LIVE: Deftones with Karnivool & Voyager – Perth, 8 Nov, 2016

LIVE: Deftones with Karnivool & Voyager – Perth, 8 Nov, 2016
Metro City
Review & photography by Stuart McKay

As the ever-bustling queue made its way down Roe Street it was apparent that tonight would be a huge night of music for Deftones’ first date on their Australian tour. It’s been a few years since they were last here so fans were understandably rabid in expectation, plus having Perth’s very own Prog titans Karnivool and Voyager along for the ride clearly motivated the punters to get down earlier than normal.

First up were Voyager who have been going from strength to strength recently with a strew of big name supports. Having this experience definitely helped as they confidently carved out an impressive set of prog-metal tunes that the crowd reacted to as if Voyager were the only band they were here to see tonight.

It was evident from the cheers as Karnivool took to the stage that a lot of the audience would have bought a ticket specifically to see them over the main act. Since dropping game changing album Themata over ten years ago the boys haven’t had to support a band since then but as they voiced on social media ‘Some things are too good to say no to’. Just as well they didn’t say no because the Vool were firing on all cylinders tonight. The bass driven ‘Simple Boy’ set the ground work for what would be a perfectly weighted set of heavier songs from their back catalogue that would have appealed to their most ardent fan as well as any Deftones fan unfamiliar with their work. The rhythm section of this band is a sight to behold and songs like ‘Set Fire To The Hive’ and ‘The Refusal’ were the stand out performances of tonight and really showed how tight Jon Stockman (bass) and Steve Judd (drums) are as a unit. With fan favourites ‘Themata’ and ‘New Day’ signalling massive sing-a-longs you’d be a fool not to see how hard it would be for Deftones to go onstage after such a scintillating performance.

In saying that, it didn’t seem like Deftones were fazed at all. They lunged straight into proceedings with the sledgehammering riffage of ‘Diamond Eyes’ and from then on the crowd was putty in their hands. Front-man Chino Moreno showed off his formidable presence as well as bassist Sergio Vega. The two of them work so well together onstage and have harnessed a fantastic energy that’s really great to see. It couldn’t have been easy for the band to replace original bassist Chi Cheng who had to have his life support turned off after being in an induced coma caused by car accident three years ago, but what they’ve found in Vega has really improved them as a live act.

It has to be said that vocally Chino was a bit hit or miss tonight but that didn’t take away from the performance as a whole. Classic songs like ‘Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)’, ‘Rocket Skates’ and ‘My Own Summer (Shove It)’ really hit the spot as well as brand new ones like ‘Rubicon’ and ‘Hearts/Wires’. Given that this tour was to promote their latest release Gore the band didn’t saturate the set with new songs and instead favoured songs from previous releases, namely: Around The Fur, White Pony and Diamond Eyes.

Rounding off their set with a blistering encore performance of ‘Bored’ and ‘Engine No. 9’ the Sacramento lads showed tonight why they are and continue to be a reckoning force in the world of heavy music and why they have remained relevant in a scene that has chewed up and spat out many of their contemporaries over the years.

It might be another a few years until Deftones are back in the West but tonight’s show will have easily sustained many a fan’s thirst until next time.

SETLIST:
Diamond Eyes
Digital Bath
Kimdracula
Gore
Rocket Skates
Tempest
Swerve City
Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)
Headup
My Own Summer (Shove It)
Rosemary
Prince
Hearts/Wires
Rubicon
Change (In The House of Flies)
Knife Party

ENCORE
Bored
Engine No.9

Category: Live Reviews, Photo Galleries