An all-star force of Aussie heavy music movers and shakers are teaming up for a massive night honouring late Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington, while raising support and awareness for mental health.
Going down at Melbourne’s alternative night hub Bang! on Saturday, 19th August, the HEAVY: MUSIC FOR MENTAL HEALTH event will feature guest vocalists and DJs from bands like Deez Nuts, Storm The Sky, Alpha Wolf, Earth Caller and Boris The Blade, plus triple j hosts Lachlan Watt (THE RACKET) and Josh Merriel (Short.Fast.Loud), while locals BLKLST and Atlantic will play a live set chock-a-block with all your fave Linkin Park tunes.
In the wake of Chester’s tragic death just two weeks ago, the Destroy All Lines-run club has set itself the inspiring goal of raising $10,000 to donate to mental health charity Beyond Blue, with $10 per ticket, proceeds of a bake sale and gold coin donations for song requests all going towards the hard work the Aussie NFP does to combat anxiety and depression.
An ambassador from Beyond Blue will even be coming down to the show to deliver a guest speech (and hopefully mosh along with punters ’til the wee hours).
“The death of Chester Bennington has rocked our entire community and really brought to light the issues and stigma surrounding mental health,” a statement from Bang! reads. “Something that really is rampant within the music community and especially the heavy music scene.”
They’re not wrong. Startling figures show that musicians are 10 times more likely to suffer from anxiety than the average person, while the rates of attempted suicide in the music industry are more than double that of the rest of the population.
“One positive that has come out of this tragedy is people opening up about their own struggles with mental health, telling each other it’s okay to talk about these things and the breaking down of the stigma of this horrible issue so many of us face,” Bang! continues.
“We wanted to do something that would let the heavy music community come together in a positive way to pay tribute to Chester and at the same time break down these barriers that we can’t talk about Mental Health as we would any other disease.”
Their statement concludes: “HEAVY: MUSIC FOR MENTAL HEALTH is an event where we are encouraging everyone to talk to their friends, family, coworkers and even strangers about Mental Health and to create awareness and knowledge on how to cope, how to see the signs and let the entire music community know that if they are struggling they are not alone.”
What a bloody amazing idea. Big props to Bang!.
Catch all the details for the big night below or check out the official Facebook event here.
Other tributes events for Chester Bennington have been organised in Brisbane and Perth for this Sunday, August 6th.
If you or anyone you know needs help or information regarding mental health, you can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 at any time.
HEAVY: MUSIC FOR MENTAL HEALTH (CHESTER BENNINGTON TRIBUTE & FUNDRAISER)
Feat. Deez Nuts, Alpha Wolf, Earth Caller, Boris the Blade, Storm The Sky, BLKLST, Atlantic, Lachlan Watt (THE RACKET) & Josh Merriel (Short.Fast.Loud)
Saturday, 19th August
Bang!, Melbourne
Tickets: On The Door
