In Hearts Wake “Incarnation” Tour | Chelsea Heights Hotel
The last time I saw In Hearts Wake live was on their Decade of Divination tour in 2023, celebrating 10 years of the album Divination. Since then, they've dropped a brand-new album, Incarnation, and hit the road on the Incarnation Summer Tour, sharing the stage with an all-Australian lineup featuring Ocean Sleeper, Reliqa, and Inertia—delivering 18 massive shows from Cairns to Hobart in Jan/Feb 2025. This tour wasn’t just about fresh material; it was also a warm-up for their Knotfest performance next week.
I hadn’t been to Chelsea Heights in ages—a postcode I’m not too familiar with—and it turned out I wasn’t the only one a bit lost. I bumped into several fellow concertgoers struggling to find the right entrance. We ended up wandering into the pokies, then the bistro, until an employee finally pointed us to the band room, where the entrance stood out like a sore thumb once we found it.
After getting acquainted with the venue and grabbing a Red Bull, it was time for the openers, Inertia, to kick things off. I’d seen these lads before when they opened for Polaris on their regional tour, so I knew their banger tracks like “Static” and “Dominion” would get the crowd fired up. It was a buzzing day for the Inertia boys—especially after announcing their "Second Shadow" headline tour on the day of the gig, a perfect chance to draw in new fans before their April shows.
Karl Spiessl from Ocean Sleeper / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
Reliqa was another highlight of the night. There’s an old saying, “Keep your work in one lane and your play in another.” But tonight, they took both lanes by storm, delivering an electrifying set that was as spot on as it was energetic. Every track came straight off their banging new album "Secrets of the Future," which dropped mid-2024. That disgusting bass line in “Keep Yourself Awake,” the filthy breakdown in “The Flower,” and the phenomenal riff in “Killstar” all hit even harder live. Vocalist Monique had the crowd completely engaged, keeping the energy sky-high.
Ocean Sleeper was the only band on tonight’s bill I hadn’t seen live yet, and I've got a mate at work who’s absolutely obsessed with them—so I was pretty much enjoying it for both of us. They turned the amps to 11 from the get-go, and soon the venue was twice as packed. The Ocean Sleeper lads made full use of the stage with a few epic cameos—their cameraman for the night who happened to be none other than Jaydon Colvin from Outloved grabbed the mic for a verse, Joshua O'Donnell from Banks Arcade joined in during “King of Nothing,” and Inertia’s Julian Latouche made a triumphant return during “Lonely Love.”
Ben Nairne from IHA / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
The crowd was locked in for the entire set, and things reached a new high when the Inertia crew joined Ocean Sleeper for the final chorus of "Never the One." When the instruments were handed over to the Inertia boys, Karl Spiessl, Ionei Heckenberg, and Stan Liagourdis grabbed the mics and charged into the barricade, getting right up close and personal with the crowd—a heartwarming moment that showed just how much they care about their fans.
The headliner, In Hearts Wake, nearly brought the house down that night. They kicked off with their heavy-hitting track "The Flood" from the new album, sending everyone in the venue into a riot. Right from the start of their set, it was phenomenal to see a band that's been around for over a decade still churning out banger albums and tracks and putting on a show as epic as the one they delivered that night.
Jake Taylor from IHA / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
Much like Ocean Sleeper earlier, they also brought out extra vocal talent to amp up the night's tracks. Karl took the mic for "Hellbringer," Monique delivered on In Hearts Wake’s certified classic "Earthwalker," and Julian—absolutely no rest for him—made another appearance to nail "Refuge."
As the night was winding down, things were only just heating up. For the first time I've seen it live, vocalist Jake Taylor introduced a mate on stage, claiming he was none other than Timothee Chalamet—and who are we to question that? Tim's only job for the tour was to "stay afloat" for part of the show, though I hadn't a clue what that meant until he leapt onto a green mat, held aloft by the fans. It was pure magic—I couldn't believe my eyes: the one and only Timothee Chalamet, floating on a green mat at an In Hearts Wake concert.
To wrap it all up, the night was nothing short of epic—a rollercoaster of powerhouse performances and unforgettable moments. In Hearts Wake brought the house down from the get-go with "The Flood" and kept the adrenaline high throughout, while every supporting band added their own flavour to the experience. From Inertia and Reliqa firing up the crowd, to Ocean Sleeper delivering jaw-dropping cameos and In Hearts Wake somehow bringing THE Timothee Chalamet on stage, it was a full-on revel of live music. And when they closed with "Orphan"—no encore, no nothing—the pit exploded like a black hole of raw energy.
Walking out of the venue after that, it was clear this night was one for the books. In Hearts Wake proved once again why they’re a force in Aussie heavy music, while Ocean Sleeper, Reliqa, and Inertia made sure there wasn’t a dull moment from start to finish. If this tour was just the warm-up for Knotfest, then we’re in for absolute chaos next week.
In Hearts Wake / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
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