Washington D.C.’s instrumental titans Animals As Leaders are heading down under this September, and they’re bringing their boundary-crushing opus The Joy of Motion with them, in full. A decade on from its release, the genre-defying record still sounds like it was beamed in from the future—fusing brain-melting technicality with real emotional weight.
This is no standard nostalgia tour. Animals As Leaders have never fit the mould, and The Joy of Motion was the album that made that crystal clear. With tracks like “Kascade,” “The Woven Web,” and the sleeper prog-metal anthem “Physical Education” racking up tens of millions of streams, it’s clear the world’s been catching up to their vision ever since.
Armed with eight-string guitars, glitched-out synths and rhythms that seem to bend time, Tosin Abasi and co. have redefined what instrumental metal can be. No vocals, no gimmicks—just pure, mind-expanding music that somehow balances brutal precision with soul-stirring depth. This is heavy music for people who think too much and feel even more.
Joining them are Long Island’s Car Bomb, who have built a cult following on chaos—splicing together time signatures, tonal dissonance and throat-punching heaviness with the grace of a demolition derby.
TOUR DATES
Friday, September 12: Hindley Music Hall, Adelaide
Sunday, September 14: The Tivoli, Brisbane
Thursday, September 18: The Forum, Melbourne
Friday, September 19: Enmore Theatre, Sydney
Sunday: September 21: Magnet House, Perth
Presale: Tuesday, April 15 @ 9am local
General On sale: Thursday, April 17 @ 9am local
Go HERE for tickets.
