GATECREEPER: Treading Heavily (2024)

By BRIAN GIFFIN

GATECREEPER were last in Australia less than a year ago. With a new album in the can, the Arizona death metal machine will be back, this time for a run of 10 dates nationwide plus shows in New Zealand and Asia. Last year’s shows with Obscura were make-up dates for their planned appearance at Dark Mofo in 2020.

“We did three shows,” frontman Chase Mason recalls, “Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney and we flew to each one of those shows so we covered a lot of ground in a short amount of time, so I’m glad we’re going to be doing a full tour there and hitting a lot more cities.”

Flying between shows isn’t something typical for Gatecreeper when they’re at home. But as they move into new territories, it’s becoming increasingly more frequent.

“We’ve been doing that a lot more recently, especially in Europe. We’re playing a lot of summer festivals and you have to fly from one festival to the other in one weekend, but it was cool,” he says. “Our whole Australian experience was awesome because it was our first time being there – not just playing, none of us had ever been there, so we had a good time doing a lot of touristy stuff. We loved it and that’s why we’re coming back again so quickly.”

Now they’ve “cracked the seal a little bit and dipped our toes in,” Mason wants Australia to be part of Gatecreeper’s regular touring cycle. Coming back less than 12 months after their previous jaunt is a good beginning, but he’s well aware that where they have something like twenty tours behind them across the US, Australia is a fresh start. 

“When we go to Australia you kind of have to start over. So you’ve gotta put the work in. There’s a lot of people who know us there, because of the internet, but any new country you go to, it’s almost like you’re starting over. I’d like to speed up that process and get over there a bit more often because it’s a great place.”

This tour is also a gateway to Asia for the band. Ahead of Australia, Gatecreeper will be playing in Japan, Korea and major cities in South East Asia like Bangkok and Hong Kong. For a band still at the level where they do everything for themselves, overseas touring carries significant risk, but it’s one they’re more than willing to take for the sake of the fans they know they have waiting for them.

“We are responsible for bringing everyone over there,” Mason says. “If there’s not a lot of people at the show, that’s our fault! We didn’t bring enough people. But that’s a risk we’re willing to take, but I think that given the reception we got last time in the few cities we did play, gave us the motivation to say, ‘People in Australia care about Gatecreeper. So let’s try it out in some new cities’.”

Gatecreeper gained major attention with the release of their debut album Sonoran Depravation in 2016. It followed a string of split EPs, a tradition they have continued even as their star ascends globally, with their forthcoming third album to be released through Nuclear Blast later in the year. The new record, prefaced by recent single “Caught in the Treads”, has spurred Gatecreeper back onto the road after less touring than usual last year.

“We’re not a necessarily prolific band,” Mason says. “We tend to be very meticulous about everything we do, especially with music coming out. We really take our time on it. So the fact that we can go three years between records and people are still interested is a good sign that we don’t have to be making TikToks to be able to connect to younger kids. People still appreciate you when you put a lot of time into things and it’s not just consumption where it entertains you for thirty seconds.”

Since touring and live shows returned after COVID shutdowns, Mason has noticed “a different energy”, and much of seems to be coming from people newer to the scene.

“I think there’s a lot of new kids that got into heavy music or whatever – underground music, heavy music, whatever – I think there was a huge surge in popularity in such things during the pandemic, maybe? People that didn’t get to go to their first show until after the pandemic was over, are going to a show now.”

“I’ve been going to shows locally for over 20 years,” he continues, “and going to a show now, I don’t know a lot of these people! It’s cool because they seem like they’re into it. They’re passionate, and there’s a lot of new bands, but it just seems crazy that I go to a show in my own city and there’s a lot of people I don’t know.”

For a scene to flourish, grow and evolve there needs to be new blood, of course. Dedicated newcomers who are passionate about the music and helping it thrive. Mason’s seen plenty of that since the pandemic came to an end, and it can only be a good thing.

“New bands, new people booking bands, people opening up new places to have shows, writers, photographers, people who make music videos, or graphic designers – whatever it is – there needs to be people doing these things,” he says, “and it seems that a few years ago there was a little bit of apathy. People my age stopped going to shows, people stopped doing their part in the machine to make everything work and there was no younger kids picking up the slack, but it seems like things are turning around and I think it’s good for everybody.”

AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2024 All shows with Kruelty

4/4: Vinnie’s Dive Bar, Gold Coast

5/4: The Brightside, Brisbane

6/4: Newcastle Hotel, Newcastle

7/4: Crowbar, Sydney

9/4: Dicey Riley’s, Wollongong

10/4: The Basement, Canberra

11/4: Prince Bandroom, Melbourne

12/4: Singing Bird Studios, Frankston

13/4: Lion Arts Factory, Adelaide

14/4: Lynott’s Lounge, Perth