Big Ass Tour at Perth Arena–an adrenaline rush

By Mafiia McCool, Rock At Night Correspondent-Perth, Australia

VENUE: Perth Arena on December 14, 2015-Big Ass Tour

Most incredible gig! Still on an adrenaline rush from it!

On Monday at 5:30pm punters swarmed the Perth Arena, lining up for one of six Australian shows for The Big Ass Tour. The headliners The Amity Affliction and A Day to Remember, were supported with performances from Motionless in White and Hands Like Houses.

Hands Like Houses hit the stage first, filling in as a late replacement for LA-locals The Ghost Inside. HLH, a post-hardcore band from Canberra-AU, were awesome. The band’s energy and stage presence raised punters enthusiasm for their performance and their new single New Romantics.

Next up was Motionless in White, an American metalcore band from Scranton, Pennsylvania. MIW bought their unique industrial gothic style to the stage, kicking off their set with Break The Cycle and the electro-metal track Devil’s Night. Frontman Chris “Motionless” Cerulli engaged the crowd with his passion and infinite energy. Bass player Devin “Ghost” Sola maintained mystery in a mask, as keyboardist, Josh Balz rocked goth with a long black hooded cloak. MIW smashed out favourites Immaculate Misconception and anthem A.M.E.R.I.C.A., as well as a cover of Linkin Park’s One Step Closer.

A Day To Remember, a punk rock band from Florida, blew the crowd away. These guys are musically skilled at blending punk-pop with brutal post-hardcore beats. The band opened with the Star Wars theme which transitioned into the The Downfall Of Us All. ADTR frontman, Jeremy McKinnon’s stage presence was clear as he occupied the stage with his incredible energy and signature roar, as cannons shot rainbow confetti into the crowd.

ADTR smashed through All Signs Point to Lauderdale, had human surfboard crowd-surfing in Better Off This Way, and in a tribute to Florida, encouraged circle pits, in City of Ocala. An acoustic performance of Champagne Supanova evolving into If It Means A Lot To You in a sea of smartphone lights was a unequivocal highlight. ADTR killed it!

Australian hardcore band The Amity Affliction hit the stage last, launching into Open Letter under a torrent of metallic silver confetti and a screaming crowd. Lead vocalist Joel Birch produced his iconic growl, Ahren Stringer supplied his clean vocals, and the instrumentals could be felt throughout the venue.

Lost and Fading, Chasing Ghosts and FML resulted in fans jumping on shoulders, crowd-surfing and circle pits, but punters went wild over firm favourites Youngbloods, I Hate Hartley and Pittsburgh. TAA closed with Don’t Lean On Me.

Streams of steam and flames, along with a mass of balloons created a festival vibe, but didn’t detract from the uniqueness of this gig. It was intimate, personable, engaging, it felt like we were in a small venue. All the bands in The Big Ass Tour lineup killed it! Best experience and sickest gig ever!