NORTHLANE
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Thursday
Albion Park Scout Hall
Tickets: www.oztix.com.au
Northlane vocalist Adrian Fitipaldes says people are always surprised to meet him in person.
At 155cm, fans are often shocked he is the one responsible for the low-pitched screams that feature in the metal band's songs.
"They can't imagine that I make the noises that I do, especially because I'm five foot one or something. I'm really short, and people find it hard to imagine that I make all that noise," he says.
Though he has been lead singer since the band formed in 2009, Fitipaldes says the screaming still takes a toll on his voice - he lost it for two days in between gigs while touring in Canada last year.
"It can be quite rigorous on the voice on some tours. Mine are full of warming up before every show, drinking plenty of water, getting good rest, eating right. As a vocalist, I'm learning this the hard way, that a lot of your talent is based on your health," he says.
"I'm learning that as I get older, about being mindful of what I put into my body. I have lost my voice in the past. It's crippling, it's quite depressing and you have no choice but to keep singing your next show."
In three short years Northlane have built a strong following of fans, largely thanks to dedicated touring in both city and rural centres across Australia.
Fitipaldes says this is part of the reason they continue to travel to areas other bands might skip, playing at CWA halls and youth centres when they easily book bigger gigs nowadays, such as their inclusion in this year's Soundwave line-up.
"A lot of kids in the rural towns don't get a chance to see us and get neglected by a lot of bands just because it's sometimes not financially possible to go out to all those places, but it's not about the money, it's about playing shows and brightening up people's days," he says.
The absence of a backstage area at regional venues means these shows are always more personal, giving Fitipaldes and the other four band members a chance to chat to their fans.
"Metal and hardcore fans have to be the most dedicated and the most crazy fans out of any music ever. I hate to say it, but they're willing to shed blood over their favourite artist," he says.
Though metal and hardcore, which Fitipaldes says the band combines in their music, are genres people either love or hate, the singer says they lend themselves to the discussion of bigger issues.
For example, the band's latest single, Worldeater, addresses the need for the world to become more unified and focus less on the things that divide it.
"Not 100 per cent of my lyrics are about this, but it is pushed fairly hard and I think one of the reasons for our success is because we've been talking about these things, because I feel a lot of people are confused as to what to believe about everyday things," Fitipaldes says.
"Our music's a hybrid of metal and hardcore and both of those genres were born out of a sense of rebellion, the punk mentality of sticking it to the man, down with the system, all those old-school sayings that you hear."