Paul Southwell

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Posts by Paul Southwell

BORN OF OSIRIS Tour Interview, 2026

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American progressive metalcore band, Born of Osiris, first rose to prominence in their scene with their debut full album, A Higher Place in 2009. But it was their technically precise 2011 release, The Discovery which aptly described their impact on progressive metalcore. Born of Osiris were last here around six years ago, so on their long-awaited return tour, their fifteenth anniversary of The Discovery will also include deathcore heavy hitters, Signs of the Swarm, along for the ride to wallop audiences into submission. We recently caught up with Born of Osiris drummer and co-founding member Cameron Losch from his home studio to discuss the coming tour, and the legacy of his impressive band.

BATTLE BEAST (Eero Sipilä) Tour Interview, 2026

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Finnish heavy metal band, Battle Beast, have been making quite a noise on the international stage, with a steadily growing fanbase, and have created a concise, well produced back catalogue over the last decade and a half. Now, with a new singer, Marina La Torraca, in their ranks, shortly after the release of their well-received latest album, Steelbound, they are about to make their debut tour to our shores. We caught up with long serving bassist, backing vocalist and co-songwriter, Eero Sipilä to discuss the new line-up and the upcoming tour.

DREAM THEATER – 40th Anniversary Tour – Live Review 2026

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American progressive metal band Dream Theater’s legacy is not just built on absurdly incredible musicianship, but on their ability to carry a melody amongst the benchmark setting virtuosity. Having previously graced our shores with and without notable drumming legend, Mike Portnoy, the core writer behind the unofficial “Twelve Step Suite” of songs dealing with addiction, which span across various earlier albums as definitive highlights, Dream Theater reunited was celebrating their vast discography with a 40th anniversary tour.  

STEVEN WILSON Live Review, 2025

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Musical leaders these days are few and far between but based English songwriter and producer Steven Wilson’s prolific contribution to the musical landscape is not just noteworthy, it is a rare example of artistic integrity. His latest studio venture as a solo artist, The Overview, is unique, and offers a wealth of sonic experiences for the dedicated listener. It is an album to experience with headphones and the themes explored here are presented as two multi-part progressive rock suites, that neatly fit onto either side of the vinyl format.

POSSESSED (Jeff Becerra) Tour Interview, 2025 

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Possessed emerged from a time in music when a stylistic approach that embraced extreme speed and aggression was well beyond the generally accepted genre bounds of music consumption. The impact was immediate, from the young band, who arguably inadvertently launched an entire genre within metal, known as death metal. Their debut album, Seven Churches remains a landmark measuring stick within metal circles, and they were certainly noticed on various tours with Bay Area Thrash Metal bands who put a definitive stamp on a worldwide genre that continues to flourish today, in various mutations. 

BIG COUNTRY (Bruce Watson) Tour Interview, 2025 

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Scottish indie rockers Big Country have returned to Australia for a Greatest Hits tour. In 2019, they were here to celebrate the 35th Anniversary of their classic second album Steeltown which was recorded at ABBA’s Polar Studios in Stockholm and produced by Steve Lillywhite, garnering a UK number one album.  Their debut album, The Crossing, also with Lillywhite at the helm, cemented their reputation as an influential band with an undeniable 80’s Celtic Rock feel that led to two Grammy nominations and widespread airplay, alongside substantial touring. A lot has transpired since those heady days but with the current line-up treading the boards with great reviews on keeping their legacy alive, we recently caught up with founding member, and guitarist, Bruce Watson via Zoom.

JD FORTUNE ‘Plays the Best of INXS’ Tour Interview, 2025

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INXS were internationally huge, and if you ever saw them live, the reasons were self-explanatory. However, the loss of a legendary front man [Michael Hutchence] is a hard bridge to cross, yet JD Fortune rose to the challenge. Imagine stepping into the shoes of one of Australia’s biggest, and most beloved, rock exports. Then, on top of that, dealing with the endless invasions into personal freedoms that international media are so adept at ignoring. So, we were privileged to gain access to the quite stellar, Canadian vocalist JD Fortune, to explore his experiences, and to discuss the approaching tour. 

TESTAMENT New album ‘PARA BELLUM’ and music video ‘Infanticide A.I.’

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Bay Area thrash metal icons TESTAMENT return this Fall with their fourteenth studio album, Para Bellum. The album which will be released on October 10th via Nuclear Blast Records stands as both a battle cry and an observation of humanity’s uneasy alliance with its own creations. As technology accelerates and disconnection grows, Para Bellum sees TESTAMENT reflecting the modern chaos through music that’s urgent, sharp, and unflinchingly human.

DIRKSCHNEIDER & THE OLD GANG release single ‘Dead Man’s Hand’ from the upcoming album BABYLON

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PRE-ORDER “BABYLON” If you’ve been following the journey of BABYLON the highly anticipated debut full-length album from DIRKSCHNEIDER & THE OLD GANG, you already know what kind of powerhouse material this band delivers. Now, with the release of their fifth single, ‘Dead Man’s Hand’, the stakes are raised yet again. And if this is your first taste