Live Review: Bullet For My Valentine, Atreyu, Cane Hill

Warming up the crowd as they dwindled into Metro City slowly, was New Orleans rockers Cane Hill playing their first ever Australian show.

With their debut album released only last year, these guys are slick on the scene. Heavy, quick, hard and a statement way to open a show, with energy pouring that was sure to attracted some new followers to their music.

There's no denying Atreyu have been shredding up Australian shores for years and the moment they stepped on stage, you can tell why. Atreyu are a band who are so perfectly solid, every note hit, every riff slayed and every single drum beat on point, every time. It's Porter McKnight's bass that set them apart from the rest at this show, comprised of high energy and heavy basslines that vibrated through every person in the crowd.

The set was incredible and powerful as they slayed old and new tunes, showcasing a bunch of songs from their latest album Long Live and bringing their metalcore alive. Bleeding Mascara, Right Side Of The Bed, Ex's And Oh's, Blow and an incredible and powerful rendition of You Give Love A Bad Name that would have had Bon Jovi himself trembling, stood out for the night.

Singer Alex Varkatzas disappeared off stage and sung from the moshpit with psyched admirers, then weaved his way through the crowd, with some punters even completely unaware as he walked past laughing into his mic. Once back on stage the set was abruptly ended with Varkatzas announcing "thanks, that was our last song", which had both the crowd and guitarist Dan Jacobs surprised.

As everyone patiently waited for the changeover fans started shouting over the music "Bullet! Bullet! Bullet!" Their cries were heard as the Welsh quartet Bullet For my Valentine came on stage hard and fast, bringing out their metal side for the crowd straight off the bat, playing No Way Out to start the set off with a bang. The powerful vocals extended through all parts of the venue as they intertwined songs from all albums. You Want a Battle? (Here's a War) was perfectly performed, trailing into The Last Fight and then the riff-shredding yet melodic crowd-favourite, The Poison.

Lead singer Matthew Tuck interacted with the crowd, thanking them a lot for being at the show but the entire stage presence wasn't anything exciting. There was no real theatrics for such a huge band apart from a few poses and stances with guitars and a slight head bang, but majority of the time there's three guys behind microphones perfectly spaced on the stage and a drummer hidden up the back.

As the show was ending, drummer Michael Thomas smashed out a drum solo from nowhere. His double kick and insanely fast movements had their own raw power and was a complete show-stopper. If the fan reaction wasn't enough, he went even harder, paired with the insane lighting on stage and it was for sure the highlight of the night. Heading off stage to return for a short encore Bullet slowed it down and ramped it up again from melodic to aggressive for Venom, Tears Don't Fall and Waking The Demon.