A YEAR AGO, fiercely DIY metalcore quintet While She Sleeps announced their boldest move to date: headlining the iconic Alexandra Palace, a venue twice the size of any they’d headlined before. The response on social media was divided between celebrating the band’s lofty goal and derision at their ambition to do so. Twelve months on and Sleeps have won. Tonight is sold out, with 10,000 fans descending on the stunning venue for an evening celebrating the up-and-coming as well as old friends.
First support, Australia’shave had a year of severe ups and downs. Tragedy struck shortly after their well-received Download set when guitarist Ryan Siew passed away at just 26. Their latest album, released soon after, has so far spent two weeks at No.1 in their home country. Openers often get saddled with a sparse crowd, but even with the venue’s infamous queues, the room is already packed as they bound onstage to a roaring, near-capacity crowd. proved they’ve got big hooks to go with their chunky breakdowns, but it’s unfortunate that as they open with the towering the sound is a little muted. The drums almost sound like they’re doubling up, but it’s not enough to derail the band’s touching performance, with a song dedicated to Ryan. In just half an hour, Polaris prove why they’re leading a new wave of Australian metalcore.
