Sunami Knotfest Sideshow | Prince Bandroom
With Knotfest Melbourne now a few days behind us, the sideshows were still rolling, giving fans a chance to catch bands in a more intimate setting. One of those was hardcore heavyweights Sunami, who took over Prince Bandroom in St Kilda, tearing it up alongside Dizdain and Forewarned. The last time—and first time—I visited Prince Bandroom was for Kublai Khan, which was intense, to say the least. But my mate, who had been to a Sunami show before, warned me that this night was going to be on another level entirely.
Josef Alfonso (Sunami) / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
From the moment we arrived, softer tunes played over the speakers—The Cranberries, The Strokes—a stark contrast to the absolute carnage that was about to unfold over the next few hours.
Forewarned opened the night with elite hardcore energy, setting the tone from the get-go. The intensity wasn’t just contained to their set—the crowd kept that same relentless energy going straight through Dizdain and all the way to Sunami, making for an unforgiving night from start to finish.
Forewarned / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
A recurring theme of the night was crowd members grabbing the mic to scream lyrics back, stage diving at every opportunity, and full-scale hardcore moshing. It was pure anything-goes energy, the kind of environment where everyone is there to cut loose and let that built-up adrenaline fly.
Dizdain took the stage next, following up Forewarned’s blistering set with just as much power. They kicked things off with two-stepping straight from the stage, which the crowd instantly matched. It’s hard to explain, but the whole thing felt so close-knit, like a room full of people who just got it—a moment of absolute synchronicity between band and crowd.
Even standing on the sidelines, I was getting demolished. Not complaining—I love a good pit—but hardcore shows just hit different. The energy is next level, and as much as I respect the chaos, I’ve come to realise I’d rather watch in awe than throw myself into the madness.
Dizdain / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
By the time Sunami took the stage, the room was packed to capacity, leaving the centre wide open for the pit. The second they launched into Sweet Relief, all hell broke loose. Bodies flew, fists swung, and the pit was pure carnage. It was everything you’d expect from a Sunami show—unfiltered, unrelenting, and completely unhinged in the best way possible.
About halfway into the set, Josef Alfonso decided to stir things up: “I have $100, and I want to see a shoey on this stage!” Within seconds, a volunteer—Jake—jumped up. The crowd erupted as he climbed onto the stage, ready to take on the ancient Aussie tradition of chugging a beer from a shoe. While staff grabbed him a beer, Jake prepped his TN, pulling it off without hesitation. The second the beer reached his hand, it went straight into the shoe.
Josef Alfonso (Sunami) / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
With the crowd chanting “Shoey! Shoey!”, he raised it, tilted his head back, and sunk it like a champion. As soon as he finished, he launched himself into the pit, sending the place into a final roar. Jake, thinking he had just secured himself a clean $100, quickly realised he’d been played. Josef smirked and hit him with, “That was nice, Jake, but like I said… ‘I have $100.’” The crowd cracked up, and to his credit, Jake took it like a champ. Let’s be real—getting $100 to drink out of your own shoe is a bit steep when we’ve all seen people do it for free.
The set kept hitting hard with tracks like “Contempt of Cop,” “Dirty Work,” and a crushing cover of Animosity’s “Fake Blood,” which somehow sent the pit into an even more intense spiral.
Before wrapping up, Josef took a moment to shout out Australia, saying how much he loves coming back and reminding everyone, “We’re all just hardcore kids, and we have to look out for each other.” A rare wholesome moment before sending us off with one last dose of mayhem. Then, without hesitation, they launched into their final song—“Weak Die First”—bringing the night to a crushing, high-energy finish.
It was good catching what was only my second hardcore show ever. Compared to Kublai Khan, this one was on a whole different level—just like my mate had warned me. At least this time, I knew what to expect.
As the show wrapped up, everyone slowly spilled outside for air, and you could immediately spot who had been in the pit just by the sheer amount of sweat dripping off them—a respectable amount, honestly. I’d love to catch another show like this again—once again from the sidelines—but there’s just something about the atmosphere, the people within it, and the energy they bring that keeps pulling me back in.
Josef Alfonso (Sunami) / Photo Credit: Tristan Skell
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