May 2016 #12 by New Roots Magazine

issue 12 may 2016

Drawstring PLUS: MOOSE BLOOD WALLEATER LETLIVE. JASON DERULO SLAM DUNK DEFTONES LANDSCAPES

A NOTE FROM THE TEAM In this month’s issue we chat to Kent emo duo Drawstring about how the one band they always get compared to are Nai Harvest. While the UK may still not be over that two-piece, Sam and Ben tell us about how they started out and recording songs in their bedrooms with matching bathtub music videos. Behind The Lens returns again, this time we chat to Laura Harvey, Gareth Bull and Carly Tyrell. They’re all from across the UK, but they share one major thing in common- passion and the love for capturing amazing moments through a lens. We’re also introducing a new feature, ‘Why We Love…’ This issue featuring Jason Derulo, and why this 26 year old bad boy is more than just a one hit wonder. We also have two quick Q&A’s with Lancaster and Silverfield. There are plenty of live photo galleries you can catch in the reviews part of the mag, as well as two new features on Snapchat and Facebook. We hope you enjoy this issue.

Editor & Art Director: Isha Shah Sub-Editors: Charys Newton, Natalie Webb, Amy Jones, Emily Gunn Contributors: Isha Shah, Arriana Corr, Megan McMillan, Ashwin Bhandari, Dehbia Saber, Natalie Webb, Jack NeedhamLeech, Joshua Clarke, Mark McConville, Reece Christopher Photographers: Isha Shah, Gareth Bull, Laura Harvey, Carly Tyrell, Brian Bowen Smith, Stephanie Evans, Sam Haines , Martyna Wisniewska, Tia Cousins, MoLuxImago

contents Highlights of the month news self defence family twitter highlights uprooted Grinds my gears the best of southampton why we love jason derulo q&a - lancaster behind the lens- laura harvey interview - drawstring behind the lens- gareth bull slam dunk preview five questions with silverfield behind the lens - carly tyrell album review- landscapes album reviews ep reviews live reviews

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HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MONTH Big Sixes split up and stream 20 track collection. Mastodon to headline The Pit at Reading & Leeds. Moose Blood confirm second album release dates. Blush 5th August 2016 via Hopless Records Happy Accidents sign to Alcopop! Records. Counting Days welcome new member Curtis Ward (former BMTH guitarist) Bad Ideas splitup and release album on Bandcamp. 2000 Trees Festival gets even bigger with xtra mile curated stage The Story So Far announe one off show at Camden’s Underworld on the 27th May Turnstile and Code Orange sign to Roadrunner Records. True Love announce new album, Heaven’s Too Good For Us. Intergrity and Power Trip announce split LP June 17th via Magic Bullet Records Superheaven play last show in London’s Lexington on Sunday 28th August 2016

news On this past Sunday, Nouny Mcnounface (Parker Cannon), of Pop Punk spearheads The Story So Far booted a smartphone wielding narcissist off stage in a fashion that sent them flying face first into a heaving crowd. Let’s not be mistaken- this is not the first time the front man has whacked a fan up the intergluteal cleft with his van’s for taking a selfie. In June of 2015 he was filmed doing exactly that, although with considerably less force, even so, we shouldn’t really be that surprised. What is shocking though, more so than the butt kick itself, is the chimes of support for Parker’s actions from the scene that once used write songs about fucking dogs in the ass. The arguments formulated seem to derive from the fact that the manchild was just doing his job, and that displacing fans that disrupt his precious safe space is all in the description. “It’s a punk gig!” They hail down from summit of Mt Diablo, “you should expect to get injured, have you ever even moshed?!” Others focus on the fact the fan was taking a selfie. A deliberate, premeditated attempt to secure internet points; a surefire way to achieving over 50 likes on Instragram if tagged appropriately. The blatant act of narcissism without prior trigger warnings would be a surefire way to set off any loaded Cannon, let alone one in the middle of grafting hard to support himself in a time when spotify pays $0.006 for a stream. To some degree, I can understand their reaction. The sheer audacity and vanity of taking a selfie while someone is “just doing their job” is quite baffling, but the act of assaulting someone while you’re “just doing your job” is truly the most damning enigma in this story. I mean, if I was to repeat her actions with a member of the John Lewis partnership I’m certain their first reaction wouldn’t be to flykick me while my back is turned, but then again I guess their staff are

paid close to a living wage…right? The unwritten laws of Gig etiquette are unknown to younger audiences or first time attendees. To an outsider a moshpit at a While She Sleeps gig would be an anarchic, lawless, cesspit of sweat and blood. Yet all regular attendees would know that you pick someone up that’s down and you don’t punch someone in the face with intent, but only by mutual attrition. They would know to stand six feet away from two-steppers at hXc shows. They would know to stage invade only to dive off moments later and not to do the same with the intent to selfie. They would know that the best time for a selfie is merch table afterwards, but who’s to say a teenager at one of their first shows would know the same? There is no denying however, that a dude who’s in his early twenties and has been an active member of alternative culture and music, should know better than to kick an adoring fan flat in the ass with the full force of several years of pent up anger over girl problems. There is no defending Parker in this instance. On the day his actions were celebrated by cheers and boney fingers furiously pointing towards the stage’s direction in a show of camaraderie, much to the humiliation of an overzealous fan who wanted a quick snap. Two days later and the Defend Pop Punk! boy brigade continue to snipe down those who disagree in comment sections across pop punk trade groups, much to the disappointed to the more level headed members of the scene. Then again, what are we to expect from the same people who buy second hand cassette tapes for upwards of £100? Maybe that was a little harsh, but the “Fans” that continue to defend Parker’s actions are toxic substances and so should be treated with the same mercy as tuberculosis riddled badgers during a cull. There’s no two ways about it. Words by Jack Needham-Leech

parker cannon jumpkicks teenage girl and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s still defended

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self defence family

Twitter Highlights

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o r p u e c a FEATURING: f t Ã¸ l S d n a r e t a e l l a w , s f l o w

d e t o o 9

Sløtface 2012- present

bad sign

top song:

‘Angst’ – An absolute banger of a song that says “fuck you” to patriarchal ideologies of the female body.

Haley Shea - Vocals Lasse Lokøy - Bass Halvard Skeie Wiencke - Drums Tor-Arne Vikingstad - Guitar

Norwegian band Sløtface (previously Slutface) had to rename due to “social media censorship” i.e. some old dudes can’t handle the word ‘slut’. Their name derives from their feminist views, which they incorporate into lyrics, and it is as thought provoking as their music. Having already been picked up on NME and DIY’s radars, it’s inevitable that this four-piece are going to go places. It’s hard to put a label on Sløtface; there are pop hooks and punk inspirations, but there’s also that Sleater-Kinney rock vibe. Some may call them pop punk, but they are in another dimension compared to your whiny Neck Deep lyrics and generic power chords; there are no lyrics about hating your hometown or crying about love. They are like a sugar-coated punk pill: easier to swallow but no less provocative than Bikini Kill. Although the sound of punk music has changed since the 1970s, the ethic is still there, and that is why Sløtface are punk: they say what they want with no fucks given. There’s no tiptoeing around controversial topics, instead they straight up call people out: “Take your misogyny and your fake ideals/take your wet dreams and your ‘I feels’/screw you sad-assed boys in Smiths shirts/this hurts/go to hell.” Their message is clear: “We want you to think about female sexuality and what it means to be a ‘slut’, and the way we portray women in music and in popular culture. We’re really not dicks - we just want you to think about women more than you do,” singer Haley Shea told Gigwise. In the four years they’ve been together, Sløtface have released a splattering of EPs and singles, each flowing into another genre. Take the Shave My Head EP for example, which is by far their poppiest release, or ‘Angst’, their, uh, angstiest song. Their upcoming album is due to be released this summer and it’s set to be “less indie, more college rock.” But this change in sound isn’t going to change their ways: in a Facebook post they said, “We have in no way changed our political and feminist message.” Sløtface have just finished a UK tour but will be back after their album release. Words By Emily Gunn

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top song: ‘Mirror’- A fun loving, old school teen-witch song which takes you back to the thrilling days of binge watching Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Wolfs have adapted a very dated piece of music and brought it back to life with powerful, enchanting vocals that Castell cries. The band has a burning flare that is heavily lacking within the new wave of bands, but somehow Wolfs nail every note.

wolfs 2016- present

Hannah Castell- guitar and lead vocals Rhiannon Waller – Drums/ backing vocals Up until January, the once four-piece has now become a duo, just before they recorded their EP, No Good For Me. Changing everything at the very last minute, the two-piece only had a few days to write and compose everything for the record. Growing every so tightly in just under a year, Hannah Castell and Rhiannon Waller joined forces to form super punk rock band Wolfs.

of sounds and artists. “We listen to everything, mostly with classic rock, punk and alternative influences. Bands like Lower Than Atlantis, Green Day, White Stripes, The Ramones and Blink 182,” Hannah adds. Alex Baker - Kerrang DJ, described their song ‘Mirror’ as “a rock n roll, bluesy, sort of stroll along in a whisky-infused daze kind of music - brilliant!” ‘No Good For Me’ follows on from this dazed, teen-witch chant with a thicker slab of guitar riffs. The two-piece enhance the girl punk-rock attitude within their songs, whilst still engaging with modern ears whom maybe new to this style.

“Living in Shropshire and Oxfordshire does mean commuting quite far for band practice, but this is what we want to do,” Castell tells us. The EP was recorded in London with Ben Sansom (guitarist of Lower Than Atlantis) and Adam Ross (singer of Never Hill) in the last week of January. For their first time being in a studio, and the first time Waller had played her real drum kit, it was a hell of a lot different from practicing in their bedrooms.

The band have so many plans for the future, but right now they are busy writing and practicing for a few upcoming gigs they have set up in a few months. Being on the road and touring is what they crave the most, and who wouldn’t want to pursue that full time? The full four tracks of No Good For Me will be released in April, although there is no set date yet so make sure you keep your eyes peeled.

Wolfs, like their upbeat and punky music, are influenced by a bunch

Words by Isha Shah

walleate top songs: ‘Lifeline’: Nearly every Walleater song is like a never-ending daydream full of bliss and tranquillity. ‘Lifeline’ is their latest song, filled with an exploding chorus that uplifts the song to a new height. ‘Swallow You’: A beautiful burst of fresh air, and highly addictive riffs, this song is filled with everything you could ever dream of.

er 2013- Present Rob Dell – Vocals/ Guitar Lyndarn Harrison- Drums Liam Hemingway- Bass Jack Muncaster- Guitar Leeds is about to burst with mopey fuzzy and lovey-dovey Walleater, a daydreaming band that tug at your heartstrings. What started out as a jamming session between vocalist Rob Dell and drummer Lyndarn Harrison sprung the now five-piece alternative rock band, Walleater. Talking about their short demo released in 2013 on Close To Home Records and Cult Culture, Dell said “We owe a lot to those guys for having the faith in us to put out our music on a physical format. Without those guys our band wouldn’t be in the place it currently is.” Walleater are a band that infuse so many sounds and feelings that they can be compared to a wide range of bands such as Swervedriver and Hum. “In terms of the writing style, I like pop hooks and catchy melodies so I like to incorporate those in when possible, so we’re a nice amalgamation of all that. Saying that, we all have varied music tastes and we’re constantly evolving as

a band and willing to experiment with what sound suits us best,” Dell explains. His lyrical content draws from personal experiences, using the band as an outlet to get across built up feelings. Their music also captures a specific era within their lives that they can now look back on and reminisce on past emotions. “We recorded both our first Tiny Engines release I/II and our upcoming single with Bob Cooper, who currently works from Airtight Studios in Manchester,” bassist Liam Hemingway tells us. Cooper was the bands favorable pick as a lot of his work prior to the release fitted Walleater’s style, putting a lot of trust in the production that suited the songs they wanted to produce. “Recording with Bob is a really comfortable and productive experience, and it’s crazy how good he is at what he does; as far as I’m concerned, it’d be weird to make music with anybody else.” With a single coming out in May, the band are playing three small shows across the UK in support. The two singles are a subtle crossover from their past releases, showcasing new avenues that the band are exploring when it comes to future releases. Although there are no other plans for tours, as of yet you’ll be sure to be seeing a lot of Walleater in the future. Words by Isha Shah

what grinds my gears stop telling me what i should listen to! With everyone connected to the internet and social media 24/7 there is always an unnerving and claustrophobic feeling of surveillance in the air. Is it just me or do you feel as though now that everyone can anonymously state their opinions on Twitter, people are judging you ten times harder about what you do, particularly with the music that you’re listening too. One thing that really grinds my gears is one of the latest features on Spotify, the world’s most popular music streaming service. They now have the friend feed which allows you to see what your friends are listening to but it also allows them to see what you’re listening to. Let’s just say I have a love/hate sort of relationship with Spotify’s friend feed. I will be the first to admit that I’m a nosy person and the idea of being able to see what other people are listening to, especially as a music journalist, is particularly satisfying and fascinating. Not only does it satisfy that need but also allows me to discover new bands, which I guess is the main point of the whole thing. However, it bothers me that now when I listen to music, which is something that I consider being an incredibly intimate experience, it’s to some degree ruined. I notice that when I’m not in a private session with Spotify, I’m much more selective about what music I listen too. Yet if I am in a private session, which you can only get if you pay for Spotify premium, then I listen to whatever I want. Whether it be the heaviest that death metal has to offer, or, dare I say it, euro trash.

While social media and the internet has brought music communities closer together, the fact that anyone is allowed to state their opinion and also viciously attack yours without the possibility of getting into any real trouble, is that you’re less likely to step out of your comfort zone with music because of the fear of people’s judgement. Music is supposed to be exciting and a world of endless possibilities which, thanks to the internet, is now more possible than ever as with a click of a button we have a huge amount of music to discover. Yet in an age of constant surveillance I am now less likely to be more adventurous with regards to music. Not only this, but in a world where we like to label everything and we have reputations to uphold, if someone finds out that you listen to Beyonce yet they know you as a death metal fan, it can be a shocking revelation and the reputation that you’ve been keeping up by giving too much of a fuck about what people think can slowly be ruined. Despite all of this, I love music too much to start giving enough of a damn about what people think about my music and quite frankly if people want to judge me for what I listen too then be my guest. Just know that your single mindedness means that you’re missing out on a lot of great music that you could discover if you just open up your trapped minds. Words by Megan McMillan

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Photo by: Isha Shah

Five Miles North of Nowhere Exploding with the punk rock attitude brings five energetically moving guys who call themselves Five Miles North of Nowhere. The unsigned quintet have played many shows in their beloved hometown including So Punk Fest, playing alongside Pushing Daisies, Breathe In The Silence and Palm Reader. Only witnessing their true potential live, FMNON are a band you need to get up and grab a ticket for, as their presence is nothing short of Every Time I Die. LISTEN TO: ‘Set It Off’, ‘A Slice Of Fried Gold’, ‘Less Talk More Action’

Cold Holding If there’s something the UK lacks, it’s definitely a good post-hardcore band. Luckily for us, Southampton offers a perfect duo who overpower the idle emo sound. With two EP’s already on their Bandcamp, you can find out for yourself just how mesmerising and emotionally draining this two-piece are. The raw experience of this duo is something that transpires in their recordings, but hits 10 times harder in the flesh. With so much beauty that is hidden within their spine shivering, distorted interludes, Cold Holding delivers honest words that will make you weep. LISTEN TO: ‘Between You And Me There Is Nothing’, ‘See, Nothing’, ‘Lose Hope’

Beat Easton Embodying everything of the past, present and future arises Beat Easton. Sprouting from the underground scene that is filled with talents of all value, the alternative indie trio cry sounds similar to American Football, and most apparent, Death Cab For Cutie. For a south coast band, Beat Easton manages to tingle sounds from the west cost in the states. Taking on the full DIY ethic with recording, mixing and mastering their first EP solely dependent on themselves in June 2013, the threepiece produced something way beyond exceptional. The band thrive in the simplicity of their sound, textured with pleasurable sounds that take you on a personal time hop. Beat Easton are sure to blow up. . LISTEN TO: ‘Seam’, ‘Loath To’, ’98 Buick’

Photo by: Isha Shah

the best of SOUTHAMPTON Faux Two years in the mix and the dirty-pop alternative rockers, Faux, are implanting their mark with heavy footprints of every city in the UK. The quartet may just be passing their teen years, however their music speaks of a higher graduation. The band have been blessed with the opportunity to open for Turnover, Black Peaks, as well as playing festivals such as So Punk Fest, Close Up and Independence. Additionally, the four locals have been included in Close To Home’s charity compilation album with their outstanding track ‘Shoes’. Being part of the tightknit scene, Faux are about to hit the road with Sad Blood and H_ngm_n in June, so be sure to catch them in a city near you. LISTEN TO: ‘Backbone’, ‘Swimmingly’, ‘Patterns’

Realm Of Torment Recently dropping their LP, Testaments Of Hope And Despair, Realm are prompting the heaviness of metalcore and packing it into a solid release. Much alike many of their fellow bands, Realm are one to witness live to grab the full exhilarating experience, and with the amount of shows they’ve been added to that won’t be hard. The band have shared line-ups with Gaia Bleeds, Renounced, Witness The Fall, Ithaca, Splitknuck and Desolated. Listen to: ‘Transpose’ and ‘Misanthropy’

Overturn Southampton homes some of the finest UKHC, with Overturn, another great UYC band, being added to that list it’s not doubt why the scene is so solid. Reminding us of Burden and Trial mixed with the ‘90s, Overturn are angst in vocal range, but get a whole lot of heavy when it comes to their music. The band have played major shows such as Carry The Weight Fest, Amongst The Chaos and London Hardcore Fest, as well as local shows with Nihility and Realm Of Torment. Listen to: ‘Shrouded’ and ‘Fear Within’

Nihility Five striking members make up UYC’s Nihility, who glaze heavy death metal music for all to indulge. Another one of Rage’s treasures, the band have appeared at MLVTD fest, Amongst The Chaos, London Hardcore, No Spiritual Surrender festival and played alongside Rotting Out, Skinfather and most UKHC bands. With two head banging EP’s, the guys are halfway through writing their first album that is surely going to be packed with even more dirty breakdowns and prowling vocals. Listen to: ‘Consumed’, ‘Internal War’, ‘Deliverance’ Words by Isha Shah

why we

love

Jason Derulo

did you know

Derulo was a musical theatre major at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in Manhattan and also landed a role in Rent on Broadway. “I’m singing, dancing and having the time of my life. It could’ve been a secure job, but I would’ve been locked into [theater] forever.” The opportunity inspired him to pursue the music industry where he got his first starts ghostwriting for Lil Wayne and other top stars.

Words by isha shah

In May, Jason said he was having a few renovations on his 12,500-square-foot Los Angeles mansion. He is putting in a shark tank and an NBA, regulation-sized basketball court, not to mention he’s currently commissioning black-and-white paintings of John Lennon, Prince, Janet Jackson and “people of that caliber” to decorate the place.

ost of you will first think of Jason Derulo as that pop artist who wrote that really catchy song ‘Watcha Say’ and nothing more. However there is far more to this Flordia superstar than a few number one singles. Derulo doesn’t conform to the same categories which modern hip-hop and R&B artist currently do. From his very first self titled record in 2010, it was clear that the twenty-six-year-old had his very special way of generic pop and R&B music, with empowering tracks such as ‘Ridin’ Solo’ and ‘The Sky’s The Limit’, as well as popular bangers ‘What If’ and ‘In My Head’. The music industry is, and has been, saturated with the same meaningless lyrics and recycled rhythms for the past few years, so it comes as a surprise when this artist chooses not to follow that path. Maybe this is why we see Jason Derulo in a whole different light than Pitball, Chris Brown and Flo Rida. Derulo stands on the same proud ground as Jeremih and Miguel (I mean ‘Birthday Sex’, come on, what a sensational sexy song). It’s rare that we find a mainstream artist singing about adoring women in a respectful attitude. The charts are constantly filled with derogatory words such as ‘slut’, ‘whore’, ‘pussy’, ‘cunt’ and ‘bitch’, so you get the picture. Derulo refuses to conform to these normalised terms within his songs, instead singing about loving women like a man really should. He even wrote a special song about it. ‘It Girl’ is the girl we all want to be. This one song makes your heart melt and scream, “YES DER-

He has collaborated with Stevie Wonder in ‘Broke’. “I got to asking him, ‘Stevie, would you want to play harmonica on one of my songs?’ And he was like, ‘Of course, man. We are family,’” he told ET. “I was like, ‘Would you like to sing on that song too?’ And he was like, ‘Man, if I hear that song on the radio and I am not on it, I will whoop your ass!’”

ULO I WILL BE YOUR IT GIRL”, or it does to me at least. This showman has dedicated four albums worth to women, and unlike most artists he is dedicating four albums of admiration. Although his image can scream ‘hip thrusting bad boy that your mother wouldn’t approve of’, Derulo has a universal appeal, as I found out while recently catching him on his latest tour. There were more parents than teenagers, and by parents I mean mothers who snuck away for a night to indulge in pure bad boy mayhem. The live experience of Derulo reaches you on another level. Here lies an all rounded triple threat that even challenges the movements of Usher and Ne-Yo. The artist glides with enough elegance to be seen as a soft and delicate swan, to sweaty hip thrusting bumps that get you a little flushed - Derulo definitely delivers you more than the £30 you paid to see him. On top of all of that, the perfectly choreographed dancer demands his backing team of performers to join him on every tour, as well as a live band on stage. Now if that doesn’t get you booking tickets to see him live, then honestly, what more do you want? Don’t forget his various TV appearances in Empire, So You Think You Can Dance, Turn the Beat Around, Dancing with the Stars and Everybody Dance Now, (that’s three fucking dancing shows), where he plays HIMSELF. Now that’s what I call a superstar, a young artist who thrives and constantly ups himself in achievements that illustrates his raw talent. It also reminds us that he is human, and has human qualities which some pop stars replace with ego and delusion. His recent release, Everything is 4, does draw on the modernisation of how we perceive ourselves, but Derulo still loosely sticks to his word. ‘X2CU’ uses women as a prize possession that males love to show off, but even so this doesn’t go to the extreme male ego paths that most songs flourish from. But I think we can all bow down to ‘If It Ain’t Love’. Matched with highly appropriate lyrics that make every woman’s heart warm, “Your body is a blessing, I don’t know if I deserve it,” Derulo questions his place in our lives. We can also all pretend that ‘Naked’ never ever happened and wipe that filth from our existence. So maybe after reading this you’ll be a little bit more intrigued by the bad boy with a pretty face and take a deep interest in the solo artist’s music, or maybe you’ll think I’m just a crazed obsessed fangirl. Whichever route you decide to take, you can’t deny that Derulo is exceeding way beyond his age. Words by Isha Shah

His basketball coach Frank Harris (a former professional player overseas) discocered his musical potential. 12-year-old young Jason later revealed his other dream to Harris—eventually showcasing both his dance and songwriting skills that the two worked to make Derulo the hitmaker he is today.

q&a with

c n la You’ve been to the UK a few times; who are your favourite bands to play shows with over here? Tough one! Started strong eh! Ha! I’d go for an easy reply but honestly we loved almost all the bands we have played with, really, the level of UK bands is amazing, we made a lot of friends. Do you see any familiar faces at shows, if so how does that make you feel? Complete, it means you have done things right and yes it’s a great feeling because you have connected with them and they have connected with you and the music and that’s when the loveliest story starts. Touring in the UK must be different to Europe, what are the top 5 things and the worst things? Bands level, culture, venues, accessibility for new bands and fish&chips are the top ones. Missing home, girlfriends, leaving your job, sun, paella, beach, sangria...haha! Those are the things we miss when we’re in the UK.

You’ve just done a UK tour in feb, how did that go? It couldn’t be better. We had another one last year and it went pretty good so we wanted this to, at least, be the same but we made it better, we got fabulous dates and venues, amazing crowds, and made more friends. What are your favourite venues of all time? We have played in such great places, in the UK I’d say The Garage in London and in Spain I’d say Apolo which is one of the best in the city of Barcelona. Name a few essentials you need to take on the road? Phone, earphones, music, a book. (Only viewable for mums). Patience, drugs, alcohol (Almirante Rum), condoms... (Rest of the world).

r e t s a c One festival you want to play at? Reading/Leeds Festival. PLEASE! What bands/ life experiences have influenced your music? Young Guns was our main influence, we have raised as band listening to their music, now we’re taking more influences from bands like PVRIS, Bring Me The Horizon, Mallory Knox… ‘Dig Me Up’ is a pretty big song, and it certainly progresses your music, what were your musical inspirations for this song and direction? We needed a step up, we wanted to experiment with new elements such as synths and percussions and so we did it. Lyrics keep the same feeling, I still want to give a therapy to people who listen to the music.

If you could make a movie music video, which song would it be and what movie? I’d say THE ROAD with our song LOVE IS A WAR WE HAVE LOST from our old album JOURNEYS. Do any of you live your life through a certain quote or film, if so what is it? Yes! The Pursuit Of Happiness starring Will Smith. Don’t ever let somebody tell you... You can’t do something. Not even me. All right? You got a dream... You gotta protect it. People can’t do somethin’ themselves, they wanna tell you you can’t do it. If you want somethin’, go get it. Sum up Lancaster within a few words. Rock, epic, therapy.

behind the lens

Hello! My name is Laura Harvey; I’m a London based freelance photographer. Like many music photographers, I just love good music. I went to my first gig when I was fourteen, it was New Found Glory at the Astoria and I fell in love with live music. After that, every gig I had a point and shoot camera with me and would be snapping away in the crowd, and when I saw the photographers in the pit, I thought, ‘I want to do that!’ I got my first SLR when I was about sixteen and I knew right away that I wanted to be photographing bands. I use a Nikon D750 body, which I cannot recommend enough for live music. It has a super fast autofocus and deals really well in low light. I’m still building on my gear, so the lenses I mainly use are my Nikon 24-70mm and 50mm 1.4. I want to get a wide angle next, probably the Tokina as they have really good reviews.

laura harvey I really love capturing the energy of a punk show, but I also like catching the chilled vibes of the latest indie band too. I don’t have a particular band I love shooting, as I like having an open mind and finding my own way of capturing a show to represent the music and image of the artist. I guess one stand out band has got to be CHVRCHES. In terms of venues, for lighting and getting the best shots, that will probably have to be the Roundhouse.

You never know what kind of shots you’ll get! It’s also a challenge, and also a way of checking out a ton of music I wouldn’t ever listen to. It just inspires me to be creative, not just in music photography but in other aspects of my photography too. It’s important to do something you love, and I guess this is it. I literally do a bit of everything. Being freelance is great as you get so many crazy opportunities. I work for several companies as well as my own commissions. Some of my photography jobs include weddings, families, babies, products (mainly jewellery) and all sorts of portraiture. I want to be at a point where I can make most of my living from it. This is a hard road, but I just want to continue learning and improving to make this happen. I do enjoy the other aspects of photography that I do, so I’m fine doing those, but ideally I’d just like to be doing music photography as a majority of my work, so more tours and portrait sessions please! I went on a short tour last year with Sykes and it was so much fun but also stressful. You have to work solely by yourself to make sure you produce the best photos you can. It taught me that you have to be very organised to be a successful music photographer! I like creating stories, so documenting the tour and showing musicians off stage is something I want to do more of. You have to be very strong-minded to be a photographer. I get people emailing me all the time asking for freebies or trying to cut my costs significantly, and I’m constantly chasing invoices but I’ve learnt to stand my ground. I’ve had my fair bit of abuse from fans of bands that have stolen my pictures (a few have tried to claim my photos as their own and some have even tried to sell them on t-shirts etc.). I’ve learnt to take it with a pinch of salt; it just comes with the job. I used to get really upset and angry by it, but it’s useless to be angry. Unfortunately there’s a lot of people out there who think photography is easy and not worthy of any money or anything like that, but on the plus side there are a lot of people who believe in photographers as professional artists. You just have to keep going and see the positive in every situation. If you enjoy something, no matter what it is, than go and do it!

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Words and photos by Laura Harvey

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Drawstr “I’ve heard of a two-piece called Nai Harvest, therefor you’re Nai Harvest.” 24

ring

tood on Southampton’s famous Brighton Road, while the next band set up inside, Sam Shepard and Ben Schulze of Drawstring are matched with brightly lit faces just after playing a tiny cramped house show.

Named after a Pity Sex song from back in 2014, the twopiece are a refreshing dash of upbeat music that makes you want to dance around the house. The emo duo have been making waves amongst other two-pieces, but it hasn’t always been a solid decision. “When we made the Chicago Town demo, it was like our second song and we got our mate Glen to do bass for it, but then the same day we were like ‘actually nah’,” vocalist Shepard tells us. “We’ve had thoughts about getting Matt (Penthouse) in on bass just for live [shows], but it takes away the whole two-piece vibe,” drummer Schulze adds.

Based in Medway, Kent the duo are based close to where Moose Blood and the famous Tunbridge Wells Forum music venue both call home. Although there are some pretty tight scenes and bands breaking out from their hometown, Schulze begins by telling us how sparse Medway is. “ Canterbury and Folkstone are really good, Burger Boys promotions are solid, but in Medway, where we come from, it’s really shit and just filled with metalcore.” “It’s like 13 year olds playing their first songs,” Shepard adds. “It so saturated because every band is doing the exact same thing, as much as you want the scene to grow, it can’t if everyone’s doing the same thing.” However the guys do manage to throw a few valued names about from the emerging scene; KILL RPNZL, Coloured In, Faux and Violet Days are all worth checking out, according to Shepard. Currently, the band have three EP’s titled, One, Two and Three, in a slight Mac DeMarco style, and they also decided to have matching album artwork for each release. “Graham Clark had a good idea of drawing little creatures, and so we had little characters for each one,” Shepard explains. “We’re going to do a little tape discography release with a US label, a collection from each EP, and get Graham to do something with all three designs.” With their overly enthusiastic rush to write music, the pair have already written some potential songs for an album they are recording in June. “We do our practice in Ben’s room and we can whack out like five or six ideas, then we just narrow them down. We wrote a couple of them on the European tour. The first two we practiced in the soundchecks, after that we thought ‘why don’t we play it on tour and just fill our sets a little’,” Shepard says. “It sound so generic but there’s a good mix of everything,” Schulze adds.

Recently landing back from their first European tour, the twopiece were treated like kings, according to Shepard. “In Europe you kind of get treated like royalty. Everyone’s like ‘come and stay at mine!’” Although there isn’t a lot of social media activity due to copyright laws, the shows were shockingly packed. “Europe is just on another scale, in my opinion, it’s the best. If you’re a bigger band it’s cool in the UK. The DIY shows here are better than in Europe, but the little venues are so cool and people do come to the shows,” Schulze tells us. Although the little shows in Europe may not have a lot of social media promotion, but they take the psychical promotion to a whole new level over there. “There’s pretty much a poster for every show! It’s little things like that that actually do show that they care about the shows.” Apart from Europe, and their welcoming experience, there are a few other places in the world that Drawstring are striving to conquer in the coming years. Shepard want’s to play Norway and visit Eastern Europe and maybe even Scandinavia, but most importantly, Japan. Not to play, just to visit. “Europe’s good because it’s close to home, but you feel pretty out there. They’re more open to listening to new music, whilst here you go to local venues and people are like ‘oh nah I’m only here to see the band that my mate is in.’ It’s literally because they’re nicer people over there. It was quite a culture shock playing [in Europe]; I was like why is everyone so nice. By the third show, it was really weird, everyone was so kind and it was lovely to meet so many people who care about the music scene even though we’re not from there.” While Shepard has his mind on Europe, Schulze has his eyes set on The States. “I really want to go to America, but only when we know enough people.”

“it was lovely to meet so many people who care about the music scene there, even though we’re not from there.”

he band have just finished their short run of shows with Eat Me, which means playing a lot of new songs, but we wanted to know what the duo’s favourites to scream to are. “Mine so far is ‘Melon’, one of the new ones. Mostly because it’s proper shred,” Shepard tells us, while Schulze loves ‘Clubhouse’ and another new one, ‘Way Home’. The conversation turns to TV shows, and if the guys could pick a song to fit alongside a show, what would it be? With the most unexpected answer coming from Shepard, he tells us how ‘This Evening’ (a very sad song) would play on The Secret life of a Millionaire, right towards the very end where the secret millionaire tells the family who they really are. ‘Clubhouse’ for a cheesier show like Drake and Josh, is what Schulze adds; something more relatable and uplifting. Shepard’s love for eating and drawing vegetables doesn’t just stop at his trip to Tesco, but also is now incorporated into the artwork for the band’s tour posters. “I had a pitta at work and thought, what if I write all the dates on it. Then what if we get a picture of the pitta and have hummus and avocado and stuff? Then I thought why don’t we get a drawing of our favourite vegetables? A pot of hummus with a celery stick in it, I thought it was pretty cute. I don’t really go out to eat because everyone in Medway is a human pit bull and loves meat. So I just go to Tesco and grab some hummus and pitta. I made a lentil curry last night and watched the new Star Wars film, so that’s my favourite place to eat, in my room with lots of vegetables.”

rawstring have been going strong for two years, and within such a short space of time, they have achieved far more than they ever planned to. For the guys, being in this band is more than just playing music and having a good time. “I guess I’m not a loud person so it gives me a chance to be loud and talk about things through music,” Schulze says. “When we were in other bands, I was always quite timid and shy,” Shepard adds. “That’s the reason we started it. We had an old band called Doubt, which was like pop punk a couple of years ago. In the scene people liked it but at the time Ben and me were like ‘let’s do something different’.” Drawstring was a way to express their creativity outside of being pop punk, according to Shepard. They’d been doing this for a while and it was a lot more fun than anticipated. Although the duo still often get compared to Nai Harvest, one of the most well known two-pieces from the UK, Drawstring offer a whole lot more to the UK scene, brining in emo-infused pop tunes that get you teary but also jumping with joy and youth. PS: Ben said I love it. Words by Isha Shah

behind the lens

gareth bu

I’m Gareth Bull, and I’m a photographer and videographer based in Cardiff, Wales.

Music photography was something I fell into rather than actively pursued, but I fell in love with it instantly. Due to my love of music, in hindsight it made a lot of sense really. I’d been interested in photography for years, but after getting my first ‘proper’ camera in 2014 I started shooting in manual, and that really took my interest in photography to the next level because I started feeling like I was responsible for my photos rather than the camera doing the majority of the work. About six months later a friend of mine recommended me to a local promoter to photograph one of his gigs, and from that moment onwards I was hooked, and decided it was something I wanted to do as much as I could. Ever since I got my first point and shoot when I was about 15 years old, I’ve pretty much only ever shot on Fujifilm cameras, and I currently shoot with a Fujifilm XT1 and Fujifilm 16-55mm f2.8, 23mm f1.4 and 10-24mm f4 XF lenses. I’ve been extremely lucky over the past year, and have gone from shooting in small bars to shooting arena shows, and I’ve had the chance to photograph a bunch of my favourite bands in the process too. The bands I’ve had the most fun shooting to date have got to be Slipknot, Enter Shikari, While She Sleeps and Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes. Despite this, I think the favourite place I’ve photographed was my first festival - Green Man Festival. I didn’t really know any of the bands on the bill beforehand, but it was such a picturesque place, and to photograph bands and music lovers all day long for four straight days was an awesome experience.

me. I love the challenge of capturing the energy of a gig, and the passion of the musicians on stage, and without sounding too lame, I think I get a massive thrill from it because I’m trying to capture moments in the moment - once it’s happened, it’s happened, there are no second takes. It’s real. It’s a satisfaction that no other type of photography really gives me anymore. While my real passion lies in producing content for the music industry, my work is quite varied... I work in video from day to day as part of my job, doing a lot of corporate videos, and in photography I still enjoy going out on adventures and shooting landscapes, as well as portraits. I’ve already had the chance to check a few bands off my bucket list, but the bands who I’m yet to shoot but would love to are Architects, Bring Me The Horizon, Parkway Drive, Letlive. and All Time Low.

My dream within music photography is to work directly with bands I really believe in, and to travel the world with them. Whilst shooting the first three songs of my favourite bands is great fun, I’d love to be able to produce some more meaningful content for both the artist and myself through shooting entire shows from a variety of angles, as well as capturing more personal moments off the stage. I’d love to be able to make a living from it one day, but I know how difficult that is going to be with the way the industry is going. I’m yet to go on any tours, but I’m hoping to get at least one under my belt this year. To be able to spend every moment with the band whilst they travel, and document it is something I’d love to do. It would give me the chance to experiment with different things, and it’d take me one step closer to my goals.

When I started out I was mainly shooting hardcore shows because they were so lively, but as I’ve started shooting bigger shows I’ve grown to love capturing great lighting just as much (even if the band are less lively). So, the best types of gigs for me are either ones with energetic bands, or jazzy lighting. To get both of these is even better!

So far I’ve been quite lucky in that I haven’t come across any discrimination or hate that’s worth mentioning. I know of plenty of photographers who have had a tough time for various reasons, but the people who I’ve surrounded myself with since I started out have been very supportive of what I do, and that’s certainly helped me achieve what I have achieved to this point.

Being in a photo pit for the first time was a massive adrenaline rush for

Words and photos by Gareth Bull

ull â&#x20AC;&#x153;Being in a photo pit for the first time was a massive adrenaline rush for meâ&#x20AC;? bucket list bands: Architects, Bring Me The Horizon, Parkway Drive, Letlive. and All Time Low.

w e i v e r P

The UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s real answer to Warped Tour is almost upon us and with two dates already sold out, here are five reasons why you shouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think twice about grabbing a last minute ticket.

#1 #2 #3 #4 #5

Exclusive performances With the announcement of some pretty huge headline shows for later this year, it may not be too long

until we see Panic! At The Disco topping the bill at other major festivals in the UK but Slam Dunk have beaten the rush and secured them as headliners for this year. Set Your Goals are back, and after about three years of radio silence, the Slam Dunk pop punk favourites return to their rightful home for their first trip to the UK since 2012. Pop rock heroes Yellowcard will also be playing everybody’s favourite album of theirs, Ocean Avenue, in full.

Something for everyone

There are very few festivals that do such an excellent job of covering all bases when it comes to rock music and their fans, from the bands opening up the festival at lunchtime all the way up to the headliners; there really is something for everyone. Whether you’re into ska or metalcore, pop punk or acoustic acts, or you even just want to dance all day at the Uprawr Stage, Slam Dunk offers it all.

Value for money For a day festival in the UK, Slam Dunk tickets are so fairly priced especially considering the sheer number of bands performing and the venues hosting the festival aren’t all rooms that are typically used for live music. Of course, tickets are a fraction more expensive than they were last year but this is a progression that ensures the festival can expand and return year upon year, and who doesn’t want that?!

Logistical dream Slam Dunk festival falls on the second bank holiday weekend in May, so there’s no school, no college

and for a lot of potential attendees there’s no work either. Having locations spaced so fairly throughout the country also makes it not too tricky for anyone to reach. Hell, Virgin Trains are even offering 25% off train tickets for those travelling to Slam Dunk in the Midlands. Never has a festival been so easily accessible in the UK than this one.

Good vibes all round Most of all, Slam Dunk is genuinely always such a great day out. Rain or shine it’s impossible not to

have a good time when surrounded by great music and your best friends. And if your friends don’t want to go, go alone, there’s absolutely no doubt that you’ll make friends when you get there!

First time at Slam Dunk this year? Don’t worry, these bands are in the same boat

Blood Youth

The metal four-piece make their Slam Dunk debut after releasing two EPs over the last year. Taking to the Kerrang! Fresh Blood stage, their energetic performance will be the first of a string of festival appearances throughout the summer and is definitely not one to miss.

Grumble Bee

Jack Bennett AKA Grumble Bee will be playing a special acoustic set of his entire debut EP, Disconnect, which was released earlier this year. With his soaring vocals and intricate song writing, Bennett’s set will no doubt be a highlight of the Solo & Acoustic Stage.

Greywind

This brother-sister duo only played their first live show last month as the opening support for Moose Blood on their UK headline tour, and Slam Dunk will be one of the first festivals to catch Greywind at. The Irish two-piece are likely to offer a welcome change of pace to anyone’s day at the festival. Words by Natalie Webb

We sat down with Chris and Ellie from grunge revival group Silverfield and asked a bunch of pressing questions.

Silverfield is a pretty cool name, do you have a story about where it originated from? C: “I basically was sat trying to think of a cool name that suited the kinda genre we were aiming for when we first formed, and that just kind of.. Popped into my head. I’m not really sure what it means. But sounds cool right?”

How did the formation on Silverfield come into place?

6 que

E: “I guess we just all wanted to make some cool music. The line-up changed a fair bit over the first few weeks, trying to get people who were properly interested and stuff      .” C: “Me and my friends Ethan and Glen were the original “Trio” before we decided what genre we were going to be, then Ethan dropped out very early on before we’d even practiced. Glen dropped out soon after Ellie joined (Not because she joined though hahaha) And then we got my very old friends Dan and Joe in and at first practice we just clicked.”

How would you describe your sound closest to in terms of a well-known artist? C: “I take a lot of inspiration from bands like Allusondrugs and Milk Teeth, the modern kind of “grunge” stuff. I guess our sound is closest to Sonic Youth kind of thing but with some more poppy hooky stuff.” E: “Um, that’s a really hard question. I think we draw similarities from lots of different artists. I’d say we have elements of bands like Elastica and Wolf Alice but also, like Chris said, more of the “modern grunge” stuff like Milk Teeth etc. It’s hard to pin down to one artist really.”

What do you hope to achieve out of this project? E: “For me it’s about having fun with some like-minded people, making music that we like. It would be great if we could do well in the process. I just want to write songs that people identify with but also wanna dance and rock out to.” C: “I’m basically the same, and I think it’s the same for all 4 of us, we just wanna have fun, and make music that we would personally listen to, and hope people like it as much as we like it.”

What effects do you use on your recordings? C: “Well, we recorded our demos with our friend Chris in a practice studio in like 2 hours, so there’s not really a lot of FX on them, apart from some reverb. On my guitar I just use a Chorus pedal with the speed cranked up to make it sound wobbly and weird, which I think is kind of part of our sound in a sense? But with our future releases we plan to mess around with loads of different effects and make it sound weirder.”

Who would you like to play with in the near future? C: “I’m not sure how much we can say about stuff but we’re playing with Bowels and Sunbather this summer at some point, and those guys are like some of my favorite people I’ve ever got to know through music. I really want to play with Fresh as well. On a bigger scale my kind of “goal” is to play with someone like Milk Teeth. That’d be rad.          ” E: “We’d love to play a gig with Sad Blood and Drown again. We had a great first gig with them and it’d be great to do another one. I’m really excited about the summer stuff we’re doing too. I’m hoping that Chew will properly reform at some point so we can play a gig with them!” Interviewed by Ashwin Bhandari

silv

estions with

verfield 35

behind the lens

carly tyrell Hi, I’m Carly Tyrell and I’m a student currently studying Photography: Editorial & Advertising at Gloucestershire University. I grew up listening to rock and drum ‘n’ bass music, as that’s all my family ever blasted around the house. As I got older I started going to big concerts like Kids in Glass Houses, Bullet For My Valentine etc. (being Welsh It was tradition). Then I moved on to more local, underground shows. At one show I remember seeing a guy with a camera and thought to myself “wow I wish I was that guy, he looks like he’s having so much fun”. I saved up, bought myself a small bridge camera and took it to every show I went to. I’m a Nikon user, so I use a Nikon D7000 & D800, wide lenses or primes, Nikon speedlite or if video an LED panel. I’m a big flash user, whereas I know a lot of photographers now don’t use it unless it’s 100% needed. Bands I love photographing are Black Dogs, HECK, Grove Street Families and Bar Fight. They are all great bands and I get super excited every time I shoot them. As I said I use a lot of flash, so preferably a venue with a

reasonably low ceiling that is white, no lights, just a dark room would be my dream setup. What would make the perfect set up to photograph for a band is movement. When a band play and they just stay still and bang their heads it’s difficult to try make it look entertaining, so when a band move about and put on a performance it’s an incredible experience. When you go to see a band live there is an incredible atmosphere; people screaming the words, mosh pits, crowd surfing, whatever concert you’re at there is an atmosphere. To be able to capture that atmosphere for everyone to see gives me an adrenaline rush. Then when you capture an image you’ve been trying to get for ages, it’s like getting a shiny in your pack of Pokemon cards. When I’m photographing I feel like I’m in my own little bubble doing something I’m passionate about, it makes me happy and that’s a feeling nobody can take away from me. Also, listening to awesome bands play awesome music is enough in itself. Words and photos by Carly Tyrell

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ALBUMs

landscap Modern Earth

9/10 Modern Earth is the second album by the hardcore punk group from Somerset, England, following up three years after their debut LP release: Life Gone Wrong (Pure Noise Records, 2013). These lyrical geniuses and technically advanced experimental musicians are well ahead of their game. Sophistically creating material that contains profound, provocative and at times deeply disturbing (only because it is so beautifully accurate) but culturally relevant content, is not easy to do: but they do this; and they do it artistically. Each note and word is rich with feeling, meaning and adds to a greater sense of this album being beyond a constructed product: it is art. You can learn something new from every minute. Whilst musically, the pace and dynamics take you on a well-curated journey with enough allocated space for air when you need it, rallying with dangerously mind-blowing blast-beat breakdowns and waterfalls of emotional outcries that provide as powerful catharsis as any. Although the group has shared stages with Architects, The Amity Afflic-

Photo by: Ashley Thomas Wood

tion and The Ghost Inside, the sound and approach used by Landscapes during Modern Earth, comes across as more mature, experimental and artistic than (in particular the earlier releases from) these established, inspiring and phenomenally talented and popular bands. Modern Earth is angry, it is personal - and at times it is shocking and vulgar - but it is somehow all of these things in a beautiful and poetic way, without becoming any form of ‘pop’ or ‘core’. Perhaps it is a little more off-thewall, philosophical, and quite far removed from any clearly recognisable formatting. In some ways this could be a bad thing – making the end product confusing or hard to follow, but Landscape’s songs are engaging and gripping and challenge anyone to not continue to follow them on a journey further into their musical and lyrical progression. Shaun Milton’s spoken, sung, screamed and shouted melodies and poetry are all delivered with unyielding conviction and never once spin out of control or sound like a staged performance – it sounds like real

pes life and just hearing his words, you can almost taste his emotion on your tongue. Comparisons could be made to the comforting-the-disturbed and disturbing-the-comfortable, consistently honest and raw vocals of Sam Carter from Architects, yet presented as they are on Modern Earth, Milton’s are somewhat richer but more distorted and stranger – in a good way. Track 4 ‘Embrace’, is only just over 2 minutes long but contains some of the most beautiful cadence of melody and rhythm demonstrated by a UK hardcore band. The intertwining of supple sunlight lead guitar with a retro-clean reverb, ripples over drums that resonate with enough bounce to get you moving - and not just because the band wants you to for the sake of it – the song’s character innately demands it. The motifs build effectively creeping into a full blown explosion by the end of the song, where screams of, “It used to drown me,” do gush over listeners in an effective representation of the emotional tidal waves that seem to

Pure Noise Records April 8th 2016

come crashing over all of us in our darkest times. Due to personal tastes in sound, melodic hardcore may not be for everyone and therefore, Modern Earth is not perhaps going to be as far-reaching and influential as its words alone could be. Seriously, Landscapes could publish their lyrics as a poetry collection and it would probably do incredibly well in the literary world. However, for those who do appreciate the sound created by groups such as Defeater, Hundredth, Northlane, La Dispute and Touche Amore: Landscapes have really outdone themselves, and this album should be the first thing on your to-listen list, if you’re not already listening to it right now. Words by Arriana Corr

ALBUMs weezer the white When you’re as big as Weezer, it can be incredibly easy to churn out records on a yearly basis but still be safe in the knowledge that your groundbreaking first couple of albums will still keep you relevant and financially secure for years to come. Thankfully Weezer (for the most part) are consistently decent at what they do, and while some of their previous 00’s records have been fairly unmemorable, The White Album more than makes up for it. Clocking in at only 34 minutes and produced by Jake Sinclair who helped shape Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco’s last few records, The White Album is lead vocalist Rivers Cuomo’s idea of a care free nostalgic beach music album. Laden with warm piano chords on songs such as ‘Thank God For Girls’ and ‘Wind In Our Sails’, this is most likely Weezer’s most positive record yet, which of course the new generation of pop punk kids will lap up like there’s no tomorrow. The use of gender role reversal in ‘Thank God For Girls’ is refreshing, and the tounge in cheek religious imagery in the lyrics such as “God took a rib from Adam, ground it up in a centrifuge machine, mixed it with cardamom and cloves, microwaved it on the popcorn setting, while Adam was like ‘that really hurts’”, is a refreshing take on the old saying of “women eh? Can’t live em, can’t live without them!” Songs like ‘L.A Girlz’ and ‘King Of The World’ weirdly enough sound like songs written by bands who intern have been influenced by Weezer such as Joyce Manor and Jimmy Eat World, in a case of life imitating art. Definitely not a bad thing mind, and it also shows how Weezer can experiment but not to an extent where they entirely deviate from their core song values. You know, girls, weed, being a loser, hanging out and more girls.

In contrast to the rest of the album, the acoustic ender on The White Album ‘Endless Bummer’ is a bittersweet farewell to summer, and a reminder that all the best things in life have to end at some point, even the so called ‘never ending summers’. “I can’t even dance in the dark, cause my headphones are still are on the seat of her car” perfectly summaries this song and depressive moods people can tend to fixate into after their summer vacation drags on for too long or has already ended. If you’re looking for a record that is particularly profound or has intricate layers to it, lets face it, you’re never going to find it with Weezer so stop trying. However if you’re looking for an enjoyable, breezy pre summer record that sparks tone of bright and bubbly nostalgia while continuing to be relevant in 2016, this record without a doubt was made for you. Words by Ashwin Bhandari

8/10

teen suicide It’s A Joyous Celebration, Let’s Stir The Honey Pot Teen Suicide are back, dropping a 26 track double album at the start of the month. Though some claim this to be the final Teen Suicide album, the band have announced on their Bandcamp that after this record Teen Suicide will be facing a name change, stating that they “chose the name a long time ago without thinking of any negative implications and regret that.” The album begins in similar synthy Teen Suicide fashion with track ‘Living Proof’, consisting of a dream-like melody and an experimental trumpet section, unusual in the world of emo. The perfectly harmonised group vocals in ‘Living Proof’ really emphasise the ambient nature and/or foundation of Teen Suicide, as well as their experimental vibe. ‘Alex’ was the title of the first single on this 68-minute double album, which hinted at the release of a new/final album by dropping the track, rather cryptically, via Tumblr. The music video for ‘Alex’ was also released earlier this year, featuring an adorable dog and a pretty battered sofa.

40 Photo by: Helen Messenger

The album is full of morbid lyrics accompanied by twinkly melodies in stereotypical Teen Suicide fashion, creating a lasting impression for their final album. Although a lot of the tracks featured on the album are fillers, perhaps due to the long nature of the album, there are other tracks that really jump at you such as ‘Neighbourhood Drug Dealer’ and ‘Violets’. Let’s just hope that their upcoming rebranding won’t affect what Teen Suicide are all about. Words by Dehbia Saber

7/10

black peaks

deftones gore

Statues

Sacramento ex nu metal legends Deftones come out with their 8th record to date, and while there is some strong stand out tracks on here, the record as a whole is somewhat disappointing. The opening track ‘Prayers/ Triangles’ starts off promising enough with it’s soothing, shoegazey guitar riffs, but ultimately builds up and becomes lukewarm very quickly. Unlike 2010’s Diamond Eyes where the softer sections on certain tracks build up to the crushing choruses that Deftones know how to do best, many of the tracks on Gore end up being rather dull and it feels as if the band are intentionally trying to play it safe. Thankfully, ‘Doomed User’ brings us back to familiar territory, with Chino Moreno’s signature catatonic screams accompanied over some sludgy and sleazy riffs. The drumming production on this record as a whole is incredibly crisp, although at times it feels like Deftones unintentionally overproduce their recordings on the heavier tracks. The lyrics on this track are far less cryptic compared to Moreno’s normal writing style, and lines such as “Your castle has burned down on you, your kingdom is burning down” come across as incredibly lazy and uninspired. If you preferred the dreamier aspects of Deftones then at least you can take musical solace with ‘Hearts/Wires’, a track that is incredibly minimalistic and goes hand in hand with Moreno’s soothing and mesmerizing vocal hooks. Elements of this track wouldn’t go amiss on While Pony or even Saturday Night Wrist, and shows a more meaningful side to their music with sickly sweet harmonies everywhere. ‘(L)MILR’, a track that deals with a failed relationship and suicide, feels somewhat corny in the way it comes across. Once again this is a track that could have been fantastic had

the instrumentation not fallen flat on it’s arse and stayed in the middle ground, rather than building up with a heavy as fuck and satisfying conclusion. When the title track eventually starts to play, you can give it credit for at least trying something different with it’s violent and scuzzy ending, although unfortunately the clean production on the record as a whole doesn’t help in this instance. Still though, the wall of noise built up at the end is at least something to bang your head to. The 80s inspired “guitar solo” from Jerry Cantrell is one such of things Deftones really need to stop doing, which makes the song ‘Phantom Bride’ have an incredibly cringy dad rock vibe to it instead of melancholy and haunting as its original intention is. The rest of the tracks on here are mostly the same thing and don’t really add anything noteworthy, especially the badly done ‘space rock’ songs such as ‘Rubicon’. The main problems with this record seem to be that the ideas and song structures on Gore are just so much of a let down and at times the record becomes tedious to try and listen to all the way through. Credit is due to a handful of tracks but ultimetly Deftones are so unimpressionable and underwhelming on here compared to what they’re more than capable of. Words by Ashwin Bhandari

5/10

Emerging from the ashes of band, Shrine, the incandescent phoenix, Black Peaks rose in 2014. Stating the reason for the name change was because “there are too many other bands called Shrine.” For their debut album, Black Peaks are truly throwing themselves into Statues and their souls out there into the world. Every moment in each song keeps you on your toes, from ‘Glass Built Castles’ to ‘Saviour’ there is no break in their stride to get their message and sound out to the public. Statues kicks off to a frantic start with pounding drums filling the empty space as, vocalist, Will Gardner’s voice launches into action next to math-core styled guitars. Then silence. This is where Gardner truly demonstrates his versatility as a vocalist. ‘Glass Built Castles’ is a key example of the building blocks of Statues. It’s all over the place: one moment sweet soft melodies, the next it’s pure rage with no hesitation or restraint. It sounds as if Alexisonfire were filled to the brim with testosterone. As if they’re filling out a checklist in a matter of moments, Black Peaks are quick to fill the

quota of what would make a magnificent performance, both live and recorded. If you thought the album couldn’t be improved much further, the four-piece add another member to their force in the final track, ‘To Take the First Turn’, in no other than renowned vocalist of Reuben, Jamie Lenman, which just adds the cherry to the cake that is Statues. Statues is the essence of what all new and old bands should aspire to release in their careers. Full to the brim with rage, creativity and inspiration. There’s no way to decide what genre to throw them in, no set of bands that you can associate them with. One moment you could say, Alexisonfire and Fightstar, the next moment you could go more with slower music such as Brand New then the following you could go with more math led bands such as The Dillinger Escape Plan and The Fall of Troy. Black Peaks are an enigma that should never be solved or understood, just experienced first-hand. The next stage is just to keep the next album up to the high standards that Statues has set. Words by Charlie Hill

10/10 41

eps not today

Headway

An explosive collection of colourful thoughts, disasters and world crises alongside the everyday mundane instances of alarm clocks, work shirts and coffee: broadcast loudly into space - is indeed an accurate visual representation of the sophomore EP from Manchester’s 2 year young, fresh-faced, pop punk five-piece: Not Today. There may be instances during Headway when a listener will pause and question – ‘Is this is still the same band?’ And it might not be the most coherent collection of songs put together on this earth. But why should this really matter? Why should each number sound like it was produced, shrink-wrapped and branded from the same factory just because it was written and recorded by the same band? All the different voices their music uses are delivered with skill and confidence, and appear only to display the greater versatility of the group. Unbound by restrictions of conventions and genre, Headway opens up as freely expressive art. With a characteristically British accent, Alex Hardiment’s vocals are rough around

the edges enough to stand out as his own, but are carefully delivered and produced so that they still ride smoothly over the overlapping harmonies. Bleeding yet distinguishably catchy guitar riffs and punchy breakdowns prevail throughout the EP but never in quite the same manner. Eclectic is perhaps the best way to sum up this audible bubble which peaks in the midst of track 3: ‘Coming Storm’, where the featured unclean vocals of Daniel Jeffery crash suddenly, unprovoked but artistically incorporated all the same. Then, no sooner than these phrases have diminuendo-ed, and we are softly lulled by an acoustic number, with an intro and a killer melody, that is so sweet and strong - it could easily be mistaken as being taken from an A Day To Remember unplugged session. If Pop Punk had a recipe, some might argue this would be: pizza, Vans, hating your hometown, refusing to grow up and living your entire life with your friends by your side. Somehow, so many bands seem to focus on the end result, producing almost

BROADBAY

LIVING ROOM

Hailing from the south of the UK is self coined ‘pop slop’ band Broadbay. Their 4 track EP kicks off with the title track and immediately the delicate and lush tones seep out of the speakers in a similar style to emo cult heroes American Football. It’s instantaneous with well written vocal lines and brief cuts of distorted guitar to add some weight. ‘Pulling Teeth’ provides a more driven dynamic and urgency which flows into minimalistic territory. However there are sections on this track that the distortion and fuzz clash to create a quite unsettling noise. ‘Part of Me’ comes into play and sounds far too similar to what we’ve just listened to and doesn’t really do anything to separate itself from the other

cuts on Living Room, and before we know it, it’s over. Closer ‘Cut You Up’ brings back the lush and vibrant tones akin to Turnover’s last release. A more direct approach and the addition of angsty vocals demonstrate the style and approach the guys are going for. There’s potential here and definitely a decent starting point for the future with their beautiful tones and chilled out blueprint.

Words by Joshua Clarke

alarmingly similar duplications of sound that dominate the world of ‘pop punk’ music today. But, Not Today took some, maybe not all, of these tried-and-tested ingredients, blended them up by the use of their own hands and whacked in a good amount of their own freshly-picked, off-the-wall and down-to-earth ideas and flavours from life to create a uniquely alternative ‘pop punk’ EP that is bursting with stylistic variation, and is as a result, undeniably intriguing. Words by Arriana Corr

8/10

7/10

Beaumont NOTHING Beaumont master the art of alternative rock on their debut EP Nothing. The band from Digbeth, Birmingham, showcase a maturity and musical muscle many don’t possess when delivering the first cog in the machine. Their music isn’t fabricated or pretentious either, it’s emotionally charged, with a unique, pulsating edge. It completely dazzles, but has that pessimistic bloodline. Lyrically we’re given tracks that pinpoint depressive moments, moments of disarray and sombreness. But, they don’t dampen the record, they make it raw and relevant, with the darkness adding a fundamental input. The negativity rages on, the trappings of love, explored. And with love under the spotlight, with it being pulled and examined and scorned, it paints a picture. A picture of sadness just like the album artwork. And the direction the band have taken is legit. They’re all stuck to music like glue, and their attitude seems on sync with what people expect, wholesome hearted

waco If you like pure shouty, whacky, experimental punk then Waco may just be your new obsession. Their new EP Uprise comes out this June and we kindly got a sneak peek to what they have to offer. What hits you whilst listening is their no-holds-barred approach to the sound they have created; it’s noisy, it’s passionate and more than anything, it’s energetic. Despite the video for ‘SE17’ coming out recently, songs like ‘Rotten Tooth’ and ‘Salem’ stands out as their aggression spawned from 70s punk influences shines through, whilst also being catchy enough for a casual listener to enjoy. Their borderline skatepunk sound is hard to come by these days, with bands like Gnarwolves and Slaves reigning

music that tells a tale, a connection that doesn’t crumble. Nothing is an EP that is expertly driven and focused on with immense precision. There aren’t any gimmicks or glorified sounds. The instrumental parts are on form, the vocals are finely tuned, and the musicianship is tight. The EP begins with ‘Cheapside’. The riff is pleasing and it develops into a bashful but great musical overlay. The vocals rise and keep on doing so, it’s a compelling and classy opening, with the depressing lyrics burning. ‘Miserable’ manages to stick to what the word means. The protagonist wants death to come to him. It’s a musical triumph with a negative underlay. The drumbeat and

guitar influence are infectious. Beaumont take negativity to a whole new level. But it doesn’t obstruct the opus’s progression. It breaks the norm. Words by Mark McConivlle

7/10

uprise currently, but this release shows how to combine backing vocals, hard hitting instruments and cosmic melodies, and make it easy-to-listen to. It’s not entirely game-changing, with fine tuning to come in further releases, but Uprise shows how you can have a diverse, unique sound and make it appealing. Their style is consistent and strong throughout, which really stitches the entire EP together without having a particular weaker song – you don’t for a second get an amateur feeling from their new and somewhat weird style. Uprise drops on June 10th via Venn Records, and you to hear more about the British fourpiece soon. Words by Reece Weatherley

7/10 43

a weekend with

letlive

The Dome, London – 22.4.16 Underworld, London – 23.4.16 Fighting Cocks, Kingston – 24.4.16

9/10

Photo by: Isha Shah

e. 45

Photo by: Isha Shah

Tonight, The Dome in Tufnell Park plays host to the first of three London dates that letlive. are playing this weekend. This was the final of the three to sell out, quite possibly because over on the other side of the city a very popular rock band are playing a much talked about charity show in a quite prestigious venue; but no one here seems to mind too much about that. Opening with the lead single from 2014’s The Blackest Beautiful, ‘Banshee (Ghost Fame)’, proceedings get off to a surprisingly tame start for a letlive. show. A few songs later, before playing ‘White America’s Beautiful Black Market’, frontman Jason Butler explains that he hasn’t been well recently and was advised not to do the tour but wouldn’t let that stop them from coming over to Europe for this run. In light of this, there are far less of his wall climbing antics at The Dome (and The Underworld on the following night), which long-term fans may find disappointing but it definitely doesn’t detract from the show at all. Friday night’s crowd, it transpires, are very different to the audience that would stand before this LA five-piece over the following two nights. New single ‘Good Mourning America’ was the first indicator of this. As the “we ain’t so different now are we” chant begins, the entire room picks up on it; everyone in the audience is singing along to a song that was released a mere three weeks ago and for the first time tonight there’s such a sense of community at The Dome. This is quite possibly the defining moment in letlive.’s set and it sets such a huge precedent for what their forthcoming album, If I’m The Devil…, is going to offer. ‘Muther’ is always a poignant part of letlive.’s show, but this evening, a semi-acoustic rendition of ‘Pheromone Cvlt’ had emotions flying high with the sense of community at its peak. Butler even looks as though he sheds a tear as the room screams the words back at him. Following this, he tells the room that they wanted to do something special for these shows because they sold out so quickly, and that special something is to play a song they’ve never played live before now, a favourite from their debut album, ‘Lemon Party’. As the show progresses the crowd has become more comfortable with crowdsurfing and stage-diving but unfortunately the only downside to this is during final track ‘Renegade 86’’ when some fans begin to outstay their welcome on stage. However, being the band letlive. are, Butler doesn’t Parker Cannon anybody off stage, instead he takes the time, mid-song, to pose for selfies. As their set ends there’s a buzz in the room and anyone returning for another dose the following evening is in for a treat.

It’s hard to describe what feels different about Camden’s Underworld tonight compared to yesterday’s show at The Dome but the air has definitely changed over the last 24 hours. There seem to be far more casual fans in the crowd, so the singles as well as the tracks from letlive.’s debut Fake History are the songs that resonate the most with tonight’s audience. To say there isn’t the same sense of community in the basement venue would be unfair but it’s a Saturday night and this crowd did not come to stand still and passively sing along; they came to party. Unfortunately the glaring evidence of this are the pools of sweat gradually congregating on the ceiling. However, the heat doesn’t seem to affect letlive. as they pull off just as tight a performance as they did the night before. It’s late kick off at Kingston’s Fighting Cocks on the final night of letlive.’s London weekender, which works in the favour of Youth Man who have been the only support band for this short run of UK dates. The punk three-piece from Birmingham may not be everyone in the room’s cup of tea but they definitely hold their own and put on an exciting show for newcomers. Their energy is second to none and they carry out their duties of warming up the crowd flawlessly. Will they be the next UK punk success story? It’s hard to tell, but they’re definitely well on their way to it. We’re witness to a slightly shorter set tonight but frontman Butler makes up for this with some sweaty tricks up his sleeve. The red string that has featured on letlive.’s social media over the past few weeks has been wound around the stage, speakers and backdrop and definitely screams ‘health and safety hazard’. In the first alteration to letlive.’s setlist tonight after opening with ‘Banshee’, the band launch into ‘Empty Elvis’ as Butler climbs atop speaker stack, lying across it on his stomach due to the low ceiling. And oh boy, is he just getting started. During ‘The Dope Beat’ Butler heads towards the back of the stage and climbs a ladder leading to a small space above the band. This was the sort of behaviour that anyone in attendance over the last two nights has been waiting for, as Butler jumps from the ceiling into the crowd before being delivered back to his band. From then on the chaos in the crowd is relentless in the tiny 150 capacity room, with bottles of water flying across audience members and microphone leads tangled around legs. There’s no encore tonight, and as the band begin playing ‘Renegade 86’’once again the small stage space is taken over by the majority of the crowd. This weekend has seen three very different shows across three nights and three venues only 16 miles apart. letlive. have proven to not just be one of America’s greatest live punk bands, but truly one of the greatest live bands on the planet. With absolutely no energy spared, they’ve left every single one of their fans itching for their return. Words by: Natalie Webb

Live

the winter passing

moose blood

Photo by: Isha Shah

moose blood + the winter passing The 1865, Southampton 14.4.16 - 9/10 Opening the tour has been the Irish alternative band Greywind, which is actually one of their first ever live performances. However, during their performance you would not know that this is their second live show, as it is far from amateur. Their set is full of catchy songs, high energy and a strong vocal show which hasn’t exactly got people jumping or singing along, but still impressed nevertheless. Their latest single ‘Forest Ablaze’ finishes the night and shows why they deserved a spot on this tour. Watch out for these and their upcoming full length this year. Next up, and highly anticipated by many, are the Irish emo/folk band The Winter Passing. The one thing that stands out about these are their clear passion – they seem to believe and love what they are singing, and it shows through the energy they give off and how it’s reciprocated by the crowd. All songs tonight are from their EP A Different Space of Mind, with a highlight being ‘The Fever’, a song which shows off their unique sound in a really impressive way. Finishing with a passionate instrumental ending, they have undoubtedly gained many new fans tonight. It is so vital to create an impact as a supporting band, as chances are the majority of the room hasn’t heard of you nor particularly needs to, but this performance isn’t an example of another lost show; it’s an example of how to get the crowd on your side and how to impress. This tour will hopefully do wonders for the band, as they undoubtedly deserve it. After taking a fairly long break from touring (for them anyway), it is Moose Blood’s time to grace the stage. Welcomed by a huge round of applause from a sold out room (something of which they will have to get used to), it’s clear that people are itching for them to start. Opening with ‘Swim Down’, one of their most popular songs from their outstanding full length I’ll Keep You in Mind, From Time to Time, the crowd is instantly jumping and screaming along. No huge intro or build-up needed, just straight into what people know Moose Blood are best at and what they love the most. However, after ‘Pups’, it is time for something of which people haven’t heard in quite some time – a new MB song. ‘Honey’ is set to be their first single from their upcoming summer release, and boy does it sound great. After today announcing they have signed to Hopeless Records, people have never been so sceptical and excited to hear some new material. ‘Honey’ is catchy without being annoying, and it sounds like a MB song instead of a complete change in sound, which not many people would have been happy about. A few songs later and it is time for ‘Cherry’ – a true hit for those who like the slower, sadder MB songs. With it being just Eddy Brewerton and his guitar, this song does show off how talented vocally he is, as well as how popular the song is with everyone in the room singing along as loud as they can. Another new song ‘Glow’ is played a couple songs later. One thing that Moose Blood are great at doing is creating a musical style from release to release, and ‘Glow’ shows this perfectly – vocally and instrumentally it is similar to ‘Honey’ without it being bland, and it is just as catchy. A few songs later and it was time for MB to finish the evening – and they did so in style - their most recent song release in ‘Gum’ is performed to close the evening. A seemingly endless stream of crowd surfers combined with a crowd loud enough to drown out the band created a final song which perfectly sums up the evening – truly mesmerising. No encore is surprising, especially considering how evident it is that the crowd wants them to come back on for another song or two, but it doesn’t take anything away from how incredible tonight has been. Words by Reece Weatherley

Live hotos in p

canvas

wars

dead harts

Photos by: Stephanie Evans 50

canvas

dead harts + canvas + wars The Rainbow Cellar ,Birmingham 26.4.16

Live

desolated + Grove Street Famalies + Tempers Fray + Judgement

The Joiners, Southampton 6.4.16

Photo by: MoLuxImago

Judgement: (7) Hardcore band from South Wales began proceedings rather fittingly. Demonstrating most of the recognized trademarks of the hardcore genre as well as showing shades of a more metal background in their riffs. Performed without a bass player but that did not affect their act in any way, i failed to realize there wasn’t a bass player present until the later part of the set which gives good credit to the overall sound. Tempers Fray: (7) London hardcore act who displayed a very fine medium between the elements of hardcore and metalcore. The riffs utilized in their performance was very reminiscent of bands like slipknot. Vocally tight with lead vocalist being in sync with the guitarist to deliver strong call and response vocals. Unfortunately times sounded a little thin with the bass drowning out the sound of the guitar and vice versa. Grove Street Families: (8) Stepping in at the very last minute to replace nihility. GSF a hardcore band which stylizes itself after the “Grand Theft Auto” background and pulls it off extremely well without looking like a joke or parody. Started with a cover of Motorheads famous ‘The Game’ and went on to deliver an energetic 30 minutes of new songs and old featuring a guest vocal appearance from Paul Williams of Desolated. Desolated: (5) Having been to many Hardcore and Metalcore shows in southampton and in particularly the joiners one thing i have learned is that the southampton scene like it heavy and at times messy and are very loyal to the ones that the love. By the time Desolated took to the stage it felt as if the crowd weren’t as “up for it” as they should have done. Weather or not it was because the support acts were strong or because the album didn’t quite live up to expectation Desolated played 30 minutes which mainly consisted of material from the new album. It felt as if the band spent half of the set trying to get some sort of reaction from the audience which after a while hearing “make someone bleed” or “punch someone” in the face just got a cringy. This should not however take away from the music which was alright for the most part but never led to anything special. For a band that has made a such a big name within the Southampton scene and for this to be the band’s hometown album launch show you would have expected more from the headliner than what was on display. Or maybe the southampton faithful just don’t care about this band as much as they once did. Words by Kyle Wood

Live hotos in p

them broads

eulogy

eight days eulogy

them broads

Photos by: Isha Shah

eight days

eulogy + WREN + EIGHT DAYS + tHEM bROADS

THE ALEX, SOUTHAMPTON 11.4.16

wren

Live hotos in p

birdskulls + broadbay + muskets + the new tusk

birthdays, London 12.4.16 muskets

muskets

broadbay

Photos by: Chiara Ceccaioni

broadbay

the new tusk

birdskulls

Live

knuckle puc + seaway + boston manor The UNDERWORLD, lONDON 1.4.16 - 8/10 Things get a little alien at everyone’s favourite venue, The Underworld, Camden, tonight as stage diving is stopped in its tracks. Nevertheless, three of the hottest bands in pop punk are ready to have some fun. Blackpool mob, Boston Manor, start strong with ‘Peach State’, opening the night for one of the best live bands in the UK pop punk and emo scene right now. They charge through a powerful set as more old-timers are played like ‘Wolf’ and ‘Driftwood’. The boys know how to keep it fresh though, as they play their latest EP success, Saudade, in full. Bozzy Mandem bring in a bigger crowd with every show, with more finger-pointers and people to catch vocalist Henry Cox’s stage dives, it seems. Canadian punks, Seaway, aren’t being ‘Shy Guys’ tonight; they deliver the sweetest, good vibe pop punk tunes out there from their new album, Colour Blind, such as ‘Best Mistake’ and the hilarious self-described idiocy of ‘Goon’. The harmonies of Ryan Locke (vocals) and Patrick Carleton (vocals/guitar) are something that purely cannot be taught, leaving the entire Underworld covered in goosebumps. The Seaway boys love to have fun and party hard - their stage presence is no exception as Locke bounds around the stage while Adam Shoji (bass) sways melodically and drops the naughtiest dabs. These fun hypnotists know how to draw you in to it as well; everyone’s favourite, ‘Slam’, doesn’t just slam the doors of the Underworld, but more or less blows them off! Knuckle Puck are finally on, and everyone is ready for the aggressive and bitter sad tracks off their debut full length, Copacetic, such as ‘Disdain’, ‘Swing’ and ‘True Contrite’. The unapologetic lyrics belting from Joe Taylor on ‘But Why Would You Care?’ and ‘No Good’ really boil the blood of the audience as they go into overdrive, so much so that security have given up trying to herd everyone off the stage and just let the stage diving commence. Chicago’s finest close an emotional set with heartstring-puller, ‘Untitled’. The long, winding guitar work at the end has the Underworld swaying in time whilst an army of claps match the instrumental and see it out. Knuckle Puck really brought everyone into their set, the passion is too real. Words by Billy Young

Photos by: Isha Shah

boston manor

ck knuckle puck

seaway

Live hotos in p

beach baby The lexington, london 27.4.16

Photos by: Tia Cousins

Live

funeral for a friend + Zoax + Shai Hulud

Y Plas, Cardiff 6.4.16 - 9/10

Photos by: Gareth Bull

This is it, our last chance to dance. Funeral For A Friend in Cardiff, Casually Dressed & Deep In Conversation is the album we are witnessing in its emphatic entirety tonight. It’s going to get emotional. First band on tonight to warm up the slowly building crowd is the eccentric live unit Zoax. Straight from the off frontman and circus ringleader, Adam Carroll, is in fine form vocally and with his onstage persona. Whether that’s showcasing his impressive ability to go from a soft delivery to a roaring banshee style scream, or getting in the faces of the audience and shouting “What the fuck is that?...I’m right here” at a gentleman on the barrier with his phone out. The music goes from spastic and caustic rhythms to almost lounge jazz-esque breaks. ‘The Wave’ shows off a more melodic and direct side to the band that’s accompanied with a massive hook and chorus refrain. A tremendously confident opening from Carroll and co. Shai Hulud are up next and are welcomed by a fairly positive dose of cheering and anticipation. First song in and the vocals could be a lot louder as it struggles to reach the back of the room and loses impact and power. Anyone having a support slot on a tour this special and important was always going to be have a hard task and tonight Shai Hulud are experiencing just that. The crowd looks on fairly uninterested as the younger attendees make their way to the bar and politely applaud in between swigs of beer whilst the slightly older contingent get involved in the bands banter and shout outs to “FUNERAL FOR A FUCKING FRIEND!”. Surprisingly the band bust out a sped up cover of NOFX’s ‘Linoleum’, which is a set highlight and turns a few more heads from the bar. Finally it’s the time of the evening we’ve all been waiting for but hoping would never come, Funeral For A Friend taking to the stage on their farewell tour. What is there to say? ‘Rookie Of The Year’ kickstarts the party and brings about the first of many goosebump-inducing sing alongs. Fan favourite and set staple ‘Juneau’ sees arms aloft and the return of Zoax vocalist Adam Carroll. There’s smiles all round on and off stage and there’s a truly special moment when original members Matt Davies-Kreye and Kris Coombs-Roberts are left to perform the acoustic number ‘Your Revolution is a Joke’. ‘Novella’ rings out, signalling the end of Casually Dressed... and the band rip into ‘This Year’s Most Open Heartbreak’ with former drummer and screamer Ryan Richards. We knew the guys had a trick or two up their sleeve. B sides and EP material fill out the remainder of the set before the tear jerking one-two of ‘History’ and ‘Roses For The Dead’ sends everyone into an emotional wreck, including Davies-Kreye who stands alone on stage waving everyone goodbye, in tears, as the crowd sing, “And bleed this skyline dry, your history is mine”. R.I.P FFAF 2001-2016 Words by Joshua Clarke

zoax

shai

Photos by: Gareth Bull

hulu

shai hulu

zoax

fune

ral f

or a f

riend

end

r a fri

al fo funer

for funeral

a friend

shai hulu

funeral for a

shai

friend

hulu

x zoa

Live

modern baseball sticky mikes, brighton 22.4.16 - 9/10

Photos by: Sam Hainesw

Formed at college in Philadelphia in 2011, Modern Baseball at it’s core are an emo band with plenty of folk/old school rock and a splash of pop punk added into the mix. Girls, 90’s pop culture, social awkwardness, caffeine and well..girls are their lyrical forte, but recently they’ve moved onto some more serious topics such as depression and the death of family members. With their 3rd LP round the corner following the release of the spectacular MoBo Presents: The Perfect Cast in 2015, there was no doubt that they would sell out their UK shows only days after announcing them, and for a good reason too. Opening up tonight are five piece indie punk rockers Pup who almost manage to steal the show tonight. Opening with ‘Reservoir’ from their self titled debut straight into ‘If This Tour Doesn’t Kill You I Will and ‘DVP’ the band have an enormous amount of energy onstage tonight despite a few minor technical hiccups. Their trademark three part harmonies sound as lush as ever, while still retaining a professional level of sloppiness and ‘beer spilled over your best mate’ vibes. Even the most stubborn of old age punk rockers at the back of Sticky Mikes were happily pointing along to bangers such as ‘Dark Days’ and ‘Lionheart’. With any luck, Pup will be back on our shores very soon for their own lengthy headline shows. After a brief intermission, the crowd neatly packs in for Modern Baseball, who tune their guitars for a good two or 3 minutes before starting with ‘Fine Great’. Even when Brendan’s singing his heart out with songs in a lower vocal register, his vocals are almost drowned out by the audience, singing every word back to him with perfect clarity. Understandably, the venue decided to put up a barrier tonight, but it doesn’t stop audience members jumping on their mates for the more energetic songs in their set such as ‘Broken Cash Machine’ and ‘Tears Over Beers’. Brendan and Jake are surprisingly reserved this time around, barely saying anything to the crowd except to take a few steps back when smaller fans are being crushed at the very front, or to quickly shout out to their Brighton chums Gnarwolves who are merrily singing along at the back of the stage. While the energy in the room is still pretty electric for the majority, there’s a notable change in tone as Modern Baseball dip into songs from The Perfect Cast and the upcoming record Holy Ghost. While understandably the more serious material from their discography is more attentive and less disruptive, but still manages to sound colorful and cathartic in a tiny underground venue. The contagious goofiness that Modern Baseball are known for spreads into the crowd as they briefly cover AC/DC’s ‘Back in Black’ before diving into ‘Your Graduation’. Drummer Sean Huber sings his little verse and by this point the crowd can barely stand up but its all been worth it. God bless Modern Baseball, you loveable little nerds. Words by Ashwin Bhandari

Live hotos in p

fresh

drawstring

eat me

eat me + drawstring + Fresh southampton - 23.4.16 drawstring

drawstring

eat me

Photos by: Isha Shah

Live

coast to

+ Best Years + You Know The Drill + Layov

The Rainbow, Birmingham 24.4.16 - 10/10 Layover entice voices and hands to rise up and it’s only midway through their first song. Frenetic drum energy then literally blows the crowd away, as if out of nowhere a pit opens up and people are flung to the paint-splattered walls. Acoustic song, ‘Hazel’ is truly a beautiful performance, and Luke Rainsford’s vocals hush the entire basement’s warm, bubbling chatter into a cosy, intimate silence, lit up by soft rose glow lighting, whilst the song about a girl they met in Liverpool a year ago has everyone truly enchanted. Squeezing in two more after their supposed ‘last song’, Layover really pack in a full set.

Holland (vocals) jokes that he can see, “a few of you guys up there in the stadium seats,” signaling to the row of eager youth lined up on the ledge against the wall to get a better view of an entirely energetic-yet-mellow pop punk performance. Bringing everyone together in sync, they never falter to keep the stage alive and dynamic. “That was sick! That was fucking awesome,” they announce, the mic dangling as Holland breathlessly holds the wall and bathes in the glory of smiles and people singing into it – he looks so comfortable and it’s impossible not to agree under the red and blue lights, that tonight, “everyone fucking smashed it!”

Victory Lane open with summer pop vibes in ‘If Not Now, Then When?’ the group’s debut single before rolling into ‘1995’, an old release from their first EP. Their boppy cover of ‘Stacie’s Mom’ and pop rock song, ‘Bitter Sweet’ are captivating and kept creatively fresh sounding with pedals and vocal effects. ‘Adios’, their latest single, has fans singing along to its catchy chorus before the band even begins to play, and by the time it kicks in, everyone can see why. It is guaranteed that the group who begun with a rather empty floor, will be taking home some new fans tonight.

The moment we’ve all been waiting for approaches, and people flow in down the stairs as Coast to Coast (10/10) rally off a few bass notes of what is about to begin. Everyone clambers up on the side again and peers to get a better view. Dramatic lighting flickers the room in and out of darkness. People are pushing to move the most forwards.

You Know The Drill seem to have the most fun, but definitely at the price of a good performance. The drums are a bit messy in places, and guitar often slips into the wrong chords. Some lines ring out of tune, but everyone is too swept away by their insane energy and enthusiasm, which courses through their adrenaline pumped re-enactment of Sum41 which they absolutely smash and get the entire crowd going wild to. During their last two songs, including crowd hit ‘No Ambition’, the accuracy of their performance picks up significantly, whilst they somehow keep up the racecar energy, which is impressive and has the entire basement keeping a fast moving circle pit in action. Manchester’s bounce-ready Best Years get everyone clapping and moving and Josh

Photo bY: Stephanie Evans

“This next one’s called bunkbeds,” Keiran Hyland (vocals) barely draws a breath and everyone cheers rowdily, two lighters flicker up and burn brightly at the front whilst everyone is singing along. ‘Cornernstone’ brings crazy, good, accelerated fun and shoes are in the air as girls are lifted and Hyland dives into a room filled with warm synergy and good cheer and states he couldn’t be happier with their reception tonight. Even after the last chords chug, chug, chug the crowd still cheer, “One more song!” like they really mean it. They don’t give up easily, showing genuine love, support and appreciation – and a longing for more from a group who have built up a great family of bands, friends and fans - as shown here tonight in the warmth of this Birmingham backstreet basement, with the lights aglow and a room filled out with a journey that has taken Coast to Coast to where they are today. Words by Arriana Corr

o coast

ver + Victory Lane

For many publications and bands, likes on their Facebook page and followers on their Twitter and other social media accounts are great, but they don’t really show what they’re made of, meaning that even though a page has 20 likes, it might be better than one with 20,000. Most people have social media these days and it can consume lives, especially if you’re a band or magazine trying to market yourself. It seems that getting likes, followers and retweets are all that is important in some minds, but what really counts is what you’re putting out there in the World and how you’re changing a genre/releasing a new, great publication. One certain magazine could be really popular and have loads of followers, but could be writing the same content as the next best publication, or there could be a start-up that’s producing something so out-of the-box that it’s a shame not enough people know about it. Similarly, if a band’s Facebook page has a tonne of likes, what’s to say that a band in the same genre/subgenre is any worse than them if they’ve got a tenth of the likes of the more popular one? It doesn’t make any sense; we should appreciate the bigger bands and their fanbases, as well as supporting the smaller, lesser-known bands by writing about their albums and featuring them in magazines, whether they are big or small. Smaller magazines should also receive more recognition, as teams work damn hard (most times not even getting paid) to write unique articles and designs for their readers, as well as taking their own photography - no matter how many likes they’ve got on their Facebook pages, they do it because they love it, not because they’re getting paid. Most magazines these days are start-ups, so it’s done more out of passion than being popular and in the public eye. Likes and retweets have only meant something to publications and bands over the last few years, why can’t it go back to the way it was with great articles being celebrated and not defining a great mag or band by how many followers they’ve got? Words by Amy Jones

what we’ve learnt from With over 100 million daily active users, Snapchat seems to be taking up a large proportion of our everyday lives. We now have the opportunity to access others lives through a tap of the screen thanks to the mobile apps recently updated story, which loads a bunch of ten second stories instantly. Expanding drastically over the years, we all now find ourselves hooked on this basic app, with a wide range of filters to choose from, we can go from being a space alien to a dog with one swipe. So if we’re vicariously living our lives though Snapchat we must be learning something from it? Here are a few points that I have found annoying, great and interesting. 1. We all have that friend who uploads a 1000 story snap every single day, like what could you possible do every day that’s so fascinating? Probably nothing. Please stop snapping your every move. 2. Stop using that fucking dog filter. Yes we know it hides features you wish you could permanently hide, but it’s just annoying. You’re not cuter as a dog, okay. 3. Some of your ‘mates’ think they’re Beyoncé or something. Please stop lip-syncing songs you don’t know the words to. (Kylie Jenner this is directed at you) 4.

There isn’t hardly as many dog snaps as I’d like to see. 5. 6.

It’s a brilliant way to stalk them certain individuals who say they can’t go out for whatever reason, but you see that geotag says otherwise. DJ Khaled is still the king of Snapchat, he is the reason we all wake up and get through the day. I never have to go to a gig again because my friends always snap the whole thing, thanks for a free ticket guys.

8. Boring people can have interesting lives, but only on Snapchat. Their life is just for the viewer’s entertainment. 9. It highlights a lot of people’s creativity. You have to admit, some people can make a boring day at home seem really funny. 10. It brings you closer to a person’s life than any other social media platform. I mean you can actually be transported to anywhere in the world from the comfort of your own bed. 11. It allows us to get a day-to-day insight into what our favourite celebrities are doing. 12.

The face-swapping thing isn’t as funny it was when it started. You all look like normal people. 13. We all think our lives are better than they really are. Snapchat amplifies them. Words by Isha Shah

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