As Ben Frost emerges from the wings of the stage, I could feel that sense of anticipation amongst the crowd, as though they were waiting for an epiphany. As Frost placed the strap of his guitar over his shoulder, I felt a bubble of excitement emerge within my core; I wasn’t expecting any musical instruments from this evening’s performance.  I’m not sure what I was expecting really.  
 
Then it hit me. The drums. Frost aggressively riffing his distorted guitar throughout the intro; a gritty and dark contrast to the violent high energy strobe lights. I felt like I was falling, a passenger in a malfunctioning plane, immersed in pressure. The frequency punched you in your chest, your eyes at odds with the strobe and the sub frequencies. Frost was cultivating a sustained blend of textures and wave oscillations and I was being swept up with the marching band for the apocalypse.
 
There were times that I thought I could hear natural sounds, a whale call piercing through over the raw drum fill, but it was soon to be lost amongst the wall of noise. But for a minute I was able to anchor myself to the real world, if only for a moment. This is perhaps why Frost is so mesmerising; his music does not seem and sound as though it is from this world. The most poignant other-worldly sample I heard was that which sounded like an ogre, a dark and possessed being. How Frost blended this sample with the sub bass was impressive and nice uses of textures, the synth back drop teetering through slightly.  Frost knows how to create a 3D soundscape, through the use of multi-layering and walls of emotive composition.   
 
The eerie suspended gaze of the drummer watching motionless over Ben as he tweaked the sound desk was a nice contrast to the meditative gaze of the crowd. Frost is a tall, well built man with an industrial take on his attire, his long fringe concealing his face from the crowd.
 
Their relationship onstage was telepathic, consisting of long, drawn out build ups, a brainstorm of two musical life forms. The drummer was the perfect accompaniment, manufacturing beats that at times were reminiscent of Tool’s drummer, Danny Kerry, keeping the audience swept up in the atmosphere till the very end.  
 
This was unlike any gig I have attended; there was no need to move.  This was not music to dance to.  I felt as though I was part of a séance being ushered into the occult. The crowd surrounding me were Masonic in their stance, transfixed on Frost and his counterpart, swaying in stop frame, their animated bodies disjointed to the flicker of the strobe.
 
Frost has the ability to evoke within me and I feel I can probably speak for the other members of the crowd, passion.  A friend of mine whispered to me “this feels like the soundtrack to my life!”  I knew what he meant.
 
Frost’s compositions are expressive, heart wrenching and speak volumes of the emotion regret and sufferance. This is a man who has evidently explored the pockets of the human psyche, and he is not afraid to express that to his fans. Frost’s work would be best described as cinematic and he creates compositions that you would typically expect to accompany an apocalyptic film scene.  
 
Frost should be commended for a fantastic first night of his tour, I urge you to go and see him in a location near you. But make sure you bring earplugs!
Alexandra Lea.