paleface swiss - gig review
- Emily Brown
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
on the 9th of september at 7pm i entered the doors of king st hotel in newcastle, to experience one of the best live shows of my life.
the merch line was MILES long, the BAND room was filled quickly and the energy was high amongst the crowd.
opening the night is metalcore band from sydney, harroway. this is my 4th time seeing the band so i felt comfortable knowing what was in store for us.
the vocalist is extremely talented, with HARSH gutturals and intense deathly stares into the crowd. the drummer is quick and heavy handed, while the guitarist and bassist carry the breakdowns hard and often move in sync. harroway is a very fun, engaging and performative band to watch live, whether you're someone who likes to get involved in the mosh-pit or stand on the sidelines, you'll enjoy the show.
i will make note that through no fault of the band at all, the vocals could have been louder for harroway. i have noticed this is unfortunately a regular occurrence for king st hotel AND THEIR SOUND.
up next is belgian hardcore band, nasty.
this four-piece chaos driven group meant business and they shared every ounce of energy they brought from the other side of the globe. their music truly lives up to their name as it is heavy, filthy and nasty as fuck.
from start to finish is pure beatdown hardcore, with beautiful and passionate speeches between songs.
the vocalist continuously urged the crowd to keep moving and throw down hard, while the instrumentalists kept up the dirty riffs, loud punchy drums and heavy stage presence.
for their first time in australia, it brought so much joy to my heart seeing how much of the crowd climbed over each other to get a chance on the mic. i know the band felt the same as i saw the smiles on their faces.
now for our headliner, who we all have been itching to see...
paleface swiss.
they came out firing, lighting up the room with intensity and rage with the first song being "hatred" from their latest album 'cursed'.
the energy and electricity in the room was magical, heavy and raw. people moshed, crowd surfed and sang as loud as they could, trying to keep up with vocalist zelli, but also letting him command the stage with SPINE CHILLING guttural power, hellish roars and dominating screams.
they talked about the last time they played in this venue, which was only a year ago and also the very first show they played in australia (supporting in hearts wake). they told everyone to step the fuck up to prove they made the right choice coming back to newcastle again.
I FELT AS THOUGH NEWCASTLE DID OUR BEST TO PROVE OURSELVES IN OUR SMALL, NARROW VENUE. WHEN 'NAIL TO THE TOOTH' PLAYED, I DIDN'T SEE A SINLE PERSON STANDING STILL. WE WERE INSTRUCTED ON HOW TO CHANT BEFORE THE SONG AND THE ENTHUSIASM WAS ALIVE. I EVEN LOOKED OVER AND SAW OUR OWN PHOTOGRAPHER, ETHAN CROWD SURFING AND SCREAMING ALONG OVER PEOPLE'S HEADS.
vocalist zelli and drummer cassi share a cute little kiss on stage, then told the crowd if anyone has a problem with something like this, then to get the fuck out and there is no room for negative OPINIONS LIKE homophobia..
we then dive into the hard hitting track from cursed, "enough?" the song is not subtle in any way, telling the toxic masculinity culture that they are not welcome at their shows, while also acknowledging it is okay and healthy to talk about your own feelings AND EMOTIONS.
while on the topic of sharing your feelings, i want to talk about the emotional change i felt and saw in the atmosphere when 'river of sorrows' was played. the band encouraged everyone to get on someones shoulders and sing. the lights dimmed blue & waving phone torches lit the stage. the emotional power of this song clearly has many hearts wrapped IN A TIGHT BOW, INCLUDING MY OWN. THE CROWD SANG, I SAW TEARS AND I FELT THEM ROLL DOWN MY CHEEK TOO.
THE BAND ENDED THE NIGHT WITH A FAN FAVOURITE "LOVE BURNS". THIS SONG NEVER FAILS TO DRAW ATTENTION WITH ZELLI & YANNICK SCREAMING THE CHORUS, CROWD SURFERS FLOOD IN, TESTING THE SECURITY'S MUSCLES AND THE CROWD HARMONISING RIGHT THROUGH TIL THE SOFT ENDING.
THIS SHOW FELT LIKE A NEW PAGE FOR THE HOT & HEAVY CREW THAT ATTENDED, AS THE REASON WE KNOW PALEFACE SWISS IS BECAUSE OF OUR VERY OWN PHOTOGRAPHER & CONTENT CREATOR ETHAN. THE CREW GOT TO WITNESS THE LOVE HE HAS FOR THIS BAND AND THEIR MUSIC AS HE MOSHED AND BOUNCED AROUND WITH CAMERA IN HAND.
NEW FRIENDS AND CONNECTIONS WERE MADE AMONGST THE CROWD AND WITH THE BANDS, IT WAS TRULY A SPECIAL NIGHT FOR ALL OF US.
a big thank you to these amazing bands for putting on the show of the year, filling our hearts and leaving our voices raw. we can't wait for your return.
all photos by ethan - moshcam18
