Dear Diary: On Location at Dark Mofo (Day Seven)
Dark Mofo 2025
Hobart, Tasmania
Diary Entry: Day Seven
“The city night, it is ice like fire.” – ‘Halogen’, Corpus, Julian Cashwan Pratt, Show Me The Body 2017.
As per Melissa Woodley, Travel & News Editor of Time Out Australia, Hobart has just taken “…the title of Australia’s coldest city this winter”, via the team at Alliance Climate Control as published on June 13th, 2025.
“The city night, it is ice like fire.”
Roaming the streets of Hobart during Dark Mofo is a sight that is beyond thrilling, it is also frightfully, beyond chilling, to one’s very core. Winter attire is a necessity, but the real saviour besides the heated venues, sizzling hot food, fine wine (especially mulled) and liquor, is the abundant presence of fire. Fire pits are located throughout the beautiful city; however, it is also presented magnificently in numerous artistic designs.
Once such artwork by Switzerland’s Claudia Comte entitled La Danse Macabre (translated: The Dance Of Death) was an iconic feature of Dark Park. A prodigious screen in the midst of an asphalt hinterland (to a degree) was literally alight with footage of the wooden sculpture wording “HAHAHA” set ablaze. The film then showcased two pianists perform Saint-Saëns’ symphonic meditation on death. A scorching narrative of capitalist apathy, the message and luminescent radiation of fire warmed observers to the core through visual appreciation alone. On the 5th of October 2015, when this demonstration took place in Switzerland, as the flames intensified, a daredevil motocross rider jumped through the burning letters and proceeded to speed between the pianos ultimately moving in and out of the frame.
The whole production was magnificently malevolent, depicting a disturbing truth to our existence that was cold as ice. Thankfully, Claudia Comte had the fire to brighten this representation remarkably.
Show Me The Body... at the Odeon
Show Me The Body
Odeon Theatre, Hobart TAS
June 13, 2025
What do the bands Phish, Linkin Park, Korn, Slipknot, Cancer Bats, Beastie Boys and Show Me The Body have in common?
It isn’t a festival that they have all performed at. It isn’t that they all came from North America, and it isn’t as simple as each outfit resides in the “rock” genre per se.
It is actually one word which unifies all of these esteemed acts, and that is: ‘Sabotage’.
All of these groups have in some way, shape or form covered the illustrious award-winning single by the Beastie Boys and on this evening, New York’s hardcore noise punk experimentalists Show Me The Body exploded with energy once that arresting bassline kicked in.
“Our backs are now against the wall?
Listen all y'all, it's a sabotage.”
This writer doesn’t really need to go into detail how frenzied the moshpit became during this section. Vocalist and banjoist Julian Cashwan Pratt’s impressive fly-kick certainly indicated the fervency of this opening.
‘Food From Plate’ was a sensational sludgecore monstrosity that incorporated elements of groove metal, punk and pissed-off political poetry. ‘We Came To Play’ fused the rap metal characteristics of Rage Against The Machine, with avant-garde noise rock and synthcore. It doesn’t really read as believable on paper (well, screens), but that is magic of Show Me The Body. They simply have to be witnessed and admired in all formats, live and recorded. The former being an ABSOLUTE requirement.
‘K-9’ harboured an intense spoken-word drone punk introduction that escalated the tension to unbearable levels in dissonant rhapsody. Characteristics of Death Grips could be cited, but then the trio moved toward NYHC pulverisations that were sensationally severe. ‘Camp Orchestra’ was a pummelling post-punk-rock uppercut with a groove breakdown. ‘USA Lullaby’ was a breakbeat psychosis that had the three-piece in their most aggressive primal state, bassist Harlan Steed was near decapitation with his headbanging while nearly destroying the synthesiser. ‘Body War’ was an eruption from band and crowd alike, with jangly guitars and hip-hop movements. The Odeon Theatre appeared to be swaying and even, descending into the Earth’s crust with the trio and capacity audience’s rampant mosh movements.
Julian Pratt even launched off the stage to meet his admirers at the barrier and enabled the up close and personal scream-along tradition to unravel, as hardcore shows brutifully encompass time and time again.
“Thank you! We are SHOW ME THE BODY!”
Astonishingly it was over, albeit far too soon. There was commotion and borderline raging requests for an encore…
That never transpired. Show Me The Body simply gave Tasmania a trailer of their artistry and musical souls; please return soon, Australia demands the entire being.
The end is nigh!
Words by Will Oakeshott @teenwolfwill
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