August Burns Red
w/I Promised The World, The Gloom In The Corner, Fallweather
The Gov, Adelaide, South Australia
September 29th 2026
Review by Kayla Hamilton
It’s been a remarkable year of gigs for those who are into the classics. When I say classics, I mean the original wave of metalcore bands. Not to sound like our parents, but there is something about that era of metalcore that just hits different. It’s even better when those bands are still dropping some impeccable music. One band that fits that bill tremendously of course is August Burns Red.
Before the main event, though, it was Melbourne boys Fallweather‘s job to get the room moving. It is a little unfortunate that a lot of weekday gigs at The Gov tend to mean that the full crowd is not there for the openers, because everybody should have the pleasure to experience this post-hardcore sensation. What can I say? I like my hardcore melodic and this band gets it. Every second they play is the ultimate juxtaposition of raw feeling and polished performance. High energy, drenched in emotion, they clearly were the best choice to open this tour. They may have had a smaller audience, but every second onstage there was this feeling of joy emitting from them that was so endearing. I won’t be surprised if in 2027 we see a huge boom for this band because they really are something special.
Following on was another Melbourne mainstay, the wonderfully cinematic The Gloom In The Corner. This band truly has developed a cult following in our city and for good reason. There is a depth to this band that cannot be summarised in a paragraph, but from start to finish they deliver twist and turns of epic proportions. Parts movie soundtrack and other parts getting hit by bone-crushing heaviness, it’s a ride I never like getting off. Giving us tracks from their latest album like ‘You Didn’t Like Us Then’, ‘Angels Wrath Whiskey’ and the brutal ‘Assassination Run’ to classics like ‘Misanthropic’. Their sets never feel long enough, so let’s hope we get another headline run here soon. Oh, and shout outs to Mikey Arthur for the dedication to the iconic O’Connell Street Bakery, that’s how you know somebody really has been to Adelaide.
I’m going to be very honest: I went into our first international band’s set without knowing what I was getting into. Hailing from Texas, I Promised The World really threw me for a loop. Seeing the number of members onstage and the keyboards set up, I was intrigued. When their set started and frontman Hunter Wilson came out, I thought I had time travelled back to 2005. The sheer energy and intensity was awe-inspiring. It was like witnessing some early The Devil Wears Prada style vibes. Any second I was expecting some head walking. Looking over my shoulder from the barricade the room was moving EXACTLY like they should be. Skinny jean clad (maybe not so much) teens swinging their limbs and causing carnage, it was everything that made me fall in love with in the genre. At one stage Wilson through the mic into the crowd and the fans understood the assignment. It was a hot room, with impeccable energy and blew me the hell away. Imagine my surprise when I looked up the band and they had only started in 2020? We truly are reviving the golden years of heavy emotive hardcore/screamo.
Blasting our eyes and ears with sheer light and sound, August Burns Red hit the stage with ferocity. Ripping the room apart with ‘The Meddler’, my decision to move away from the barricade to the side of the room proved to be a good call. Straight away though, I was reminded exactly why metalcore guitarists have this band on such a pedestal. It was the embodiment of that meme where ‘if the guitarist looks like this then you are going to die’, with JB Brubaker hitting the stage in his thongs (that’s flip flops to our lovely US readers- nothing lewd going here). It’s been a long time since I’ve seen the crowd doing the spirit fingers to the guitarists (universal sign of sick solo dude) and like a reflex, my hand was up joining them. At times, the bass was put down and the three of them were just riffing. Utterly majestic to see. I
Fast, furious and just straight-up aggressive, it was an hour of just straight-up good ole metalcore. That being said, there were moments of lightness and fun. Reflecting back to when the band had to cancel their 2020 tour during the pandemic and a song that bass player Dustin Davidson wrote about Adelaide, it was just super sweet moment. Him coming out in an Australia t-shirt was also the most wholesome touch. Another sweet Aussie-centred moment was vocalist Jake Luhrs dedicating ‘Invisible Enemy’ to Jamie Hails of Polaris and Sean Harmanis of Make Them Suffer.
The setlist itself gave us some fresh songs woven in with some absolute classics. We got ‘Den Of Thieves’ live, which they are playing for the first time on this tour. Instead of doing a stereotypical encore, we got sick drum solo from Brent Rambler before the band came out and finished with ‘Composure’ and ‘White Washed’.
All in all, being able to see the bands I grew up listening to still playing at their absolute peak feels like such a privilege. I know we are not THAT old, but when genres and acts are treated like just flashes in the pan and something is new, it feels satisfying to witness the trail bands like August Burns Red have blazed. Seeing teenagers in the crowd throwing themselves in the pit and bands formed recently sounding like they are straight out of that era…it’s just mindblowing.
August Burns Red are still making their way around Australia.
If you haven’t got your ticket, then take this as a sign to get it now.
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