Polaris
22nd August 2018
Whammy! Bar, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Molly O’Brien. Photography by Mark Derricutt.
It’s tough to motivate yourself to work out during a miserable August in Auckland City – might I suggest a metalcore show? It’s like Zumba but 100% better and usually there’s burgers afterwards.
The night began with Seas of Conflict, a young quartet hailing from Hamilton and making their passion to reach all ears clear by constantly travelling to hop on bills all around the country, supporting international hardcore acts as well as fellow kiwis such as Devilskin and Alien Weaponry. The room was packed out and ready to rumble as soon as they appeared, Seas of Conflict t-shirts jammed over hoodies in support. Not often does the party start with an opening band however the fanbase was clear with a crowd surfer or two strutting to the beat on Whammy Bar’s low ceiling.
Although appearing to be the least known on the bill, Auckland band Crooked Royals have been gaining traction quickly – with only around two years under their belt they’ve been hot property with New Industry record label and are a popular regular at the Auckland’s Ding Dong Lounge. In an interview with Amnplify Crooked Royals named Dance Gavin Dance as a favourite band, an influence that translates through dual vocals, more modern, progressive riffs but melodies favoured across emo in the early 2000s – a singalong quality that feels like revisiting an old song.
But the storm truly reached indoors as with Polaris came a whirlpool circle pit – beers thrown to the wind and structural poles becoming goal posts in which to javelin your mates through. Since their formation in 2012 these Sydney locals have carved a deep path in the metalcore scene, playing internationally with royalty such as Parkway Drive, Architects, August Burns Red and Gideon – to simply name a few. Their debut studio album ‘The Mortal Coil’ dropped in 2017 and was greeted with commendation, launched to trailblazer status and nominated for the 2018 ARIA Award for Best Hard Rock/Heavy Metal album in the blink of an eye.
Over the course of an hour Polaris played ‘The Mortal Coil’ in its entirety as well as a taste of what’s to come with their new album in the works, an unreleased song called ‘Hypermania’. Obeying orders from vocalist Jamie Hails, (“No excuses, everyone keep moving!”), the crowd writhed to the faster paced tune with an aggressive drop that could make a nun shimmy. Although the crowd called for popular older tracks such as ‘Regress’ from their 2016 album ‘The Guilt & The Grief’, I doubt fans will fall anywhere near disappointment with the eventual new album – if ‘Hypermania’ is a good judgement point we have heavy, melodic screams and sickening beats to nestle in our hearts.
For those who grew up headbanging to Parkway Drive’s ‘Horizons’ and for those who remember when Bring Me The Horizon were still tough – In my mind, Polaris are the next generation of metalcore, transferring raw emotion and energy from the genres origins and sprinkling a little extra on top – a personal touch, a real story, pain into something beautiful and consumable. Polaris are the torch, and we should all be excited about who they will next ignite.
Were you there at Whammy! Bar to witness this magnificent metalcore gig? Or have you seen Polaris perform somewhere else? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Polaris Setlist:
- Lucid
- Relapse
- Sonder
- Frailty
- In Somnus Veritas
- Hypermania
- The Remedy
- Casualty
- Dusk To Day
- The Slow Decay
- Crooked Path
- Consume
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