RMP Magazine #2 by RMP Magazine

In Memory Of

Tony Sly 1970 - 2012

"It breaks my heart to type this out, but our dear friend Tony Sly has passed away this morning. Tony and No Use are very special to us. Tony was sweet enough to take us under his wing and took us on our first U.S., Canadian, & European tours. Not only was Tony an amazing song writer, but he was a top notch buddy that always made me feel good when he was around. Kind words & thought to his wife an little girls. The world lost a good one today. Cheers Tony. We'll miss you. Thanks for everything." Donald Spence , Versus The World

“RIP Tony Sly. He was too young. Sending good vibes toward his family and friends.” Spanish Gamble

"An extremely sad day in the Punk Rock world. Tony Sly was an incredible musician and songwriter. I know that everyone appreciates No Use For A Name and their influence on music as much as we do. Take a second to listen to NUFAN today and tomorrow and forever and ever." Pentimento

“Sucks” Senses Fail

“A sad day for all. Our thoughts are with Tony Sly’s family and the rest of the No Use For A Name family today.” Less Than Jake

"One of my dearest friends and favorite song writers has gone way too soon. Tony, you will be greatly missed." Fat Mike ( NOFX )

“Glad I met him in person last year at an acoustic show, he was one of my hero’s when I was a teen.”

Andy Vilters, Exit On The Left

"Sad day today as lead singer/guitarist for legendary punk band No Use For A Name has passed away. Brent and JB have been fans since high school and we're grateful for all the great music that came from the mind of Tony Sly. #RIPTonySly" August Burns Red

"Any single one of us can probably sing some of his songs by heart. R.I.P. Tony Sly. One of punkrock's greatest."

“Sad news to hear of the death of Tony Sly today. My thoughts go out to his friends and family.” Chuck Ragan

Kickass Records

“So sad to hear of Tony Sly’s passing. One of the nicest guys ever. Our thoughts are with his family & friends. He’ll be greatly missed. -N”

“I’ve learned over the years there’s really no right way to talk about this stuff. i was kind of hoping it wouldn’t get out so fast for his family’s sake but it’s a little late for that now. i see that this news has gotten around pretty fast. so i wanted to tell you all personally that this morning i found out that yesterday tony passed away. i’m not sure of all the details yet, and i don’t think that’s really important. what’s important is brigitte lost an amazing husband, his little girls lost an amazing father, i lost a great friend and you lost a great songwriter. i’ve been playing with him for 15 years? 16? i haven’t processed it yet. i’ve been on the phone all day with friends and family. i’m not looking forward to it sinking in. i’m worried sick for his wife and kids. i knew tony very well and he would definitely want to thank you for all the love and support for both no use and his solo career. if this doesn’t sound like a professional statement, it’s because it’s not. it’s just me venting and i wanted to let you guys know personally.”

The Offspring

Matt Riddle, No Use For A Name

“Crushed. RIP Tony Sly you were a great friend to us and so many others. “

Pictures by Matthew Reamer

"With the heaviest of hearts. Saddest of days. All of our thoughts are with Tonys family." Lagwagon

“Our good friend and No Use For a Name band member, Tony Sly has passed away. Pulley toured with NUFAN many times back in the heyday. We will miss him and the music he made very much. R.I.P.” Pulley

Teenage Bottlerocket

r digie v e t s its fir eam, d t e l l l a u e f v RMP re fforts of the was a , o g a s month oped ined e b h w m e e o f c w a e t Just h wha ith th t W i . w e u n i o z y a tal mag ble to provide sa RMP wa . second e h t r d o a and ef s m i w t e i good re y v r d 's alrea ws, inte ed for t i e i , v r e e r v , howe f album you'll be amus t o s d u g a u o l A mbers her re e This t u m s o n h m a ' t i I h Wit views, views w ves, The e r r e l t a volume. n i v i g The Hi me fest hile. Includin , o s d r n a e c o less v n w w e o s l l e l e e t r Y t u i eat ice, ing tal at leas e bands as Thr econd edition f entences com m ds ss of big na any more, thi with words an staff. P d dm Used an t 90 pages fille l as our own RM el ou than ab favorites as w ts way i d n i f r o u rying t e'll be t from yo w s i e P r u M look, R he fut and more. t d e n i t a t d a p little u nd I'm sure th readers more a h t i W the yle a t e s s n a e w l o p to its se and i r p r u s o trying t njoy! e d n a , reading r o f s k Than Kaye

INTRODUCTION + CONTENTS

Interviews 08. The Used 10. Billy the Kill 14. The Hives 18. Face Tomorrow 22. Yellowcard 26. Rise & Fall 28. Thrice 32. Colors Dead Bleed 34. Depths. 36. The Dutch Rudders 38. Katatonia 42. Frank Turner 44. Pulley

Editorial 50. Karel Geuens 52. Tim Tronckoe 56. How to Pave your Way in the Belgian Scene

Festival Reviews 62. Download Festival 66. Warped Tour

Diary/Words 70. The Kid Covering the Tracks 76. CRISISBOOKINGS 07 - 12

Reviews 78 - 85

Extra 86. Moshpot

“If the

Your newest album "Vulnerable" was released earlier this year. Can you describe this new album for us? Jeph: “It’s the most positive record we have made since our fist record.” Does it have a main theme or a concept? Have you done concept albums before? Jeph: “’Hope’ seems to be the overall theme of the record.” The group has been around since 2001. Do you think the music business changed since then? Jeph: “Very much. Billions of new bands flooding the Internet. It's hard to sift through them.” Up until today you've released five different albums, starting off with a selftitled in 2002. Still keeping the same ‘The Used’ atmosphere, you've gone all the way up to "Vulnerable". Do you have songs you'll never get bored playing? Jeph: “If the crowd is having fun and singing along then it's fun no matter how old or how many times we've played it. We have probably played "Taste of Ink" and "A Box Full of Sharp Objects" for every show we have ever played or will play (laughs). But because everyone sings along we will never get sick of playing it.”

there any bands or people out there you still want to work with? Jeph: “We want to write an album with Satan about Satan for Satan.” The Used will be on the main stage of the Vans Warped Tour for this year. Are you guys excited? Jeph: “Of course, it will be good to see our old friends that work on warped. And also it will be fun playing to a bunch of new fans.”

“We usually try to mix what our fans want to hear and what is fun for us to play, which lucky enough is what fans want to hear as well.” I'm sure that from those recordings, there are also quite a few fan favorites. Do you usually think about them when creating a setlist, or do you guys just play whatever you feel like? Jeph: “We usually try to mix what our fans want to hear and what is fun for us to play, which lucky enough is what fans want to hear as well.” Your music has been labeled many different things before. From post-hardcore to screamo, metalcore, punk rock, emo, etc. What would be the best genre to encompass The Used's sound? Jeph: “We are and always have been a rock band.” You've worked or collaborated off and on stage with quite a few bands and singers before. Are

Which one do you prefer: small venues where the fans come to see you, or big festivals where anyone who likes can come and watch? Jeph: “Depends. I like indoor shows at night. I'm not a big fan of playing outside in the day time.” You're planning a tour in the USA and Canada, is there any chance there will be an European tour too? Jeph: “Yes. 100%. We are in the works of a future European tour right now so get ready and watch out for us!

INTERVIEW - THE USED

e crowd is having fun and singing along then it's fun no matter how old or how many times we've played it” After releasing 5 different albums, The Used is still standing strong. We got a hold of them for a small talk after the release of their latest, “Vulnerable.” By Nele Waegeman

“After “Billy I Kill You” we decided to take it to another level” Billy The Kill (BTK) is a loud Belgian band with a lot of ambition. Starting off as a band that played cheap local shows they slowly climbed their way up to one of the better known bands on Belgian soil. This year, they released their second full studio-album named “2012”, of which songs are being broadcasted on several radio-stations. After that, and playing main-stage at Groezrock, the Flemish rockers realize that their way to the top is still long but not impossible. RMP had a chat with the bands’ bass guitarist Stijn Smet. By Lazlo Cootmans

INTERVIEW - BILLY THE KILL sign us. After we found one we started working on new songs and recording our new CD. That took about two years. I think that the long wait didn't affect our fan base, especially not after some of our recent shows.” Your first album, “Billy I Kill You”, was an independent release. For this one, you’ve signed with CNR Music. What was the main reason for that? Stijn: “After “Billy I Kill You” we decided to take it to another level. When we first started the band, our main goal was to play on our favorite Belgian festival, Groezrock. We managed to achieve that goal quite fast so we started to think about what we wanted to do next. We hope to be playing at Pukkelpop someday. Our drummer even promised that he will tattoo ‘mom’ all over his chest if we succeed. Anyway, we started looking for a label and CNR was interested. The good thing about CNR is that it’s connected to the famous Roadrunner label. That label has bands like Slipknot and Nickelback contracted. That means that signing with CNR would connect us to an international circuit of metal bands. The main reason for us to join a label was the connections that they have. With a label we would be able to play bigger gigs. Thanks to CNR we even opened for Bon Jovi the other day.”

Your new album was officially released not too long ago. How did the fans react on it? Stijn: “Pretty well actually. We realized that after waiting three years since our first album came out, and the softer single that we released, some fans kind of lost faith in us. I’m glad to say that Did signing at CNR affect your work? after we’ve finally released “2012”, positive reac- Stijn: “Even though we all were afraid of that, it tions are coming at us from all directions. Not only from Belgian “I think that we all learned new bands thanks fans but also from Poland and to piracy and without it, we wouldn't Americans among others. We’ve be buying their official CDs sometimes.” actually gained some new fans with our work too. We seem to have successfully didn’t. The guys at CNR loved our work and we walked the line between pleasing a mainstream even got help from Jeroen Swinnen, a great Belcrowd that rather likes our softer songs, and fulfill- gian musician. You might know him as the keying the needs of our old fans who like the heavy board player of Daan. From the start we decided songs. to reach out for a more mainstream public as well as our old fans who liked the harder songs. When Talking about the fans, your first album was re- we first presented our songs at CNR, we had only leased about three years ago. Which means the completed our softer songs which they really fans had to wait for quite a long time for new ma- liked. After that they gave us permission to write terial. the rest of the songs and record it. All those other Stijn: “That's right. We wrote our first album in a songs were louder and more like the old Billy the very short amount of time. After that album we've Kill songs. At the third last day of recording CNR spent about a year looking for a label that would checked up with us again and we were afraid that

they wouldn't like the rest of the album. Luckily enough they really enjoyed our other songs and there were no complications.” “2012” is an album that really focuses on a story. Was it possible to throw away songs you’d written or was that impossible for the flow of the story? Stijn: “That was exactly the reason why it would have been such a problem if the company didn't like one of our songs at the end of the line. We chose this concept and even included a small comic book in the CD case so that all our songs, loud and soft, fitted perfectly together. Our singles that were radio material are more at the back of the tracklist instead of in the beginning, our producer didn't really like that but it had to be like that to make the story fit.”

Your first record was a loud, up tempo hardcore album. The new one has some clear eighties metal influences. Is it possible that your sound will make you evolve more to a Graspop band instead of a Groezrock band? Stijn: “Our lead guitarist is a huge fan of eighties metal. He is mainly responsible for that sound and we all went with it. He is very talented when it comes to that stuff. Our first album was more of an hardcore record that focused on the genres that you hear at Groezrock festival. Still I don't think that Graspop ever was or will be an option. We are trying to please our old fans on one hand and gain more mainstream fans. Choosing that rather commercial approach will make it more likely that we become a band for larger festivals like Pukkelpop.” At almost all your live shows you ask the fans who bought the album. When you do that, you

INTERVIEW - BILLY THE KILL also always ask if there are fans out there that Right now it's all about the promotion of our new illegally downloaded a copy. Are you against the CD. We've already filmed a new video for one online piracy that affects the music industry or of the heavier songs on the album. I can already are those remarks just jokes? warn you that it will be a pretty controversial clip.” Stijn: “Our first album was almost instantly avail- “So if you want to make name for yourself as a able on the Pirate Bay. We band, try to play a lot of shows. Even shows that didn't really care because don't make sense for a band are worth the effort.” we realized that we, as a Belgian band in our genre, wouldn't be making a Before we wrap up this interview I have one more lot of money with what we do. Artists barely make question left. Some of our readers are in a small money when they release an album, most of it goes and/or beginning band. Do you have any tips for to CNR in our case. We make just enough mon- them to make it as far as you guys did? ey to play with our band for free. We can afford Stijn: (Laughs) “Smaller, beginning bands ask us our gear with the money that we earn. The most that question a lot. What we did was writing some money that we earn comes from shows, which are songs in a short amount of time and starting to getting larger with the time. But about the piracy; play lots of smalltime shows. We tried to get our no, I'm not against it. Just because I know that name as much out there as we could. We made our you can't fight it. Piracy has its advantages too, own official YouTube channel on which we posted thanks to piracy, our a lot of things like a studio diary of the recording music is also available of our first CD. So if you want to make name for in countries we usu- yourself as a band. Try to play a lot of shows, even ally don't cover. I think shows that don't make sense for a band that plays that we all learned your genre are worth the effort. Put songs online new bands thanks to for free on MySpace and Facebook and even try to piracy and without it, film a video clip if your friends have a recorder or we wouldn't be buy- something. Just get out there and make sure peoing their official CDs ple know your name. Also keep your fans always sometimes. We actu- in mind. We've played a lot of requests, even were ally thought of it as a the surprise act on some birthday parties and we compliment when we once sent a fan our album and a shirt because he found our first album broke his nose during our show. It's always been on the Pirate Bay. I'm an important part of Billy the Kill to be close with not sure if the new the fans.” one is available for illegal download already.” Now that “2012” has officially been released, are there any plans for the future? Stijn: “We'll be playing some shows coming summer and we've already started saving some ideas for new songs and we'll probably start writing new songs coming months.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I would love to find a who could make everyt

fantastic producer thing we do better” By David Marote

INTERVIEW - THE HIVES Does the band name represent the allergic reaction dubbed the hives or is it more of a collective of people as in beehives? Or a completely different meaning than what we think? “Originally it was the skin condition but once we added the plural it became a band name and means we have a hive mentality as in -thinking the same thoughts at the same time.” On your last record you collaborated with Josh Homme (Kyuss) as producer for some tracks, in the past you also worked with many famous artists such as Pharrell Willliams (NERD), Timbaland and Cyndi Lauper. Anyone in particular you would love to work with in the future? “I would love to find a fantastic producer who could make everything we do better. It is very hard to know that someone still does their best work though. Sometimes they will be in a completely different headspace than when they recorded the last thing you liked. We usually say David Bowie though. That would be cool.” You started your own label during the last release “Disque Hives”. In the past you've been on Indie labels as Sweden's Burning Heart, but also on big shot record company Interscope. How did the different changes go and how has it influenced the choice of starting your own label? “Well as you say we have tried everything. Burning Heart started really friendly and on a sort of 'let's do this for as long as we both like it' basis but got really greedy and unfair when we got popular. Interscope spent a lot of money on us and therefore had fairly unrealistic goals that we didnt live up to commercially so that ended because of our not being the Black Eyed Pussycat Dolls which was all they were interested in at the end. Starting our own label is part of us doing everything ourselves these days. From writing lyrics to designing Tshirts, to releasing the record. It feels good to be your own slave and to call your own shots.” The Hives always appear in black and white outfits, a strong aesthetic feel to the whole band experience. Where did you get the idea to change

“Some wise man once said: In order to make and apple pie from scratch you must first create the universe. The universe already existed so we took down our expectations a notch.”

up your stage clothing every now and then, yet sticking to the same concept of black and white? “Really, from the fact that touring really fucks up your clothes so you need to get new ones. It was also more fun to change it so we could see in photos what year they were from.” Even the roadies wear the 'gang colors' and nowadays they even got ninja outfits. What has been the silliest outfit so far for the band and/or crew? “I think the ninja outfits have to win this one.” The new album carries the title “Lex Hives”. Lex being latin for law. What does the title really mean according to The Hives law and what's the idea behind the whole album? “The idea is to take DIY to its logical conclusion. We even had plans to build a studio and guitars but some wise man once said: In order to make and apple pie from scratch you must first create the universe. The universe already existed so we took down our expectations a notch. Lex Hives was the first thing we did with this band. A blackboard of things that we should/could or shouldnt/ couldnt do. It included things such as 'No Beatlesy Melodies!' 'Play as fast as you can!' etc. This album is a celebration of that.” With the release of the new album you also came up with contest to promote it and reward the fans. The 12 song titles appeared on your Facebook in a scrambled version. The first fans who unscrambled them all could win a call from The Hives. How did this work out? “It went really well. The winner Julia decided to come visit us instead. She came to Coachella and we hung out for a bit. It was fun.” I, for one, first heard The Hives on a Burning Heart compilation coming from Sweden. Did appearing on an overly skate punk release give a different boost to your career? What relation did you have with those bands? “I think it was great for us since that music had a big audience in Europe and just appearing on those compilations exposed us to a lot of people. Other garage punk bands didn’t get exposed to that crowd. The skate punks were also fun at shows with all that athletic stagediving and I think

“Really, from the fact that touring you need to get new ones. It was al could see in photos what year they we played fast enough so they liked us. "Those bands" are in many cases people we know and like personally. No problems there.” Your music has been used for TV commercials, games and movies and even on a children's TV show. How does it feel to see your work being used everywhere? “Well, I love our music being everywhere!” The Hives received numerous awards during their career, made lucrative deals and can live

INTERVIEW - THE HIVES

really fucks up your clothes so lso more fun to change it so we y were from.” from their music. You've taken a break for a while now and with the new release a new series of performances and tours will follow. Are you looking forward to being back on the road as a band? “Yes! I love playing live to people. Messing with their heads and getting in their faces. It keeps me alert, and slim too.” What would you call the biggest influence to your own style of music, the rock'n roll of the past that led to your surname Howlin' Pelle or the more energetic punk influenced sound?

“I think it really is a mix of those and you cant have one without the other. I lean more towards the rock end of the spectrum and some other guys in the band are more punk.” Which Swedish band do you consider the best in the past, present and future? Any things we need to look out for? “Best in the past is Union Carbide Productions, Now it's us and the future may very well belong to Graveyard.”

“It seems to be a lot about how you look and not really what you sing about these days” Face Tomorrow has been around since 1997 and celebrates its 15th anniversary this year. Apart from giving our congratulations, we asked the band a few quick questions. By Kenny Leys Has the music industry changed a lot during all these years you were active as a band? Did the scene change? “A lot has changed indeed. When we started out, internet wasn't that much of a big deal. We had a website but there was no Myspace let alone Facebook around. So communication with the audience has changed a lot but also, of course, downloading has changed a lot. All the music in the world is readily available to everyone and most of the time it's free as well. The scene changed much as well.

In our early days we would play with all kinds of different bands and it was all one big scene. We could play a show with Born From Pain on one day and do a show with Soon the next and it would be almost the same audience. These days there's a lot more different groups within the scene and there's a big part that is a lot more about the commercial side as well. Big companies sponsoring all kinds of events because they see money in it. It seems to be a lot about how you look and not really what you sing about these days.” The band became well-known after the release of your first full length album in 2002. With your second full length you toured all over Europe and the US. Which is your favorite place you've per-

INTERVIEW - FACE TOMORROW formed during all these years? Your selftitled release was unveiled last year. It “One of my favorite shows ever was probably in was available as a 7". Was there a special reason the Czech Republic on our first tour outside of Hol- for you guys to release the album like that? land. It was in a place called Olomouch in the east- “It was a LP/CD combination. We always love doern part of the country. We were playing in a basement “It's always a little bit scary to play an acoustic together with Burn Hollyset because you can hear every mistake and wood Burn and Remorse, you’re missing the power of a full electric show. “ who were our touring buddies. The place was completely packed and there ing Vinyl releases. Every album we've done was were a lot of pile-ons during our show. We were available on vinyl just because I am a big vinyl colplaying on the floor and there was hardly any room lector nerd. We do have an acoustic 7" out now left to stand. People were hanging on the ceiling. It which is vinyl only. We have always wanted to do was just insane. I know a friend of ours videotaped something exclusive to vinyl, this seemed like the the show or at least part of it but I can't remem- perfect opportunity. There were some nice shows ber ever seeing it. The other one that stands out lined up and we wanted to offer the people who is our second Groezrock show, it was on the day came to those shows something special.” before the actual Groezrock Festival. Back then it was a one day event and you had the ‘Campingfes- Since it's already been a year, any plans for a new tival’ the day before. It was right before our 2nd al- album? bum came out but everyone seemed to know the “We're finishing off an album full off acoustic verwords to every song. I don't think we ever had as sions of old songs to be released somewhere in many stagedivers as on that show.” October but that's about it for now. Who knows what the future might bring.” You've been on the most popular festivals in Europe, including Lowlands, Pukkelpop and Groez- We don't know that many Dutch bands in Belrock. Any specific festival you'd love to play next? gium. Any chance you could introduce us to “Well I would love to play one of those German some? festivals like Hurricane or Area 51, they always “Well there are a couple. First of Death Letters, seem to have such an amazing line-up. Or Hevy two young guys with a hell of sound. They are Fest in the UK, lot's of awesome bands playing definitely influenced by 90's emo like mineral and there every year.” At the Drive In but combine it with modern post rock and some shear brutality like Isis and Cult of This year you've played on Groezrock's acoustic Luna. A very impressive live band! Then you have stage. How was that experience? John Coffey, recently signed by our label Redfield “It worked out really well I have to say. The tent Records. They combine some dirty southern rock was packed and we had stagedivers. It's always a and roll with hardcore not unlike Every Time I Die. little bit scary to play an acoustic set because you They Party Hard I can tell you! One of my favorite bands is called The Real “These days there's a lot more different groups Danger but they have been within the scene and there's a big part that is a playing Belgium a lot so you should already know them. lot more about the commercial side as well.” Another crowd favorite is All can hear every mistake and you’re missing the On Black, fronted by everybody's favorite Dutch power of a full electric show. On the other hand singer Ivo who used to sing in Razor Crusade and it can be a lot more intimate because of that. We Against Time. They sound a lot like Jimmy Eat had done a whole lot of acoustic shows before but World mixed with some Hot Water Music and Sanever for a big crowd like this so we really didn't miam, so 90's emopunk it hurts.” know what to expect.”

Full of Hell at “Burnout Festival” Photographer: Brenda Boutsen

â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have changed in mo could even type. I think is we love what we do s

INTERVIEW - YELLOWCARD By adding a violist to your pop punk sound, you created something typical for Yellowcard. How did the idea grow to add that instrument? Ryan Key: “I wasn't a part of the band when Sean joined. But I know it was due to the fact that we went to a performing arts high school which was the type of creative environment that could create a band like Yellowcard.” The band took a hiatus from 2008 until 2010. How did it feel to be back after such an amount of time? Ryan: “So far it has been nothing but inspiring. We have recorded 3 full length records, toured 30+ countries, and the future seems to be wide open for us.” You immediately started work on your next album and released it in 2011. Where did the title “When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes” come from? Does it have a particular meaning? Ryan: “It was a line I had saved to be used as a lyric someday. It never ended up in a song, but had such positive feeling that seemed to apply to the next chapter of our lives.” “Southern Air”, a follow-up to that album recently had its recording completed. Any anecdotes of the recording process you want to share with fans? Ryan: “We had such an amazing time doing the live stream from the studio every day. We got to really connect with so many fans from all over the world and let them see how we put a record together piece by piece.” The song "Here I Am Alive" is a song like you've never made before, it's some kind of "punk-party song". How did you get to the idea to make a song like this? Ryan: “Our producer mentioned to us that he would like us to take a stab at writing a song in the 120-128 beats per minute range. So we demoed a couple of ideas. Once we had some music we liked. I actually ended up co-writing the melodies and lyrics with my friend Patrick Stump. I think so much of the difference you are hearing comes from his influence on the song. We are all really By Jonas Hoflack and Kenny Leys stoked on having a song that is a little different for

ore ways than I the one constant so much”

us on the record. It is good to step outside of the box every once in a while.” My favorite song of the album is "A Vicious Kind". It's a fast song with an amazing chorus. What is the song about? Ryan: “I wanted to find a good metaphor for some things that led to our split with the major record label we were signed to. They were taken over by one bigger company, then another. So I liked the idea of a relationship song where maybe an ex from a bad break up gets married to someone else. The idea of saying, ‘I'm ok now, I regret noth-

There is very much variety in this album, it never gets boring. Did you put much work in deciding the track list? Ryan: “We wrote ten songs. We put ten songs on the record. So we didn't decide on which songs should or shouldn't be on the album. We just got lucky that all ten ideas worked so well.”

It’ll be your 8th album since your debut in 1997. Do you feel the band has changed? Are there still things you do the same way as you did back then? Ryan Key: “Yes, of course we have changed in more ways than I could even type. I think the one constant is we “We wrote ten songs. We put ten songs on the record. love what we do We just got lucky that all ten ideas worked so well.” so much. We are forever grateful ing, I'm better off without you.’ Because we are.” for this amazing life we have worked for. We try The song "Telescope" is some kind of ballad, writ- not to take anything for granted.” ten with a deeper meaning. Do you want to tell us more about that song? The first single, “Always Summer”, was released Ryan: “It is a song for my Aunt Stephanie who we on May 22nd. Why did you pick that one first? lost last year to brain cancer. She was a very posi- Ryan: “It just seemed like the right one. When we tive force in my life.” finish a record, we always seem to know which

INTERVIEW - YELLOWCARD

songs are the ‘singles’ and in what order they should be released. It is just a feel thing.”

amazing aspects.” In all your years as a band, are there any stories from festivals that you’ve always remembered? Ryan: “We played MIX Festival in Sao Paulo, Brazil with our friends in Fall Out Boy in 2006. There were almost 50,000 people there but more than

You haven’t been in Belgium that many times before. There was a show in a venue last December, and Groezrock last April. Anything in particular you remember about your stay in our country? “We always seem to know which songs are Ryan: “BEEEEEERRRR!!! And also, the ‘singles’ and in what order they should be released. It is just a feel thing.” amazing fans. Especially at Groezrock. We got to meet so many amazing people who are so passionate about our band. a festival, it felt like 50,000 people at a Yellowcard show. It is almost indescribable. It was completely But the beer in Belgium is simply the best.” overwhelming. Are there any ideas to come back later this year? Is there a difference between shows across the Ryan: “We are not doing a proper tour of Europe world? For instance, does the crowd react differagain until early next year. I hope that Belgium is ently in Asia compared with Europe, Australia or the USA? on the list of places we will be.” Ryan: “It is actually amazing how different the I assume you play a lot of different shows such as crowds can be depending on where we are in the small ones in venues and bigger ones on festivals. world. Hard to explain definitively with regards to Which ones do you prefer or do both have their each place, but every country has its own energy for sure.” own feel? Ryan: “I love both. I think each environment has

You’ve recently released a new album called “Faith”. How were the reactions from the fans? Did you expect to receive those kinds of comments? “It's hard to know what to expect when you release a new album. We know that we all loved how the album came out and we still think of ‘Faith’ as being our strongest album to date. The response from other people has been really positive so far, although I guess we're not likely to hear much from the people that hate it.” Why did you name it “Faith”? Is there a reason or a story behind the title? “Faith is and has always been one of the re-occurring themes in our songs. It is a powerful word that has a lot of different meanings to a lot of different people so that is why it makes for a perfect album title.” Is the album built around that title? Does the word or concept of “faith” make a return in various songs? “The songs were all written before the album title was chosen. So it is not a concept album to that extent. But yes, like I said, faith is a re-occurring theme, as well as the dualities in life that we all face and deal with. Love and loss. Life and death.

“‘Faith’ is a powerful word that has a lot of different meanings to a lot of different people so that is why it makes for a perfect album title.” Hope and despair. Nature and nurture. The last song on the album is called "Faith/Fate" and really ties everything together.” You've recorded the album at God City Studios with Kurt Ballou from Converge. How was it to be able to work with him? Did you work with him before? “Yes. This was the third time that we got to work with Kurt. He mixed our second album called "Into Oblivion" (which we had recorded in Belgium) and then we also worked with him on our previous album called "Our Circle Is Vicious", which we recorded at God City as well. He’s a genius. We like being around geniuses so it was an all around cool experience to work with him.”

Anything that happened during the recording process which will forever be in your

memories? “Tre from Deathwish recording an epic, secret 27 minute noise track was pretty mind blowing.”

The album had four different types of artwork. They each represent one of the classical elements. Why did you make that decision? “The idea to use the elements was actually Jake's. I think it does a good job at representing the "natural" world around in us in which we have constructed our own little world.” The band was also able to record a music video for the song “Hidden Hands”. Was it fun to do? “Very. We had our good friend Matthieu (who also plays guitar in Amen Ra) film and direct the whole

INTERVIEW - RISE & FALL

“Whatever the setting is, we always try to play as hard and loud as possible” By Jonas Hoflack

thing and then we had around 30 of our musician friends come over and pretend they were in Rise And Fall. It turned out awesome.” As a band you’re always on the road, playing a lot of shows. Are there any places you really like to perform? “We love a lot of different places. Personally I really enjoy being in the bigger cities, like New York, or Boston, or San Francisco if we're talking about the U.S. but then again Europe is awesome too. I dig Berlin, Stockholm, London, Paris and Ghent of course. In late 2009 we went to to Australia and that country is insane as well. Love it.” You’re playing Ieperfest this summer. What do you think about the line-up for their 20th edition? Any bands you’ll be watching? “The line up looks incredible really. It's fascinating to see how much the festival has grown and

changed through time. We're playing on Sunday and there's a ton of cool banded playing that day. Very excited to see Bolt Thrower, Converge and Terror on the same day.” Between venues and festivals, which one do you prefer? “Venues for sure. But festivals have their merits too. They're always challenging and you usually get to see a bunch of bands you would otherwise not see but as far as playing goes it's a lot harder to really feel connected to the crowd. But whatever the setting is, we always try to play as hard and loud as possible.” You’re a Belgian band who’s made it from our small country and has seen different places. What would you advice new bands to do? “Be smart. Work hard. Write good songs. Do your own thing. Don't listen to me.”

“I think everyone is entitled to their own opinion: if that is what they think, that’s what they think!” At the most recent edition of Groezrock, we were able to get a hold of Thrice’s Teppei Teranishi for a quick and small talk about the group’s hiatus. By Kenny Leys & Vincent Van Hoorick

Hello Teppei, how are you doing? “Good, I'm good!” I'm warning you; when Thrice will play their set here at groezrock, tears will follow "Tears will follow? Haha! Tears will follow? Oh no, why is that?" Last Thrice show in a long while? “Right, Right.. Yeah, well, I mean, we're pretty intense with calling it a hiatus, so i wouldn't count on it being the last Belgian show ever. It's just for a while.” First learned that Thursday was quiting, the day after that we received word that Thrice was going to take a break. “Yeah, I know. Worst timing ever, right? I'm sorry about that! We honestly had no idea Thursday was going to do that. It's a total coincidence! It's intresting though; our paths have crossed multiple times since we started. It's pretty interesting that we announced this around the same time.”

should be cool! If everyone that went to the signing session comes to our show, the tent will be full (laughs).” A lot of fans are saying that “The artist in the ambulance” is your best album. “I think everyone is entitled to their own opinion: if that is what they think, that's what they think! I tend to disagree...” Different opinion? What’s your favorite one? “That's hard to say. I mean, I like our newest album ‘major/minor’ a lot. I think ‘The Alchemy Index’ was an interesting album and it was fun for us because it stressed us in so many different ways!” Fans could pick the setlist for your “farewell” shows through your website. “We ended up using the top-picks of every record and we made a big ‘Best of’-setlist. There are too many songs to play in one set, so we devided this setlist through the shows. We practised all of the songs, so if there is a special request from the audience, we can play it!” What will happen when the band is on hiatus? Will some of you still work with music?

Did you tell your friends about this “hiatus”, or was this news for them too? “A lot of our close friends knew! We have “We practised all of the songs, so if there is a friends who can zip their special request from the audience, we can play it!” mouth well, since this news didn't leak.” “Euhm, yeah, I think Dustin is definitely going to do some solo-stuff. I know that Riley and Eddie, Last time i saw you guys, it was on Pukkelpop the two brothers, are going to work on things. You a few years ago. Today is the first time since know, everyone is always working on writing new then. What do you think today will be like? stuff. It's just a part of us! I don't think I'll be do“I don’t know. We did a little signing-thing here at ing anything soon. Unfortunatly, the only thing Groezrock, and we met a lot of people. A lot of you can do when you want to get money out of different people from a lot of different countries. music these days, is tour. A lot. I've got two kids They told us that they came especialy to see us. It and another one on the way so touring isn't any-

INTERVIEW - THRICE thing I'm going to do soon. While thrice is going to take a break, I'm going to take a break too. At the end you never know what the future brings. Maybe i'll team up with some friends to create a new band, a new record, just for fun! But at this moment I haven't got anything planned.” A random question to finish this interview. What are the three most listened songs on your iPod? “The three most listened songs on my ipod? Hard question! I have no idea. Lately I’ve been listening to various thins such as some friends in a band called ‘We Barbarians’. They are here in Europe right now! They released a litle EP called ‘Headspace’. I'm also listening to my friends from ‘Delta spirit’. They just released a nem album, a selftitled album. The third one is (hesitates)I'm actually on a wilco-vibe. I've been listening a lot to “Sky blue sky” lately! Good luck with whatever you decide to do next, and we hope that we might see Thrice back in the future!

Anthrax at “Fortarock” Photographer: Kenny Leys

“Think of the ever changing seasons that bring different colors that blend into one other to form great things as time goes on. Colors Dead Bleed!” Before coming together as Colors Dead Bleed, you played in other bands. How did you end up together? “We all played in successful hardcore and punk rock bands for over 15 years. Coming from the same scene and musical background, we already knew each other and had a good connection on both a personal and musical level. Somehow, we ended up quitting our bands in approximately the same period of time. We all gave it some time, to think about what we, as individual musicians, wanted to do next. Then, our bass player Maurice came up with the idea to get together and

By Nele Waegeman talk about combining our musical preferences. The idea to form a new band was born. We started writing new material and before we knew, we were on stage playing our songs and Colors Dead Bleed was born.” The members' previous bands moved around in the hardcore and punkrock scene. Why the decision to take on another route and perform postpunk and rock? “Some of us were in the same band for over 15 years, playing hardcore & punkrock. Our former bands are still very dear to us and they will always

INTERVIEW - COLORS DEAD BLEED have our respect and love for we owe them a lot! It were these bands, that gave us the opportunity to develop ourselves as musicians, throughout the years. From that, came the urge to go out and try something new. To explore what other things we are capable of, musically. As we are all into energetic (post)punk & rock, our sound has grown to what comes naturally to us.” What's the story behind your band name? “The band name Colors Dead Bleed is, first of all, open to interpretation. For us it´s about combining our personal and musical background, striving for continous progression and reaching our goals as a band. Think of the ever changing seasons that bring different colors that blend into one other to form great things as time goes on. Colors Dead Bleed!” You've already been around for about three years right now. Did you expect to be where you are now when you started the band? “Actually Colors Dead Bleed, in it´s current form, was formed at the end of 2011. Polle (vocals) and Dennis (drums), were asked to join the band next to it’s founding members Maurice (bass), Tom and Seb (both guitar), completing the steady line up as it stands today. From then on, things have progressed very quickly. We went through our first rehearsal, writing new material, spending time in the recording studio to playing live shows in six months time. We never expected the band to progress in such a fast pace. So things are going great!” Last year you recorded about five songs and had them mastered by Alan Douches. Why did you pick him? “We worked with Alan Douches on our first ever recordings. We choose him because he´s just a great, well known producer. When Colors Dead Bleed was reformed, things just came together and evolved into a style that can be described best as a mixture of energetic post punk and rock, with a touch of rawness in the vocals. Early 2012, we got together with sound engineer and producer Erik Klinger. Erik is well known as former guitarist for Pro Pain and The Spudmonsters. He worked with us at Noise Factory in Belgium. We chose to

work with Erik because of his extensive musical background in playing, recording and producing. Erik was very successful in providing us with the American type sound we were looking to get with him. We recorded two songs, a catchy mid tempo, groove song called ‘Day by Day’ and an energetic punk rock song called ‘I Won´t Fail.’” Are there already plans for another future release? “At the moment we are fully focused on writing new material, working hard towards a full length in 2013. Late 2012 we will contribute some songs to a compilation album with global distribution.” Is there a song the fans ask you to play each time? “Yeah, it seems in club shows the faster songs , like ‘I Won´t Fail’ and ‘Strife for Freedom’ and ‘Break the Chains’, are most asked for. Festival audiences seem to enjoy the mid tempo songs like ‘Day by Day’ and ‘Hold On.” Does the band have its own favorite track? Or is there a certain song you really don't want to play anymore? “We actually threw out one of our songs two weeks ago because we didn´t like the way it fit the rest of the material. Songs come and go and the best ones stick to us! But of course we all have our favorites. I don’t think there is one in particular that we all like the best though.” Some reviewers compared Colors Dead Bleed to AFI and Ignite. Do you think that's a right comparison? “Well, that´s a huge compliment, since we all really like those bands. If it´s a good comparison… we really don´t know. That´s up to the audience to decide I guess. Our sound definitely has a lot of influences from those bands. We get our inspiration from listening to Rise Against, Sick of it All, Hot Water Music, Face to Face, Snapcase and a long list of others, too many to mention!”

“The number one goal is to play more s and to reach more people with our mu And maybe leave a lasting impression” By Kenny Leys

Most people won’t know about Depths., would it be possible to introduce yourselves? “Well I think we could describe ourselves best as a post-hardcore band although we have a little metal influences in our way of riffing. We are trying not to confine ourselves to one genre or sound. The songs on our EP each go in various ways too, this depending from track to track. We started writing in June 2010 and are based in Eeklo. Our music is a result of different people with different influences and that is what makes us depths. like it is now.”

clues in Deinze. We enjoyed playing our first show and can’t wait to play the next one.” Were you nervous? “I think it’s normal that every bandmember had some expectations. I guess we were all a little nervous. But since there were only two bands playing we didn’t have to rush things like setting up our gear so this helped us to calm our nerves.” Your already released an EP. How did the recording for that CD go? “It might be weird that a starting band records before playing live but we wanted to give people

Your first show was just a few months back, on the 26th of May. How did it go? “It was a nice starter. We gave our “Like we said before we don’t want to conbest in front of a small group of fine ourselves in a genre. So who knows friends and acquaintances at the what this may bring in the near future.”

shows usic. ”

INTERVIEW - DEPTHS. The artwork looks pretty DIY but still classy. Will the concept be continued in the future? “Thanks, it’s always great to hear an opinion. Because we had to put our own money in this project, we chose for the cheapest solution and that is DIY. Plus, when it’s finished, it’s awesome seeing something you created from scratch. As for the artwork, that was all done by us. We did our best to give the people a unique visual style of CD. We certainly want to keep doing this because it gives more personal value and meaning.” If you had to name three goals you’d want to accomplish before 2013, which ones would they be? “For us as a band this really is a difficult question because we want to take this band as far as possible but still keeping our two feet on the ground. The number one goal is to play more shows and to reach more people with our music. And maybe leave a lasting impression. If we could achieve that, we think we’ve reached the number one goal. Besides that, as a band we are constantly trying to let our music evolve. Like we said before we don’t want to confine ourselves in a genre. So who knows what this may bring in the near future.” Your “Youtube announcement”-trailer blew me away. Can we expect more teasers like that? “The announcement was our bass player Frederic‘s idea. He is a DOP/Freelance cameraman. Some of you might know him from some of his other film projects such as Perceptions’ The Remaining Few

a clear view of our music before playing shows. The recordings took place at oakwood recordings, Francis Snebbout recorded, edited and mixed our songs and mastering was done “When it’s finished, it’s awesome seeing by Kris Belaen at CCR studios. Francis is something you created from scratch.” a good friend of ours so recording was really relaxing for us. We are happy with video from Ieperfest 2010. What we wanted to do the result, we couldn’t have asked more for our with the clip was create a first impression of the first recording.” band while not revealing that much so the viewers would want to check out our music. The clip was What did the people say about the release? Did posted a while before there was any music, info they like it? or shows. We really want to continue doing this “I guess we’ve only heard from people who liked because we want to give the people who like us a our page, and they seem positive. Other criticism is little bit extra. Fred's working on some recording welcome too. We really like to hear people’s opinfootage to give a short impression of how the CD ions about our music. So feel free to share your was recorded. So keep checking our facebook for opinion on our facebook page or at a show. We updates.” are always up for some feedback, good or bad.”

A little while ago you unleashed the demo "Shame is for the Weak". What kind of reactions have you gotten from people since its release? “The reactions we get are mostly positive. It made people look at us in another way. Most people just came to watch us because we made stupid jokes on stage but since we have our demo, people are coming to see us because they like our music. And that’s the biggest compliment you can give us.” How did the writing process for the demo go? Any stories to tell? “I think we just wrote songs when we felt like it. We’d been playing together for two years by then and we already had a couple of songs. It seemed like a normal step for us to record a demo. There isn’t a really interesting story behind our first demo. We had some songs, we recorded them and that’s it.” If you had to come up with a way to persuade someone who hasn't ever heard of you, to listen to your record, what would you do? “It would probably involve some male nudity and a lot of alcohol.”

"Shame is for the Weak" is a quite clear as a title. Is there a reason why the demo got named like that? “Our drummer lives by those words. During high school he wasn’t quite popular because he always said stupid shit or would insult girls. Which we thought was really funny. We would go on saying he doesn’t know any shame. Also because we all do dumb stuff when we’re drunk. Like walking around in bikinis or getting dragged home in a wheelbarrow. Things we’re not really proud of but still think are kind of funny.”

“

INTERVIEW - THE DUTCH RUDDERS

“We all do dumb stuff when drunk. Like walking around in bikinis or getting dragged home in a wheelbarrow” By Manuel Van De Notelaer

Just recently the band got a new member. Why the addition? Did you think of adding an extra member before? “We were talking a lot about getting an extra guitar player because Dries had too much trouble with singing and playing together. So Lucske came in, he was already one of our best friends before he joined us so it all went fluently. He’s a really talented guitar player, sings like a nightingale and he likes alcohol.” A few weeks ago you were practicing covers from bands like Slayer, D.R.I., Trash Talk, among others. Is there a specific reason why you chose to do those songs? “That was kind of an inside joke with some friends. We practiced ‘Raining Blood’ by Slayer to open our set with and did it a couple of times. Just because we thought it was funny. And we like making fun of people that take our facebook page too seriously.”

band because he couldn’t handle the stress of our constant touring. (That’s a joke.) So when he left we were stuck without a drummer. After that, Stef told us he could try and learn our songs because his brother had a drumkit. I think half a year later we were recording our demo.” You've had quite a lot of shows in Belgium already. Are there plans to go abroad, or will you be sticking to the country for now? “We’re going to try and book a small weekend tour together with the guys in Low Derive in October. Furthermore we’ve got some plans to do some touring in 2013. We’ll see what happens.”

Lots of your lyrics are mostly comical, at least not really about the serious things in life. How come you decided to take on that concept, rather than to write about, let's say, political things? “The main reason we do that is so people can relate to our lyrics. We write “I think we all dream of touring America and play- about being dumped by ing the festivals, so in five years, we’ll probably try your girlfriend and drinkto achieve that goal. And I really hope Stef loses ing way to much beer, who some weight by then.” can’t relate to that? Except for some straight-edge kids Are there any plans for a future release? A first who are missing out on the best part of life! Plus full length album or a new EP? you can’t put a ‘Whohoho’ in a political song. An“We’re going to record an EP in August at the Safe- other reason why we write about those silly things haven Studios together with Robin Carlo. We will is because we don’t know anything about politics probably record around 6 or 7 songs. The EP will and we don’t care about protesting against a tax be released in November but we don’t have more increase because we don’t pay taxes.” details because we still don’t have a title or any artwork. But it’s going to be the best EP in the god- Where do you think the band will be in 5 years damn world. Mark my words.” time? “In five years, I think we will still be the same four As a band, you've been around for a while, but it guys making music and trying to play as many took some time before you actually went to re- shows we can. I think we all dream of touring cord music. Was this a deliberate choice? America and playing the festivals, so in five years, “It wasn’t really a choice. We were going to record we’ll probably try to achieve that goal. And I really a demo but then Nick, our 1st drummer, quit the hope Stef loses some weight by then.”

I've seen your music being categorized in various different genres all over the internet. From doom to death metal, even dark rock. What style would you call the band and do you find it necessary to categorize? “Not at all! I have no need for Katatonia to fit or belong to anything. Obviously we can not be considered a death metal band anymore, because the last time we used the growling vocal style was 15 years ago. But if people call it doom or dark rock I will not start an argument about it. It can be whatever people want it to be. I think we've grown out of labels and it's all a cross between diversity of different moods nowadays. Personally I'd rather discuss ‘good music’ rather what is and what is metal and what is not metal, which by the way seems what the scene is always so obsessed with diagnosing.” You've been playing with the band for over 20 years now. During those years the original line up has seen many changes. Is it a way to keep it all interesting and exciting, or just a growth from the members? “Well, I think the more you evolve as a musician the more interesting and natural it becomes to expand your musical knowledge and with that comes the need to master more instruments. I don't necessarily even consider myself a guitarist anymore, I feel much more like a songwriter and a performer. When I write my songs I compose all the instruments and put the exact same emphasis on all to make the song the best it can be. Obviously this will always be different live as you won't see Jonas strapped with a guitar very often or sitting behind the drums, he's Katatonia's lead vocalist, but we could all switch certain positions if needed. It's quite liberating!” Next to Katatonia, most band members also have another project(s) going on. Such as Chaosys, Bloodbath, Diabolical Masquerade, ... How do these projects relate to one another and where's the difference in them? “Nille is not playing with Chaosys anymore and I haven't been doing anything with Diabolical Masquerade for over a decade now, but Bloodbath is still active as a death metal project that works on the other side of the spectrum from Katatonia. It's

“Whatever craz feelings and circums influence on you all about brutality, aggression and covering the ugly and foul sides of horror wrapped up in the same way you'd consider watching a horror movie to be great entertainment. Being able to do all this stuff in different projects creates an equilibrium for my musical needs without making a mess with the presentation of respective acts. I wouldn't want to have it any other way!” As a “dark rock” band you have a certain occult, macabre aesthetic with the band. Is the band into the teaching of LaVey and/or Crowley, or maybe even DeGrimston's apocalyptic vision?

INTERVIEW - KATATONIA

zy journey life takes you out on, and the stances this will bring, sustains a direct ur vision, deliberately or subconsciously” By David Marote

“Visions maybe, but no teachings. I might have said a thing or two in the past, but these days I rather let the music do the talking and it's language alone is darker than the night! Where it decides to go, we can only folllow...” Your lyrics handle on some “heavy” material, mostly about the darker side of life and mankind. Have you never felt like writing a more uplifting record or is this way of creating music a certain outlet for your thoughts and feeling towards the world? “I'll never say never, but up till now there's been

no need nor urge to write an uplifting record! I'd be happy to make one if that came natural to me, but I've my doubts about that ever happening, at least in this band. Also, it's not like the world is constantly evolving into a better place to be, on the contrary, I actually view every time you leave your home you're exposed to the decline of values, misery and depravation of humanity and every day you wake up is both a gift and a threat. Be cautious and follow your gut feeling in everything you do. The instinct was given to us for a purpose.” From early on Katatonia has had a close relation

with Opeth. Their vocalist has even filled the gap during your absence during the '9O's, next to being part of the same scene in Sweden. How has Opeth and your friendship with them affected Katatonia's creative process? “We've been following each other since the very birth of both bands. Mike used to be our live guitar player between 1993-1994 and has sung on two releases as our main vocalist. He also coproduced the vocals on two albums. I think our friendship and creative collaboration actually allowed Bloodbath to happen. I love and support Opeth, they haven't put out one bad album yet!”

“Personally I'd rather discuss ‘good music’ than what is metal and what is not. Which by the way seems what the scene is always so obsessed with diagnosing.” Is the dark and apocalyptic imagery of the band something inherent to Scandinavian bands. Norway is famous for his black metal, Sweden has some dark bands also, do you have an idea where this influence comes from? “I think it comes subconsciously to us. We have many months of dark and cold weather up here,

INTERVIEW - KATATONIA we don't get much summer, even in summer it mostly rains. I think melancholia is something rooted deeply within our heritage and it's brought on genetically by artist to artist through generations. The dark imagery appeals to a lot of people around the world though, I think it's a global phenomenon for certain kind of people.” Your music consists of many influences and involves different instruments to create a certain atmosphere. It is known you find inspiration in bands such as Joy Division and The Cure for both musical and lyrical inspiration. “All our old musical influences will always remain, they never go away. Of course the stream of new musical influences comes along now and then, but as the years gone by, we have gone through a snowball scenario where we found ourselves inspired by our own albums and most of the time a new album is often a direct answer

You're releasing a new album called “Dead End Kings” in August of 2012. Anything you wish to share with us on the upcoming album, guest artists? Concept? “It's our 9th full-length and we spent most of this year making and recording it. It pretty much takes off in the same direction as the previous album. What's new is the and a batch of 13 new songs. These two albums tie in together beautifully, they feel very related. I think we just tried to throw even more diversity in there. I've written more material this time and I think I write a little bit more direct and heavier than Jonas who writes more abstract and atmospheric but on the other side works more with complex rhythms. We also feature a female guest singer on one song it in the shape of Norwegian artist Silje Wergeland who also is fronting the Dutch band The Gathering. She did a great job coloring Jonas vocals with her own harmonies. I'm also especially pleased and proud of the artwork that I collaborated on with longtime friend and genius Travis Smith.”

Since your band has been called part of or even a prototype of the whole doom metal genre how does that reflect on you? do you feel this is correct, an honor, or any other thoughts on this discourse you'd like to set straight? “I guess at one point in the Scandinavian department of doom “Be cautious and follow your gut feel- metal, we might ing in everything you do. The instinct have been a was given to us for a purpose.” part in the making/evolution of to the one released the genre, but we were never pure doom metal. before. Other than this We always strayed into other styles already at the you collectively gather birth of the band. Even the flyers of our first demo influences on daily read "three doomy songs of gothic black metal", basis. Whatever crazy so I guess that’s exactly how we started out two journey life takes you decades ago, a cross between gothic doom and out on and the feelings black metal and this ignition took us further down and circumstances this the road where we've ended up today.” bring, will sustain as a direct influence on your vision, deliberately or subconsciously.”

You just returned from Australia and Canada. How were the shows over there? “They were great. The Canadian shows were fun. I was playing solo opening up for a guy called Joel Plaskett, so it was a new audience for me, and it'd been a while since I did a solo tour so that was fun. Australia was and always is amazing, and it was the first time I brought my band out there, the shows were the biggest I've done down under, so it was a great time.” There's a UK tour coming up in November. Is it different to play in your native country? “A little, sure - partly because I feel at home, and partly because I play bigger shows, on the whole, in the UK than elsewhere.” Recently you've headlined a sold-out Wembly Arena. At that show you had none other than Billy Bragg as a support band. “It was great. I've played with Billy a few times before and he is a wonderful guy. Having him play before me was very special for me and very gracious of him. It helped to make it into a special evening.” When you look at the amount of shows you've played as a solo-artist, the number's over 1200 and still counting. Do you ever feel like you're going too fast or that you need to take a break? “I take breaks every now and again. I'm not specifically trying to play a gazillion shows. It's more that I'm just doing things at the pace that feels right to me. I get bored easily, and I also define being a musician by playing shows, so it's what I want to do. There are days when I get tired and a little low, sure, but that's pretty normal in any walk of life I'd say.” Lots of bands have told me that as years go by, the duality between making music and wanting to settle down increases. You feel that pressure? “Not really, no. I haven't had my own place for many years now, so it's not like I have a home to be sick about. I'm more and more comfortable doing this as time goes by.” “England Keep My Bones” was released almost a year ago. Looking back on it, how was the album

received by your own fanbase and the critics? “Pretty well I'd say. The reviews were cool, not that I pay much attention to that. In the live shows people are requesting the new songs and singing along with them, that's the main thing for me.” Do you think that the album was an important milestone for you, as a person? “Sure, but then they all are. Each one represents about two years of my life, and I pour everything into them, so they're very specific in their resonances for me.” In 2013 you'll release the follow-up album. In what way will it differ from the previous one? “I try not to push albums in any one direction or other when I'm writing them. I can work out what the ideas were afterwards. While they're being born, I like to just let them grow how they will. I only ever try to make what is, to me, a good record, the best record I can. I suppose I can say that I'm excited about the new songs, there's a lot of them, and I've been getting a little more complex in my lyrics lately. I guess we will all see when it gets finished!” The last record had more of a band-feeling to it. Will it be the same with this one or will it be more of a solo-project? “Kind of the same as the last one I guess, I'm in rehearsals with my band right now, but it's not like every song is a full on rock tune. I want to make records with my band right now, they're an essential part of what I do.” You were supposed to play on Pukkelpop last year, but due to the tragic turn of events the festival got cancelled. Where were you at the moment? “I was in Belgium nearby waiting to go to the festival. It was strange, it was so hot and sunny where we were, and then we got the tragic news. It was a sad time. Later, some people who had been at the festival had been in touch with me to ask if I'd be interested in playing a last minute show. I wasn't immediately sure if it was a good idea, given the circumstances, but after talking to people about it I decided to do it, and I'm glad I did, it was a sad but awesome occasion.”

INTERVIEW - FRANK TURNER

“I haven't had my own place for many years now, so it's not like I have a home to be sick about” By Wouter Torsin

“I sometimes wonder what could hav could have done it full time but I'm su not still be doing it now”

By Manue

Pulley started after Scott leaving Ten Foot Pole due to some different opinions. Was it hard to leave Dennis and the rest of the guys of TFP behind? “Well, it was hard being asked to be out of a band that you started so many years before with your friends but there really was never enough time to be bummed. We started Pulley almost immediately and it was a great vibe right away. It seemed like we had a momentum and wrote and recorded the first record in the first three months of existence.”

You have been in the punk scene for over 20 years now, before Ten Foot Pole the band was named Scared Straight. “The name Scared straight was actually from a television show and wasn't a straight edge driven themed band. We were young and loved what Minor Threat and 7 Seconds were doing and the scene in Boston. But we were also into our own local thing," Nardcore". We had RKL, the biggest partying band there was. It was all about the music for us not so much the title. The music was a little harder in the early days and more stripped

INTERVIEW - PULLEY

ve been if we ure we would

el Van Den Notelaer & David Marote more technical and everywhere. “Skateboarding to me was the first thing I can remember giving me the freedom to do something that had meaning. It was part of the culture with everything going on around “We’re working stiffs and doing it for fun. It's hard me, and because they were for us to ever feel like we're getting ripped off.” both underground there was attraction to both. Skating and Scott, you own a skatepark named skatelab in punk rock was what was going on, today there is Simi Valley. What's your view on modern day still a connection but I see it from a different view. skateboarding? In the early days it was under- The skaters are certainly more technical and unbeground, hardcore and hated by many. Now it’s lievable with what they can do and many of them down, we didn't really know how to write songs yet and were still learning how to play together, but it was the best times ever and the scene was real and it was thriving.”

can make a living doing something they love to I am not sure there was that much money to be do. Like anything that has to evolve, skateboard- made and they were one of the few labels that ing started out as a culture and developed into a had that kind of music. They put out good compibusiness worth millions, music has changed over lations and bands didn't really have many options time and though I have my own personal taste, I then so there was no complaint from us. When don't really want to be a dinosaur and not accept “The music was a little harder in the early days and more stripped down, but it was the best times ever change.”

and the scene was real and it was thriving.”

Pulley only tours for about four months a year since you're otherwise engaged in the Major League Baseball circuit as pitching coach of the Cleveland Indians. Was this a conscious choice? “Well, we started the band with everyone having jobs and it's always been that way. I sometimes wonder what could have been if we could have done it full time but I'm sure we would not still be doing it now. I think it is extremely hard to pull it full time and make enough to live. We have been able to do so much from the music and I think we have been satisfied. Without the expectations in making a living we are still having fun today and still enjoy hanging out together writing and playing live. It's awesome to still be doing it and having fun.”

we signed with Epitaph it was like a different time. Things were starting to blow up and the style became cleaner and more melodic. Epitaph was great and is the best independent label there is. They evolved their sound and have changed with the times and I guess that's what labels do. Putting out our music now ourselves is obviously the best for us. It's 100% ours. We do everything.”

Some of Pulley’s earliest members went to big full touring punk bands. Was this because of the band being an off season band? “They were all in bands at the same time they were in Pulley and joined the band knowing ahead that it would be limited playing. Everyone was stoked and understood the concept. Some people used the phrase part time band but I don't think we ever saw it that way. We wrote almost every record while everyone was doing their day job including myself. I would sing a song in the morning go to work and then sing another that night until we were done. There were never any misunderstandings when someone couldn't do something due to previous obligations. We have always tried to do as much as we can as far as playing live.”

Following the previous question, many bands need to tour more nowadays to survive since the sales of records have plummeted. Being a part time band, how does that affect you? “It really doesn't. We’re working stiffs and doing it for fun. It's hard for us to ever feel like we're getting ripped off. We are just trying to have fun and sound good.”

In the beginning, Pulley released records on Mystic records. How was that experience, considering we all heard NOFX had some bad experiences with Mystic? “Well, back in the mystic years we were all in high school and had the opportunity to make a record.

Because you guys only hit the road for a brief period every year, tours never span long periods or distanc-

INTERVIEW - PULLEY es and us Europeans don't get to chance to see you guys play live a lot. “We like to play where ever we can play. Sometimes we can only do those kind of banzai weekends to countries or cities that are within a distance so we can get back to work. I guess we're just weekend warriors.”

and played a few years ago with Pennywise and the circle jerks. It was a really cool weekend and those guys do a great job organizing the whole thing. As far as a punk rock baseball thing goes. I have never thought about it!”

Every year there is the annual punk rock bowling competition in Las Vegas where prominent US punk bands perform and form their own bowlingteam to compete against one each other. Never thought of starting such an event but with your big love, baseball, as binding factor. “We have actually been to the punk rock bowling

e c n i v n o c o t t o y i r d i t I g n h i c k i c h u w f n a i e t l o c n i t m ’ r I a t a n A you th KAREL GEUENS This Ain’t Noise Radio

Hi everyone. Remember the 70s? You probably don’t. I don’t either. Yet that era has made a specific impact on my life. It generated punk rock music. And I’m not talking about the Sex Pistols. I’m talking about the Ramones. I don’t care who was first, who was more punk or who was better. All I know is that the Ramones were first, they were more punk and they were better. And the Ramones changed my life. They didn’t do it directly. Most of them weren’t even alive when I heard of them. But they created this music that appealed to me. And I guess that was enough. That is always enough. I can barely relate to their lyrics. But their music is great, and that’s just about all that matters. And it didn’t have to be the Ramones. It could have been the Buzzcocks, or Teenage Head, or The Undertones. They did the same thing. But I guess the Ramones were just better at it. They took rock’n’roll music, and the whole 60s pop music, and they sped it up, made it faster and louder and essentially more enjoyable. Up to this day, that’s still the key thing that I like in punk music: the combination of the catchy hooks like the Beatles or the Beach Boys did, and the sincere fast vibe that was added by some deadbeat suburban kids in the late 70s. So basically, I like the fact that punk music is poppy.

“Essentially, I’m doing my utmost best to be part of that specific subculture where the members themselves don’t want to be part of”

I guess a lot of punx people are now stigmatizing me as an untrue punx, but I’m okay with that. I gladly call myself a punkrocker and I stay true to that. It’s about having an own opinion, right? So I’ll be whatever I want to be. Essentially, I’m doing my utmost best to be part of that specific subculture where the members themselves don’t want to be part of. Non-conformism can go a long way... But I won’t go into that right now. What I want to say is that I’m kind of a loser, I don’t fit in (musically or ideologically) with most people and I smell pretty badly. So those are some criteria that should get me into the punx club, right? I sure hope so, cause I like it there.

Yet, whenever I tell regular people I listen to punk rock music, they think I should have a mohawk, wear a leather jacket with pins, be a rebel and listen to loud shit. But, like

EDITORIAL - KAREL GEUENS I said, a lot of the shit I listen to is pretty accessible. These people are just ignorant, which is a shame really. Punk rock has this prejudice of being inaudible and badly tuned and screaming out “fuck the system”. Most punk I listen to is pretty slickly produced, has 3 well-balanced chords and melodies and only yells “fuck my ex-girlfriend”. What’s the fucking harm in that? People just don’t give it a chance cause they’re biased. In the meantime, the radio plays another boring britrock band every week and people seem to totally into that. I don’t get it. If you want a Beatles ripoff, go listen to the Ramones. At least they were smart enough to make it somewhat interesting. So yeah, the Ramones saved my life. Not literally. “The Ramones made me realise They didn’t come and save me when I was taking that there’s a whole world behind the mainstream music” a bath with a clock radio (+10 punx points for who gets that reference). But they made me realise that there’s a whole world behind the mainstream music. They made me realise punk is cool. They made me realise I’m a loser but that’s okay cause I am my own loser. I decide my loserness. And now I try my best to introduce punk music to other people, to make them realise it’s not evil music, but really just fun music with guitars and shit. On the other hand, the Ramones ruined my life. They made me realise there’s a whole world behind the mainstream music. And now I’m buying all sorts of CDs, LPs, 7” records, tapes and fanzines to meet my need to listen to music. And my bank account just has to deal with that.

"I may call Angela Gossow any time for a photoshoot"

From Dropkick Murphys to Europe and Korn, all of them posed with a doubt in front of the lens of rock photographer Tim Tronckoe (21). When not shooting cover shoots for Rock Tribune and Aardschok, Tim is working as a house photographer on festival grounds. In honour of ten years of MFVF, Tim published his first photobook titled 'Metal Female Voices Fest Exposed'. "With Doro I can have a relaxed chat and a hug before we start composing her outfit."

By Suzanne Gielis

INTERVIEW - TIM TRONCKOE You are mostly known as a rockphotographer, but your actual occupation is that of teacher instead. How hard is it to combine these two jobs? “I teach French and English, both during the day and in the evening. Due to this I need to let some shows go by unattended from time to time but in general I try to visit at least one show each week. Sometimes that can be two or three." You have been paving the way a few years now with your photography. What was your calling? "During my first metal concert ever at the age of sixteen I snapped some photos and I seemed to like it. I started going to more shows on a regular base, purchased myself a decent camera and better equipment en bumped into more and more people who believed in me and my work. I'm actually still surprised of what I have achieved in my short lifespan and how many people i've met just by cruising the shows with my smile and camera. It still seems unreal each day I wake up, but I appreciate every moment of it.”

during those shoots. “With Doro, Epica and Angela Gossow (Arch Enemy) I have developed a tight friendship. I admire their music and after viewing my pictures they started appreciating me also. Doro really likes my work a lot and she lets me know that every time I see her. After a relaxed chat and a hug we start composing her outfit for the shoot together. That's a dream of many fans I believe. With Angela Gossow I happen to have a tight connection too. She appreciates my work and I can always call her for a personal talk concerning a shoot.” What's their managers stance on this? “Managers and tour managers are mostly those I get befriended with best. After a photoshoot with Dropkick Murphys I made friends with their tour manager and we still stay in touch.

Some published work has found its way to the public already. What makes you proud most? “My biggest moments are the cover photo for the 100th edition of Rock Tribune with Simone Simons (Epica), Doro and Floor Jansen (ex-After Forever, ReVamp) and those for Aardschok with Arch Enemy. It was such a fun experience working together with them, especially since i'm a huge fan myself.”

TIMS PHOTOTIPS 1. Making good photos accuires much concentration. Often it is harder focusing on the art of taking pictures instead of the music when you're a fan. Separating those is harder in the beginning, but worth trying"

Next to magazineshoots you also work for and during major festivals. “That's right. I became the house photographer of festivals such as Graspop, Groezrock and Metal Female Voices Fest. I've also did photo sessions with world renowned artists such as Korn, Alter Bridge, Simple Plan, Europe, Dropkick Murphys, In Flames, Trivium, Mastodon, Soulfly,... Those are big challenges, cause I mostly get about ten minutes- everything needs to be perfect right away. Nothing may fail. So it gives a great rush when everything works out.”

2. Take time for photo editing. "Nowadays we have acces to thousands of different programs, so why should we not use them? Editing photos from shoots can consume many hours. I mostly use Lightroom and Photoshop. Photos from shows I try to edit as less as possible"

For your photobook Metal Female Voices Fest Exposed, you managed to get Doro, Arch Enemy, Epica, Lacuna Coil and Tarja in front of your lens. Do you establish a certain bond as photographer

3. Search for inspiration on the web and in magazines. "Inspiration for original shoots I get from what I stumble upon on the internet and in magazines. Sometimes I get beautiful ideas when witnessing a random image. Then I try to develop that idea into my own as fast as possible"

I can imagine that there are also artists that don't like to pose... “Indeed, but luckily their managers can convince them do to the photoshoot. A few months ago the vocalist of In Flames acted pretty stubborn during a shoot. Asking him to hold a certain pose was out of the question. He only does what he likes to. Understandable, although it's mostly the biggest rockstars such as Jonathan Davis or Myles Kennedy who seem to be the nicest guys to work with. “

this band. I can warmly recommend them.” We can recommend your rockphotos - such as the Yellowcard one on the cover- warmly also.

Is there one of those big rockstars that you'd love to work with some day? "Slash. He's a huge icon in the rock- and metalworld. I believe that every rock photographer dreams of catching him in front of their lens.”

FOTOGEAR * Brand: Canon * Big shows 5D Mark 2 and 5D Mark 3 - by working with two cameras, Tim can use his zoomobjective (70-200) and wideangle lens (24-70). * Extra material for shoots 3 studioflashers for shoots on location

And which unknown talent do we need to check out according to you? "I'll put my hand in the fire for the Swedish band Amaranthe. We're going to hear a lot more from

Metal Female Voices Fest Exposed Tim has bundled his best photos of famous participants who graced the MFVF into his full sized hard cover photobook. "If you own a copy of the book, you can get it signed by the artists that are in it. Each year numerous signingsessiosn are held during the MFVF and with the release of the photobook the tenth edition will become even more festive.

For sale : during MFVF from 19-21 october in Wieze, for those who can't wait untill then, you can order it directly from Tim.Troncktoe@telenet.be. Price : 45 euro

INTERVIEW - TIM TRONCKOE

FAILED STATE

o t w o h ve pa ur way yo the in lgian Beene sc

EDITORIAL - BELGIAN SCENE

The pa is todays,t years, the B people ar at least thatelgian hardcor playing in e contributin 's our impressioe scene hasn't little sce a band, or wr g to the scene n. It is fanta been as act ive itin st . ne in any way desgea blog or zineW,h. ether you aicreto see how maas it .. ach in rves our We, as booking sh ny d respece ows, or iv id u other loFcailed State, t a l t s ! u p p o r r t a ing our and we g l bands in th y to make it c e o o t s u p o n o t tlight on as ally like b our Facineevery way pos y buyingmany local show s s their cd b s, mercahs possible and osouk & Twitteribale. We put Failed St ccounts, , etcete pport th that a lo ate also stron r e a b . a n ds we re g t it real" m of other ba ly believes in to whom ost certainly nds and promotthe "hardcor as long as we are today is something w ers share thee family" and k this music we can beca . We will keep e stand for an same belief. nows o use we, ! as 5 difnfsupporting oudr formed us as"Kaeeping erent in dividuaslsc,ene as much baand nd simply live for

PMA 'till w

e die and m u FaileodshSit tatpe,

OCTOPUSSYS

f rience aonye p x e y n y had wae had to knowwould ll a e r y d sys, nonbodidn't expectthink that thoisre about s u p o t c O m ed Thek then, we evaeuse we didnr'tned more and t r a t s c When wineg a band. Baacnagement bBeit by bit I lea g m mana about band of our lives. fter a will a e id c e at thing e a big part ning! s is to dhis person th't d n a rer b m o a g c le in T n n l be . id il in d d t g n s t e a e b b 'm w n give arge of the Octopussys guess this jus a it and I c I t a I e h dvice twhho will be in ecr,... With Tfheverythingy”s. have faithbinut a t s e b The of months ooker, plann in charge o e other gu e for fun couplee contact, b have to be now that th ou a hard tim be th y “Mark, youy. By now I kguys to give y g erythinov ally sa ned naturall the other e o d n't illing my m happe I do. Expect nk you”. er”, droe g a n a ally k I couldn't m a e s h a t w what it like a “th “ it im call h rs back and calling peoplet,s behind 's t take le , ea son ne igh hat peilrl a couple of syalways the eo road, late na pleasant edxoing t e r a If youelf. I did it t a band. I waof time on theds to remain ill you will be done yours n of being in , spent a lot at it still ne u out. But stl need to be ettivatio(school)work emember thys to help yo tion work wil g a hostel, g ff do my omputer,... R he other gu and coordinassing, or findin.. It is all stu the cnce and ask tthe contact at the pre erchandise,. perie ost work. All up somethingmaking the m ave tozy, the m , but picking for a tour, h y e h t u that nd don't be la by yo he van fixed n do. d n a t s r ting t ther guys ca to undenager” says. sAks if somebodeylse d e e n o y e th e reallwhat the “mtahe managerdao it because e, he g r a h c lieve m times, or it, s not in rt. If The guty, most of thhee hardest paan make timedof it himself. Brey to do sameas accep is probably t ing and you cverybody or y don't you try to answer him whichick up sometheds to call e e band so wh il from him t question let can p manager” ne of time in th ssage or ema nswer to his the “dy puts a lot t a text me give him an a y reallgyue alrea Also if you geIf you can't swer. d o b o N . ! e thing as possible. know the an ut theragency. But I o d ly l n il k a b w ic n r qu when you ting youou work withIaY-style. t e g f know o D sy ct e subjeeed to do unlersobably doing it h o first , t t o y t r t p w n o , n e t But y what you this you ar erne ongs recordedg t in n o a s n can s are reading ally focyuou got someSosundcloud amhoen e r u 't o n y o n t d if a band,ord them. Whooek page, and raecorded anodk I wa t r a t s rec ust ceb thing on Facebo can h If you sjome songs andmepage, a Fairst get somew band hat write yourself a ho better to f n I see a ne hs later.Also w make s. I think it's ccount. Whe d not 2 mont other a Facebook aat instant,an forums. make something th on different hear t your band to pos

EDITORIAL - BELGIAN SCENE

But th selves! eTamost important th to the boolk to the people ing is to get you booked by ker and hear if over there. Th r ass to some sho not a rea him. Don't stalk there is an oppoere is no shame inws yourmoment I l active booker, him though! I'll g rtunity to get y talking ally busy ( don't put up a lo I put up shows wive you an examp our band the band) personal stuff likt of shows anymo hen I want and le: I am are textin. Remember tha e rebuilding, mov re because I've at the Every day g them every t t there are othing, work,... and been reman wo er I get over stuff. more thdaanys it is kind of gpiveople like me andaging if you ing them e 20 new em x a t il r s a + w Most pe unwanted ork. and spam but don'tople say that prom you are a think it's everyt o is the most imp ing every beginning band w hing. If your banortant thing. Th played aromonth 2 or 3 timeith no experienc d name is out this is true, you talk t und 15 shows, 4 y s. Be patient! Te don't expect ere and ably “easilo some bookers w ears later it wa he first year wto be playposition, on y” get a spot as ho put up shows s 60 shows in 8 me only songs and aly promo work isn the opening bandin your genre you onths. If who are w decent live re 't enough. You w . If you want a will probexperienc illing to pay an eputationas well, ill need to have better club or ba e by joining a frentrance fee to so there will be some good so r. se e podium, rock rallye, you play. Get msoe “fans” me live try to pla Never, ev y e in r , a t h local ink that o We always t h s e e e r bands ar other ba about t with eveorsee them play.nWds as co-workeerscompetition for y but rememybody. It's ok to e play in a small s who we are ver our band. real fact ber that most t have adisagree cene so try to gy happy m person you that needs no d hings are just pment withanotheet along er isc r will ever s ee on a sutssion is that oursodnal opinions. Thebaond age (exce nly rummer is Although it p t t h e m m a a s e y y b s e in a strip c xiest ess fun at all, it's b eemafter read lub)! ing this, th een alrea age the b d a y a t n a d p no know-h as well as pla really cool ex laying in a ban bit withouow whatsoever,aying. We startedperience for me d is not disappointet taking a real bignd the band alwaout with no expeto man, when we d because we do jump forward. ys kept growing brience, g then we swtarted out with everything stepWe have never bit by n ee t a b ant to and just hanvteed to make an hoew intention of juyststep. I remembenr n fun. Be pa c help is tience asonng. Don't put thoevering 1 song, d it will all b come evearn to high tually.

Mark Bolse

ns, Octopu

ssys

MIDGNIGHT SOULS I fee since Ml out of place gian sceidnight Souls giving othe helped ne. But for is still a re r people ad vic la us along w the wahat it's wotrtively young ae on how to r y. It all st h, here nd small un a are som band in ttheir band, r t with, a s at th e of th h take it nd make sur e beginning. e thineg Bels that make c further t e you all sh Find the rig h e a h a ranks, b rtain sacr n your loc re the sam t people t drive t ut if he pr ifices. Perh al youth clu e ambitions o be in a ba the rig o play in a r efers seein aps you hav b, you all h . If you wa nd ht guy n g u a e for thnedown squathis favorite a talentedve to be wiltlinto gu aris for 10 p football job. Be yo t in tgheto club tit eople, c cheapur own band a hances o a five h our are he feel thknock-off. nd not anot ' s W a h n r t e o it t r t e you've run of got enhois is the bestand then re can pla writetyhe mill hot b ugh son y o u y c t a and of gs for a our son hem ba n do a anoth peopleer month orckwards. If live set, stta this time ings until you tthe week out of are not eagtwo. We liveyou feel yourt practicinyour careeruly the wo r odworekrs to give bainn a superficaiare ready gt them until .yWhen o d , make o sure ysosecond chal ndisposable cpuerform, wauit u come lt ces, so when yure and out wit o h a ban g. u come

Figure out wh th e vibe of your band associated witahtth is and t that into e everything merch, the websit band: the music, the lyricpu s, th e e , th a rt e w liv or e k, the sh show that you get ow... When you sta rt of fe ou re t, d. pl a Don't be too picky y every for free, eve You'll probably ngeift it's a long drive and you have atond be willing to play ope booked a second and e show. third time if yonuth do a good job. Focus on the Belgia n sc e ne be fo hasn't established u start touring. A ba its name in thereir yo nd that abroad. Play eve ow n sc e ne h a ry s no sh bu ow si like it's going to be ss going when this might be your last; youne true. never know When people st to know your band material for a afirt and you'v ritten rs t enough Make sure the art proper release, take your etiw e to plan it out.new market and people work and recordings are done m well! It's a buyers shelve out some ca expect a lot these days before ' sh for your release th e y a re w ill in g to .

EDITORIAL - BELGIAN SCENE

gs and in d r o c e our r our achievey d n e S oo pick,y.a resume oftyhe biggest ancdeive t e b 't n y e o o labels, dshort biograpfhuture plans tels prefer to hr ands. t c a t n o a lab h our uc heir When yrok together swtitatement of ybetween. Somyeour promo in t, and see if artwo and a brief everything in s like to hold heck up on it hey hear. g ments st labels and , while otherth manners. Cy like what t without bein smalle thing digitally t them in bo ell and if thework. Be bold things since every safe, contaceverything w about your d is the best To be e received u are serious eve your ban dvanthey'vhows them yo on't truly beli . a r u o y o r t This s nt. If you d won't eithe n mediaand others ar. eThe r e a d y g o o e m r h e h ar ead, t n. Use ntdhcamp, last.FinMk this is enoustg praca c u sliced br o y r ery watyer, tumblr, ebsa. But don't tbhefore your tfir v e e in yowus in o h e iv it s n t t u ly w c r n t Be a Facebook, t read your is even sta s and not o nds and sho tage. ct ways to sp band, and th e. Go to shownow other bao the same perfe hing for your e in the scenself, get to kcan. They'll d best tis to be activ p shows yourany way you tice, orhood. Set uouring bands neighb s. Help out t goal, bookeryou do. t a th xt when ach the ne that e r y yoeu not atto takelike a d the you ar nd fury r feel on. ss n o s e w a e mentbecaus passion and nev from nuo l sleepleto e v e achei xt dayith moreatisfiedll go easystressf forgetmemr u o h y f the n play w er be shings wi fights,... don't ou'll re t i w appypissed ofder andder. Neve and tes, bandrd sales years y h e B be k har lad g-tim dach reco the butel. Wor on thethe bi e hea ointing will be lev t step ached een th disapp these nex 've re , betw ows and es are you finally tty sh chanc hs, g And ts, shi cause r o enb Souls nigh e fun, t s v e ha . Wo night y n n ber Mid Do

eysen

L By Lisa

After trainrides, busrides and walking through the mud I arrived at one of Europe’s most crazy festivals: Download Festival. It is located in Derby, right in the middle of the hills of England where you can find the famous racecourse. The view is magical and you can spot Donnington Castle a bit further uphill. The rainy English weather as we know it turned the festival and campsite into a mudpool, but festival lovers wear rubber boots anyway. One of the most ‘glamrock looking’ bands was rocking the main stage when I arrived: Steel Panther. (****) I saw a lot of showing off, but a lot of real rock & roll too. The singer can actually sing and proved the crowd that his band is not just a gimmick. Everyone seemed to love Steel Panther and some girls showed that in a very unashamed way, by showing their tits. The 50,000 people crowd responded by cheering and asking for more. Steel Panther’s vocalist Micael Starr also asked girls to keep on showing skin, while he pretended to bang a inflatable doll on stage. This is a good way to start a festival if you ask me! Comedy actor Jack Black (**) was up next with his amusing band Tenacious D. What Mr. Black can do with his voice is quite surprising, he hits very high and low tones without any effort. His performance was amusing but got boring and predictable after a while. Next one please! My new surprising ‘discovery’ is Skindred (***) who played on the Second stage. Melodic rock, influenced by Rage Against The Machine and with an entertaining Will.I.Am look-a-like vocalist. Be-

tween two songs they blasted Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies’ through the speakers, though the vocalist was disappointed the crowd knew this commercial song. Singer Benji Webbe asked everyone to put their hands up for real instruments. ‘We have to keep the guitar alive!’ In honor of the guitar, his band started to play ‘Enter Sandman’’s intro to warm up the crowd for tonight’s headliner: Metallica. Webbe proved that he’s a born entertainer. When telling 30,000 people to ‘helicopter’ with a garment, everyone obeyed. Mr. Webbe’s wish, is the crowd’s command. After this gig it was time to check out the carnival attractions around the festival grounds. These attractions were constantly visited by (drunk) ‘Downloaders’ and they really give an extra entertaining boost. I’m sure Belgium could learn something from this! With the carnival attractions and a few slices of pizza, it was time to leave my new friends behind and get back to the main stage for Metallica (****). James Hetfield and his gang needed some time to get up to speed and convince the crowd that they are a well-deserved headliner. The darker it got, the more Metallica got in shape and was able to convince the 200,000 ‘Downloaders’ that they were the right band at the right place. Hetfield was very energetic and proved that he knows who the one and only Metal Gods are by wearing a Black Sabbath patch on his denim jacket. To hear the whole ‘Black Album’ live made me feel like a lucky bastard. A cup of hot chocolate, my good friend Andreas next to me and Metallica playing on stage? What could a person possibly need more?! Fireworks announced the end of an energetic setlist and everybody left with a smile on their face.

Saturday 9th of June,

FESTIVAL REPORT - DOWNLOAD

Sundday 10th of June,

The weather was bright. Sun, no wind or clouds! For £8 you could take the shuttle bus from Derby Station to the festival site. When I finally arrived there after a 30 minute bus ride, the ground was clearly less muddy than the day before. The first band that I checked out is Anthrax (***), these old fella’s gave the ‘Downloaders’ a good amount of music and a little bit of show. Someone from the crowd reached out an American Indian wig to frontman Joey Belladonna, to which he decided to just wear it for the rest of the set. ‘Metal is aliiiiiiiiiiiiiive!!’ Belladonna screamed, and who are we as metal lovers to disagree?! Around 4PM, there was a band called La Dispute (****) playing on the Pepsi Max stage. While Lamb Of God played on the main stage, La Dispute’s singer Jordan Dreyer and his pals were trying to get comfortable on this metal fest. They tried to get interactive with the crowd and convince them that they deserve to play on Download Festival. It’s like the tent could be located at Ieperfest, all hardcore kids were united! I saw people with Title Fight or Touche Amore shirts who sang-a-long and had a giant smile on their faces! I went wild during their set. The guy next to me noticed this and even told me ‘I love you, you’re so crazy!’ I responded with a smile, as always. From a pretty new hardcore band to a ‘legendary’ hardcore band: time to check out Refused (***). This band changed their style a lot since they started to make music. The sound, music and stage performance was great but I just wondered how sincere they are in playing again. For Coachella in California they apparently got a $500.000 cash grab, so I just wonder how much Download paid them to play. With knowing that, I doubt their reasons for playing reunion shows. I don’t have hard feelings towards Refused, just against the possibly wrong motivation or reason to play music that any band can have.

Another band that made people doubt was Soundgarden (****). Not because of the reason behind it, but because of the voice of singer Chris Cornell. Although I didn’t notice that his voice ‘wasn’t like it should be’, charming Chris screamed for everyone’s attention and got it. When these

FESTIVAL REPORT - DOWNLOAD

old grunge rockers played ‘Black Hole Sun’, I even got goose bumps. The only thing which was missing on the setlist for me was my favorite song ‘Big Dumb Sex’. Just a bit later, it was time to check out the band that every single person on the festival was waiting for. The one and only Black Sabbath (****). The show started with visuals of the album covers from their past releases. Ozzy yelled in the mic while cloths were still covering the stage. You could hear everyone think ‘Whooow, that’s Ozzy Osbourne speaking to us!’ When the cloths got lifted up, everyone went insane. 200,000 people smiled, clapped and yelled. Such an amount of positive vibes and enthusiasm. It felt like the planet was in perfect harmony and everyone was in love with each other. Ozzy was in shape, his voice was good and he ran from the left side to the right side with his typical step. Original drummer Bill Ward wasn’t there but ‘Ozzy & Friends’ drummer Tommy Clufetos made everyone forget about Bill Ward when he played some astonishing drumsolos. Ozzy asked the people gathered to show their respect for guitarist Tony Iommi, who is currently battling cancer yet was on stage. ‘An applause for the strongest man on earth!’ Tony is possibly the strongest man on earth, as well as an outstanding guitarist. The riffs and solos of ‘Fairies Wear Boots’ and ‘War Pigs’ sounded excellent but ‘Iron Man’ was the climax. Hearing the whole crowd sing the ‘Iron Man’ riff, that’s an unforgettable experience. This is the reason I traveled so far and spend so much money. It’s been amazing. ‘Paranoid’ is the last song they played while there’s firework that’s been shot from stage. By leaving the festival site, a man from the Download staff guided everyone to the shuttlebus. This British courtesy makes the festival very outstanding. ‘Thank you for visiting, Downloaders. We hope to see you next year!’ he said, friendly.

See you next year Download Festival!

By L

11 AM. Thousands of teenagers gather at the gates of the Mansfield Comcast Center where the punk rock caravan will stop by today: The Vans Warped Tour. My first impression was that kids are dressed in a more outspoken way compared to Europe. It’s an interesting and entertaining anthropological thing to experience while I waited for my friend Andy to sneak me in for free. When he arrived, I joined him to the festival site and when I asked him what to expect from it he described it as ‘graceful chaos, not very organised’. The festival site looked very DIY. All merchandise tents and stages seemed to be located close to each other, which gives a rather cosy impression. There were 11 stages and a whole lot of bands to check out. I was so ready for this! Man Overboard (***) was up at 12.30 in the Comcast Amphitheater. Man Overboard, in an amphitheater? Oh yes, and a lot of people were there to support them. Their ‘feel good’ vibe brought an instant happy feeling to everyone around. Sometimes Man Overboard played their songs a bit faster or sloppier than on the cd but that didn’t really bother me. During ‘World favorite’ and ‘Love Your Friends, Die Laughing’ the crowd almost sang the lyrics louder than the band, fucking overwhelming. Not only electric guitars were plugged in to rock the Vans warped Tour crowd, 2 stages out of 11 were acoustic. On these stages bands could prove what they’re really worth. A band that is worth a fortune hearing acoustic is definitely Make Do and Mend (****). At their purest, there’s no way you can’t fall in love with the guitarist and the vocalist. Even if it was 35°C and the sun was shining bright, they still gave me goose bumps. The cover of Touché Amoré’s ‘Home Away From Here’ was a pleasant surprise and a moment not to forget. While they were playing some of their own songs singer James decided to remix some Carly Rae Jepsen ‘Call Me Maybe’ in!

Pictures by Anthony Diaz (@Imthears0nist)

yse e L a

FESTIVAL REPORT - WARPED

FESTIVAL REPORT - WARPED At 2PM in the afternoon it was already time for Yellowcard (***). Some people were bothered about their early appearance on stage, but I wasn’t. Yellowcard is like chocolate. I can have some of that any time of the day! Their set was short so it didn’t take long until they played their hit songs, with insane reactions of the crowd included. Thousands of teenagers were yelling along ‘Only One’, and they made me yell as well. But when the riff of ‘Ocean Avenue’ dropped, I had to keep my hands on my ears to prevent myself from going deaf because of the amount of screaming people. After that, it was time to eat something! I bought fried dough for $8 and tried to find a place to eat it. When I finally found a place to sit down, I noticed two teenagers in front of me were French kissing heavily. Maybe that’s why the seat was available! There was no other option than to take my fried dough with me to check out the next band. This time, Make Do and Mend (****) played on a small stage. They performed some songs of their new album, ‘Everything You Ever Loved’, and everyone seemed to know the lyrics already. It’s an art to create the same sound from a recording on stage, but I guarantee you that they can do it! When they played ‘Winter Wasteland’, the singer has only one thing to say: “Bang your fucking head!” And as MDAM-lovers, we fucking do. While walking around on this festival, I passed by a tent which said ‘Bandhappy, live music lessons from your favourite musicians.’ It seemed a lot of fun for people who have talent to do such things but I don’t really count myself in. For me, it’s just funny to see kids being nervous while getting taught by their idol. After passing by this tent I passed a stage with a more diverse line-up of artists from the reggae and hip-hop scene. Some charming looking gentlemen by the name of G-Easy (****) was rapping on stage. His perfect son-in-law looks are apparently just an image because his lyrics are a bit obscene. He really seemed to mean it when he raps “My jeans are skinny but my dick is fat.” His songs about make-up sex and an endless summers made girls on the first row melt and beg for both. I think I discovered some new summer tunes! Time to check out Hostage Calm (****). This band speaks up about what they stand for and there’s no way to miss their point of “I support same-sex marriage”. They even have shirts printed for people who think the same way and want to show that. This statement shines through the melodic song ‘Ballots/Stones’, and when they’re playing it live you know these guys are sincere. The banging drums and rocking riffs can make you feel like you’re floating, but the straight-forward and critical lyrics will bring you back with your feet on to the ground. Be sure to check out their lyrics!

That concluded The Vans Warped Tour for me. I ended up tired, but satisfied! If you're ever in the USA when the punk rock caravan stops by, go check it out!

This Kid - Covering The Tracks A DIY Diary

Preproduction results meeting. Lots of darling killing here. Poor darlings. We’re going to have to work on quite a few lyrics and some vocal melodies will have to change. Working out the bugs we’ll point out some sections that aren’t as tight as we’d like them to be. We’ll have to work our asses of on rehearsals and writing sessions to have it all finished in time. At least every lyric will get a review. Don’t get lazy here, don’t plan on “fixing it in the mix”. Get it as right as possible from the start. Preparation is key and allows you to work fast when in the studio. We set on the GAMStudio in Waimes because we can rent the studio for a week without any external interference and we can do the engineering ourselves. Some recording schools have well equipped studios and students are always looking for bands to record for free in exchange for experience. There are various scenarios where you can benefit from each other. So, off to Waimes. If it weren’t for the weather. The one day it’s snowing frantically in Belgium turns out to be today. We arrive at the studio 5 hours later than scheduled, and we’re all hungry and grumpy. Hence, no soundchecking will be done today. The food was excellent, though. And not a second too early. We unloaded all the gear in the most reverse Tetris way you’ve ever seen.

DEC 28, 2011

FEB 3, 2012

Lots of writing, touring and eventually … rewriting. Lots of fun too, but we’re anxious to take the next step: recording an album. Don’t settle for good, settle for what you think is the best you can. Screw people and their opinions: just make the music you like yourself, commit do that and there always will be people following you.

hearsal space - that’s in fact a rehearsal hall- for a preproduction. Everything we want to include on the album we’ll record live on a multi-track audio interface to have it mixed roughly for some very critical listening. You can use any inexpensive handheld recording device for this, as long as it allows you to focus on one thing only: listening.

JAN 10, 2012

2010 - 2011

This Kid is a band hailing from the Antwerp area and plays a stubborn blend of metal, crossover and hardcore. In 2012 they recorded their debut album “Covering The Tracks”. Along the way they documented the process of creating a record in true DIY fashion. If they could have pressed it themselves, they would have. Too bad it is such a precise skill to put tiny little holes into a glassmaster

Guitarist Laurens will act as the producer and engineer for the album. This is as much an artistic decision as it is a workaround to a budgetary constraint. Making records can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. Try to cut costs where possible. There’s no harm in asking. Perhaps a friend knows a friend. Laurens set up some recording gear at our re-

EDITORIAL - COVERING THE TRACKS

FEB 4, 2012

We got up in time to start getting drum sounds. Drummer Gerben is sort of a gearslut and brought a gazillion of snares and cymbals and a nifty new drum kit with fresh heads. Getting drum sounds is a breeze this way. Every drum is tuned to taste quickly while Laurens gets mics up and running. We can compensate for the time we lost by making test takes before lunch. Guitarist Jens plays along from the control room. We produce the record ourselves, so we’ll have to stay disciplined and focused. Not an easy task when half of the band tends to turn into ballbusting, pants-dropping clowns every now and then. Take care of your gear and get good quality musical instruments. There’s a whole second-hand world out there where you’ll find great deals on some mighty fine instruments, save the list price. In case of lack of funds, borrow some gear for the studio from friends (it won’t take as much abuse as on shows). If it doesn’t sound good on its own, don’t rely on the recording process to turn crap into polished crap.

FEB 5, 2012

Second day of drum takes. Gerben’s even twisting his sticks in the studio like he does on a live show. Nevertheless he’s nailing it like a lunatic. Not too difficult for a true lunatic, anyway. Although a recording musician may be acting like a complete moron that just had his/her brains amputated, be supportive. A musician that’s comfortable will deliver better performances. Try to find engineering personnel you feel you can trust your music to and that are supportive of your music

FEB 8, 2012

Last half day of bass tracking. We continue by recording Jens’ guitars. Swiftly we make progress. Excellent, Monty would say. In the meantime Gerben is creating some really cool interlude samples in his makeshift “office” using a laptop with virtual instruments and soft synths, and a MIDI-keyboard. There’s an awful lot that can be done on a relatively inexpensive computer. Get creative, you don’t necessarily have to record the way “anyone else does it”. Record your way.

FEB 9, 2012

Last full day of recording. We alternate between Laurens’ guitars and some vocals, Steven’s vocals and mass vocals. There’s this one song? “Bloodline”, that will be mixed in one week by Ace Zec of the Belgian band Customs. The rest we’ll mix ourselves, but we’ll have to make sure everything is recorded for that track. Ok, ok, that’s not completely DIY and such, we admit, but this example illustrates well that you can divide the different processes amongst different people. E.g. record in a recording school, take the session with you and mix it with an experienced engineer.

FEB 10, 2012

FEB 7, 2012

Bass tracking continues. The performances aren’t exactly satisfactory. Tensions in the studio. We’ll have to clear this out later, because the bass player decided to take the first train home. Not too much clownage today. The mood is rather let down. Still, we booked this studio and we really want to put out a record, so we continue tracking bass guitars ourselves. Nobody said it was going to be a pretty sight. The show must go on, I guess? People naturally generate conflict. Try to deal with it in a constructive manner when the studio clock’s ticking.

We alternate between recording Laurens, Jens and Steven’s vocals. Mood is great again. We’re one tight-knit unit by now. Late night partying took its toll but had its benefits on the band, too. Frequent display of butts, mostly when unexpected and in near sight. But most of all, we’re working hard to complete this in the best way we can. Recording should be fun and give you satisfaction.

FEB 5, 2012

FEB 6, 2012

Last day of drum takes. Bass tracking starts in the afternoon. There’s no prescribed order here, some producers tend to record guitars early on in the process instead of bass guitar.

We got out of bed way too late. Might have to do with last night. We’re very satisfied though with what we accomplished this week. No time left for recording, we hide all proverbial corpses and split. Back home we check out the “studio report” videos we put on YouTube during the recording. Now there

EDITORIAL - COVERING THE TRACKS

MAR 11, 2012

End of take selection and drum edits. We constrained ourselves by not using tools like Beat Detective or Elastic Audio. The only edits we allowed ourselves are edits that you can perform on a tape too. Very un-2012, very unmetal but the performances are now very unrobotic, which we think is a refreshing thing for a metal record. Lively and real drums on this record all the way. Same thing goes for all the other instruments. This is a decision you take as

MAR 13, 2012

“Bloodline” got edited just in time for Ace to mix it. At the end of the day it sounds killer. We admit it was on constant repeat on the ride home, pounding the car speakers. Satisfaction from recording might just be better than having sex after being on a deserted island for 45 years. Just might.

a band. We thought it’d be cool to constrain ourselves to limited editing possibilities, you choose your weapons. We were unable to finish all vocals in Waimes, so we continue at the B-studio of Rockstar Recordings in Niel. We all have day jobs so we have to work the evening shift, but the cool thing about that is that Steven’s voice is all warmed up by that time. Some truly ferocious takes, there!

MAR 20, 2012 MAR 17, 2012

FEB 19, 2012

are some hard workers making a fool out of themselves while they’re not recording…Studio reports: pictures, videos, and status updates are all things that can make anticipation for your record rise like whatever crawled into our very heads that morning.

“We’re gonna do that one again, Steven”. Don’t get too caught up in searching for the perfect take. Go with the take(s) that will move listeners. E.g. edit multiple sentences from good takes together into one great take. Backing vocals by Laurens and Jens, engineering each other’s performances, like true, noble DIY knights. Less will probably be more, in the end.

We parted in friendly ways with our former bassist. Enter Stef, the new bass player. “Enter”, as in “Enter the recording studio”. Couldn’t be happier with the takes. Some first-takers in there.

APR 18, 2012 MAR 28, 2012

MAR 21, 2012 MAR 27, 2012

We invited some friends over at the cozy little B-studio for mass vocals. We call them the “mass vocal choir”. They turn out to master the lyrics better than we do. Matthijs and Tom did some guest vocals, respectively on “Virus” and “Major Fines”. It’s fun for people to be around in a studio, engage your friends for parts like these. And admit it, who doesn’t like to be in the liner notes?

Last evening of recording for the album. The last bass parts are cut and this project is starting to sound like a really cool record. On to choosing takes, editing and mixing!

Last tweaks to the mix were made yesterday night, as today we have to submit the mixes for mastering. We decided on New Alliance East in Massachusetts after hearing their work on a befriended band’s record. The mix completely maxed out Laurens’ little laptop (the record was mixed digitally in ProTools on a MacBook with unholy amounts of plugins of all kinds and esoteric origins), but it sounds brutal and fat, still. Now it’s up to the mastering

EDITORIAL - COVERING THE TRACKS

APR 30, 2012

After a revision, we have the final masters and we’re very satisfied with the outcome. Very proud, too. After all the effort we put into this, we couldn’t be happier with how the record sounds. In the meantime, Jens, who’s also the man that does all things visual within This Kid, created some really cool artwork for the packaging. Proudness + 1. The final masters and the artwork are now off to the manufacturing plant. In a few weeks we’ll be holding “Covering The Tracks”, our DIY debut album with a childish smile.

APR 26, 2012

The final product has arrived. It looks awesome. The entire world should buy this. Proudness +1 once again. Today we’re having a release party at a well-equipped concert venue: great sound, light show, support slots and the whole shebang. We, and Steven in particular, organized the entire evening ourselves so we’re pleased to see the venue’s packed despite the high temperatures outside. At the end of the day everyone’s really enthusiastic about the show and the record. We can’t wait to play our new album live.

MAY 27, 2012

guys to squeeze that extra bit of punch and bite into the record. Mastering is the final step of processing for your recording. If you’re serious about making an album, have it mastered by someone with a fresh perspective on your record. You can look at mastering as the final revision of your audio, and in many cases makes for a truly professional sounding record. Still, shit goes in, shit comes out. But if you know what you’re doing, a DIY record can turn out great after the mastering touch.

”

rd! o c e w r m I? e n a Or a e k a m dding! s ' t “Le Just ki

CRISISBO

OKINGS:

2007-2

rides, n i a r t ess the f endl ds around to o d e r ti an ay I were favourite b vel all the w d n a r a s r ou end to t my fri hters to see car it sucks , o g a rs nig ta ve yea pulling all- but withou r show. round fi A . t s u u o u , d o o ig Ab ds t their four h ling an s not b he ban n, and with ents t t e carpoo y. Belgium i just to see a g to le ev r ecided re of Meche st Hardcore d count or Limburg e w , t nds cen o ho H8000 the ba in the city ect venue t o t g n ’ perf ened f goi ut fest tead o Metteko op e found the O s h n i c t o S e, JC support w it ‘Wa tch Out ” by l m l a ti c t a d l th an me Wa nancia event at period “ t need a na ed y l n o great fi ! l h e e time lbums in th ced we mig gs were cal at n o a for fre thin noti r gre host rite a ted to f our favou about it, we ce. A lot of er the othe n a w e n o t aft First w after one we though then just o sbookings, i d n n s name nfire. Whe more ofte rselves Cri w, but o l o u s e s o i s d x u d e e e d Al art ilde nam e coul is”. ings st I started bu gh h T . that w kings”, so w band, “Cris e l throu peop o y and e “… bo by the sam be 50 sited my cit t real break people y a m or 00 s vi firs album ted 30 tional band cene. The 10. Over 2 en on Cric a r tt 20 th sa ls na t show e first inter a small loca arch 16th e, and from went up. In s r fi e h , M r y t l Th while e and even d show on r seen befo en on it on rlots Mouth I a r e e a u th aft a nam mAH as nev ai Hul From ,… and ing up ith the Sh mosphere w l following. h as War Fro wl, Neaera yes Set w a E a came d up. The at to get a re h bands suc e Casino Br d His Soul, e Bread t l d i h h e o e T T w er ck, vil S ly show kings start id shows ing Ba onfide, De nd We butt could legal d n o r I o u e b T s e i a m C t s ears ti racewar, No s ever for an Atlantis venue tha up to see th y e e r a w th wer Th host, B m sho y show ople in I am G first Belgiu Dreamer, Lo ver 250 pe did not onl o e did th Dream on, were often ause people ds. the c , l e e l me in of r i a n To k utter. The was just b h their frien d nty ishe t establ onth andple take With B ndle 100. It have fun wi n a s to m a wa kings show each the chance had the only h but also to o o b s i , s had ners y Cri t one d bands uld sa did at leas tographers Young desig eers gaine o c e I o n w P i . . h r g s e i M e p all th dcore scen p. Young small care g sound en s such as R After u r e tartin wed m Ha gazin d up a Belgiu always sho ws and buil ol shows. S d press ma n o people s of the sho twork for c he events a t r e r a pictu to make g the PA on e chanc nce by doin e experi

EDITORIAL - CRISISBOOKINGS/TARIK had th e not jus chance to d o of you t some rand some great om Ha ng peo intervi rd gether ple wh e . o want core shows ws with inte rn ed to b we did , it wa ational acts ecome The sm s .I somet hing th a whole gen t were The sh all success ga a t were b eration o rought She Sle ws with De ve me the op f toe p e a o p t r s e t a u r , Deez nd Can nity to Many p c N w e of neig eople means r Bats becam uts, Sworn E ork with eve hbours nemy, n bigge e lege there’s it was too sm and thin wal a lot of nois ndary, but th Touché Amo r bands. e r tacted ls a e by the ll and there . Eventually, and that in y also caused é, While so toge a city c people Mettek was to troubl Meche ther with som of Vlamrock o much nois o had to shu entre with a e. l e t l rier an en. We had e events in L to host the H pollution. L down becau ot L d u i Life an many other a Dispute, Sti mburg I coul ardcore part ckilyI was co se d Pullin d o s at Vla nc f their s k ti to Y ll d and Fa ll, This g Teeth in Ha mrock 2011. our Guns, To o some thing festival, Hell. T sselt, a s outsi Is Hell, uché A We did h d to get e last thing Drums Are F nd at the Bur great show moré, The C e Defeat s I did w a n o rfor Mo out Fe r Para e a ques a t for m r and Verse s Vlamrock des, Reproac stival we bo re Than o o 2 y ultim h ate sho n the same d 012. I still ca , Grieved an ked Rise In five n a d w, and y ’ Vlamro . I always sa t believe I m Full Of never years’ time, i d anag c k C ri really c w t ame cl sisbookings ed thing m hought that e I did mor was ose to e it. of the eaningful to a thing so s than I coul d b m there w alcony into someone. I all and po everimagin intless e. I wo w t e h ill ne r e e cr too ma sounde ny peo owd. How w ver forget h could beco uld have d. m ple ins ide, an e could not ow people ju e somec d los m Unfort how lo u ud som e the door ped off as a bo nately all gr bec e of the e sing-a- ause person oking agent at things ha longs a a past, a l events any t Live Natio ve to come t n n m hi, sup d I will still b ore. I will sti and this jo o an end. I’ m b port th e l l e band attending a be working does not al now worki n l s and k o w l eep th ot of shows ith a lot of b w me to ho g s e scen e alive and festivals ands from th t . Come . e and sa y

2012

-Tarik

CANCER BATS Dead Set On Living The crazy Canadians of Cancer Bats are back again with their fourth release to date, “Dead Set On Living” and ten tracks to provide a follow up anthem to “Hail Destroyer”. With powerful tracks as “R.A.T.S.”, “Dead Set On Living” and “Bastards” they show their talents once again. Album four also shows the experimental side to the Bats and tracks as “Breathe Armageddon”, “The Void” and “Drunken Physics” go a bit out of the ordinary structure we all cherish. Other tracks such as “Old Blood” and “Road Sick”, deliver what we expect form these Canadian legends. If you like the last three releases then you will need to stock up on this one too.

MIDNIGHT SOULS Going Through The Motions Midnight Souls is like a good wine, they only get better with aging. Relatively young in the scene but they acquired their spot pretty fast. With their first full album they deliver an emotional inspired tracklist, filled with dark screams and mean guitar playing to show the brutal talent of these young bloods. Songs as “Always Simple Never Easy” and “Heavenspent” will open up many pits across the globe. “Callow Youth” and “Malaise” provide those necessary breaks to breathe while moshing up the place, and are a proof of the talent and musicianship of Midnight Souls. Slower, more instrumental driven but still exploding into sheer madness. Keep a close eye on these homegrown heroes, out now on Reflection Records.

REVIEWS

HOMER The Politics Of Make Believe Belgium’s finest punkers return with another release on their own Funtime Records label. The fifth already in their 11 years of playing as Homer. As with previous releases, the local scene legends choose for the balanced sound of melodic punk rock vocals intertwined with a more hardcore scream. With tracks as “Vamos” and “My Demons Didn’t Make It To The Future” they make the perfect blend of hardcore and punk rock. Inferno and title track “The Politics Of Make Believ” show the many faces of Homer and I’ll I can add is to listen, go out there and watch them live and get blown away. Belgium has spawned one of the best bands in Europe and quite unique and excellent in their mix of styles.

OFF THE CHARTS s/t The first EP of Belgian punk rockers Off the Charts holds three tracks and is a follow-up to their earlier released demo. Opener “Imposed Future” starts of slow and bursts out after about a minute into a faster pace. Compared to the demo, the sound seems to have shifted towards a louder, harder and meaner way of playing on this EP. Added screams and rougher vocal parts lift this EP up. Track two and three feature the same ingredients of tempo changes, screams and talent. All in all this is a tougher version of Off The Charts and certainly ready to take the stages nationwide. Personally, I still prefer their demo style.

CAMPUS Empathy

It’s been a while since we heard from posthardcore heroes Campus. After some line-up changes and bumps along the road they returned with a new EP. Showing their place in Belgian hardcore and displaying the new talent in the band they already released a track of this EP on their soundcloud as a teaser. “Empathy” thrives on powerful guitar riffs, gently flowing into a melodic chorus. Between singing and screaming, vocalist Martijn shouts out his lungs, luring the audience in to participate. Groovy track “Lone Wolf” even features a tambourine and is followed by “Downtime”, a bit slower of pace than the other tracks but accompanied by the breakdowns it all works out great. “Young Bastard” closes this EP and has some melodic guitar to end into a fade out stop. They may have encountered some trouble but they’re still standing loud and proud.

VERSUS THE WORLD Drink.Sing.Live.Love

Being from Santa Barbara you might expect the typical California style but with this talent in the band, it is a fresh approach to the genre. Switching between rock and punk, this album has many hits to come and more. Title track “Drink.Sing.Live.Love” opens up the album with great rocking. “The Kids Are Fucked” brings back memories and “Lullaby” starts out loud and goes into focus with the vocal parts. “A Love Song For Amsterdam” is a track that will go on repeat for many first time listeners. While “Crooks And Liars” and “In Fear Of Finale” show the experimental side as they try out some different vocal techniques along the way. A very nice album with new material that shows some variation of what is known as melodic punk rock.

REVIEWS

PERCEPTIONS Antagonizer Perceptions saw the daylight in 2009 with a blend of post-hardcore. Two years ago the first EP, named “Fortune Seeker”, was released with newly recruited vocalist Vincent-Aaron Segers. “Antagonizer” is their latest EP and consists of six songs that prove the evolution in their writing. Double kicks all around and guitars accompany the screams. Though sometimes it’s a bit weak in the vocal part compared to their live presence. To sum it up, a good EP but not great, although being the hardworking band they are I expect them to grow even more. If you want to judge for yourself then go to http://www.perceptionsofficial.com/ for a free download of this EP.

KICKBACK Et Le Diable Rit Avec Nous

A well-known name for over 15 years in the European scene, the parisians decided it was time to show their view on modern day society. Stephen, vocalist and only original member since day one screams with ferocious anger against everything holy and beyond. With tracks like “Sorption”, “Weltanschauung” and “Stained I” and “II” they return with pure fury once again. Even two songs in French grace this release, being “Le Chant Du Diable” and “Cavalcare La Tigre”. To end the record, Kickback recorded two cover songs, one by Brianbombs, “It’s A Burning Hell” and a hip hop track by the Geto Boys dubbed “Mind Of A Lunatic” where they were assisted by Mike Apokalypse of Gehenna as they rap their way through a unique dark version of this classic hip hop song.

ARCHITECTS Daybreaker

American pop punkers Yellowcard are back with their 8th album to date, “Southern Air”. In 2003 the band broke international barriers and has been paving the road ever since with releases that get better each time. The album kicks off with “Awakening”, guitars and violin complete the track. With songs as “Always Summer”, “The Surface Of The Sun” and “Sleep In The Snow” they come close to the sound of their previous releases but it’s still a bit different. “Here I Am Alive” has a Boys Like Girls feel and will make many audiences dance and jump their heads off. “Telescope” and A Vicious Kind” serve the more amplified loving fans while “Rivertown Blues” takes us to the end of this album with thundering drumming. To close off, an acoustic track featuring guitar, violin and voice brings us back to reality. Another surprising album and I’m already curious to seeing it performed live on stage.

Only a year after their last release “The Here And Now”, Architects returns with a new album called “Daybreaker”. An album taking a step back to the sound of older releases and tending to lean over towards mathcore. Technical brilliant and melodic parts intertwine with the varied drumming and screaming parts that Architects are cherished for by many. This new album delivers some great tracks such as “Alpha Omega” and “These Colours Don’t Runé, also “Devil’s Island”, a more political inspired song dealing about the riots in London. On other tracks we can hear the guest vocals by friends of the band provided by Oliver Sykes of Bring Me The Horizon and Drew York of Stray From The Path. If you haven’t heard or witnessed Architects yet then you surely need to do that.

YELLOWCARD Southern Air

REVIEWS

THE GHOST INSIDE Get What You Give LA based The Ghost Inside returns with a new album only two years after “Returners”. A few line-up changes and a new release prove that these guys are still standing strong and ready to conquer the world. “Get What You Give” consists of the melodic hardcore familiar with The Ghost Inside but takes it a bit slower this time. With songs like “Engine 45”, the clean vocals take the upper hand although still a feral scream from the depths of vocalist Jonathan Vigil’s deepest own thoughts. Melodic choruses go hand in hand with the typical breakdown parts, sometimes in overdrive as on “Outlive”. The drumming gets more technical and adds that extra dimension.

NIKSON Next Chapter Nikson is a Hungarian punk rock band which has recently released a new EP titled “Next Chapter”. An EP with 8 tracks that is, although being two times the same 4 tracks, once sung in English and the other 4 in native language Hungarian. “Can’t Runaway” opens this EP followed by another track that has a emo-pop-punk feel to it with a rather mediocre vocal part. “This Is For The Broken” shows more power than previous tracks and the closing fourth track doesn’t really persuade me to like this release. It’s like MXPX’s Mike Herrera had a rough day and did the vocal parts here. Not bad at all but still room for improvement on many fronts.

NOFX 126 Inches Of NOFX With 18 different rereleased 7”s, making a nifty 126” of NOFX, they display an overview of their career and music throughout those 80’s, 90’s and 00’s up until today, still playing mediocre for their own entertainment. All of these goodies come in a boxset with the completely useless 7” slipmat. This is a vinyl only release featuring represses of classic 7”s such as “Don’t Call Me White”, “Liza & Louise”,... and they went all out on this one for the vinyl freaks. Each 7” comes in a different vinyl color. Some consisting of mixed colors and unique collector pieces. Nothing new, and mostly a gesture to the hardcore fans who’ll devour this complete.

MXPX Plans Within Plans Studio album nr. 9 over 20 years and counting gives them a new release under the belt. MXPX is back. Fast, energetic punk rock, the trademark of MXPX is present all over this release. Taking it back to their roots with the some anger and energy as when they started. With tracks such as “Nothing Left”, “In The Past” and “Stay On Your Feet” they add a couple of new classics to their repertoire. “Far Away” is another track of the new album which was also made into a video clip. This new album is all killer and no filler, each track blasts away and with some track clocking in at just over a minute it has to be loud and fast. If you’re into the fast punk rock genre than MXPX will find his way to your collection real soon.

REVIEWS

GEHENNA/INTEGRITY Split 7”

The kings of Clevo hardcore, Integrity, teamed up with the dark forces of Gehenna to release a new track on their new split 7”. “I Know Where You Live” is an epic Integrity song consisting of tempo breaks and the much adored Holy Terror vibe. With guitar riffs and licks provided by Orr this song swings in between a Motorhead, Motley Crue and metallic hardcore release. An instant classic for a revived Integrity, still standing after 24 years of being the hated of the world.

Gehenna approach their side from a more black metal inspired sound and release their anger and fury upon us with two tracks. Songs inspired by agonizing pains of living in this modern world and the occasional drug use. These Californians must have a direct link with the devil, and he’ll love them.

TY SEGALL Slaughterhouse Garage rock is reborn thanks to the new album by Ty Segall titled “Slaughterhouse”. After a few solo projects and some collaborations with White Fence, Mikal Cronon and others, Ty decided it was time to start his own project with the fitting name Ty Segall Band. The typical sound of Ty Segall has remained and thrives on heavy guitars and over the top vocals. Gritty and mean, the songs match the title of the album and serve as a sonic slaughterhouse. Near the end the album slows down a notch or two and ends in a 10 minute closing track. Ty Segall now has his own band and guess what, and for those who doubted, he’s still got it.

You love music? You love music that much that you often organize shows yourself? You love organizing shows but don’t know what to cook for the bands? Moshpot can help! www.moshpot.be is a website that provides recipes to cook for bands. You can use the search engine to find a recipe that answers your specific needs. You want veggie or vegan? You’re on a budget or don’t have a lot of time? You don’t have a lot of cooking gear? Moshpot can help you! With dishes starting from a simple 1-2-3 pasta to forgotten vegetables and fancy meats, easy-cooking asparagus to a vegetable vegan stew, Moshpot tries to get you cooking inspiration up and going. Next to the recipes you can find tips to make the backstage area and dinnertime as at ease as possible for your visiting bands. Every recipe has a background story to go with it, because we get them from the best sources. You can have a look inside the kitchen of Belgian’s best organisations (Just Like Your Mom!), clubs (Depot! De Kreun!), festivals (Strandfuif! Battle Royale!) and youth centers (Malmejo!). You will see the differences between the kitchens that are fully equipped and recipes that are meant to be prepared a day before the show and can be heated up the day itself. But after all the intention is the same: we aim for venues with the same vision on cooking for bands: a happy band is a happy crowd.

You can share Moshpot with you online community. Comment on your favorite recipe and add it directly on you Facebook. You can also follow all of Moshpots updates on Facebook (www.facebook.com/moshpotbe) and twitter (www.twitter. com/moshpotbe). Moshpot is the project of Inne van Boxel. It’s made possible by Coca-Cola, Formaat and the other partners that you can find on the website. Inne studied Music Management at the PHL Music in Hasselt and is passionate about music, writing and food. Moshpot handles one of her issues: the lack of inspiration in the band kitchen. At the Openluchttheater Rivierenhof she saw a cook named Tim Teck making the tastiest dishes for the biggest artists. She also has 3 friends, the Zabkar sisters, which cook for the biggest punkand hardcore bands under the name ‘Z Hardcore kitchen’.

MOSHPOT

Inne’s all time favorite Moshpot dish is a ‘Z Hardcore’ one. The “Z” Spaghetti Il Forno is an easy dish that can be made for a large group of people and doesn’t take a lot of your time. The best way to prepare it is to make the dish a day before the show and then put it in the oven right before serving. It’s best to make a little bit of extra sauce, just in case.

“Z” Spag h

etti

Il Fo

Rec of 26eipe for x 36 12 to cm) 15 pe Ingre rs. (o dien ven ts: scal 1 kg e 3 tb spaghe 3 tb s Italian tti 3-4 c s olive herbs 4 cu rushed oil 4 x 4 ps herb garlic pack 50 gr s ed cre cloves ifted am c 300 ) tom heese Salt gr grat atoe & pe ed ch s (te pper ees tra e Prep arat ion: 1. garli Heat minu c and Itolive oi alian l and 2. te. herb add mea Stir a s. Ba crush ke fo ed and nwhile. nd add ra s easo Add h toma 3. t n rinse Cook with serbed c oes in unde spag alt an ream the 4. h c pour Add sr cold wetti ‘al d peppe heese 5. in the paghet ater. dente’ r. and oven Divide oven s ti to t scal grat cale. he sa 6. e uce ed c preh Place . and hees eate for 1 e o ver t d ov 5-20 he min en. in a 200° C

rno

Will you be the next new member in the RMP Crew? Be sure to give us a shoutout at facebook, or at Kenny@rock-metal-punk.org with an example of your skills and who knows, you might be the next member to join the RMP family!

Got a band? Know a band? Want them to get out there? Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hesitate to send in your material for a review, column, or give us a shout when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re working on something new and you got time for a short interview. With RMPMAG 3 already in its starting phase, many spots are still left to be filled!