YOUR ONE STOP GUIDE TO THE BEST MUSIC IN EXETER, PLYMOUTH & THE DEVON AREA!
N O V E D
MARCH 2014
C I S U M
OFFICIAL TICKET OUTLETS
Box Office - 01392 667080
w w w. s e e t i c ke t s . c o m
65DAYSOFSTATIC
We speak to the legendary post-rockers ahead of their Exeter show + WIN TICKETS!
Heaven’s Basement Rockers go Oompa Loompa!
Glamour of the Kill Answer dumbass questions.
Turbogeist
Prepare to level The Cavern
Your venue here? Email sales@phmusicmedia.co.uk or call us free on 0808 147 1106
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WELCOME IN EXETER, PLYMOUTH
N D E VO YOUR ONE STOP GUIDE
TO THE BEST MUSIC
& THE DEVON AREA! S OFFICIAL TICKET OUTLET
14
MARCH 20
MUSIC
667080 Box Office - 01392
w w w. s e e t i c ke t s .
com
65DAYSOFSTATIC dary post-rockers ahead
We speak to the legen
Basemena!t Heaven’sOomp a Loomp Rockers go
of their Exeter show
the kill Glamour of ass questions. Answer dumb
Your venue here? Email
ic.com
+ WIN TICKETS!
Extreme BLOG joins the team Matt from Idiom
uk or call us free on sales@phmusicmedia.co.
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Thanks for picking up a copy of the March 2014 issue of Devon Music Magazine, your one stop guide to the best music in Exeter, Plymouth and the Devon area!
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This month we catch up with post-rockers 65 Days of Static, we talk oompa loompa’s with Heaven’s Basement (no really), Turbogeist drop in ahead of their Cavern show and we ask dumb ass questions to Glamour of the Kill. We also welcome Matt Sharland of Idiom to the team with his new regular Extreme BLOG slot. All this plus listings and announcements for all of the best venues and events in the area plus a chance to win tickets to see 65 Days of Static at The Phoenix this month.
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For news submissions and editorial enquiries email info@devon-music.com If you are interested in advertising with us email sales@phmusicmedia.co.uk or call us free on 0808 147 1106 A TWIN PEAKS PRODUCTION
KNEBWORTH PARK 4th - 6th JULY 2014
THE ANSWER
PHOENIX 12/03 WHITE RABBIT 13/03
BLACK WOLF
65DAYSOFSTATIC HEAVENS BASEMENT CELEBRATING 40 YEARS OF FESTIVALS AT KNEBWORTH FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
GLAMOUR OF THE KILL
LOSTALONE
ALSO APPEARING ACROSS THE WEEKEND
CYTOTA
DAN LE SAC vs
ALESTORM CHAS & DAVE DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT GHOST GOJIRA KARNIVOOL PROTEST THE HERO REEL BIG FISH
BLITZ KIDS CARNIFEX HOUNDS ITCH KERBDOG MAX RAPTOR ONLY CRIME SILVERSTEIN TRUCKFIGHTERS THE VIRGINMARYS VOODOO SIX
MANY MORE BANDS AND ARTISTS TO BE ANNOUNCED - FOR INFORMATION, EARLYBIRD TICKETS AND EVERYTHING ELSE SONISPHERE.CO.UK SEETICKETS.COM / 0844 871 8803 - ROCK ROYALTY VIP – 0844 873 7335 – TICKETMASTER.CO.UK GIGANTIC.COM, THETICKETFACTORY.COM, TICKETWEB.CO.UK & TICKETLINE.CO.UK AND ALL USUAL OUTLETS
SONISPHERE FESTIVAL WILL ALSO INCLUDE PARTIES, ASSORTED REVELRY, DEVIL HORNS, RANDOM SIGNS, GROUP CAMPS, FOOTBALL TOURNAMENTS, REPETITIVE WORD YELLING, MARRIAGE PROPOSALS, TOILET DEBATES, SHEDLOADS OF BLACK T-SHIRTS AND OWLS... YOU ALREADY KNEW THAT THOUGH!! ALL CAMPSITES OPEN THURSDAY
PULLED APART BY HORSES
THE GHOST INSIDE
DEVIL WEARS PRADA
I KILLED THE PROM QUEEN
WHITE RABBIT 18/04
WHITE RABBIT 28/04
SCROOBIUS PIP ANTHRAX AIRBOURNE DROPKICK MURPHYS THE SISTERS OF MERCY
WHITE RABBIT 28/03
CAVERN 08/04
MEMPHIS MAY FIRE THE WORD ALIVE
PHOENIX 25/03
CALIBAN
BURY TOMORROW
CAVERN 12/05 WHITE RABBIT 13/05
WHITE RABBIT 22/05
WHITE RABBIT 30/05
advancepromo.co.uk / facebook/advanceexeter / facebook/advanceplymouth
FEATURE
Easily one of Sheffield’s most exciting exports, 65daysofstatic have certainly made a fair amount of noise since forming way back at the turn of the millennium. Being fully instrumental, with few vocals to be found, they trade primarily in guitars and electronics. Their sound combines urgent symphonies of syncopated riffs and raging billows of grunge, offset against furiously swift rhythms and complex, glitchladen electronica. They’re meticulous, experimental and unique. Over the years they’ve been variously labelled as math rock, post rock, electronica, indie-electro, IDMhardcore, neo-prog, rocktronica – no, we don’t know what it means either! Each invented subgenre only serves to sound more contrived and pretentious than the last, which is ironic as the band themselves strive to be exactly the opposite. We would say they defy definition. They are 65daysofstatic. They communicate through their honest and engaging dance music and they’re coming to play for you. And you should see them live for their presence is undeniable. Often combining stunning audio visual elements, their live show is loud and there is no escape from the onslaught on the senses. We nabbed a few minutes with Paul Wolinski ahead of their show at The Phoenix later this month to see what we can expect.
Your most recent album ‘Wild Light’ was a long time in the making and hotly anticipated. How have you found its reception from fans? It’s been great. Reassuring that most people still see us as an ongoing concern rather than just that band that wrote Radio Protector eight years ago. Was there a reason it’s taken so long to produce? We wanted to make sure it was good. There’s too much music already. It’s easy for a band our size to get stuck in this bi-yearly cycle of releasing records and then touring them just to make sure you can keep surviving as a band, because if you take too much time out to write something, then the alreadypitiful stream of money stops and the real world starts to creep back in. Writing another record so you get to keep on being a band is absolutely the wrong way to approach an album. So we just needed time to make sure we did
DEVON MUSIC | MARCH 2014
something that was hopefully going to be useful to people beyond just the four of us. How do you go about transferring your recorded tracks into your live show? Depends on the song. There’s no hard and fast rules. Sometimes we use loops, sometimes lots of synths, sometimes we’ll sample the record and map it to midi controllers. More recently we’re dragging our guitar tech on stage to play guitar so we have an extra pair of hands to make noise with. He’s a better guitar player than all of us, so that’s working out pretty well. What can us 65kids expect from the live show this time round? Same as ever. Hopefully you’ll see us not getting lazy, still trying to improve, still playing each show like it might be our last, just in case it is.
65 DAYS OF STATIC
FEATURE How far is this tour taking you? Is there anywhere you particularly want to get to to play live shows or anywhere you’d love to return to? I have no doubt will be as magical as ever. We’re incredibly lucky. It would be nice to get to South America one day, we’ve never been there, but honestly, places like that, the other side of the globe, are the places where all of the things that happen around the show really stay in your memory. But once it comes to the actual show, Exeter is going to be just as exciting as Tokyo, you know? You’ve now worked on a number of different musical projects, including film scores and installations, as well as obviously your own albums. How does the process of writing vary for films compared to albums? It’s really different. With soundtracks there are established rules that you can follow. You can break them if you like, but soundtracks aren’t like albums - the music is serving a higher goal, whereas when you’re writing a record, that music alone is the goal. Soundtrack rules have evolved along with film, and they are a really useful guide. That’s not to say that it’s easier to write soundtracks but for us at least, it’s incomparable to how we’d approach writing actual songs. Are you working on any film or other interesting projects at the moment? Anything in the pipeline? Hopefully some things in the pipeline, yes. There’s such an explosion of creativity and excitement in the world of digital arts, bands who are limiting themselves to just writing records and then touring them are starting to almost feel old-fashioned. I don’t mean that albums or shows are old-fashioned - I think they are still completely relevant, powerful and meaningful forms of communication. But if you are in a band in the first place, then I would cautiously presume part of the reason you are doing that is because you are trying to understand and maybe reflect the world you are living in. And have you seen the world lately?? It’s insane. It feels like in that sea of insanity, in the last decade, a lot more tools have been invented that bands who follow the old-school-band template are not well-equipped to use. We don’t necessarily consider ourselves ‘artists’, but we are trying to evolve what it can mean to be ‘a band’ these days.
You’re known as leaders of the underground UK music scene, which means you have a kind of cult following. Does this bring out the creepy fans? What’s the weirdest fan experience you’ve ever had? Where are we known as that? Are you sure? We’ve been very lucky with our fans. We went on tour with The Cure for a bit once so we’ve seen what it’s like when actuallyfamous bands have incredibly dedicated fans, and it’s nothing like anything we ever experience. Your music is thought provoking and intelligent, do you ever think ‘balls to this I’m gonna listen to some *insert appropriately cheesy popstar here*? This is so completely unlike how we think of music. I’ve spent loads of time listening to that first Katy Perry record, most Rihanna records, there’s even some Pussycat Girls songs that I like. Just listen to what you want, dude. Might put on some Michael Jackson in a minute now you’ve brought it to mind. Dirty Diana! Great. What a brilliant synth sound. I don’t think that it’s a bad thing to hear 65’s music described as ‘provoking and intelligent’ but it’s certainly not what we’re going for. What bands will be playing on the tour bus stereo? The 65 tour bus is filled with silence and sadness. Sometimes one of our crew might give a James Joyce reading or something, but otherwise it’s just existential contemplation and sometimes crying. And finally, if you could give one piece to advice to any aspiring musicians out there, what would it be? We recently toured The States with a band called Caspian. They opened their sets with this poem from Charles Bukowski. I’m not sure that 65 could pull off that level of solemness/earnestness these days, but I still agree entirely with what Bukowski is saying. If you’re going to try, go all the way… Words: Zan Lawther
CATCH 65 DAYS OF STATIC ON 25th MARCH AT THE PHOENIX - EXETER
You don’t have a singer or any lyrical content to your songs. Has anyone ever tried to put a vocal track to your music? Robert Smith sings on one of our records, and a hardcore band called Circle Takes the Square sing on another. And we even sang on an EP we’d rather forget about once upon a time. When it feels like we should try vocals we do. It just doesn’t usually feel like that.
DEVON MUSIC | MARCH 2014
WWW.65DAYSOFSTATIC.COM 65 DAYS OF STATIC
The Answer
Kathyrn Williams
‘Hard-driving Zep-worship’
‘Magnificent and melancholic.’
Wed 12 Mar, 7.30pm, £14.50 NME
Sun 23 Mar, 8pm, £12 (£10) METRO
Dreadzone
65 Days of Static
cheek’ 247 MAGAZINE
‘Megaton guitar instrumentals with electronic styles.’
Fri 14 Mar, 8pm, £15.50 ‘Rhythmic, catchy and a little bit tongue in
Mad Dog Mcrea Sat 15 Mar, 8pm, £13
‘A sound mixed, mashed and finely honed through years of live gigs’
Tue 25 Mar, 8pm, £13
NME
Lee Scratch Perry Wed 26 Mar, 7.30pm, £18 ‘Truly, one of the greats.’ THE GUARDIAN
ROCK N REEL MAGAZINE
Son of Dave
Sat 15 Mar, 8pm, £12 (£10)
‘This withered bluesman has proved himself a master of his unique craft…’ BEARDED MAGAZINE
Tcha Limberger’s Budapest Gypsy Orchestra Thu 27 Mar, 8pm, £14 (£12) ‘Full of energy and pathos.’ SONGLINES
The Feeling
Salsa Celtica
‘Full of heart, bittersweet observation and unashamed street-level Englishness.’
‘Passion, energy and virtuosity’
Wed 19 Mar, 8pm, £18.50 OBSERVER MUSIC MONTHLY
Fri 28 Mar, 8pm, £15 (£13) SONGLINES *****
Larry Miller
Hospitatlity
‘A blues rock powerhouse.’
A selection of the finest Hospital Records talent
Thu 20 Mar, 8pm, £12 THE GUARDIAN
Analogue To Digital Music Expo 2014
Sat 22 Mar, 10:30am - 4:30pm, £10, (£8)
Sat 29 Mar, 9pm - 2am, £10.50 +
Stiff Little Fingers Mon 31 Mar, 8pm, £18.50
The energy of punk with infectious hooks
Southwest’s Premier Music industry show
See the website for many more gigs at Exeter Phoenix 01392 667080 | exeterphoenix.org.uk | Bradninch Place, Gandy Street, Exeter, EX4 3LS
Family guy, American dad or Cleveland show? Family guy without a doubt. It never fails to make me laugh even the older episodes are still amazing! I can just sit there in front of the tv all night watching it and never get bored. What are your natural hair colours? Years ago we all used to dye our hair black but our hair colours today are all our natural colours. Except Ben has to use boot polish on his head as he’s going bald. If you could be a superhero which one would you be and why? Hmmm probably batman. He’s just cool as f*ck! Always looks the best and even though he’s just a regular guy with loads of money he always saves the day haha.
If you HAD to cover a Michael Jackson song, which one would it be? For me I think it would have to be thriller. I remember seeing that video when I was like 6 and being completely blown away. I think Michael Jackson was one of the most talented musicians/singer songwriters this world has ever seen and Thriller is a pure example of just how untouchable he was. The killer hooks, the insane dance moves. It just leaves you wanting more. Great tune! If you were a caterpillar for a day where would you chill out? I’d probably just crawl into jenna Jameson’s vagina and stay there forever all warm and happy. If you were president of the United States, what would you have for breakfast? Most definitely cyanide. I absolutely hate anything to do with world leaders/ politicians/ presidents/ prime ministers. They are all full of false hope feeding the world with lies and making promises they can’t commit too. They should all be lined up in front of a firing wall and gunned down. Liars. The lot of them. If each of the band was a type of sweets, what would they be? I think I’d be a curly wurly because I’m tall and lanky. mike would be a snickers because he’s nuts. Ben would be a twix because there is two of him... Sober Ben when he’s nice, and drunk Ben when he’s a bastard. And Chris would be a gob stopper because no matter what we do we can’t get rid of him ; ) What’s your favourite song to play live? I love playing live more than anything. But right now I love playing “BREAK” the most. It’s just got such a big opening riff it gets the crowd jumping from the start and I love the whole groove and feel of the song! Why is the kill so glamorous, what’s so special about it? We wanted to be called glamour of the kill because it reflects our musical style! The “glamour” being the catchy, hooky chorus’s side of the band and the “kill” being the heavy more brutal side. We get a lot of shit for our band name but we couldn’t give two shits. We love it. That’s all that matters.
What’s your favourite soup? I like to keep it simple with Heinz tomato soup with a big dollop of butter in the middle and sprinkled with black pepper! Some warm crusty bread on the side is always needed though! Who’s the biggest diva in the band? This is a hard one really. I don’t think any of us are divas as such we kind of just make do with what we are given. It when you start to be one people start to think badly of you and that’s not really what were about. I can name a few people that have been like that on past tours and I’ve thought “what a fucking loser” Who’s got the best tattoos in the band? Most definitely me haha. No but if I had to say about the other guys I’d say Ben had the best sleeve! And Chris has just got his hands done and they are soooooo good ! We are all pretty covered now it’s getting pretty scary how thuggish we look. Would you rather have a tour bus with a hot tub or a tour bus with your own tattoo studio? Well... When we head out with our bros in Heavens Basement we are sharing a bus with those guys and bringing a tattooist out with us for the whole tour so that’s kind of a tattoo studio isn’t it? Haha. A hot tub would be great though. I’m all for the party’s and a hot tub is definitely a main ingredient! Pro beard or anti beard? I’m all for beards... I think beards are awesome and they have been for years. The thing I’m not into at the moment is all these ugly dudes that grow a beard, get a shit face tattoo and suddenly call themselves a model? I don’t get it? I see these weird looking guys with a f*cking throat tattoo and knuckles tattooed and they don’t have tattoos anywhere else? Beards are cool though. Always have been. How much hairspray does the band get through on average each week? About 8 - 10 cans a show! Why should we check you out on tour? Honestly? Because we are the best f*cking band on the bill. Literally nothing comes close. Come check us out. WORDS ZAN LAWTHER
PERFORMING
BLACK LABEL SOCIETY BOWLING FOR SOUP BUCKCHERRY CROSSFAITH DYING FETUS KILLSWITCH ENGAGE MISS MAY I POWERMAN 5000 RED DRAGON CARTEL SKINDRED VOLBEAT WHILE SHE SLEEPS AVATAR BAD RELIGION BURY TOMORROW CRAZYTOWN DANGER DANGER EMMURE FLOGGING MOLLY IN FLAMES JOE BONAMASSA MEMPHIS MAY FIRE PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS TESLA THE BOSSHOSS THE PRETTY RECKLESS SKID ROW SEETHER SABATON AMERICAN HEAD CHARGE ANATHEMA ARCANE ROOTS BLESSTHEFALL DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN FEED THE RHINO LETLIVE KILL DEVIL HILL LONELY THE BRAVE OPETH QUICKSAND SEPTEMBER MOURNING SUICIDE SILENCE THE AMITY AFFLICTION THY ART IS MURDER THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER THE CHARM THE FURY THE GRAVELTONES THE USED UPON A BURNING BODY ANTI-MORTEM BATTLECROSS COLDRAIN HEART IN HAND HUNTRESS KING 810 LYGER MALEVOLENCE NEW POLITICS POLAR SIKTH TRIVIUM
PLUS LOADS MORE BANDS TO FOLLOW FOR TICKETS, FESTIVAL UPDATES AND TRAVEL INFO GO TO:
www.downloadfestival.co.uk 13-15 JUNE 2014, DONINGTON PARK
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FEATURE
Heavens Basement are a four piece hard rock band from the North Midlands, who’ve spent the last 4 years tearing up venues the length and breadth of the UK and beyond. When one of your early gigs is an opening slot for Bon Jovi in front of 50,000 people you know the future’s going to be pretty bright. Now after playing with some of the You guys are signed to Red Bull Records; thinking animals and best US rock bands out there and countless colours here, which animal and colour would you be, and why? appearances at festivals across the UK and Aha, well I’d be a black falcon, because I’m dressed head to toe in black Europe Heaven’s Basement are shortly to most of the time, and I’m wearing an Indian headdress. Okay, not really embark on one of their biggest headliners wearing a headdress. Because I like killing small rodents with my feet? to date, including a slot at Takedown Festival in March. We managed to grab What about anyone else in the band? Chris our drummer would be a blue pterodactyl. He supports Manchester 10 minutes with guitarist Sid to grill him United so out of spite I’m gonna give him City’s colours. Plus he has the about rock n roll bands, the upcoming tour wing span of a pterodactyl - his arms are soo long! and to discover that the word ‘pterodactyl’ can be integrated into a sensible interview. What’s your best chat up line? I don’t actually have any, I just walk up to the ladies and that’s it. I don’t think I’ve ever used one, or maybe I’ve just never realised the b*ll*cks I’m saying is a cliche. You’ve toured with some absolute rock legends, like Bon Jovi and Papa Roach, who have been the most ‘party’, and have you guys ever managed to out rock n roll any of them? Most of the bands we’ve toured or played with have been pretty rock n roll. Papa Roach give as good as they get and are a good example. They have fun on tour and they can party, but some bands have now done their days of heavy partying. We’re the ones who usually end up being kept away by the end of a tour; we’re young and want to party hard still. What’s your favourite venue in the UK? I think Manchester Academy is my favourite. All the gigs I’ve been to there have been amazing; it was one of the first venues I ever went to as a kid. We played a show there on our first tour with Papa Roach and it was awesome, and our recent show there with Black Veil Brides was too. Other venues are cooler for vibes, but the best shows always happen there. What’s been the best comedy moment at one of your shows? They happen all the time, but we once made Chris dress up as Willy Wonka, the original version because we said his hair was like Gene Wilder’s. Some of our crew dressed up as Oompa Loompas. Every time they came on stage for a guitar change our front of house engineer played the Oompa Loompa theme tune. It was hilarious. A music reviewer didn’t realise it was a one off and thought it was all part of our regular show, and I don’t think he saw the funny side really. What are you looking forward to most about your upcoming tour with Glamour of the Kill? We’re really looking forward to it. It’s our biggest headline tour to date so far - they are all much bigger venues than we’ve played as headliners before. The London show is at The Electric Ballroom. To be playing there and headlining is such a crazy idea to me. It’ll be our first headline in Europe as well. What about Takedown Festival, excited about that? We’re stoked to be going back to Southampton. We love the energy of playing festivals always. It’ll feel like a party for everyone!
Catch Heaven’s Basement at The White Rabbit, Plymouth on March 28
DEVON MUSIC | MARCH 2014
WORDS: MARIANNE HARRIS
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Thirst
Plymouth
7 3
1 The White Rabbit 2 The Hub 3 Club Envy 4 Pavillions
5 Plymouth Uni 6 Tiki Bar 7 Thirst 8 Last Shop Standing
Exeter
1 The Phoenix
2
5
2 The Cavern
1
3 The Lemon Grove 6
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4 The Corn Exchange 5 Mama Stones 6 Exeter Cathedral 7 Exeter Great Hall
PREVIEWS Feel good fun for Hayemill
SHAVE THE WORLD CHARITY EVENT
A whole heap of fun featuring music from female duo Girl Friday, Mad Dog McRea, Haunt the Woods, The Klezbians and Black Friday, plus brilliant ska DJs Skankin’ Good Times will round up the night. It’s all in aid of Hayemill charity and there’ll even be some sponsored head shaving going on. Fun guaranteed. Mar 07 | The Hub, Plymouth
FOR FANS OF: MAD DOG MCREA / GIRL FRIDAY / BLACK FRIDAY
They’ve got the moves like (Jimmy) Jagger
Latter day garage punk lads from London fronted by one Jimmy Jagger aka the son of Mick Jagger and Jeri Hall. They play a high speed twist on The Replacements and The Misfits, singing furiously about addiction, girls and beer primarily, although “shout” might be a more accurate description. FOR FANS OF: TURBOWOLF / GALLOWS / MAX RAPTOR
THE ANSWER
Mar 12 | The Phoenix, Exeter Mar 13 | White Rabbit, Plymouth
Freaky, cheeky goth rockers
TURBOGEIST
Mar 10 | The Cavern, Exeter
Balls out classic hard rock
Big guitars and big vocals, expect all the swagger, sleaze and sass of a full on classic rock show. Their songs are powerhouse anthems that easily prove their worth as a previous support act for AC/DC. Straight up hard rock n roll seems to having an unashamed resurgence recently and The Answer should be top of the list for those wishing to indulge in some proper rocking out. FOR FANS OF: BLACK SPIDERS / THIN LIZZY / AIRBOURNE
ASHESTOANGELS / DEAD / UGLY LOVE
Bristolian goth-rockers Ashestoangels combine catchy melodies with an energetic live show guaranteed to get bodies moving. Dead are what would happen if Tarantino and Shakespeare started a band and Ugly Love create rock music for the weird and horny. Together they inject some well needed fun, colour, charm, energy and excitement into the heart of the alt-rock scene. FOR FANS OF: FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS / WEDNESDAY 13
THE FEELING
Mar 19 | The Phoenix, Exeter
DEVON MUSIC | MARCH 2014
Mar 14 | White Rabbit,
Making easy listening hip….. Drawing heavily from the rich harmonies and melodies of 70’s soft rock, this Sussex-bred quintet attempt to make easy listening ‘hip’ with their own brand of indie pop-rock. Their 2006 debut album Twelve Stops and Home garnered 3 top ten UK hits and a Brit nomination and 2013’s offering Boy Cried Wolf didn’t disappoint fans, being largely heralded as the album of their career. FOR FANS OF: ORSON / SCOUTING FOR GIRLS / THE HOOSIERS
PREVIEWS YOU ME AT SIX
Apr 02 | Pavilions, Plymouth
Poppity pop punk rockers
Returning to the UK to tour 2014 album Cavalier Youth, You Me at Six are one of the British pop punk industry’s biggest exports. Their accessible, catchy tunes strike a chord with listeners through their emotional lyrics and upbeat build ups. It’s throw your hands up in the air stuff and the addition of current pop punk hearthrobs Don Broco as support guarantee a night of great music and shenanigans. FOR FANS OF: MAYDAY PARADE / KIGH / SLEEPING WITH SIRENS
LOSTALONE
Glam looking alt rockers Derbyshire boys LostAlone (think stadium-sized Weezer with BALLS) are building momentum towards their album release this April (Shapes of Screams comes out Apr 07). This monster show guarantees you tasty riffs, dirty hooks and all the singalong choruses you can handle. FOR FANS OF: MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE / THE USED / CANTERBURY
DAN LE SAC VS SCROOBIUS PIP
Apr 28 | White Rabbit, Plymouth
Cheeky, charming grooves
This enigmatic hip-hop duo, combine electronic beats with sung, spoken, and rapped lyrics. Featur-ing some of the best facial hair in the business the name “Scroobius Pip” is an intentional misspelling of the Edward Lear poem, “The Scroobious Pip”. Expect a whole heap of comedy, charisma and above all else BEATS. FOR FANS OF: BEANS ON TOAST / GOLDIE LOOKIN’ CHAIN
Back door scuzz rage pop
Born in 2008 in Leeds, PABH are certainly an acquired taste musically but definitely not one to miss live. Their amp-melting blend of rock riffs and alt-noise sees them revered by both the metal and indie crowds alike. It’s a musical rollercoaster of tempo with part sung, part screeched, part drawled vocals and a whole heap of energy thrown into the grinding riffs. FOR FANS OF: DINOSAUR PILE UP / THE COMPUTERS / TURBOWOLF
THE GHOST INSIDE
May 22 | White Rabbit, Plymouth
DEVON MUSIC | MARCH 2014
Apr 08 | The Cavern, Exeter
PULLED APART BY HORSES
May 12 | The Cavern, Exeter May 13 | White Rabbit, Plymouth
Can you hear the thunder roar!?!
Hard hitting, passionate and fuelled by the kinetic riffing and thunderous breakdowns that have become synonymous with the metalcore genre, LA based TGI take their heaviness seriously. Prepare to get pummelled in the mosh and pummelled in the ears when they come crashing into town. FOR FANS OF: YOUR DEMISE / SUICIDE SILENCE / PARKWAY DRIVE
FEATURE
Explain the band name Fast ghost, fast spirit. I guess we’re massive lovers of punk rock that’s snotty and gritty and good. Me and Jimmy had a hard time coming up with a band name, our friend Simon came up with the name; it fits our music, especially as our drummer Josh is a thrash drummer. It fits him - fast spirit.
They’re fast, they’re rowdy, they’re uncompromising and they’re currently on a mission to get themselves firmly onto your radar. London boys Turbogeist might have slipped your notice up till now, but not for long we can assure you. In the run up to their latest spate of tour dates we caught up with vocalist Luis to find out more about the band, and what rocks the stereo in their tour van.
What’s been going on in the world of Turbogeist? We just released the single ‘Comatose’ online and on iTunes etc, the video will be up in a week. We’re also putting the finishing touches on the album artwork. We have Fiona Staples working on it; she’s an incredible comic book illustrator, who worked with Brian K Vaughan on ‘Saga’, one of the best comic books I’ve read in the last few years.
What was your first show as Turbogeist like? It was pretty chaotic but really fun. Was in a club in Soho called St Moritz, back in the day when we cross dressed. I remember I wore a dress and we played in the crowd. Does the Jagger connection (guitarist Jimmy is Mick Jagger’s son) help or hinder? I guess neither. I don’t believe in anyone cashing in on those kinds of things. Everyone’s so media obsessed these days, it could definitely be a hindrance if we tried to link the connection. Plus we already have great connections from touring in various bands in the past; we just think it’s better to use that. People give too much of a sh*t about what you do on the outside of the music world. What do you think of Prince’s recent spate of intimate London shows? I’m a massive Prince fan. I saw him at the 02, and at Hop Farm. He’s been playing right on my doorstep and I haven’t seen him. I just don’t have time to stand in a queue for 8 hours for tickets. If I wasn’t doing anything else I’d be there though, it’s one of the only things worth queuing 8 hours for. If you could play any stage in the world, which one would it be? Probably 7th Street in Minneapolis; it’s right next door to where Purple Rain was filmed, and it’s where Prince learned all his sh*t. I’ve been there before, just not with these guys. I’d love to go back. Describe Turbogeist in 3 words… Fast. Loud. Exciting. Who makes the best guitars? Fender. I play Fender. There is a guy in Denmark St though, Phillip Debreuille, he makes really cool looking guitars. He’s made guitars for Ron Ashton (The Stooges), My Bloody Valentine, Aerosmith etc. Sadly though I can’t afford one of Phillippe’s guitars. What will be playing in the van when you’re on tour? All types of music really. A little hip-hop - MF Doom’s album. I tend to play a lot of pop - Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Pusha T. ‘From Here to Eternity’ by The Clash also gets played a lot (obviously), Pixies, some Prince, Tom Waite, and a new band I’m really liking - Milk Music. It’s Neil Young’s ‘Ragged Glory’ meets Dinosaur Jr. I’m always finding new music and trying to play it in the van. We all appreciate new music even though we don’t listen to the same bands. What’s on the agenda for you for the rest of 2014? Playing Exeter in March. Aha. Touring, mostly touring. We’re going out with Radkey, and then we’re doing our own headliner. Then an album in September I hope. We like to keep busy. Come check us out!
Catch Turbogeist at The Cavern on March 10
DEVON MUSIC | MARCH 2014
WORDS: MARIANNE HARRIS
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COMPETITION
65 Days of Static are known for their intense live show, they blew us away at last year’s ArcTanGent festival and we’re sure their appearance in Exeter this month will be no less impressive. Win yourself a pair of tickets by answering this simple question...
Q: Which album are 65 playing in it’s entirety in London this month? Email your answer to: competitions@devon-music.com or send us a direct message via Twitter or facebook. Competition closes 21/03/14 /devonmusicmag @D e v o n M u s i c M a g DEVON MUSIC |MARCH 2014
65DAYSOFSTATIC
ONES TO WATCH
For the past 3 years Empire of Fools have been working and developing their sound and performance and all round hard rockingness which has seen them sharing the stage with the likes of The Darkness, Reef, Status Quo, The Quireboys. They have a fantastic reputation for powerful, energetic live performances and have become particularly popular at festivals due to their confidence and ability to fill the biggest of stages comfortably. 2013 saw EofF recording and releasing to Itunes their debut EP “Unstoppable”, recorded with Romesh Dodangoda (Motorhead, Funeral For a Friend, The Blackout) followed by their debut music video for the track “Dirty Mind” The EP received extremely positive feedback and airplay throughout the UK, parts of Europe and into America and has opened the doors that led to them being invited to perform live for BBC Introducing and BBC Devon. Distinctive solid/powerful vocals from frontman Mark Pascall puts a true vocalist on show and demonstrates live how it should be done. A quality voice and song writing skills have developed alongside the big riffs and contrasting melodic guitar skills of Steve Cobbin. Combined the two have built a strong understanding and determination to push their music to the best they can. Sitting at the back providing the solid stylish groove is Dean Stevens, a highly experienced and talented drummer who has helped to create a personality with the style and music. Having recently announced they will be opening for The Answer in Exeter this month, we caught up with frontman Mark Pascall to discuss life, the universe and hard flippin’ rock n roll!
How did you guys form as a band? Empire of Fools started out when Steve and I were on the look out for new people to work with after our previous bands (mine was southwest band MORPH) had finished. We actually came across each other on a musicians’ website, not a dating site as Steve always claims. We started to write some songs together and quickly saw that it was going to work well. Over the past few years we’ve had various line ups and members but we are now happy with what we’ve got and the power trio is working very well. A couple of years ago we came across our drummer Dean who fitted the style and standard we wanted, plus his humour is on the same wavelength! What made you first decide to pick up the guitar? I grew up listening to the likes of Deep Purple, Hendrix, Whitesnake, Free etc. so I had a taste for it from a young age. During school a few guys started to learn and I got inspired from then onwards. What was your first proper experience of rock n roll, the moment where you thought ‘yeah, this is what I want to do’? I think it all goes back to the beginning really, when I played the first few gigs and started to write my own music. All of that was the catalyst for many years of hard work and pushing my music to as far as I can! I’ve managed to build it up well on occasions and it’s awesome to play your own songs to a big crowd of appreciative people. What’s been EofF’s highlight so far? Looe Music Festival was a great day, playing before The Darkness and the stage is on the beach! Such a great crowd and atmosphere at that festival and we were so well looked after. Also shooting our video for “Dirty Mind” was great fun (www.youtube.com/empireoffoolstv) You’ve supported some pretty big names. Has anyone made you a bit fanboy when you’ve met them face to face? I can’t say I’ve been speechless and starstruck by anyone but it has been a bizarre feeling being backstage with artists such as The Darkness, Status Quo, Reef etc. We’ve been very proud of getting to share the stage with these rock legends. If you could play any festival in the world (and any stage) which would it be? I think that Download is one of the festivals that as a rock band you really aspire to play! Its history is so strong within rock and especially British rock! What’s on the game plan for EofF in 2014? To keep plugging away and play to as many people as we can. Hopefully to build on what we have already achieved. We will be shooting a video for our track “Unstoppable” from our debut EP and really want to get back into the studio too. High fives or fist pumps? It probably sways more towards High Fives, but with the occasional man hug thrown in! Very manly though. What’s your favourite post-gig snack? Probably chocolate for me! Dean loves his chips and Steve will eat whatever he can find! And finally, complete this sentence…..If you like ??????? you should check out Empire of Fools. If you like to turn it up loud and irritate your neighbours with some hard rock with a melodic edge - you should check out EofF!
Catch Empire of Fools with The Answer on March 12th at The Exeter Phoenix. www.facebook.com/empireoffools DEVON MUSIC | MARCH 2014
WORDS: ZAN LAWTHER
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