Despite the unseasonably chilly alpine blast that’s keeping most of Sydney frozen outside, the guts of the Bald Faced Stag Hotel in Leichardt is a sweaty, writhing mass of bodies, as we enter the venue to the last strains of the local opening act. The atmosphere is positively oppressive – a fitting environment for the punishing blast beats and sub-sonic breakdowns that are about to tear the Bald Faced Stag apart.

SUICIDE SILENCE are the imminent future of extreme music…brutal, genuine and simply undeniable.

There is little doubt in anyone’s mind that SUICIDE SILENCE are one of the frontrunners of the metal landscape, developing an undeniable buzz and bludgeoning legions of diehard fans spanning the world.

On Sunday, Perth played host to the first No Sleep Till Festival... 9 hours of pure, unadulterated heavy metal/hard rock thunder.

Unfortunately, the two stage setup of the festival meant I was busier than a headless chicken in a tag team match with Ozzy Osborne and Alice Cooper, but I did manage to catch most of the acts that played.