Interview by Ali Williams
Calling a performance One Last Time sounds decisive until the band involved is Lynchmada. Bassist Daryl Russell has already watched one emphatic farewell lead to another show four months later, so he is sensibly refusing to manage anybody’s expectations beyond Saturday. This could be the end. It could also become further evidence that Lynchmada are considerably better at metal than they are at remaining finished.
Speaking with HEAVY’s Ali Williams ahead of the band’s appearance at Necrosonic, Daryl described the return with magnificent understatement as “a whole lot of a lot, and a whole lot of nothing.”
This Saturday, August 22, the Gold Coast five-piece will return to Brisbane’s Mansfield Tavern for Necrosonic Festival 2026, taking the HEAVY Stage at 6.15pm for an exclusive performance. After years out of regular action, the band had more to contend with than remembering where everybody stood. Rehearsals were required, muscles needed reminding and an entire back catalogue had to be physically negotiated by men now old enough to understand the consequences of poor posture.
Russell notes that Lynchmanda have been doing an impressive amount of work without booking anything beyond one festival appearance. They have rebuilt their set, released merchandise and re-recorded The Other Mexico, the title track from their debut album. For a group potentially preparing to play once and disappear again, they have been suspiciously thorough.
Recording has changed considerably since the song was first written nearly 20 years ago. Much of the new version was assembled in lounge rooms, while Cameron Wallace and Simon Connorsrecorded their parts on Karen’s back deck with sunshine in the background—an indecent amount of natural light for any Lynchmada recording.
The relaxed surroundings did nothing to reduce the band’s standards. Returning for one show was never going to mean turning up, locating the old gear and trusting muscle memory to handle the rest. They wanted Lynchmada to sound and feel as substantial as it had before the break, and that meant treating the return as genuine work rather than an affectionate muck-around between former bandmates.
Russell’s place within that history makes the new recording particularly significant. Long before he joined Lynchmada, he was a devoted fan living in Sydney and occasionally providing the band with accommodation and basic adult supervision. When the members stayed at his place, part of the hosting duty involved forcing them to bring their van—and every piece of equipment inside it—rather than leaving the entire operation unattended on a Sydney street while the serious partying continued elsewhere.
He later replaced Kent in the band, turning years of support from outside into a direct contribution to Lynchmada’s next chapter. Re-recording The Other Mexico allowed him to help shape a song he had known well before he ever played it. The band retained the strength of the original while giving its production, arrangement and performance the benefit of the musicians they are now. Russell believes the song has held its ground across the past two decades, and the finished version has left all five members exceptionally happy with what they created.
The response from listeners caught them off guard. When Lynchmada began sharing old artwork, photographs and releases online, people responded with far more enthusiasm than the band had anticipated. That affection prompted them to offer something beyond the performance itself, including a Necrosonic-specific shirt created to mark the occasion. The merchandise was not produced under any grand commercial illusion; it exists because the audience made it clear this return meant something to them too.
Nothing has been scheduled beyond Necrosonic. Parenthood, other musical projects and the usual demands of life have claimed the members’ time, while Lynchmada requires more commitment than its members are willing to fake. Even a single appearance expanded into rehearsals, recording, a release, merchandise and months of preparation because the band could not accept presenting a reduced version of itself.
That does not make Saturday a guaranteed ending. Russell is not saying yes to more Lynchmada, but he is equally unwilling to say no. The only person displaying suspicious foresight is Necrosonic organiser Kent, whom Russell credits with doing years of background work to bring the band back. Necrosonic has existed for three years; according to Russell, Kent has been working on Lynchmada for at least five.
He intends to make full use of the festival once that effort pays off with plans to arrive at early watch Slaughtercult, The Matador and Nembutolik open proceedings, catch Gravemind and Five Star Prison Cell, reunite with old stage companions Minus Life, see Segression and Psycroptic, photograph as much of the day as possible and finally witness Rivers of Nihil after missing their previous Australian visits. Somewhere in the middle of that, he also has to play a Lynchmada set.
Necrosonic’s careful scheduling means fans should be able to see their preferred bands without brutal clashes. Russell has identified the sole defect in this otherwise excellent arrangement: nobody has left him time to eat. His current strategy involves continuous moshing, spending every reserve of energy he has accumulated during the year and beginning the recovery process on Sunday.
For Lynchmada, One Last Time is neither cheap drama nor a coy promise that another announcement is waiting. It is the only honest description the band can give the performance right now. Come Saturday they will play the set they have spent months earning. After that, they can decide whether One Last Time was a promise, a title or simply an ambitious administrative estimate.
Necrosonic tickets HERE
