Words by: Belinda Quick
Photos by: Missy Smiley
‘Everything is more beautiful because we’re doomed. You will never be lovelier than you are now. We will never be here again’ – Homer, The Iliad
When living through dystopia, the tendency to wallow ever deeper in the world’s woes is appreciable. The fear, at times, overwhelming, the idea that mankind can be concurrently hellbent on devolution and progression is unreconcilable; yet, in and of itself this predicament reveals the simplest truth of all – ALL IS BEAUTIFUL… BECAUSE WE’RE DOOMED.
Epitomising the complexities of our human condition, capturing the Ancient Greek philosopher’s meaning and redefining its form for modern contexts, Troy Michigan’s WE CAME AS ROMANS released the aptly-titled ninth album in 2025, uniting as one with Adelaide’s audience to rejoice in a nihilistic display of Doublespeak for a Valentinian tour.
Dealing a Low Blow whilst hitting the high note early, Brisbane’s HEADWRECK play BINGO! with the quintessential elements of Australian nu-metalcore. The Gov’s stage already a spectacle of smoke and purple searchlights, there’s no Plan Z tonight; ‘This is for the ones who’ve been here since the beginning‘, Freefall and Let It Feel. The band’s reinterpretation of 50 Cent’s In Da Club cutting through genre boundaries with the Razor sharpness of a Buzzsaw, ‘This is it for us, Adelaide, let’s hear it for We Came As Romans‘, and Leeds’ finest lads, CASKETS.
Similar to this evening’s hosts, the melodic metalists, (releasing their latest masterpiece, The Only Heaven You’ll Know, in 2025 also), hold an especial place in Australia’s beating heart. Matthew Flood’s request to ‘sing for me!’ generating a demonstration of that love, I can barely breathe’ already and beg, for this worthy cause, Make Me A Martyr.
Drowned In Emotion, the British epitome is akin to Australia’s own brand of this blissfully brutal genre in many regards. Finding light, even in the furore of darkness, Caskets defy definition to one or the other: this is The Only Heaven You’ll Know, so locate a Guiding Light and Northern Star. Where ignorance guides others to Hate Me, rise above with shared compassion. Carried along by the musical message, this world reveals More Than Misery, and inspires us to leave those who distract from the mission Lost In Echoes tonight. Our Remedy, the ‘beating of my Glass Heart’ one of hundreds which thump in unison are the wardrum of the final battle.
The main set appropriately bookended by the most recent album’s titular tracks, bad luck is supplanted by an immense ray of hope, in the form of Dave Stephens, Josh Moore, Lou Cotton, Andy Glass & Dave Puckett. Stepping out upon a metaphorical lake of fire and obscured by a pool of red smoke, the frontman’s vocals cut through the shroud as, particularly, Moore springs back and forth in attack, Cold Like War, defiant as ever.
Exemplifying the all-too personal journey of forging forward after the tragic loss of their fallen soldier, Kyle Pavone, b2tm speaks to the universal truth conveyed in successive WCAR releases, and the principal ethos imparted upon the legions tonight – be not defeated by the Wasted Age and its challenges; face them one by one and address the cultural wound together. Face it in a united front and scream in defiance ‘I am Darkbloom’! Let there be no rest for the dreamer, we need it not, because life as we know it is evermore beautiful due to the battle. We stand together and as one, greater than any Black Hole that threatens to envelop us because we are the lovelier of the beasts.
Never the army to ask where did you go? Our allies are everywhere and armed to the teeth with Daggers; our enemies are not afforded the same advantage. Fear not those few who deceive the goodwill of man, for not at any stage have they defeated the many with terror. It is us who persevere, so know:
We Came As Romans and we are the ones who will be remembered, in these times and the unending scrolls of human history.
– GALLERY –
HEADWRECK
CASKETS
WE CAME AS ROMANS
