Southampton Music - September 2015

SEPTEMBER 2015

YOUR ONE STOP GUIDE TO THE BEST MUSIC IN THE CITY!

N O T P M A H T SOU

MUSIC

electronica pioneers headed for o2 guildhall

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE wheatus ready to rock the o2 guildhall

15th anniversary of teenage dirtbag

ALSO THIS MONTH - brother & bones / modern honesty / win butserfest tickets!!

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WELCOME

Thanks for picking up the September 2015 issue of Southampton Music Magazine, your one stop guide to the best music in the city.

This month we talk to a true musical pioneer in Neil Barnes, better known to you and I as Leftfield. Also this month we chat to Bridgend superstars Bullet For My Valentine who are back with a new LP and ready to rock the O2 Guildhall and we talk 15 years of Teenage Dirtbag with the nicest guy in pop-punk Brendon B Brown of Wheatus.

All this plus previews, listings and announcements for all of the best venues and events in the area and a chance to win a pair of tickets for Butserfest - be quick though, competition closes on the 10th of September.

w w w. s o u t h a m p t o n - m u s i c. co m For news submissions and editorial enquiries email info@southampton-music.com If you are interested in advertising with us email sales@phmusicmedia.co.uk or call us free on 0808 147 1106

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Leftfield are undoubtedly one of the most influential names in dance music. Forming in 1989 and quickly building the entire genre of Progressive House, they are often called the saviours of house music. Starting off by inventively remixing huge songs such as David Bowie’s ‘Jump They Say’, the band first broke through with their debut album ‘Leftism’ in 1995.

The album is still seen as a landmark of the 90’s dance scene, reaching out to music fans across the globe and channelling dance music out of the underground scene and into the consciousness of not just dance fans, but rockers, metallers, ravers and punks. It’s no wonder it’s been voted as one of the greatest albums of all time many times.

‘Leftism’ was succeeded by the bands sophomore effort ‘Rhythm and Stealth’ which saw the band top the UK charts and provided a matured sound. The music had taken a darker turn, filled with thundering basslines and harsher beats. Despite the overwhelming reaction to the band, who by this point were headlining festivals and breaking sound systems all over the world, Leftfield called it a day in 2002 to the dismay of thousands of party-goers.

In 2010 Leftfield returned for a few live shows. Following the incredibly positive reaction to the shows, main man Neil Barnes breathed new life into the ashes of Leftfield and began working on demos for a brand new album, with a not-so-new partner in crime, Adam Wren who engineered Leftfield’s earlier albums but stepped in to fill the gap left by the departure of Paul Daley. Then, on 8th June this year, the world was treated to something marvellous; the first Leftfield studio album in 16 years. ‘Alternative Light Source’ does exactly what Leftfield do best: produce eternally relevant and impressive dance music while continuously moving both their sound and the entire genre forward.

Crossing new boundaries ‘Alternative Light Source’ provides the soundtrack to universal exploration of both physical space and the identity of oneself. It covers themes from dystopian worlds to personal struggles with depression. The album is the classic Leftfield we know and love, but with new discoveries, rawer sounds and even darker tones. Despite some of its themes, each and every song has the ability to create a party atmosphere and keep people dancing.

Barnes and Co. aren’t just fantastic on record though. The Leftfield live show is truly a spectacle to behold: thousands of fans letting the masterful music take control, aweinspiring light shows, and the electrifying energy of the band. Not to mention the chance to experience huge hits like ‘Release the Pressure’, ‘Open Up’ and ‘Head and Shoulders’.

Leftfield are about to embark a huge nationwide tour, which comes to O2 Guildhall on 2nd October and we got the chance recently to catch up with the mastermind behind it all, Neil Barnes, to talk about his return to the UK dance scene and what he found when he got there…

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC |september 2015

You recently released ‘Alternative Light Source’, how has the reaction been so far?

I think the reaction’s been pretty good. It’s a bit of a slow build up, like most Leftfield albums. In Europe it’s gone particularly well and it’s picking up over here.

It seems to have been very well received and gained a lot of attention from mainstream media, including Radio 1, did you expect that at all?

It’s done really well but it has been a long time since the last album so it could have been completely ignored haha. It was a big step coming back after so long, doing the new album and doing it with Adam Wren who engineered most of the album and worked on most of the songs with me. It’s been a bit of a journey, as with all Leftfield albums but it’s going well.

The album explores a lot of darker and more intense themes then your earlier works, where did these ideas come from?

Probably because I’m a bit of a miserable b*stard; that’s probably got something to do with it haha!

Over the last 5 years or so I’ve had quite a serious battle with depression actually. I have my good days and my bad days and ‘Bad Radio’ is about that but the whole thing is meant to be positive. Alternative Light Source is supposed to be about finding a new direction or something out of nothing, so the overall perspective of the album is meant to be good. Oh, everyone’s leaving the room…haha… [pause as the crew evacuate Neil’s tour bus] you’re making me talk about this in front of my crew which is really funny but I have spoken about this before and I admire people that do talk about things like this and are honest about it. I think mental health issues plague our nation, far more so than ever before and should be openly discussed. Hopefully you do come out the other side and as a whole, I think the album has a positive light. The cover, for instance, is about productivity and young people. It’s a classroom. And I do believe that the future is young people and I didn’t want to make a dark album so some of the songs are a bit lighter and more positive. It’s all about the journey.

That came about because I was looking for someone to sing on that backing track and I was trying to find someone really good to do it. I tried a couple of people and it just didn’t seem to work and then I was in Rough Trade Records and a friend of mine suggested Sleaford Mods and suddenly the penny dropped, because I really like their music. So I went home and contacted Jason and I’m really proud of that track because I think Jason’s lyrics are absolutely mind-blowing. I think it’s probably the most Leftfield thing on the record, it’s the most radical piece of music.

FEATURE

The album includes several collaborations [Sleaford Mods feature on latest single ‘Head and Shoulders’]. How did that partnership come about?

Is there anyone that you particularly want to work with in the future?

At this particular moment, no. I really wanted to work with Robert White on this record but it didn’t quite work out. But I don’t really think about it like that; I pick people up along the way. There are loads of artists out there that I admire.

I’d love to do a track with George Michael actually. I’d like to do something dark with him y’know, not disco George but ballad George. He’s got the most amazing voice. I wish I could work with The Streets, who I really love, but he doesn’t sing anymore. I wouldn’t mind working with some other production people; getting to work with some young procould make an album with electronic music. grammers; that would be an interesting thing to do. There’s always people!

Well there were very few albums at that time that managed to cross the divide of the genres, which were so strictly defined back You were away for over 10 years, what brought about the then; and Leftism was one of them… decision to start making music as Leftfield again?

I think it did. It pulled people in from everywhere and I’m proud Boredom, basically. That’s the main reason. Needing money, of that record because of that. We were the first people to take that’s the second reason haha. After touring in 2010 we did reggae rhythms, drum ‘n’ bass and we went everywhere with it a lot of the old music and then we started to do a few new because we could and I think now, what we were involved with tracks in the set and we twisted up the old ones and added back then, is massive. It’s all superstar DJ’s, it’s global, when it was new bits and I thought maybe… and then I stupidly made a really small scene before. It’s an enormous genre that crosses the decision to do it and then spent the next three years over everything. But there’s a lot of generic dance music out trying to do it haha. I felt there was still legs in Leftfield. I felt there. I mean, there’s some real superstars making amazing muthere was something that Leftfield could do to fit into the sic but there’s also an awful lot of generic dance music that really world still. And when I feel that Leftfield doesn’t anymore, doesn’t need to exist but overall, I think it’s in a very healthy state. then I’ll stop.

What can we expect from the live shows this time round?

Do you think that the world of dance music has changed significantly since you were last performing as Leftfield?

It all comes together in the live shows. In October we’re doing a longer set. We normally do an hour and a half but we’ll be doing Yeah it has. It’s now the norm isn’t it? Dance music is part of a lot longer so expect a lot more Leftfield and a really loud sound the fabric of everything. When we started, it was still very un- system. I’ve always been quite proud of our live shows because derground music and I suppose us - and others - are responsi- we don’t do it like other people and it’s always an experience. I ble for making it a global phenomenon. I never normally say like to think it is anyway! this but I think Leftfield showed that dance music could make Words: Liam Fleming an album. Chemical Brothers did as well and the Prodigy, but ‘Leftism’ was such a big record, it showed people that you

Catch Leftfield live @ O2 Guildhall | October 2

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC | september 2015

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LOCAL HEROES

DJ HAMMY

FEATURE

Unless you are very new to this city it is very likely that at some point (perhaps several points) in the last 35 years you will have danced the night away with the legendary ...

improvement of late especially on the medium sized score which we have needed for a very long time. There’s a fair few others dotted around Southampton doing their bit. Alas I don’t get to see to many live gigs any more due to my work schedule but speaking for the punk generation they are still out there playing in bands, going to gigs. I see the kids who were in bands in the 80’s, 90’s and noughties still doing their bit in their 30’s, 40’s and 50’s. There’s a new young generation in the area as well I just hope they can shake things up to create something new and vibrant. Bands like Capital X are leading the way. I’ve always maintained if you want to make it get out of town and your comfort zone and play anywhere and everywhere. Its worked for Band Of Skulls and the Delays. Its still a close knitted community everyone knows everyone. I like that. There’s more DJ’s than ever working locally as well keeping me on my toes which is great.

What’s the biggest challenge for regular club nights these days?

Obvious finding enough clubbers to attend on a regular basis.

I have worked in clubs most of the past 35 years and its always been an up and down business but I was so lucky to have an amazing music scene both locally and nationally with so many exciting youth cults and underground music genres coming along (often at the same time) to keep it fresh.and exciting Youth culture as we know it has faded. There’s so many other leisure activities these days and nightclubs were almost made redundant once pubs and venue could open all hours. I saw the writing on the wall a few years back and finally decided after nearly 3 decades to knock my mid week When did you first start DJ’ing and where was it? residency on the head and 1980 at The Rio Grande Club, Bottom of St Mary Street (Now concentrate on weekends Solent Uni Halls Of Residence). I started out by pestering the in a late night pub which resident DJ at the Magnum Club (recently Unit) so much for was far more intimate. two-tone and punk tunes that he [John Davis] decided to get me Perhaps I was simply my own night in a nearby venue to shut me up. It didn’t work to old to be running though! The Magnum [a popular gay club] was the only club that club nights, I certainly would let us in. Club land was very different then and a very scary wouldn’t want to be place if you were different in any way, but what a great place. starting out in club land The gay community loved us and we loved going there! So, on a these days. You have got dark Tuesday night in early 1980 my friend Gary and I trudged to offer something unique off with an Adidas bag full of singles, to play to our mates at the and different to survive supposed Country and Western Rio Grande Club, it was more for sure unless you go down the cheese route. Even drink offers like the Wild West in reality! We did well enough to be given don’t ensure a full club any more.

Saturday nights soon after. It was quite a scary place to be at the time. Full of punks, mods, skins heads and football boys, but great What’s your ultimate guaranteed floor filler? fun. Taught me loads on what makes a crowd tick and handling To be honest there is no such track. The big tried and tested song all types of people and personalities. When to speak and when to will only work if played at the right time to the right crowd. I’ve listen. I was hooked... fallen flat on my backside so many times in the past but I have a very good inbuilt radar on when to let the crowd have the killer tracks. I could give you a different top 10 every day.

Where can we find a DJ Hammy night now?

I have a residency every Friday at the Shooting Star in Bevois Valley , been their for 4 and half years now. Its a smashing intimate venue perfect for my needs. I can play a very eclectic mix up and never worry about killing the floor. Every one is there for the music. We get a mix of ages from 18 to 70 plus coming to see me and I’m still picking up new converts. I’m also doing one Saturday every three Months at The Alexandra.

Most Saturdays I am out on the road doing weddings and birthdays etc which is my main business now. Luckily I am getting lots of work doing functions for my old and current regulars or they recommend me. I spend mot of my week meeting clients working on their functions and on the admin side in my office dealing with enquiries and all business matters.

How do you think the Southampton music scene has changed over the years?

Well there are far less venues for sure with so many pubs closing down but we still have the main ones from my day i.e the Joiners and Talking Heads etc. and what with the Brook, and newcomers like the Engine Rooms and 1865 there’s been a definite

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC | september 2015

It’s still the best job in the world bar none that’s for sure I just hope I can keep going for a few more years...

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DJ HAMMY

B U L L E T

F O R

M Y

V A L E N T I N E

Bullet For My Valentine have established themselves as one of the biggest bands on the planet. Over the course of their astonishing career they have sold 10 million albums and toured the globe countless times, gaining more fans at every turn. In the UK their last tour saw them hit sell out arenas, including the hallowed Wembley Arena and now they’re coming to our very own O2 Guildhall.

Widely regarded as one of the most successful crossover artists, love them or loathe them, there’s no denying that they’ve been massively responsible for bringing metal to the mainstream and for shining a big bright light onto the alternative scene. Mixing classic riff-heavy rock with a contemporary grasp of dynamics they’ve plundered hearts with their emotive tunes and crashed their way into headline slots at almost every festival there is.

Their latest album ‘Venom’ is a return to their heavy metal roots. An unrelenting, fierce step forward for the band that had been criticised for going soft with their last album ‘Temper Temper’, it’s their heaviest record to date; it sinks its teeth into listeners with a powerful delivery by vocalist/guitarist Matt Tuck, ferocious riffs by guitarist Michael “Padge” Paget and rapid-fire rhythm courtesy of drummer Michael “Moose” Thomas. Bullet manage to maintain their signature balance of heavy, coupled with surging melody and push themselves to the next level with all the ‘Venom’ of a rattlesnake, and with new bassist Jamie now fully entrenched in the team and a tour to prepare for, we counted ourselves lucky to get a good old chinwag in with frontman Matt recently to talk all things dark, heavy and hairy...

We bumped into you backstage at Download, did you have fun? Who did you see?

Yeah I had a lot of fun. Got there on the Friday and the rain spoiled everything for everyone, as usual, but apart from that it was good. Saw a bunch of bands; Young Guns, Slipknot, Parkway Drive, Fightstar, the list goes on really. It was the first time I’d been there as a punter. We’ve always been there because the band’s been there and we’ve just played and shoved off somewhere else so it was good to hang around for a change.

New album Venom is just about to drop, what can we expect?

I think the best way I can describe it is a reinvigorated, way more aggressive Bullet for my Valentine. We’re super proud of the record. It’s definitely the heaviest record we’ve done overall and it feels like it’s part of something special. We’ve got the vibe that this could be a career defining moment for us so it’s good and everyone is super stoked on it and we can’t wait for people to hear it.

Do you feel like the heaviness of this record is a natural progression as you grow older or was it a conscious decision?

It was a conscious decision. We knew before starting to write the record that we wanted to step it up this time round. We wanted to make something aggressive, we wanted to make something angry and to reconnect with the more old school metal that we had on The Poison and Scream Aim Fire so that’s the only thing we had in mind before we started writing and it took a lot of writing to get to the point where we were happy with the level of aggression. The balance between the melodic and the heavy stuff has always been a Bullet identity so it was a long process getting there but as soon as we had two or three of the key heavier songs written then it was game on and it came on quite easy.

Lyrically it’s quite dark, how did you approach writing this album?

It was about reconnecting with stuff that defined growing up, as a teenager, as a young man, going through life and the struggles that I personally went through. Y’know growing up in a not very nice part of the world where you have a talent and are motivated to actually do something with your life, no one ever took me and the boys seriously. No one ever harnessed that positive energy. I always had this ambition of something special and being a songwriter and touring the world and making a difference connecting with people on a musical level. So I thought it was important to reconnect with those moments in my life and I haven’t had those moments for a long time because I’m grown up and everything’s cool and I’ve gone through all those things and I just thought that that was when I was at my most frustrated and let’s try and recapture that frustration.

southampton MUSIC | september 2015

Which song on the album was the most difficult to write and why?

I think they all had that moment of frustration really. Lyrically and performancewise the most difficult one was No Way Out. That song is very aggressive and the chorus is right at the top of my range and beyond so it’s a difficult song to perform. It’s one of those songs that’s super pissed off sounding so in performance, you really have to give it some shit, so I did.

How has the reaction been so far for No Way Out? It’s been incredible man. It’s just reconnected with everyone to a level where it already feels like the album is out and everyone’s back on board.. It’s a heavy song anyway but coming off the back of our last record I definitely think people are quite surprised but happy at the same time. It’s been amazing, the feedback we’ve had from that song. I haven’t heard anything negative really and all the people that are lucky enough to have already heard the album have all said the same thing about the whole album so everything’s looking great and we’re super happy with how it’s been received.

Out of all your albums, which has been your favourite album to record?

Probably The Poison or Venom would be the two, both for very different reasons.

The Poison was the birth of the band as we know it. It was one of those moments that connected where the band blew up instantly. Going through that process of being accepted and having the opportunity to make the record was the best feeling ever, probably the most exciting time in my life and the band’s career. And we kind of had that same feeling on this one really. You know when you’re doing something special. We’ve had it on a couple of songs in the past and we had it on The Poison for the whole process but from the moment we started recording this album there was an energy, it just feels special. So having those two experiences 10 years apart is odd, but those two records are very, very special to us.

Do you get nervous releasing new material?

Yeah, obviously you’re putting yourself out there and you know that there’s always going to be someone that says something that you’re not going to wanna hear haha. I don’t think it’s so much nerves as it is the anxiety of putting yourself up on a pedestal in order to be thrown off it y’know? But it’s just part of what you do in a band so we’ve just become used to it y’know? We were in Germany last week on a press trip and we did a fan playback party and it’s the first time we’ve done that in a while, where the band have been in a room with fans, genuine fans, and hardcore fans and we played them the new record and we were all very, very nervous about that. But I think it was just an unusual situation and you sit on an album for so long and it’s such a private, intimate thing that when it finally goes out there, especially cos we were there! So we don’t really get nervous about it but that was a moment where everyone had sweaty palms but it was good, we had a great night and the fans loved it which was the best because they were there for a reason and everyone left with the same feelings.

FEATURE

New bassist Jamie has joined the band. Where did you find him and what do we need to know about him?

He had a relationship with Padge behind the scenes. Jamie used to be the frontman of a band called Revoker and he’s a Welsh lad as well, grew up in a similar area to us, and Padge gave him a shout and said ‘send us a video, we’d love for you to have a shot and try out for the band’ so he did us a little video on his phone, playing some songs and doing some backing vocals and sent it in and it was awesome. So we did a couple of live auditions with a couple of the guys we thought might be suitable and Jamie was one of them and he came in and both auditions completely smashed it. It was awesome and it just felt right. He’s from the same part of town so having that relationship and the same upbringing was amazing. We never thought we’d be able to keep it an all-Welsh thing y’know but we did! And he’s good, he’s an amazingly talented guy and a great asset to have within the band.

You debuted him at Camden Rocks festival, and it was your first live performance in a year, is that right? How did it feel to be back out in front of the fans again?

It was actually really easy. We’ve been doing it for such a long time now that when we hit the stage, that’s where we come to life in every respect y’know. And where we’d had that time off we were even more anxious to do it, rather than being on tour for three months and coming to the end of it and being all ‘here we go again’. I think it was that excitement of not playing for a year and a half, having two new songs AND it being Jamie’s first show all at the same time was just an amazing feeling. It felt so good.

Did your throat operation and losing your voice knock your confidence at all?

Oh absolutely, yeah. It was the lowest point, not only in the band’s career but of my life really. It was at the stage where it was coming off the back of The Poison and we were trying to make the second record, the follow up to this record that blew up worldwide and working so hard up to that point and having all that success and then almost being on the brink of having it all taken away again was awful. It was a very dark point in my life, very low and scary. Everything we’d wanted to achieve, we’d just got there and it felt like we weren’t going to be able to continue so it was awful. It took a long time to get over it and get my confidence back and get my voice back into any shape at all but hard work and persistence and we got there in the end. It was a weird time but it was definitely something that needed to happen because it made me professional, rather than a guy in his band with his mates that got lucky. I think it opened everyone’s eyes that shit was serious now and we had to look after ourselves. I got vocal coaching and stuff like that and from that point on there’s been no issues.

Do you have any tips for taking care of your voice when on the road?

Make sure you get proper vocal coaching – warm up, warm down, apply those techniques to the songs and look after yourself physically. No partying, no late nights – I mean we still have those moments but they’re few and far between now because it just takes its toll and there’s nothing worse than going on stage at 60 or 70%, that’s just not good enough for us these days. For me personally I won’t go on stage if I’m not feeling Matt Tuck from Bullet for my Valentine. I have a pride in my work and a reputation and I hate going on stage with a sore throat or being bunged up because I know it’s going to take something from those shows so to put myself into a self-inflicted situation like that, for me, is just not acceptable so I haven’t done it for a long, long time.

Who are your vocal heroes?

I’ve always been a guitar player, I don’t really think of myself as a vocalist, I’ve just never been that guy but I think obviously Hetfield was my main influence for everything growing up. Just watching him on stage and being a Metallica fan y’know, he was the guy that inspired me to do what I wanted to do. He was just this being, this package of a guy that did everything, he’s just a hero.

Rob Halford I have to say just cos how he does what he does, I’ve got no idea what’s going on there. How he does that, I don’t know! Bruce Dickinson again, his range and his ability to do what he does at the level and age of those guys and still to go out there and smash it like he does is inspirational. I’d say Eminem would be one, weirdly. Again I just like people who have an individual voice and have character. It doesn’t have to be in the metal world as such.

I’m gonna be really weird here and say Mariah Carey as well because, being a singer in a band that’s nowhere near that world but I know what you have to do to get to that level as a singer and that’s a commitment and a life choice and not many people will ever get to that level. So there you go, Mariah Carey is my vocal inspiration!

You look really different with short hair. What made you decide to cut it and will you ever go back to long hair again?

I just wanted a change really. I got married in 2013 and I wanted to look dapper for my wedding. Y’know the wedding photos are forever and I wanted to look the best that I could possibly look for my wife so I took it on the chin and got rid of the hair and looking back, it’s the best thing I ever did. It was manning up, in a way and to get rid of the mane was a big thing cos I’d had it forever and I went through a couple of transitional styles but once I’d done it for the wedding, it was like YES because without wanting to say so myself, I look like a f*cking GENT haha!

That’ll be a no to growing it back then…

Words: Zan Lawther

Catch Bullet for my valentine live @ O2 Guildhall | October 21

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE

Friday 2 October 2015

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SOUTHAMPTON O2 GUILDHALL PUBLICSERVICEBROADCASTING.NET AXS.COM | SEETICKETS.COM NEW ALBUM ‘THE RACE FOR SPACE’ OUT NOW A GOLDENVOICE PRESENTATION BY ARRANGEMENT WITH THIS IS NOW AGENCY

FEATURE

After no less than 5 EPs the relief is palpable,frontman Rich Thomas’ tells us “It’s been a long process for us as we wanted to make sure we got the first record right. The songs developed over time and while on tour and our recording techniques and experience developed as well with every new EP we did. We feel that we have captured our live sound on record for this collection of songs as best we could. Now we are excited about working on the next one!”

Finally, the band jetted over to LA to record last year “It was an incredible experience for us all and far more than we expected our first LP recording to be. We were in the amazing East West studio 2 which has housed some of the worlds and our favourite rock bands. Plus having the opportunity to work with Billy Bush was a true pleasure. He brought new ideas to us and his sound craftsmanship across all instruments was never ending.” says Rich. Combining re-recorded stand out tracks from their previous releases as well as a load of new bangers it was certainly worth the wait. “It was a lot of trial and error of different combinations and different orders, but we really wanted to put the right songs together to make one body of work that all sits together and hopefully takes the listener on a bit of a journey.”

It’s no secret that here at Southampton Music HQ we’ve been eagerly awaiting the first With a rockier edge than you’d expect from a band lead by an acoustic guitar, for Bones full length release from bluesyaficionados you’ll be able to hear the difference in the newly re-worked versions; “The songs folk-rockers Brother & Bones but naturally took on a slightly rockier sound during the writing process and then this was we don’t think anyone has waited highlighted in the recording process” says Rich “I think it was important to us again to have some continuity running through the record and the body of songs.” as patiently for the stars to align as the boys themselves.

Spotlight on…

“Raining Stone is my favourite track. I remember this was the first track we did in the studio on day 1 and because there was limited listening back time, we were kind of nervous when it came to listening at the end of the week! We didn’t necessarily do anything different for this track but sometimes things just click and I think the sounds on this track coupled with a good vibe in the live room and a great mix gives it the edge for me.”

See them live @ Talking Heads | September 21

southampton MUSIC | september 2015

BROTHER & BONES

PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS

AND

MADE VIOLENT

WEDNESDAY 23 SEPTEMBER

SOUTHAMPTON O 2 GUILDHALL AXS.COM | SEETICKETS.COM WOLFALICE.CO.UK DEBUT ALBUM ‘MY LOVE IS COOL’ OUT NOW A Goldenvoice presentation in association with Primary Talent International

The Brook 466 Portswood Road Southampton SO17 3SD Box Office 1pm - 7pm Mon - Sat 023 8055 5366

Current Original Artists - Now On- Sale...

ULTIMATE EAGLES ~ ANIMALS & FRIENDS ~ TOM ROBINSON & BAND ~ FLEETWOOD BAC ~ STEREO MC’S THEICICLEWORKS~SNAKEDAVIS~PETERHOOK&THELIGHT~LOSPACAMINOS~BENMONTAGUE+EMMASTEVENS THE BLOCKHEADS ~ T’PAU ~ GRAHAM PARKER & THE RUMOUR ~ NAZARETH ~ HAYSEED DIXIE + RHINO’S REVENGE DIRTY DC ~ MARK NEVIN ~ MOSTLY AUTUMN ~ Y & T ~ ALABAMA 3 MARTYN JOSEPH + REBECCA LOEBE ~ BAND FROM UTOPIA ~ WISHBONE ASH ~ SHAKATAK SNAKECHARMER ~ LAURENCE JONES + SAMANTHA FISH ~ UFO + REDS’COOL ~ PAT TRAVERS JESUS JONES ~ SAS BAND ~ KARNATAKA ~ SECRET AFFAIR, THE CHORDS & THE LAMBRETTAS ROY AYERS ~ SHOWADDYWADDY ~ COLIN BLUNSTONE....

+ A Selection of Quality Tributes...

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p a rt y SOTON music Sept 15.indd 1

21/08/2015 13:43

FEATURE

month e h t f o

It’s Fresher’s time again and there is an amazing amount on offer in the city this month but our eyes are firmly fixed on what’s going on at Engine Rooms on 2 October…

WHERE: Engine Rooms | West Quay Road | Southampton WHEN: Friday 2 October | 10pm – 6am HOW MUCH: £15 FIND OUT MORE: www.facebook.com/districtsoton

Southampton’s biggest alternative club event ever and it’s NOT JUST FOR STUDENTS! Local alt-night heroes District bring you the party to end all parties. With DJ sets from Don Broco, Young Guns, Kerrang’s Alex Baker and Suicide sweetheart Mel Clarke taking you through till 6am expect Punk, Rock, Metal, Pop Punk and Indie bangers all over this one. The only dress code is to make sure you’re wearing your A Game!!

NOT YOUR THANG? CHECK OUT SOME OTHER HIGHLIGHTS ON OFFER THIS MONTH… Orange Wednesdays @ Orange Rooms EVERY WEDNESDAY – grab a cult cocktail for only £2.50 and check out which hit movies they’re screening FOR FREE

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC | september 2015

19/09 – Fresher’s Moving In Party @ Engine Rooms - £2 drinks ALL NIGHT and that classic school disco vibe 26/09 – Soundclash Festival ft. Basement Jaxx / David Rodigan / James Zabiela + loads more @ Stoneham Lane, Eastleigh www.soundclashfest.com

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Engine Rooms O2 Guildhall The Frog & Frigate The 1865 Platform Tavern Firehouse The Old Farmhouse Popworld Lennons The Rockstone The Shooting Star The Hobbit The Joiners Marshals The Alexandra O2 Guildhall Box Office Mutant Lab Studio Tattoo Monkey Oxfam Music Asgard The Art House Lucid Beatnik Emporium Ph Music Media Mango Planet Sounds Harbour Lights The Guitar Store Academy of Music & Sound

CENTRAL PARKS

SOUTHAMPTON

VENUES 1. 94 High Street 2. Art Gallery 3. Castle Vault 4. Dancing Man Brewery 5. Grand Café 6. Guildhall Square 7. Holyrood Church 8. King Johns Palace 9. Lancaster Vault 10. The Marlands 11. Mettricks 12. Platform Tavern 13. SS Shieldhall 14. The Stage Door 15. Undercroft Vault 16. The Weigh House

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SATURDAY 3RD AND SUNDAY 4TH OCTOBER 2015

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16 VENUES OVER 130 ACTS OVER 1000 ARTISTS www.musicinthecitysouthampton.org @musicinthecity musicinthecity

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Music in the city arrives once more this October, featuring local talents across ages and genre’s whilst booting an eclectic array of venues, from the humble Mettricks café to the Castle Vaults.

Southampton Music Magazine spoke to the organizer of the event and current mayor of Southampton, Linda Norris.

Music in the city started in 2009 and it has always been an inclusive and free entry event for the entire city to enjoy.

You won’t get a better line up for your time with 16 confirmed venues and around 130 acts.

As Mayor this year I feel it’s important to include the Southampton charities for my mayoral year which are The Saints Foundation, Rose Road and Southampton Air Cadets. There will be collection buckets amongst the various venues and whilst 90% of all money will be divided amongst these noble causes, 10% will be entered into a prize draw which other local charities can apply for by sending in a letterhead and contact name to the Mayor’s Office at the Civic centre.

I am happy to announce we have new venues like the GRAND CAFÉ, THE STAGE DOOR and the DANCING MAN BREWERY which will all be serviced by a bespoke vintage bus service which was very successful last year. The 7 stops start at guildhall square and going all the way down to the SS Shieldhall and back again, services are planned to be half hourly and of course they are all absolutely free!, well we wouldn’t want anyone missing out any more music than they have to!

LINDA NORRIS

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC | september 2015

music in the city

BRI D

FREE SATURDAY BUSES BETWEEN VENUES!

FROM THE GUILDHALL TO THE SHIELDHALL

Each route runs every half hour, hop on and off, last bus leaves SS Shieldhall at 7pm

MUSIC IN THE CITY SATURDAY 3 OCTOBER 2015

94 HIGH STREET

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ROUTE A • Guildhall Square • Art Gallery • Marlands Centre • Holy Rood (for Lancaster Vault) • South Western House (for Grand Cafe) • SS Shieldhall (via Dock Gate 4) • Platform Tavern • Wool House (Dancing Man) • Tudor House (for King John’s Palace and Undercroft) • Marlands Centre • Stage Door • Guildhall Square ROUTE B • Guildhall Square • Art Gallery • Marlands Centre • Weigh House and Wool House • Platform Tavern • Mettricks • Holy Rood (for Lancaster Vault) • Marlands Centre • Stage Door • Guildhall Square

KING JOHN’S PALACE

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SS SHIELDHALL

High Street, SO14 3RF

Western Esplanade, SO14 2AZ

Dock Gate 4, SO14 3QP

1.00pm-4.00pm The Southampton Music Hub Showcase. The best of our school’s music, performed by pupils from across Southampton.

1.00pm 1.45pm

1.00pm 1.35pm 2.25pm 3.15pm 4.05pm 4.55pm 5.45pm

ART GALLERY

2

Civic Centre Road, SO14 7LP

1.00pm 2.00pm 3.00pm 3.30pm 4.15pm

Bourne To Swing The Sea Slugs Sorcha Rose Quortl Southampton Choral Society

CASTLE VAULT

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Western Esplanade, SO14 2AF

1.00pm 1.45pm 2.40pm 3.35pm 4.30pm 5.30pm 6.30pm 7.30pm 8.30pm

Sunflower 3 Piece Suite Sarah Saville The Alex Lockheart Quartet Fragile Lucy Sleeping Tigers Lucy Kitchen The Lowis Lanes Amy Marsden

GRAND CAFÉ 1 South Western House, SO14 3AS

1.00pm 1.30pm 2.00pm 2.30pm 3.00pm 3.30pm 4.00pm 4.30pm 5.00pm 5.30pm

Blues Chippins Izzi Moulsdale Quattrio Lucy Smith Joe Mongan Elaine McLaughlin Nathan Cannon Liberty Grant Bargate Brigadiers Neil Anderson

GUILDHALL SQUARE

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West Marlands Road, SO14 7FP

1.00pm 2.00pm 2.45pm 3.15pm 3.45pm

Vox Pop Choir Southampton Ukulele Jam Batala St Andrews Pipe Band Southampton University Brass Band

HOLYROOD CHURCH Hight Street, SO14 2NR

1.00pm 1.30pm 2.00pm 3.00pm 3.40pm

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1.00pm 1.30pm 2.00pm 2.40pm 3.20pm 3.50pm 4.20pm 4.50pm 5.20pm 5.50pm 6.20pm 6.50pm 7.20pm 7.50pm 8.20pm

David Blackbourn Jack Howson Empty Frets Free Reason The Lowis Lanes Erin Niamh Chloe Denyer Christen Simmonds Tom Hansford Josh McCormick CoMASo Nina Schofield Ben Harvey Tony Arthur Jack Dale

PLATFORM TAVERN Town Quay, SO14 2NY

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1.00pm 1.30pm 2.00pm 2.50pm 3.40pm 4.20pm 5.10pm

Ian Booker Dan O’Farrell The Diamond Age The Slack 5 Jim Chorley Instead of Flowers Vicki Musselwhite

Batala St Andrews Pipe Band Pond Life One Root Sing Now Choir

1.00pm 1.30pm 2.15pm 3.00pm 3.30pm 4.00pm 4.30pm 5.00pm

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Central Hall Gospel Community Choir Sombrero Fallout Bone Idle Jack Francis Girl Next Door The Outsiders Owers and Harries Jo Long and the Pure Drop

THE WEIGH HOUSE

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Wire The Etlins Botyov1791 Sammy Kettell Bar:Ton Foot/Long Grant Sharkey RSJ Blues and jam

THE WEIGH HOUSE

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COURTYARD

French Street, SO14 2AT

1.00pm 1.30pm 2.00pm 2.30pm 3.00pm 3.30pm 4.00pm 4.40pm

117 High Street, SO14 2AA

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Jazz Therapy Coastel Indigo Avenue Just Millie One Tonne Son CatRatchers Paper Trains Sarah Saville Victoria Bass

Upper Bugle Street, SO14 2AE

Civic Centre Road, SO14 7SJ

METTRICKS

1.00pm 1.45pm 2.30pm 3.15pm 3.45pm 4.30pm 5.30pm 6.15pm 6.45pm

UNDERCROFT VAULT

12.00pm Lucy Smith, Nicole McNally, Calvin Glen, Sorcha Rose 1.00pm Tallulah Tilt, Sarah Batt, Nathanel 2.00pm Teen Ambition, Pammie Moore, Nathan Cannon 3.00pm Yazzy, Tara Flanagan, Ian Booker

Town Quay, SO14 2AR

1.00pm 1.45pm 2.30pm 3.00pm 3.45pm 4.15pm 5.00pm 5.30pm 6.15pm

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The Rising Elixir Howland Ripple Effect These Septic Stars Pilot House

THE MARLANDS 4

Plus the Endurance Fairground Organ!

78 West Marlands Road, SO14 7FW

High Street, SO14 2BS

1.00pm 1.50pm 2.40pm 3.30pm 4.20pm 5.10pm

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Nick Tann Special Guest Johnny Boxcars Sarah Harrison Band Winters Hill Zenthetix 71 Chain

THE STAGE DOOR

Evening session “In a Mellow Mood” 7.30pm Nathan Cannon 8.00pm The Real Raj 8.30pm Straight To Cake 9.00pm Twangdillo

LANCASTER VAULT

12:34 Bob Pearce Trio The Horse Soul & Fire Brother Goose Ben Goddard Alli & Sarah PS Perrystone Hill Ken Wood and the Mixers

DANCING MAN BREWERY

2.45pm 3.30pm 4.15pm 5.00pm

Gold Rush Three Choirs Big Sing - Chessel Chanters & Blue Sky Choirs Not Made in China Wessex Chordsmen Skiffuleles Pammie Moore

1.00pm 1.50pm 2.40pm 3.30pm 4.20pm 5.10pm 6.00pm

INSIDE VAULT Zen Juddhism Le Lizard Royale Radioactive Bones BullyBones The Costelloes The Flying Alexanders Accrington Stanley

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SUNDAY 4 OCTOBER 2015 ART GALLERY

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Civic Centre Road, SO14 7LP

2pm

3pm 3.30pm

Southampton Philharmonic Choir and City of Southampton Orchestra.

A varied programme of English music, including choral and orchestral pieces by Vaughan Williams, Holst and Elgar.

Flautissimo Lizzy Benny

A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR SPONSORS

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If you are of a certain age there is no doubt that Wheatus are imprinted on your memory. In 1995 three brothers from Newport, NY started a band and in the summer of 2000 they smashed charts across the globe with their pop punk banger ‘Teenage Dirtbag’, immediately staking their claim on the tender hearts of thousands of miserable, twisted, goofy teenagers worldwide. Teenage Dirtbag was certified Platinum in the UK in 2000, then bounced back for another run of the UK charts in 2011.

The first Wheatus record topped a whopping 5 million sales worldwide.

But that was all a long time ago. Years later, with numerous line-up changes, an art heist investigation (we’ll explain that later…), issues with major record labels, internal troubles, a Lego video for a single that never was, multiple awards, a self-managed revenue stream, and that boy band cover later and Wheatus have grown up a bit, but not too much!

Pumped and ready to celebrate the 15th anniversary of their self-titled debut album, the latest iteration of Wheatus are bringing back that summer of 2000 vibe, playing the debut album in its entirety! On top of this Wheatus bring some new tunes and a fresh, more complex sound to the masses. We caught up with lead singer and guitarist Brendan B. Brown to discuss One Direction, Lego and the downfall of pop punk…

Firstly, happy birthday to Teenage Dirtbag. I’ve just finished reading an article that claims pop punk as a genre died the day you released that particular song…

Mwahahaha. Aren’t we powerful?! I’m just glad that everybody has had to admit that that was my plan from the beginning. At long last they’ve finally had to recognise my genius in destroying entire genres.

Well, clearly we’ve all been in denial for 15 years. All those new pop punk bands coming through have just been part of a huge cover up…

That’s right. Tom deLonge leaving Blink 182; that was us. We planned that as part of the conspiracy…haha.

Wheatus are about to embark on their celebratory 15th anniversary tour, is that exciting?

It is! It is! We’re playing the entire first album for the first time ever. We have toured the first album before without including one song in particular that everybody has been screaming for; the song that we used for the Jackie Chan cartoon. It’s a song on the record called ‘Punk Ass Bitch’ but I didn’t actually write it and I’m not too fond of the version that’s on the album but the version that was re-purposed for the Jackie

southampton MUSIC | september 2015

Chan cartoon is really nice and we’re going to include that on this tour and that’s a first.

How have the shows been going so far?

Well just last week we were touring in Ireland and it was sort of the dry run for the anniversary tour and it was really, really cool. We had some great audiences in Ireland. Sligo in particular really kicked off and now that we’ve done it once, we’re kind of excited because we’ve never played a show where the entire first album is in the set every night.

It feels, at first at least, like it’s going to be a difficult, heavy weight to carry around but it turned out that it wasn’t and it works. Overall we’ve worked on about 45 tunes from the catalogue from over the 6 albums that are ready for the set and it’s nice, it works well.

For the Southampton show you’re coming back to the Talking Heads. We hear you’re particularly fond of this venue, any reason why?

That room sounds so good. The fidelity of that PA system and that room and the way they maintain it… it’s always the case with a singular proprietor of a place; a guy who really cares about music maintaining his venue. It makes all the difference. It’s a really, really special club and there are only a handful of places like that in the entire world where somebody can have an intimate show and the sound is what you would get at the best of venues anywhere so it’s just the perfect combination for us. We love it.

One Direction famously started putting Teenage Dirtbag into their sets a while back. Is it covered all the time?

Yeah but you know what? I don’t think that anybody has actually released the song as a single for sale anywhere. I may be wrong about that. It’s a large planet and there’s lots of people making music. But only 1D have covered it to the point where they put it in their film but it just seems to be this song that everyone kind of needs to play in order to get started. These days now I’ve been sucked into the 1D fandom on Twitter it’s hard for me to see any of the news or current affairs I normally search for on there, it’s just full of new boy bands and rock bands that the kids are into and tonnes of them seem to play Teenage Dirtbag.

FEATURE

So if someone was going to put it out as a single again, who would you LIKE to do it?

Well Dashboard Confessional already did a version of it live and for my money they did the most close to home, emotional version of it. Mary Lambert also did a version of it recorded on piano for a YouTube video. There’s so many artists I admire…I would like to hear Elbow do a version, cos he’s so good at expanding on melodies and really dragging out the finest bits of an orchestration and what it could be. That would be quite an honour.

You’ve developed a pretty good friendship with the 1D boys…

Yes I have a side project with the drummer and bass player. We are collaborating on an EP at the moment. We’ve already released the single ‘Only You’ and the video is out now. We’re working on the EP in between tours which is to say that we have a handful of days within the year to get together and do it but they’re two of the finest musicians I’ve ever played with. I’m looking forward to doing more of that.

I was just watching the video. It’s a Lego video and it’s not the first Lego video you’ve made. What’s with all the Lego?

It’s actually the third! All three were done by my friend Oliver Broadbent in Leeds. The Only You video is based on the lyric which is a true story of how I was attacked on stage in Margate 2013.

We heard about that! You were playing One Direction’s ‘That’s What Makes You Beautiful’…

Yeah, and some sort of angry punk guy who was a bit older than you should be at a show like that, came charging drunk at me and pulled me off the stage and stopped the show right in the middle of the song.

He didn’t hurt me or anything; he failed spectacularly to do any real damage. It was all over in a minute but we wrote the song about that event.

And now he’s immortalised in Lego…

Yeah, he’s been brought down to size haha.

What’s all this we hear about an interstate art heist investigation?

Back in ’98 or ’99 I had a good friend who was an anarchist graffiti artist and I asked him if he would please design our logo and he did. He did this beautiful oil painting of our bubble logo, as you know it, with this gigantic frog hanging off of it and I loved it. Anyway, when we got our deal I sent that oil painting to Sony to have it scanned and it never came back and I never got an explanation as to where it went. In 2009 somebody jumped onto a message board and said ‘hey Brendan is this real?’ and a link to an EBay auction and my painting was up on EBay for $11,000 and I immediately called the police and got in touch with an art detective in California and he got in touch with EBay and two days later I received the painting and it’s back in my possession now. It was incredibly strange…

Who would Wheatus most like to party with to celebrate your 15 years?

Wow! What a question! I haven’t met a lot of real celebrities, but one time Mel B was so very nice to us… we were absolutely exhausted, just come off a really long tour and we were at an awards show and I was sleeping on the floor in the dressing room and she popped her head in just to say hi. She was so lovely and so nice and so understanding of the fact that we were shattered and I just thought ‘I hope they’re all like that’. So I think I would invite Mel B to the tour bus and say thank you for being so kind and here’s a drink.

And finally, after the tour, what’s next for Wheatus?

We are making album 7. I think it’s going to be 20 songs, a double album. And from a philosophical producer stand point I’m going to try and solve the ‘And Justice for All’ bass problem for Metallica haha.

Words: Laura Phillips

Catch them live Wednesday 7 October @ Talking Heads

WHEATUS

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Fri 25th Sep • £9/£12 w. T-Shirt adv.

10pm - 4am • over 18s only

It’s Freshers Thu 1st Oct • £22 adv.

Bullet For My Valentine While She Sleeps, Coldrain

Fri 2nd Oct • £12.50/£15 adv.

Thu 5th Nov • £14 adv.

Sat 5th Mar 2016 • £18 adv.

Conrad Sewell, BB Diamond

Hells/Bells, Black Rose, State of Quo

Sun 8th Nov • £16 adv.

Sat 12th Mar 2016 • £22 adv.

Jess Glynne

T OU LD SO

The Staves Gabriel Rios

Sat 21st Nov • £22 adv.

Debra Stephenson

Marina and the Diamonds

Sat 3rd Oct • £16-£20

Wed 25th Nov • £16.50 adv.

Music 4 Meningitis

10pm - 5am • over 18s only

Treatment presents Get Twisted Tough Love, Friend Within, T Williams, Low Steppa, Purple Disco Machine, Après

Sun 4th Oct • £20 adv.

Hawkwind Prime Sinsiter

Fri 9th Oct • £20 adv.

9pm - 5am • over 18s only

The Masquerade Ball Sat 10th Oct • £16.50-£20 10pm - 5am • over 18s only

UKF

Sub Focus, Shy FX, My Nu Leng, Dimension, Koncept, Ownglow, Whitey

Sat 17th Oct • £35-£50 adv.

The Fast & The Furious

International Professional Boxing

Sat 24th Oct

10pm - 5am • over 18s only

Skepta

Classic Rock Live!

Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox

Fri 6th May 2016 • £18 adv.

Rend Collective

Fuse ODG

Fri 27th Nov • £15 adv.

1 Big Reunion Bournemouth’s Best 70’s, 80’s and 90’s Party Night is Back!

With Livin’ Joy feat. Luzahnn

Mon 5th Oct • £15 adv.

Sleaford Mods Fri 9th Oct • £10 adv.

Sun 29th Nov • £19.50 adv.

Knotslip (A Tribute to Slipknot)

The Wailers

Performing the album ‘Legend’ in it’s entirity

Joda Cema, In The Hills

Fri 23rd Oct • £12 adv.

The Smyths

Sat 5th Dec • £17.50 adv.

Lianne La Havas

Fri 6th Nov • £11 adv.

Thu 17th Dec • £25 adv.

The Darkness: Blast Of Our Kind 2015 Tour

Definitely Mightbe (Oasis Tribute)

These Raven Skies

Fri 12th Feb 2016 • £20 adv.

Fri 13th Nov • £20 adv.

Secret Affair - My World Tour

Bowling For Soup: How About Another Round Tour 2016 The Dollyrots, Lacey

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Same day collection or next day delivery ordered before 3pm.

previews Belgian indie-rockers

The masters of Belgium’s catchy Rock scene are coming to Southampton. With music varying stylistically from indie pop with classic undertones to straight up rock, we sure are excited to catch Kortrijk’s finest. With thundering basslines and soothing vocals, songs like ‘Then What’ and ‘Bunker’ are sure to have the crowd dancing at this one.

FOR FANS OF: THE JOY FORMIDABLE / PEACE / ARCTIC MONKEYS

ZIBRA

SEPT 30| JOINERS

New kids on the indie block

FOR FANS OF: YEARS & YEARS / SAINT RAYMOND / COASTS

Indie-Punk is taking off hugely right now, and these guys are going to become a huge staple of the genre. Playing huge alternative songs, with a homemade feel, a touch of Rock & Roll and a do it yourself attitude. The Amazons represent a hotbed of very talented young bands that it would be a shame to miss out on.

We cannot wait to get down to ‘Junk Food Forever’.

FOR FANS OF: BAND OF SKULLS / THOMAS TANTRUM

OCT 26| 1865 Rockgrass Pioneers

SEPT 16 | JOINERS

After exploding onto the dancefloors with their electrifying brand of glitch indie last year, London outfit Zibra have been rapidly building a loyal live fan base after headlining the BBC Introducing Stage at this year’s Glastonbury. Their instantly infectious tracks are an open invitation to get you dancing with disco beats, signature synths, jangly guitars and chorus melodies you will be singing for days.

DIY Indie-Punks

RIVERSIDE

BALTHAZAR

THE AMAZONS

OCT 17| LENNON’S Polish Prog Masters

Perhaps the fact that this band have supported Dream Theater might give you an idea about them. An experienced progressive metal quartet that truly are masters of their craft. Touring to support new album: ‘Love, Fear and the Time Machine’, they are sure to fill the room with their spacious masterpieces and Intricate showmanship. Relish at the chance to see them in a small space.

FOR FANS OF: DREAM THEATER / TOOL / THE PINEAPPLE THIEF

Providing Bluegrass comedy covers of not just rock classics, but party anthems and inventive originals. Originating as a Hillbilly tribute to AC/DC, Hayseed Dixie aren’t just funny, they’re clever and highly skilled. Then again, perhaps you aren’t interested in fun and you would rather sit at home than enjoy huge rock bangers played on a banjo. Absurdity is guaranteed!

FOR FANS OF: ACDC / LED ZEPPELIN / JUDAS PRIEST

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC | september 2015

HAYSEED DIXIE

OCT 22 | THE BROOK

previews

previews EAGLES OF DEATH METAL

NOV 4| ENGINE ROOMS

Homme and Hughes hit Southampton

Perhaps one of the most fun bands in Rock & Roll right now.

You’re likely to know them by hit single Miss Alissa, which will destroy Southampton. This band, featuring QOTSA frontman Josh Homme, will blow your socks off and refuse to buy you a new pair. Showing off flash new album ‘Zipper Down’ set for release 2nd October. Needless to say, we’re very excited!

FOR FANS OF: QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE / THEM CROOKED VULTURES

Punk Rock meets Indie Pop

Imagine Nirvana meets the Ramones and decide to write an album full of indie pop cuteness and laced with mad lyrics. Does that sound insane? Yes, undoubtedly, but somehow The Lovely Eggs pull it off, all wrapped up with a huge dose of wonderful northern charm. They might sing ‘Don’t Look At Me (I Don’t Like It)’ but we can guarantee all eyes will be on them soon enough.

FOR FANS OF: THOMAS TANTRUM / ANGELICA / HELEN LOVE

EVIL SCARECROW

THE LOVELY EGGS

NOV 5 | TALKING HEADS Tongue in cheek parody metal

What if Steel Panther had chosen to parody something much heavier than Glam rock? We reckon it would end up as something like Evil Scarecrow. This Quintet of doom storm through inventive takes on metal cliches with songs like ‘Space Dementia’, terming themselves the ‘finest heavy metal band ever to write a song about a robot’. Silly metal antics are guaranteed to ensue, and is there anything better?

NOV 7|FIREHOUSE FOR FANS OF: CRADLE OF FILTH / STEEL PANTHER Get down with British indie rockers

FOALS

Foals are back with their 4th studio album ‘What Went Down’.

Grappling with questions about weighty issues, It’s an album that precariously seesaws between primal aggression and naked vulnerability. Complete with fiery riffs and a menacing percussive march set against some of the band’s most openly experimental moments to date we can’t wait to see these heavy duty tunes played live.

FOR FANS OF: KLAXONS / PEACE / THE MACCABEES

UFO

NOV 15 | THE BROOK

NOV 13| O2 GUILDHALL Classic Metal Titans

Is there a much better rub to receive than being a major inspiration for the songwriting of Iron Maiden? UFO found fame originally in the seventies with hits like ‘Doctor Doctor’ and ‘Too Hot to Handle’ and are now back with a brand new album: ‘A Conspiracy of Stars’ .The opportunity to see these rock giants in an intimate setting, before they head out on an arena tour with Judas Priest, is not one to miss!

FOR FANS OF: IRON MAIDEN / DEEP PURPLE / THIN LIZZY

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC | september 2015

previews

S ’ N O T P M A H T SOU

k u . o c . o i d a r m f voice Southampton’s own local FM radio station voicefmradio

@voicefmradio COMPETITION

Now in its tenth year Butserfest takes place on Saturday 12th September at the Queen Elizabeth Country Park near Petersfield, East Hampshire. The event is primarily aimed at 14-20 year olds (although younger and older people are of course welcome) and is an alcohol and drug free event. You and a pal could be front row for Don Broco, Funeral For a Friend, The Lounge Kittens, Heck and many more, just answer this simple question...

Q: What’s the name of Don Broco’s recently released LP?

Email your answer to:

competitions@southampton-music.com or send us a direct message via Twitter or facebook. Competition closes 10/09/2015 /southamptonmusicmag @S o t o n M u s i c M a g

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC | september 2015

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ones to watch

Was there anything you’d learned from your previous experiences that has helped you with Modern Honesty?

Without a doubt. We will always take elements of our previous band’s experiences and try to incorporate them into Modern Honesty. In a way, it can give us a head-start in some areas. Back when we were touring in The City Calls, we were just kids and we got to learn so much about how to conduct yourself in a number of situations. Whether that is from playing smaller venues in the band’s earlier days all the way to playing major festivals like Glastonbury. We knew what to expect and what needs to be done to have things run smoothly.

Through touring in beaten up cars, too many early mornings and even more late nights, came Modern Honesty, an acoustic pop-punk duo from the heart of our very own city, consisting of Lucas Hardy and Scotty Perry, both on vocals and guitars.

Currently writing and recording their first self-recorded and self-released EP, they’ve allowed us a glimpse into their future by releasing two songs from the upcoming record at the tail end 2014: ‘Souls’ & ‘Years’ are both songs that touch on the band members past and looks to their future with eyes wide open, excited to craft a future for themselves.

Modern Honesty’s sound is rooted in acoustic based music, but they are no stranger to the pop punk scene either. Both were formally part of The City Calls who had played the big festivals (Glastonbury), the independent festivals (Butserfest co-headline with Deaf Havana) and the club circuit (including The Joiners and the Barfly in Camden).

In only a short time of writing and releasing their first two singles, Modern Honesty were asked to play two nights at this year’s Isle of Wight Festival. The band will be spending the rest of 2015 completing their debut EP, packing their bags, grabbing their guitars and getting out on the road to show their unique blend of acoustic and pop punk music to as many people as possible but we managed to grab a few minutes with them recently to find out a little bit more...

What was it like making the transition from full band to duo?

It was always going to feel a little odd without a full band with us but where we have been writing music and touring together throughout the years it all fell into place very comfortably. We had left a considerable amount of time between finishing our last band to forming Modern Honesty. So where there may have been a strange feeling in the room at first, it was immediately overshadowed by the fact we had a lot to write about and we had our eyes locked on the future of Modern Honesty.

What is it about the pop punk genre that inspires you so much?

We both have a love of Pop Punk but it was never something where we consciously made an effort to just write Pop Punk songs. The energy we put into our songwriting and the melodic pop vocal lines we write are why we call ourselves an Acoustic Pop Punk band, but we are taking influence from so many different genres. It can range from bands like The Beatles and Foo Fighters or so many other genres. If anything Pop Punk music is why we met, so we owe a lot to the genre, but we’re now writing songs that we just like as a band and it’s been great to try new styles too.

If you could tour with anyone, who would it be?

As well as our shared musical interests, between us we actually have a pretty eclectic mix artists who we’d love to tour with.

Touring with guys like Chuck Ragan and Brian Fallon would be awesome, and bands like Foo Fighters would be great; because who wouldn’t want to play stadiums? The list could go on for days but we have been lucky enough to play with some great bands and musicians already. This year we got to support Sam Duckworth who is a brilliant songwriter and now we’re gearing up to play a show with The Dear Hunter and we couldn’t be more excited.

Do you have plans to release an album or EP? Right now, we are currently in the stages of finishing off our first EP. We’ve been playing the songs that the record will include at our recent shows and we can’t wait to be able to offer them on CD at shows or online to hear. It will also include the 2 songs we recently released on our YouTube: ‘Years’ and ‘Souls’.

What can we expect to see at your live show?

The aim for all our shows is to have as much fun as possible and as two guys on stage with acoustic guitars, we make a lot of noise and we want to make sure that whoever is watching can have a good time and enjoy our band playing the most honest songs we’ve ever written.

www.facebook.com/modernhonesty

Was it difficult to start from scratch after achieving so much with The City Calls?

To achieve as much as we did with The City Calls was never really something we were expecting. So naturally, because of everything we had done in our previous efforts; before disbanding, it’s hard not to feel like we were back on the bottom rung of the ladder.

That being said, in the short time Modern Honesty has been a band, our recent song releases have gotten some great attention and we were lucky enough to play a couple of nights at this year’s Isle of Wight Festival. It’s quickly helped set the bar for us and we’re excited to see where we can take the band next.

SOUTHAMPTON MUSIC | september 2015

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