struggle to get hands in the air, but they’re usually not playing before a notoriously mosh-centric crowd. It may take two songs, but when the band call for a Wall of Death at the beginning of their third, the crowd are so amped up they split the entire floor in two. Jesus people, it’s only 7:30 and we’ve got a long way to go yet. The band are heavier than bargained for, and the floor shifts in anticipation, their craving for breakdowns being sated at a moment’s notice. This is the first I’ve ever heard of the band and they’ve somehow won me over in the space of 10 minutes. Set highlight Play The Victim begins with a tapped guitar solo and it’s reminiscent of the much loved headliners’ trademark, so there’s a few spirit fingers thrown in the air. Vocalist Tyler Smith leaps into the crowd to waiting arms, and then they’re done. With four bands on the bill, it’s common for the opening band to get shafted in time slots but it’s hard not to feel disappointed. If the rest of the evening is like that, we’re in for one hell of a time.

Buy all his playsets and toys – Memphis May Fire // Photo: Daniel Anderson

Memphis May Fire follow and we haven’t even got to the second song before Matty Mullins preaches “it matters if you’re beautiful on the inside.” I’ll admit to giving singers a lot of leeway in ‘inspirational’ quotes, but the sincerity of the phrase loses impact when he spruiks the re-release of their most recent album Unconditional. Opening with newly released song My Generation (only available with purchase of the deluxe edition), the set feels like a promo tour. Yes that’s pretty much every tour, but at least make it sound like we’re not just dollar signs. The rest of the band give it a red hot go, but it doesn’t seem like they’re more than just members for hire. Each standing in their own sections, there’s little interaction between the band. After Tyler Smith’s willingness to get down and dirty in the crowd, Mullins’ decision to stay within a metre square on the stage seems like a cop out. But hey, the select few who’ve come for them look like they’ve enjoyed themselves and that’s never a bad thing.

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As [Winston’s] monstrous voice screams out of the speakers, the band both literally and figuratively silence the haters.

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It’s 4:20 for the next ten minutes // Photo: Daniel Anderson

The crowd thins and its possible to make it almost all the way to the front with no effort at all. Everyone realises that we’re about to switch the dial from ‘a few screams’ to ‘unintelligible’. Shout out to the parents with their daughter next to me, all in Ire tour merch and screaming with devil horns when Thy Art Is Murder arrive. 10/10 cool. Opening with Reign of Darkness, the sheer skill of the band is easy to recognise. Guitarist Andy Marsh and drummer Lee Stanton work in tandem whilst vocalist CJ McMahon does what he does best: whatever the fuck he wants.

CJ “Aleister Crowley” McMahon // Photo: Daniel Anderson

First song, he’s in the crowd and there’s a sudden crowd surge that follows him through his trek along the barrier. His enunciation may get lost in the mix, but the cult of personality surrounding the singer means he can do no wrong. Forever tongue in cheek, he grins when telling us we’re his for the next 20 minutes and that they’re ready to play their “top 40 pop love songs” for the audience. His love of pot is hard to miss, with a “Smoke Weed Everyday” shirt and love letter Purest Strain of Hate playing with green lighting to match. If there was any way to sum up the ‘no fucks given’ philosophy of the band, this is it. Someone lights up a joint and probably regrets it immediately when they realise they’re in a Thy Art mosh pit. New tracks Lightbearer and Holy War hold up well with the material from Hate, and the band leave to cheers for more tracks.

Angus Young on top // Photo: Daniel Anderson

Those chanting are obviously disappointed, but there’s over an hour of waiting ahead for Parkway Drive. Everyone should be draining the venue of water in preparation for the absolute chaos. Sure enough, when the huge Ire banner drops to opener Destroyer with red and white streamers cascading down from overhead, it’s like we’ve arrived into a riot sponsored by Spotlight. Tiny people disappear beneath the crowd into the depths of Festival Hall, never to be seen again. Dying To Believe follows and everyone is still struggling to find a foothold so they don’t experience the same fate but whatever LOOK, WINSTON IS ON STAGE AND HE’S REAL EVERYONE. THEY’RE REALLY BACK AND THEY’LL NEVER LEAVE US AGAIN. As his monstrous voice screams out of the speakers, the band both literally and figuratively silence the haters. Ire may be controversial, but the focus on crowd participation has been a long time coming. Breaking long standing norms are obviously in this year because Carrion comes in as the third song and all logic ceases to exist.

Not underwater // Photo: Daniel Anderson

Of course the chant rocks the foundations of the building and it becomes clear how Parkway have reached their current approach to new music. Songs like Karma, Dark Days and Idols and Anchors all have their own crowd mix points and sound like they could released in 2015. Being able to re-work 10 years of discography into fitting a new direction is a feat in itself, and they’re doing it with flamethrowers within centimetres of each other. Mainly reserved for Ire cuts, the first blast of fire during Vice Grip elicits cheers and serves to keep the energy up; with circle pits lasting entire songs, it’s more than necessary. Winston grins knowingly with Satanic glee whilst surrounded by a wall of flame, watching his loyal subjects stomp around their proving grounds when Crushed kicks in. If this is what Hell is like, sign us all up for eternity plus a few years thank you very much.

Thank you, Springton // Photo: Daniel Anderson

There’s no doubt that Parkway are one of – if not – the most respected live acts in Australia, and guitarist Jeff Ling’s performance with tendon surgery looming within the week is just one of the reasons behind the claim. Catering to newer fans with Wild Eyes and Bottom Feeder and balancing it with older tracks like Romance Is Dead and Deliver Me show that they’d rather keep all their fans happy rather than losing one of the most dedicated fanbases in Australian music. The band finish with crowd favourite Home is for the Heartless. Chanting almost drowns out the guitars. In the end, we’ve all been cheated, Parkway included. Whatever ticket sales say, they aren’t meant to be in places with sticky floors and a roof. They passed that level years ago. We’ve all only just realised it. The only real way to appreciate the band in this day and age would be to see them with tens of thousands of other fans, all singing in unison.

Here’s hoping that they make it to that point in Australia in the near future. They well and truly deserve it.

THE VIEW FROM THE CROWD

Simone (L) – “I’ve seen them before, so I know they’re going to be amazing.

Ryan – “They can’t make a bad album. It’s impossible.”

Brandon (R) – This will be my third time seeing them. There’s new songs so who knows. The new album is amazing though! Favourite song would have to be Vice Grip.

Andrew – Yeah me too. I’ve listened to half the new album. Full first half, and then snippets of the rest. It’s very different. Everyone’s going to hate me if I say it [laughs].  It’s not my favourite album, I enjoyed half of it. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t hate it. I’d still mosh to it because it’s Parkway.

Marshall (L) – “This will be my second time seeing them. It’s going to be a big show. Once I hear Wild Eyes, I’m going to be jumping into the pit.”

Lucky (C) – “They’re the best band I’ve ever seen live. They’re always the same – not bad though! My favourites would have to be Dying to Believe and Crushed.“

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Read all about Parkway Drive and IRE as they feature on our cover in Hysteria #35!

Want to see Thy Art Is Murder in action? Watch our exclusive Mayhem Fest tour mini-doco!