GalleryDitch This MagazineFebruary 10, 2026gallery, live, melbourne, The Bennies, Young Offenders, Ben Gunzburg, The Ghost Inside, Bleed From Within, Day Of Contempt

Hed PE + Nonpoint + Verona Lights @ Max Watts 08-02-2026

GalleryDitch This MagazineFebruary 10, 2026gallery, live, melbourne, The Bennies, Young Offenders, Ben Gunzburg, The Ghost Inside, Bleed From Within, Day Of Contempt

photos: Ben Gunzburg @benshootspeople

Hed PE never leave it too long to return to our shores. Venturing down south on their Still Broke tour, they brought their friends Nonpoint along for the ride, making for a double whammy lineup not to be missed.

Melbourne locals Verona Lights opened up the proceedings with the vigour and confidence of a headliner. Taking their job of warming the crowd up very seriously, we were treated to a set full of hard punching riffs, moody ebbing and flowing, and an intensity not often seen at 7:30pm. They get better every time and it's truly heartwarming to see their growth on this journey. Here's to the local scene and giving these bands the platform to thrive.

Many moons since their last visit, Nonpoint came out with something to prove, hitting hard from the get go. Heavy grooves, commanding stage presence and big vibes abound, this was one super fun set. The band showed how much they love what they do and how much they missed us, and that sentiment and energy were returned in spades. A huge back catalogue to get through, some highlights included Chaos And Earthquakes, Dodge Your Destiny, their superb cover of In The Air Tonight and set closer Bullet With A Name, with those last two getting some epic crowd singalongs.

"Who are we??"

"Nonpoint!!"

Oh yeah, we missed you.

With the bar raised well and truly high, Hed PE leapt right over it, bringing their crossover style with the ferocity and sharpness we expect from these legends of the scene.

Frontman Jahred owned the stage, bobbing and weaving, dancing, spitting his vocal lines in venomous fashion and going back and forth with the crowd.

Playing through their material from the Broke album, this was an extra special gig for the old school fans. Go-to classics in Killing Time and Waiting To Die received their well due raucous welcomes, but the real treats were in the deeper cuts we never thought we'd get to hear live this far into their career. Set opener Jesus (Of Nazareth) was a very cool choice, starting off rather chill and then ramping up to 11, and similarly Pac Bell translated perfectly live and provided some really fun ebbing and flowing later in the set. Then you had some epic "whoop whoops" coming from the crowd during I Got You and Boom (How You Like That).

And what would a Hed PE set be without some reggae jams thrown in for good measure? Bartender and The Meadow both had some instrumental intros added in, as well as some live improvising and more epic crowd singalongs. Huge vibes and some truly special connections between band and crowd.

3 great sets of heavy grooves, high energy and all out fun. 'Til next time!