Mammal

So, late on a Saturday night I found myself once again approaching the city. I was on the way to witness the heavy metal spectacle of Mammal. A reasonably fresh band out of Melbourne, forming up in only 2006, they have already supported many Australian rock heavyweights like Grinspoon, COG, Avenged Sevenfold and Karnivool. Even I, in my latest reclusive isolation with my brand spanking-new Guitar Hero, managed to overhear some of the hype that floated on the winds regarding their live show. I’m glad I did.

Mammal were performing in Adelaide’s mysterious Jive bar. Jive is one of those quieter Adelaide venues that has a very small front and few people outside. It exudes an unassuming yet dignified air. Many’s the time I stumbled past it half-cut with a group of friends and idly wondered what’s inside, but never found an occasion to go in. The small room is formed around a stage and massive dance floor, with a circular counter going all the way around, leaving stools on the outside and couches on the inside. It imparts a feeling of special exclusiveness. Uncoincidentally, it suited Mammal well.

I arrived in time to witness Mammal’s touring support band setting up. A 4-piece group called Sydonia, they had an interesting gimmick in that for the first song, one guitarist and the bassist were each playing a pair of floor toms on either side of the drummer, while the singer/2nd guitarist played in the middle. With highly dramatic sticking, it created a great symmetrical visual spectacle, with the singer being framed by drum sticks and heavy beats. The two backup drummers frequently switched back and forth between their strings and their sticks during the set. Sydonia’s music was driven by the heavy drum riffs, which counter-pointed nicely with a haunting strength in the vocals. A very decent set – I’ll be keeping an ear out for these guys in the future.

As Mammal were setting up, I watched Jive slowly filled to a comfortable crowdedness. When I turned back to stage, the roadies were bringing out painted Papier-Mache animals with glowing red LED eyes… bizarre, but effective in Jive’s low-lit gloom. Possibly mascots for the band? I know not. As Mammal came out to hefty applause and cut loose with their first song, the first thing that struck me was that the bass was turned way up, to the point where I could not only hear it (amazing!) but it was stronger than the guitar! This stayed throughout the set, and it quickly became apparent that as Sydonia was drum-driven, so Mammal were bass driven; bassist Nick played some of the funkiest shit I’ve heard in a live set. Singer Ezekiel used a combination of rap-style talking and hardcore screaming effectively to put through his semi-political lyrics. Guitarist Pete also blasted out some wicked solos near the end of the set.

However, the best thing about Mammal was indeed the atmosphere they produced. With synchronised band antics, impromptu conversations, and many crowd ovations, Mammal perceivably lifted the level of their music simply through band personality. At one point Ezekiel even took off, running through the crowd whilst singing, and for one song they even brought out a member of Sydonia to play with the. And the crowd lapped it all out. A bloody good set. If you’re a fan of the metal, and a fan of the live, I strongly recommend you check out Mammal the next time they stop nearby. You won’t be disappointed.

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