Before Rampage took the stage, metalheads (and some non-metalheads) gathered at the bar, fervently awaiting the bands to start playing with their alcoholic beverages of choice in hand. The Maram has become a growing interest in the Canberran live music community, playing host to more than their fair share of great bands, including the four that appeared on Saturday night. When the drums started to thunder from inside the hall, the punters came running.

The night's first act was Rampage, a four-piece thrash metal band from Wollongong. They pounded out a well-executed setlist of modern thrash revival with a jolly nod to their 80's influences with songs such as "New World Disorder" and "Cannon Fodder". Mr. Rob Rampage took the lead microphone with serious fury while his comrades Shane Saw and Chinch backed him up with guitars and war cries while Matt Skully belted out the battle rhythms behind them. All in all, their set was impressive enough to warrant me throwing away the consequence of having a sore neck for some epic headbanging. Thrash till death!

On the other end of the spectrum was Na Maza. Perhaps unsuited to the "true metal" crowds, they opened with a decent cover of a Killswitch Engage song before getting into their own set. Frontman Mila had the crowd singing along while he got up close and personal with the front row. Their ability to perfectly move from thick metallic riffage to clean melodic passages proved to be the most interesting and pleasing aspect of their music.

After local thrash act Hellbringer had pulled out of the bill earlier in the day, Blind Eyed Gods took the stage with some filthy southern licks and a foot-stomping, whiskey-guzzling setlist of nothing but fat, heavy, groovy metal. Although the crowd wasn't as into it as they were, they paved the way for the night's headliner act LORD.

With the recent announcement of LORD's new EP "Return Of The Tyrant" the band has today immediately released it for online purchase over at CD BABY. Hell you can even hear Andy Dowling sing 'I Just Died In Your Arms Tonight'.

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/lord3

Don't forget you can catch them up on their "Return Of The Tyrant" tour.

Melbourne's Confession has announced a run of shows for this October / November. Having recently completed a national run with The Amity Affliction, in the coming months they will get back to their roots on the "Keeping It Bogan" tour - with all members growing up in regional towns, the tour will visit various cities and towns away from the hussle and bussle of the big smoke.

Joining them will be Sydney bands Hand Of Mercy and Sienna Skies with Sydney's Relentless playing the Perth dates.

This December Confession will also be touring on the No Sleep Til Festival.

Tickets on sale September 8.

• Friday October 22 The Fitz, St Ives AA

Tickets from Resist, Moshtix outlets and moshtix.com.au

• Saturday October 23 Centenary Hall, Albion Park AA

Tickets from Resist, Moshtix outlets and moshtix.com.au

• Sunday October 24 Oasis, Wyong AA

Tickets from Leading Edge Music Lake Haven and Macron Music Erina and Tuggerah

• Friday October 29 Multipurpose Community Centre, Wallan  AA

Tickets from Fist2Face, Polyester and oztix.com.au

• Saturday October 30 Potato Shed, Geelong AA

• Sunday October 31 Phoenix Youth Centre, Footscray AA

Tickets from Fist2Face, Polyester and oztix.com.au

• Thursday November 4 The Old Jail, Mt Gambier AA

• Friday November 5 Uni Bar, Adelaide Lic / AA

Tickets from Venue Tix outlets, venuetix.com.au, Clarity Records, Moshtix outlets moshtix.com.au

• Saturday November 6 Amplifier, Perth

w/ Relentless
Tickets from Moshtix outlets and moshtix.com.au

Since the departure of MICK SULTANA in February 2010 Sydney thrash metal legends MORTAL SIN has been seeking for a new guitarist and has conducted several attempts to find a lead guitarist over the last 6 month period.

With much anticipation MORTAL SIN recently announced on their Facebook page the introduction of their new lead guitarist "Ryan Huthnance" now former member of Newcastle metalcore band KINDRED.

Facebook update: "enjoying there first practise with new Sinner boy Ryan on lead guitar welcome aboard Overkill tour here we come."

You can catch Ryan at the up-coming OVERKILL Australian tour and you could even get in as their guest for free if you help them out too as they are looking to loan 2 Marshall Heads, Quads and a Bass Rig for the Melbourne Overkill show.

www.mortalsin.com.au
www.myspace.com/mortalsinners

According to Perth Now - GUNS N ROSES have added another date to their up-coming Australian tour playing at Kwiana Motorplex on December 11th. Don't forget KORN will also be accompaning them as the main support of the tour for a one hour set only.

Promoter Andrew McManus said: "This is a very exciting tour for us. I saw Guns N’ Roses perform in Helsinki a few months ago and I’ve never seen a bigger crowd."

"It was a wild concert with over 60,000 fans going freakin’ berserk! They were really well behaved and were there purely to give the band as much energy back as the band gave them, which believe me, was a tonne full.

"I got goose bumps hearing the crowd leave the venue all as one, singing Sweet Child of Mine. It was like they had an unspoken family bond between each other. Quite amazing."

Tickets go on sale next Tuesday, September 7, through Ticketmaster.com.au and can also be purchased from Mills Records in Fremantle. This is an 18+ event with one general admission price of $139+ b/f. Doors open at 5pm, concert starts at 6pm.

TANGLED THOUGHTS OF LEAVING has recently announced the delay with the recording of their new album due to them leaving their current studio outfit for a new studio which is being constructed at present for a bigger, tighter and defined sound.

"Currently the recording of the album is in a sort of suspended animation. The reason being, we recently moved out of our studio, Sleepwalkers Dread. It was a lovely home for us for a couple of years, and we recorded Tiny Fragments, the SMW/TToL Split and the Contextually Inept net single all in that one room. Not to mention countless jam/live sessions. We actually filmed and recorded our last ever two sessions there, and some of these will surface online in the next couple of weeks.

That will include some full band rehearsal footage + our last ever Improv recording in our old home. The Improvised piece is particularly interesting as the basis for the jam has since made it's way into official album calculations. In fact, a couple of the more polished moments will be lifted and replicated on to our debut album."

The band expects the album to be completed over the next 2-3 months. In other news TToL will be playing with 'Canadian Doom Champions' NADJA.

"This show will be on the 14th of October at Mojo's in Fremantle. We also have another massive gig in the same month which you could say, is more than overdue. Stay tuned.

Speaking of Long Overdue and excluding my Period, to those of you placed in Australia's eastern states. We are coming. Not right now, but soon. It's literally right at the top of our list, and is an active priority that we're constantly discussing and getting closer to organising the official logistics of."

You can read more at www.myspace.com/ttol