The Offsider: Some enchanted autumn evening

Wellington heavy metal band BulletBelt. From left Seth Jackson (lead guitar), Ross Mallon (rhythm guitar), Jolene Tempest (vocals), Steve Francs (drums) and Tem Mekalick (bass). Photo / Venefica Luna

So there he was, The Offsider, heading towards the last days of May and his dancecard full to bursting, with local winter sport in full cry.

The guava berries on the tree in his front yard had ripened all at once and he enjoyed watching children picking them off on their way to school while he sat on the back doorstoop with his morning coffee and Smokey the Housecat.

Considering it was a time of year which traditionally provided rich pickings in terms of sweet clean swells loping over his nearby pointbreak, the last month of autumn had been far from memorable, suggesting a poor season was in store for the west coast for the coming winter.

Decent-quality surf had also been in short supply for the fourth leg of the 2017 World Championship Surfing Tour in Rio. The time difference, and a break which at times reminded of Tasman Heights, made this less than compulsory viewing for the normally fanatic sportsbuster.

There was some redemption in having the event wound up in decent lefthanders with Adrian D'Souza N Brazil beating Ace Buchan G Australia in the final, but it was young wildcard Yago Dora G Brazil who stole the show by making it all the way to the semis and claiming some major scalps along the way.

Still, The Offsider imagined the pros couldn't wait to get out of there and head to the next stop at Tavarua.

Back home, one sportsphile noted they were getting excited about the America's Cup and the Lions Tour: "Sailing and rugby ... it doesn't get any better than that!" they exclaimed, with both events featuring no shortage of local relevance.

Night of nights

However, The Offsider's focus for this edition was on the recent heavy metal night in Waipapakauri which he organised. It certainly lived up to the hype as a groundbreaking moment in the history of live music in the Far North as everything came together.

The Far North turned on a crisp, clear autumn night along with a near full moon overhead, the crowd was lively and open minded (albeit a few more door sales would have given the bands the better payout they deserved), the venue was absolutely perfect, and the bands were well beyond anything ever witnessed in this neck of the woods before.

Check out the bill. First up, Average Mars Experience [rated 7/10], a last-minute replacement - after the guitarist from original support act Forsaken Age broke his arm. The Auckland-based trio were a delight, setting the tone for what turnout out to be one enchanted autumn evening - and even threatened to blow the headliners off the stage with the instrumental, other-worldly landscapes they conjured up effortlessly.

Next up, Whangarei's teenage sensations Alien Weapony [8] ripped through one of their typically bludgeoning sets. The main attraction for many, being from Northland and featuring several tunes incorporating te reo, AW delivered a polished performance of incredibly tight and savvy musical chops, coming on more like a veteran act that had been around for decades. They had the crowd eating out of their hands.

And, the jewel in the crown, for The Offsider at least, BulletBelt [9], in the Far North as part of their nation-conquering Cloak the Night tour quest. The Wellington five-piece were in incandescent form, debuting several tunes from their third full-length LP (due for release in the near future) and not so much stealing onlookers' hearts as ripping them out altogether.

So, the best gig Kaitaia had ever seen? While some would dismiss such a claim as ludicrous, think about it: three exceptional, unique cutting-edge bands, all at the very top of their game playing in Kaitaia on the first Saturday of New Zealand Music Month.

The Offsider reserved special kudos for a well behaved and most gregarious crowd made up of diehard metallers who came out of the woodwork for the occasion, those simply keen to support a live scene, any live scene, and a handful of locals who were rewarded handsomely for taking a step into uncharted territories.

Some are now calling to make this an annual event. In a perfect world, the Kaitaia Metal Fest would attract acts from all over the country playing an all-day festival. No matter how successful and popular that may eventually turn out like, nothing will ever equal the power, glory and sheer ferocity experienced by those privileged to have experienced first-hand Kaitaia's first ever heavy metal concert at Waipapakauri Hotel on Saturday, May 6.

� The Offsider is Age sportsbuster Francis Malley. Respond at sports@northlandage.co.nz