Opening the sold-out show at the Hordern Pavilion were Connecticut’s Currents, who wasted no time warming up the crowd with seven tight songs of progressive metalcore. Formed in 2011, the five-piece fronted by vocalist Brian Wille blend crushing djent-influenced guitar work with Wille’s signature switch between soaring clean vocals and ferocious screams. A standout moment came with Living in Tragedy, which had me captivated. Fresh off their 2023 album The Death We Seek and 2025 EP All That Follows, Currents proved they’re a band very much hitting their stride.
Next up were Perth’s own Make Them Suffer, who wasted no time making their presence felt opening with Ghost of Me to an immediate surge of energy from the pit. The collision of crushing guitar work and swirling electronic synths created an atmosphere that was equal parts euphoric and intense, with the crowd throwing themselves into the music from the very first breakdown.
The duality of Sean Harmanis’ ferocious screams and Alex Reade’s ethereal clean vocals proved to be the heart of their performance, a push and pull that kept the audience hanging on every transition, never quite knowing whether beauty or brutality was coming next. Both commanded the stage with a magnetic charisma that can only be earned through years on the road, feeding off each other and pulling the crowd further in with every song. As the set progressed, the pit grew wilder and the crowd surfers multiplied, until the final song saw a steady wave of bodies rolling toward the barrier the Hordern Pavilion giving Make Them Suffer everything they gave out. By the time they left the stage, it was clear this was a band in complete command of their craft.
Having shared the road with both Currents and Make Them Suffer in years past, there’s something deeply rewarding about watching fellow creatives continue to grow both in their craft and in the audiences they command. Seeing bands you once toured alongside now filling support slots on sold-out shows is a testament to just how far dedication and passion can take you in this industry.
Finally, it was the moment the entire room had been waiting for. The first time I witnessed Motionless in White was as a casual punter at Soundwave, having grown up listening to them through high school. There’s something profoundly inspiring about watching a band you idolised as a teenager grow from a festival slot to selling out a 5,500-capacity venue and in the span of just nine years, no less. Their last Sydney appearance was a support run with I Prevail in 2022, but this felt like a completely different chapter entirely. From the moment they hit the stage, the production was nothing short of theatrical. Pyrotechnics erupted, lighting swept across the crowd in waves, and stage dancers commanded the space with a variety of props from angle grinders sending cascades of sparks across the stage to fire-based dancing.
Chris Motionless prowled the stage with magnetic intensity, working every corner of the Hordern and pulling the crowd into every moment, his euphoric clean vocals shifting effortlessly into visceral screams that took the room from emotionally charged and melodic to outright aggressive in a single breath. Bassist Justin Morron matched that energy stride for stride, roaming the stage and leaning into the crowd barrier with the kind of presence that made you feel like he was playing directly to you. The guitarists and bassist added another dimension entirely, their voices locking in alongside Chris in a crushing blend of harmonies and screams that gave the songs a depth and weight that was as impressive live as it is on record. What struck me just as much was the sheer precision of the guitar work Ricky Olson and Ryan Sitkowski were locked in from the first note to the last, navigating the band’s dense, layered arrangements with a tightness that only comes from years of relentless touring. Every riff hit exactly where it was supposed to, every transition was seamless, and not once did the complexity of the music come at the cost of the energy.
A highlight of the set came when Make Them Suffer’s Sean Harmanis returned to the stage to guest on Slaughterhouse, a moment that brought the crowd to a fever pitch and felt like a genuine celebration of the tight-knit community that makes heavy music so special. And anchoring it all was drummer Vinny Mauro, whose thunderous performance was the relentless heartbeat beneath the chaos every hit felt like it reverberated through the floor and into your chest, elevating each song to another level entirely.
Photography/Review by Ivan Souriyavong (@ivans.photo)
