One of the heaviest-hitting outfits on the Oz music landscape, The Mark Of Cain, are heading back to Newcastle this October.
And the three-piece behemoth will be performing their uncompromising debut long player Battlesick in its entirety.
Released in 1989, when the sugary pop of bands like Ratcat was the sound of the Australian alternative scene, Battlesick came like a bolt from the blue with intricate time signatures.
Tracks like Wake Up, Dead Man’s Mail, The Setback, Call In Anger and the unrelenting title tune dealt with themes like anger over disappointment, the threat of death and personal setbacks all wrapped up in a massive sonic package that recalled the likes of Joy Division and the aggressive sounds of US noisemakers Big Black.
Check out what punk icon Henry Rollins had to say about the legendary cult record.
“I heard the song Wake Up and I was like ‘whooah’, I woke up! And then I heard the song Battlesick and it was all over for me, that’s just an amazing song. For me, just as a songwriter, that’s the song for which you wish you wrote the lyrics. Like ‘damn man, he wrote Battlesick, that fu**er. Let me write that. I mean the imagery in the song is amazing and Deadman’s Mail, that’s just incredible”
Aside from Battlesick, the precision three piece which features rothers John and Kim Scott (on guitar and bass respectively) and drummer Eli Green will also a perform a second set or extended ‘encore’ of classics from right across their five studio album-strong career.
If that wasn’t enough, the lineup for this monstrous show will be completed by Washington DC three-piece The Messthetics which features the talents of one of the tightest rhythm sections in the biz – Joe Lally and Brendan Canty from Fugazi.
Catch The Mark Of Cain and the Messthetics at the Small Ballroom on Sunday 20 October.
