Lord Kaos, Mortality, The Veil, Magma One at Darling Nikki’s, St Peters. 21 March 2025
After a distinguished career as a punk/indie venue in the 90s and 00s followed by a lesser, more inglorious one under the name of The House of Music and Booze – where I waited to buy a beer one night while being completely ignored until I simply walked out – the White Horse Hotel has returned as a venue under the Prince-inspired name of Darling Nikki’s. That was about as far as Mr Nelson’s influence extended this evening, however, with the bill leaning more toward the heavier end of the music spectrum headed up by two recently reactivated heavyweights of the Sydney’s 90s metal scene.
Blue Mountains quartet Magma One made the walls reverberate early with psych-inflected doom. Their songs meander through loose jam-style arrangements, with jangling bass lines, long guitar solos and occasional folk moments held together by Corin Shearston’s jazz-flavoured drumming. It was a mesmerising set brought to an end by a full-on old school thrash song that came as a complete but welcome surprise.
Next it was time for The Veil. Now back full band mode with keyboard player Georgina Lloyd and new drummer Bunga Keinanti added since I last saw them eighteen months ago (coincidentally, also with Magma One), it didn’t take long for them to fill the room with Gothic melancholia. Pinned by Keinanti’s intricate drumming and guided by Che deBoehmler’s dark and evocative vocals, The Veil’s dramatic music is sweeping, multifarious and epic, mesmerising the crowd.
In case you weren’t already aware, Mortality is back. I was lucky enough to be at their first reunion show at this very venue just over six months ago, and tonight proved that was no first-night fluke. Just as they did then, Mortality hit the stage breathing fire and didn’t let up. With their huge grooves and Darren Maloney’s bull-throated roar, they tore through another barnstorming set. Necessarily shorter than their headlining gig, they nevertheless had time to show off a new track. With a noticably slower vibe than most of their songs, it was still a welcome addition that won the crowd’s approval during another powerful performance.
90s black metal stalwarts Lord Kaos have also returned, now to a three piece entity with JS from Estrangement out front and Vaticide’s Habatu on bass joining original member Astennu. Stripped of the make-up and theatrical trappings, Lord Kaos offer a shrieking black metal attack, their raw sound and howling vocals paired with a symphonic backing track and drum machine. They are a less dramatic band now but the trio present a dynamic stage presence even if the music is somewhat mechanical, wrapping up a good night of Sydney metal showcasing the scene’s diversity.
