Upset, January 2016 by Upset

O U T N O W:

W W W . O N LY R I V A L S . I E

W W W . D E M O B - H A P P Y. C O M

WWW.BROKENHANDS.CO.UK

W W W . D I N O S A U R P I L E U P. C O M

THE NEW BANDS SET TO RULE 2016, FEATURING...

MILK TEETH

upsetmagazine.com

P.6

EDITOR’S NOTE We’re living in the future now, readers. No flying cars, no proper hoverboards (they have wheels, they don’t count), but loads of amazing music. In this issue, we’re celebrating the best of what’s to come over the next twelve months. From brilliant new bands like Milk Teeth (who played our very first Upset show, fact fans), Creeper and Muncie Girls through to returning ones like Panic! At The Disco, Basement, letlive. and Moose Blood. Three of those bands have already got five star albums set to drop over the next month. These are heady days, my friends. Personally, if there’s one thing I’m after in 2016 it’s more from Paramore. Jeremy may have left the band, but we still need them more than ever. After all, we are Paramore, right?

IN THIS ISSUE BIG IN 2016 06. MILK TEETH 14. MUNCIE GIRLS 15. BLACK FOXXES 16. BLACK PEAKS 18. ROAM 20. CREEPER 22. HECK 23. DIET CIG 24. AGAINST THE CURRENT 50 AMAZING THINGS THAT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016 26. MOOSE BLOOD 30. READING & LEEDS ‘16 32. BIFFY CLYRO 34. LETLIVE.NG 38. DEAF HAVANA

40. BASEMENT 44. PANIC! AT THE DISCO 46. MODERN BASEBALL 49. PUPNG 51. PARAMORE 52. DOWNLOAD ‘16 56. SLAM DUNK ‘16 59. BRIAN FALLON RATED 60. MILK TEETH 62. BASEMENT 63. PANIC! AT THE DISCO 64. ROAM LIVE 66. BRING ME THE HORIZON + PVRIS 68. DON BROCO 69. LOWER THAN ATLANTIS 70. DEAF HAVANA

Editor: Stephen Ackroyd (stephen@upsetmagazine.com) Deputy Editor: Victoria Sinden (viki@upsetmagazine.com) Assistant Editor: Ali Shutler (ali@upsetmagazine.com) Contributors: Alex Lynham, Amie Kingswell, Danny Randon, Emma Matthews, Emma Swann, Emily Pilbeam, Heather McDaid, Jack Glasscock, Jade Curson, Jessica Bridgeman, Kristy Diaz, Phil Smithies, Ryan De Freitas, Sarah Louise Bennett, Will Richards, #DrummondPuddleWatch All material copyright (c). All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, in whole or in part, without the express written permission of Upset. Disclaimer: While every effort is made to ensure the information in this magazine is correct, changes can occur which affect the accuracy of copy, for which Upset holds no responsibility. The opinions of the contributors do not necessarily bear a relation to those of Upset or its staff and we disclaim liability for those impressions. Distributed nationally. P U B L I S H E D F RO M

THE BUNKER W E LCO M E TOT H E B U N K E R.CO M

RIOT

E V E RY T H I N G H A P P E N I N G I N RO C K

JEREMY LEAVES PARAMORE

ig news from camp Paramore: bassist Jeremy Davis has left the band. That leaves just two members standing – Hayley Williams and Taylor York – but fear not, they’re not giving up. In their own words: “We really do believe Paramore can and should continue on.”

A statement from the band reads: “These last few years have held some of the most fulfilling moments we’ve had yet… as people, as friends, and as a band. The Self-Titled era was one that we knew would be important for us but also one we’d eventually have to move on from. In moving forward, there is growth, pain, and change… and sometimes the change is

for the people who have helped see us through hard times before and what we’ve discovered is that those people are just as much a part of this as we will ever be. We’re hopeful for Paramore’s future and we’re also excited for what Jeremy’s going to do next. Thank you all for your support and your belief in us. It’s kept us going. We will see some of you

“WE REALLY DO BELIEVE PARAMORE CAN AND SHOULD CONTINUE ON.” not at all what you hoped for. We’ve written and re-written this countless times and there’s just not a good way to put it… Jeremy is no longer going to be in the band with us. To be honest, this has been really painful. After taking time to consider how to move forward, we ultimately found that we really do believe Paramore can and should continue on. And so we will. “We’re really thankful

really soon on Parahoy. If you’re not coming on the cruise, we will still see you in 2016.” Davis, an original member of Paramore, played on all four of the band’s studio albums to date. Their first appearance without the bassist will be on their Parahoy cruise next March. Read why it’s so important Paramore stay together on page 51.

NEED TO KNOW... SNAKES ON A PLANE - AND A BUS - PROBABLY

Fresh from completing his touring commitments from 2015, Frank Carter has announced that he and The Rattlesnakes will be heading out on a headline run in Europe and the UK. Find the dates in full now on upsetmagazine.com.

SHOW ME THE TOUR DATES

New York’s Show Me The Body will visit the UK early next year for a string of tour dates, which will also see them head out to Europe for shows in Amsterdam, Groningen and Paris. Find the full list of dates on upsetmagazine.com.

ONE HECK OF A TOUR

Heck are heading out on tour in 2016. “After being held back for most of 2015 this tour is about us being let loose”, states guitarist Jonny Hall. “Bigger, brasher, louder than ever, everything gets stepped up. New songs, new setup, new danger.” You can find a full rundown of where to find them on upsetmagazine.com.

REF-EU-SED AND UK TOUR (SORRY - ED)

Refused are set to return to the UK this March as part of a European tour. The former Upset cover stars hit our shores on 22nd March with a date at Glasgow’s Garage. They’ll then head to Manchester, Leeds, and Brighton before finishing up at Birmingham’s Library on 26th March.

NEW YEAR, NEW BANDS. AS 2016 OPENS ITS DOORS, OV E R T H E FOLLOWING PAG E S W E ’ L L MAKE SURE YO U ’ R E P R O P E R LY BRIEFED ON T H E ACTS WHO WILL D O M I N AT E THE NEXT T W E LV E MONTHS.

MILK TEETH

WO RDS: A L I SH UTL E R. PH OTOS: PH I L SM ITH I ES.

ilk Teeth are a resilient band. During a tour supporting Balance and Composure, their van broke down after they drove from Dublin to Glasgow, and “it just never started again.” Only halfway through the tour, it was a crushing blow and remains one of the worst days of guitarist Chris Webb’s life. After playing the show in Glasgow, Milk Teeth then drove a rental car 250 miles to their hotel in Stoke-onTrent where, instead of wallowing or raging, they gave each other matching stick and poke tattoos. Branded for life with a sad smiley; a mark of never giving up.

The band have been through an awful lot in their three years together. But it’s not the knocks that define Milk Teeth. It’s their determination to get back up. It’s an attitude that’s always present. From their hit-theground-running work ethic, through debut album ‘Vile Child’ to the recent departure of guitarist / vocalist Josh Bannister, Milk Teeth never say die. “To be honest, it wasn’t a big surprise when it happened,” explains vocalist / bassist Becky Blomfield. “We’d definitely seen it coming for a long time. He wasn’t happy, we weren’t happy and it had been quite a hard few months for us as a band. There was a lot of negative energy in what we were doing. It was the right decision for him and the right decision for us. I wouldn’t want him to be unhappy continuing and yeah, it’s a more positive environment since it

happened.” Despite the knock of a founding member leaving, Becky, Chris and drummer Oli Holbrook never entertained the idea of it meaning the end for Milk Teeth. “Why give up when we’ve got this far?” Formed in college and raised on a diet of Title Fight, Guns N’ Roses, Tonight Alive, Nirvana, Slipknot and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, Milk Teeth started life as so many bands do. Debut EP, ’Smiling Politely’ “was meant to be a demo, just something we had so we could play some shows.” Over-achievers from the off, it was a success, allowing them to then spend their weekends playing live. “We just played and played and played. We met loads of bands around the country and we were lucky to have bands that took us on tour. I think those are the little steps you take,” explains Oli. “Those days were funny because we all still had jobs. So we’d drive up to Manchester, play a house show at midnight, get back at four and then get up for work at six,” reflects Becky as the band, sat backstage at London’s Electric Ballroom while Refused soundcheck downstairs, talk fondly about carrying their gear through working kitchens, the first time they got a bottle of Jack on their rider, and having amps dropped on them. Milk Teeth have never wanted a shortcut. Walking

“WE’RE NOT LETTING ANYTHING INTIMIDATE US.” away from subsidiary deals so the band could “grow as naturally as possible,” and turning down tours because they don’t fit, the band are more than happy to say no. “We’ve been super, super lucky with how quick everything’s happened but I’d hate for people to think that we didn’t work a lot before,” offers Becky. “We were literally travelling around in Chris’ car.“ “Yeah,” he replies, “as much as I moan about driving to Dublin, all those little tours are what make you. You don’t want to suddenly jump up to the big time.” Growing up in-between Bristol and Cheltenham, all of Milk Teeth had to work that little bit harder to get involved in any scene. Their date in February at the O2 Academy with Tonight Alive will be the fourth time they’ve ever played their home city. Having to travel further afield to play shows quickly instilled a sense of adventure alongside the necessity of touring that the band still carry today. After signing to Venn Records, dropping out of university, rejecting offers and walking away from potential careers, Milk Teeth put out their ‘Sad Sack’ EP at the start of 2015. It was the starting gun for a year that saw them step up in a big way. “Opportunities-wise, you’ve got to take them while you can. If it fails, it fails but at least we tried.” In-between the release of ‘Sad Sack’ and their subsequent signing to Hopeless Records, the band undertook back to back tours with Frank Iero, Title Fight and Frank Carter. “The longest we’d been out before that was ten days and all of a sudden we were out for two months. It was a huge wake up call,” states Becky. “Touring is 8 upsetmagazine.com

not glamorous but we all have a good work ethic. If you don’t really, really want it or love and enjoy what you do, you’re not going to make it through that. I think what people imagine we do and what we actually do are very different things.” The hectic touring that 2015 offered also paved the way for the idea that Milk Teeth could be a long-term proposal. “When we started getting offered bigger things this year, that was when it felt like a real thing. I never thought this would happen but now it’s sunk in that this could be a full time thing,” offers Chris. In among their ridiculous schedule and the heartbreak, missed engagements and broken relationships it caused, Milk Teeth found time to record a debut album. ‘Vile Child’, an album of snarling defiance and vulnerable admissions, perfectly captures the band’s refusal to quit. During a rare day off on the last Sunday before Christmas Becky explains how the band, now a three-piece, are “just looking forward to the future now.” The year is over, they’ve survived. With the album out at the end of January, a nineteen-date tour with Tonight Alive, their first trip to America and a return to Download already on the cards - with plenty more to come, there’s an awful lot to look forward to. “From where we started from, releasing that first EP, to the thought that we’d have our debut album out in a couple years time is crazy,” continues Becky. “We’re still three little kids from Stroud so it’s amazing to us that any of this is happening. It’s great that we’ve had that opportunity. We didn’t want to put out a third EP and it never really was considered an option. We hit that point where it was just time to get a full length together. We were ready for that next step.” ‘Vile Child’ is Milk Teeth on a bigger scale. All those lessons learnt and all the hopeful dreams of a few friends from a

MAKE A SCENE From Creeper to Moose Blood, Becky is full of praise for the current crop of UK upstarts. “It’s amazing. I’m friends with a lot of the people who are in these bands and when you see people around you who have come from the same place, seeing success themselves, it’s the best feeling. We have nothing but support for all those people and they’ve been supportive of us. It’s fantastic. I think it’s great that a lot of these bands are coming through from the UK as well. There’s been a heavy wash of American music which is great, but it’s nice there’s a crop of UK bands pushing through. “It’s nice because people can pick and choose. We’re all coming up at the same time and there’s crossover but the sounds and the image and the way we’re presented, is all quite different as well. It’s a good time to be in music.”

TONIGHT’S THE NIGHT Milk Teeth and Tonight Alive, coming to a venue near you soon. “I was a fan of Tonight Alive anyway,” starts Becky on the band’s new touring partners. “I went to see them when I was in Uni in Birmingham and I know how I’m going to be. I’m normally quite good, even if someone’s really famous I tend to treat them as just a person, normally - but Jenna seems really lovely and I hope I’m not too much. You never know, we might become new Australian and English BFFs. “I know [TA’s new songs] have thrown some people but I really like them. The last one they dropped [‘Drive’], there’s so much Alanis Morissette to it and I’m such a fan. It’s always interesting when you break out of a formula and what people were expecting. They could have just dropped an album similar to what they’ve done in the past and I’d have loved it, but it’s nice they’ve switched it up a little bit.”

quiet market town, out to take on the world. “To me, it’s what we do well but on a higher confidence level. The songs are more thought out and well written and the lyrics have progressed. It’s like what we’ve done before but much better.” There’s only a year between the release of ‘Sad Sack’ and ‘Vile Child’ but there’s a noticeable difference. The advances felt like a “natural progression”, say the band, and can be credited to them always learning and striving to be better. “The more you play, the more you go through together as a band. You grow and change. The more you write, the more open minded you get. We still get the Nirvana comparisons, which don’t annoy me. It’s a massive compliment but it’s a bit tiresome now. I like to think we’ve moved past that.” ‘Vile Child’ flourishes under the band members’ different personalities. There’s a lot of stuff they agree on and they do “listen to similar stuff,” but there is also a degree of tension to the record that comes with songs passing through every individual. It’s how they get that delicious Milk Teeth flavour (though that’s not a ‘shake we’d ever order). “I like that everyone is involved because we’re all quite different. We’ve all got different influences. It’s always been collaborative and it’s never been one person doing everything. We all chip in and get involved, not just with the music but merch designs and the stuff outside of directly writing songs.” Milk Teeth is a shared experience. It’s why the audience fits so

neatly into their world. “The songs that I penned myself or with Josh or Chris are very personal,” explains Becky. “They’re not about situations that have happened to me recently though. I wasn’t in a particularly good place a few years ago and writing about that now is a way of coping with that.” Inspired by, “the darker stuff that has happened in the past,” ‘Vile Child’ wasn’t approached as therapy - “it just came out that way.” “I was a bit of a loner at school, then my parents split up. I got really angry so listened to a load of angry music,” reflects Becky on her introduction to punk. “I found it, it wasn’t like anyone gave it to me. I struggled with a bunch of stuff as a teenager and if anybody finds some sort of help, or doesn’t feel so alone through something we’ve written, that’s the main thing. I’d hope it would help in some small way because I felt quite alone as a teenager and listening to music definitely helped me.” That desire is perfectly demonstrated in ‘Kabuki’. A hauntingly powerful two minute admission nestled in the heart of ‘Vile Child’, and the second single from the album. While it might not be an obvious choice, it does represent what Milk

“IF IT FAILS, IT FAILS BUT AT LEAST WE TRIED.” 11

each other as mates first, there’s that friendship there. We’ve always looked out for each other and being in a band just makes that stronger.” As Milk Teeth enter 2016, that bond and their appeal is only going to increase.

Teeth stand for. Written by Becky alone in her bedroom, she’d been keeping it from the rest of the band for a couple of months until she sent over a dodgy mobile phone recording of the rough outline, via Facebook chat (technology, eh?). The band instantly saw the song’s power, despite Becky holding back the full lyrics. She suggested they make it a “heavy, powerful ballad where everyone is involved,” but they wanted to “keep it acoustic.” It was the last thing the band recorded for ‘Vile Child’. “On the day, I was incredibly nervous. I recorded it in two or three takes and went upstairs to listen back and the boys were just, I’ve never seen them that serious. It was the first time they’d heard the full lyrics. I don’t know if they’d known I felt like that before or if I’d hidden it but they were sad for me, I guess. They were so supportive and lovely about it.” Initially when it was suggested as a single, Becky was in two minds about it. She’s never had to think about the release of something before but she eventually found more positives than negatives. “I was absolutely terrified, just because it was such a vulnerable song for me to have written.” Once out, the reaction was “overwhelming. A lot of people have said that it’s something they can relate to. That’s a huge thing because that’s half the reason I wrote it. I felt that bad and I didn’t like the idea of anyone else feeling like that. I think, if anything, it’s a positive thing it’s out in a public space. For me, the message is that I did feel like that at one point but look, I’m doing much better now.” Even at their most vulnerable and intimate, Milk Teeth are encouraging others to pick themselves back up and carry on. There’s sibling affection between Milk Teeth. They squabble, they mock one another and they know exactly how to wind one another up. They’re also fiercely protective. From Oli and Chris attending the video shoot of ‘Kabuki’ to support Becky, “I could see them out of the corner of my eye giggling because I was trying to be serious. It was offputting but hilarious,” to Becky declaring herself “Momma hen,” the band, “have each others’ back. Because we knew 1 2 upsetmagazine.com

“The sky’s the limit. We’re all on the same page and there’s nothing we don’t think is achievable. At the moment, it’s my favourite thing. It’s what we love doing and we want it to go as far as it can go. If that means it stays where we’re at now, that’s fine. We’ve achieved so much. If that means we progress even further, then we’ve got a lot to look forward to.” “We tend to have too much material rather than struggle to have any,” offers Becky of the future before admitting, “We’ve got most of the next record written. I wrote a lot for ‘Vile Child’, Chris wrote a lot for ‘Vile Child’, Oli’s always written all his drum bits so regarding the three of us being ok music wise; we’re hungry for it. We’re motivated to keep pushing forward and keep growing. We’re not letting anything intimidate us. I’m not worried.” “We roll with the punches,” declares Becky with a matterof-fact smirk. “I think that’s important. Not just in what we do but with life in general really. It is important to be able to pick yourself up again, no matter what happens. To try and carry on even though it’s really hard. Sometimes you have to power through. It’s always better a few months down the line. Things tend to improve,” she offers, defiant as ever. “It’s something I’ve had to learn myself. When I was younger, I wasn’t half as resilient as I am now. You do have to learn to pick yourself up. It’s very easy to stick your head in the sand, not carry

on and press pause on life but you never have the luxury to do that. You have to carry on.” They’ve made it this far and with a world of riches to explore, Milk Teeth never say die. P

BOSTON MANOR They’ve already toured with Moose Blood and As It Is, and signed to Pure Noise Records, but there’s little doubt - 2016 should be Boston Manor’s big year. With most recent release - the EP ‘Saudade’ (a profound melancholy and longing for something or someone, if you were wondering - Ed) - winning them an even bigger fanbase, they’re all set to take their underground success firmly overground.

“WE’VE BELLEVUE DAYS BEEN SUPER, SUPER LUCKY.”

Croydon’s Bellevue Days ended 2015 on a high. Already doing really bloody well with their debut EP ‘The Sun Came Up When We Were Young’, out of nowhere they were suddenly being played out on Apple’s Beats 1 as a World Record - a slot usually reserved for worldwide megastars to drop their hot new tracks. ‘Ripped Jeans’, the track to receive the honour, is part of the band’s second EP, set to be released early this year. Their next steps should be pretty damn exciting. 13

WORDS: DANNY RANDON

MUNCIE GIRLS “I WAS

efore we begin the year that the UK punk rock scene declares itself as a ‘big deal’ to the rest of the world, let this be said: Muncie Girls’ forthcoming debut, ‘From Caplan to Belsize’ could well be the most infectious record you’ll hear all year. It’s a bold statement to those who are yet to discover the Exeter punk trio, but as the band have risen from the burgeoning depths of DIY, a year of many milestones - including a string of dates with indie-rock stalwarts Tellison - awaits them. And they could not be more excited.

“We’re still suffering from post-tour blues,” sighs Muncie Girls vocalist/ guitarist Lande Hekt, mere days after returning home from a run across Europe, supporting New York punks Such Gold. “We’ve done a few other tours as well, but [this was] the best one. We played to more people than ever, and that band were really fun to hang out with.” Reflecting on a year of momentumbuilding, Lande places the tour on a par with the recording of ‘From Caplan To Belsize’ as 2015’s defining moment, although there may be another contender for Highlight of the Year for drummer Luke Ellis and bassist Dean McMullen, in the form of a tweet from one of their heroes. “We were sat in the van, getting the 1 4 upsetmagazine.com

ferry across Europe, Luke was on his phone and he was like ‘oh my god’,” Lande recalls about the day blink-182 bassist Mark Hoppus shared the band’s single ‘Gas Mark 4’ on Twitter. “He started jumping up and down and we were like ‘whoa, you need to calm down’! We were making jokes about it the whole way.”

NEVER TAUGHT ABOUT ANY KIND OF POLITICS, I HAD TO FIND OUT BITS AND BOBS FOR MYSELF.”

Recorded with Lewis Johns at The Ranch Production House in Southampton, ‘From Caplan To Belsize’ ‘s unveiling this spring will be with a flourish of pride, and relief. “When you do a record, you really want to listen to it all the time,” says Lande,

BLACK FOXXES

WORDS: DANNY RANDON

commenting on the “awful” year-long window of sitting on the finished album. “I’ve been banning myself from listening to it, because otherwise I’m just gonna be completely over it by the time it’s come out.

“We’ve only ever had a day or two to do a bunch of songs, and we’ve always made it work but that means really rushing. We were [at The Ranch] for two weeks, and this time we were so relaxed.” A relaxed record, however, it is not. Its irresistible powerpop hooks are executed with an undertone of pissed off-ness towards society’s many flaws. Take the opening statement of ‘Learn In School’: a challenge of ignorance, and the labyrinth of understanding politics.

“It’s about my feelings towards how I was never taught about any kind of politics, and I had to find out bits and bobs for myself, which I still don’t feel confident in,” Lande explains. “[The title] is quite a literal thing: obviously we’re not taught it in school, but we’re not taught about it at any point of our lives, and so we’re not able to take control of our own fates.” Even more of a concern for Muncie Girls is gender inequality. Tracks like ‘Respect’ - a seething tirade against rape culture and sexual abuse - speak out against such discrimination. “People need to make a conscious effort to encourage women to get involved [in music]. Boys have such endless opportunities to start a band, but when I went to school, I was never encouraged to pick up an instrument – luckily, I had the gumption to do it anyway!” Muncie Girls are a British punk band with a social conscience: one of a rare breed to cherish and champion. P

f you’ve grown weary of Brand New’s charade of ‘will they, won’t they?’ which has spanned the painstaking majority of the last few years, there is hope for you yet in the next generation of bands hoping to continue their legacy of swelling, searing alt-rock. Since their formation in 2014, British trio Black Foxxes have been edging their way to the crest of this wave of new and exciting sounds, as a band not simply created through a love of the likes of Manchester Orchestra and Jesse Lacey and co., but also with an intense desire for individuality.

“It’s extremely important that we don’t fit into a mould,” says Black Foxxes vocalist / guitarist Mark Holley. “I’ve noticed a lot of bands trying to do the grunge thing, and I would love to hear what those bands sound like if they just got into a room and wrote, instead of trying to do that. The more we stay out of that, the better.” The three-piece have been knuckling down on finishing their debut album. A growing collective of fans have waited with eager ears for the record following the release of EP ‘Pines’ in November 2014, and suffice to say, the band are primed with an arsenal of new material to decimate the landscape. “It’s completely raw [with] a lot of the takes: it’s kind of loose and it’s wavering all over the place and it’s fucking loud, and I think that’s what we’re all about. It’s gonna be however many tracks of completely honest music, and there’ll be a variety of different genres in there that people will pick up on.” Despite only working together for just over a year, Mark, bassist Tristan Jane and drummer Ant Thornton have taken their sweet time to shape a sound which is

gratifying on a personal level, and while ‘Pines’ was a warning shot of even greater things to come, Black Foxxes look back with a feeling of discomfort. “We were so naive,” Mark explains. “We listen back to it now and we absolutely hate it. I wrote the majority of the songs, and I listen back to a track and go ‘oh man, that was rushed’.” Although the band are seemingly reluctant to invest pride in ‘Pines’, their execution of simple yet effective hooks with emo sensibilities and distorted undertones is testament to their brimming potential as bright lights. Now, with major label backing and an appearance confirmed at Download this summer, Black Foxxes’ first record will undoubtedly pique the interest of a much wider audience. “People have been waiting for a long time, and we’re just so excited for people to hear [the album],” Mark concludes enthusiastically. “We’ve just got to stay true to writing good music: that’s all we’re gonna do.” P 15

BLACK PEAKS

“The competition in Brighton is furious, and to impress people or get them interested, you have to do something really special,” begins frontman Will Gardner. Hailing from the south coast musical hub, in some ways Black Peaks have reaped the rewards from the storm Royal Blood created. With regards to whether they believe being Brighton-born has either helped or hindered the band, Will confesses that it’s been a combination of both. “At the time we were starting out, we were playing alongside some absolute monster bands like Royal Blood, The Physics House Band, Poly-math and Tigercub. Royal Blood definitely put Brighton on the map and made things happen for the music culture here. The industry eye was definitely on Brighton which gave us a big helping hand… One thing that confuses us is constantly being measured and compared to Royal Blood despite the fact that we are a totally different band and write very different music?” That they are. The band’s blend of complex progrock and intricate melodies

screams of something new and innovative, that injects a whole new lease of life into modern rock and with continuous support, it’s given the band the podium to push and break the boundaries of mainstream rock. “We never expected any of our songs to be radio friendly, we definitely didn’t write them that way,” claims Will. “I don’t think we ever will intentionally write a radio ‘friendly’ song, it’ll just happen when it happens I guess.” With no intention to go out and impress, their trueto-themselves, honest rock inadvertently pricks the ears of those in the know. Looking back on their experiences over the last year, Will reveals his love for their tour buddies. “We definitely learnt a lot from Arcane Roots, what a phenomenal band. They are one of the most professional and hard-working bands in the UK right now. Just watch, Arcane Roots are going skywards for sure. In terms of festivals, I think we learnt a lot this year and really came into our own as a live act by the end of the summer... Watching The Dillinger Escape Plan perform and sharing the stage with them was breathtaking.”

“IT NEEDS TO HAVE DARKNESS, IT NEEDS TO HAVE HEAVINESS, BUT IT ALSO NEEDS TO BE BEAUTIFUL.”

WORDS: EMILY PILBEAM

lack Peaks have had a wild ride. Their first single ‘Glass Built Castles’ provoked universal acclaim. Every new track has since been met with anticipation, leading to support slots and appearances at festivals – all without a debut album. With ‘Statues’ due for release this year, it’s no wonder everyone’s getting excited about what lies ahead for the seemingly unstoppable quartet.

On top of hitting all the big festivals and playing tons of shows, Black Peaks also managed to bag themselves a record deal with Sony imprint, Easy Life Records. “It’s very difficult to make it these days without the support of a label or publishing, and for us, it’s been an integral part of our growth and development into the next phase of our career.” And the next phase in Black Peaks’ life cycle relies heavily on the release of their debut, ‘Statues’. “I think we are a healthy mixture of excited and terrified at the same time. It’s our first album, we just want it to be the best it can be. It has been a long time coming, but we think it’s worth the wait.” Speaking about what to expect from the release, Will reveals that the album is darker than their previous material: “I think generally the songs we’ve released have been the lighter and more commercial side of the album because they are the singles and that’s what will catch people’s ears first and get them into our music. We have always been a really dark and heavy band – especially live – so I don’t think anything has changed there. We have always written with as much contrast and shade as we possibly can, it’s just how we write I guess. There’s one rule that we have tried to apply: it needs to have darkness, it needs to have heaviness, but it also needs to be beautiful.” “It’s a real rollercoaster of a ride, so it’s difficult to say what we want people to take away from the record,” says Will. “However, if it moves people to feel in any way excited, nostalgic, happy, or just interested, then we have succeeded in our goals.” “First and foremost, we’re most excited about the record release, then our headline tour in February,” he continues, “and then lots of tours with bigger bands, basically just getting to see the world. Also, the festival season next year is fairly unknown – so watch this space.” With an undeniably huge year ahead of them, 2016 will see Black Peaks begin their rapid journey to success. Make sure you’re ready for what’s coming. P

1 8 upsetmagazine.com

“F

or a long time, we’ve wanted to do more with our music,” explains Alex Adam from an American airport. Half of ROAM are flying home to Eastbourne (not direct, obviously) after finishing their final date of a US tour alongside Handguns last night, while the rest are off to visit New York. Fuelled by their second EP ‘Viewpoint’, ROAM spent the majority of 2015 on the road.

They played something like 120 shows in 365 days which, calculators at the ready, works out to be a very busy year indeed. You’d understand if the band wanted to take a break but with debut album ‘Backbone’ out three weeks into 2016, ROAM aren’t slowing down anytime soon.

That desire to do more with their music has resulted in ‘Backbone’, an album of exploration, risk and entertaining reward. Opening track ‘The Desmond Show’ is named after the band’s driver on their first US tour, which took place halfway through recording the album. “He used to introduce himself to people by saying ‘I’m Chris and I’m driving this crazy bunch of Desmonds.’ We thought it was hilarious. He’s also the guy doing the American voice on that track.” The inside joke-cum-permanent reminder of a huge milestone for the band also satisfies their desire to “do something really different to start this album.” The reaction they want is “oh shit, what’s this?” With ‘Backbone’, ROAM are introducing themselves. Whether or not you’ve met before, the record shows off new sides. “We wanted to explore. There are a lot of classic ROAM songs, but there are also a lot of songs that feature something you wouldn’t expect from us. It was really natural,” Alex continues. The desire’s been there for a “long time” but only with the full-length canvas did the band have enough space to properly create. “It’s really hard with an EP because you have four songs that have to punch. You can’t push too many boundaries whereas, with an album, you’ve got 12 songs. You can really show a load of different sides.” It’s not just the inclusion of an acoustic guitar or going heavier that the band have been able to indulge in on ‘Backbone’. They’ve also taken the lyrics down a darker path. “There’s way more room to mess around and be more theatrical on an album. It’s such a statement doing your first record so it needs to hit hard. The album is

about a lot of things to be honest, there are love songs, songs about people’s attitudes toward life, and there are some darker themes.” “We had a little more time writing ‘Backbone’ than we’ve had with previous releases,” says Alex. “We also had more budget to mess around with pre-production which was cool. We went into the studio with the structures of the songs, when it came to tracking vocals both myself and [singer, Alex] Costello got ill and couldn’t sing. We had to go away and finish after a couple of tours, but going away gave us time to work on all the melodies, lyrics and structures of the songs. Honestly the album wouldn’t be as good without that break.” ‘Backbone’ is “definitely” the album they set out to make, but that’s not to say the band haven’t been surprised. Taking a step back to reflect on how much they’ve achieved is “something that just creeped up,” on them. “Sometimes we’re somewhere amazing and we all go quiet and look at each other. ‘Fuck, we got here somehow,’ but other than that it’s been gradual so it’s hard to gauge.” The band’s growth is down to two things. “Hopeless Records have definitely introduced us to a whole new bunch of kids which is awesome. They all seem stoked on both the singles, but equally we’ve put a lot of touring in this year. We have gained a lot of attention through that which is cool too!” For all the positives, the band know they’ll have their critics and they love seeking them out in the YouTube

WORDS: ALI SHUTLER

ROAM comment section. “It’s hilarious, the good ones are great but honestly, reading negative YouTube comments on our videos is one of my favourite things. It’s never ‘This isn’t for me, too poppy’ or anything constructive or thought out. It’s just incredible reading them.” As fun as laughing at the trolls is, the band want their music to be liked, obviously. With ‘Backbone’, Alex has

“I WANT PEOPLE TO FEEL THE WAY I FELT WHEN I FIRST LISTENED TO ‘DOES THIS LOOK INFECTED?’”

a specific reaction in mind. “I want people to feel the way I felt when I first listened to ‘Does This Look Infected?’ I know that’s a big ask and it might take until album two, but I feel like it’s doable. I just felt like it was perfect, it was like musically, lyrically, production-wise, artwork-wise perfect. To me anyway.” The band have their influences but with pop punk more than most, there’s a sense of heritage. A lineage you can trace. ROAM take their name from a The Story So Far song who, in turn, take their name from a New Found Glory track. The band have already taken their place in that legacy, “I mean there’s a band called Head Rush and Nothing In Return now so I guess it’s already happening. It’s sick.”

With the band booked up until the end of summer 2016 – and working on plans for after that – ROAM, like in 2015, will be spending most of the next twelve months sat in airports and playing shows. “Eventually I’d love our live show to be more than just us playing a few songs in a row, I’d love loads of cool production and different ways to get the crowd involved,” dreams Alex. “But for now I just want people to go crazy and have fun!” P

SWMRS

SWMRS’ drummer may have a very famous dad (Google it - Ed), but there’s no need to play on nepotism to work out why they’re worth getting excited about. With an album, ‘Drive North’, produced by FIDLAR’s Zac Carper set to drop next month, they’ve also been playing on the road with Wavves and have a single dedicated to Miley Cyrus.

WORDS: ALI SHUTLER

CREEPER

reeper set out to play Southampton’s Joiners a few times and make some records for fun. Somewhere along the line they’ve galvanised a committed and growing fanbase, signed a record deal and been heralded as the Next Big Thing. Their journey has been “shocking” - in the band’s own words - but the South Coast mob are more focused on penning the next chapter than changing the world.

Speaking from West Quay, as featured in ‘The Honeymoon Suite’ video and the weekends of Southampton’s youth, frontman Will Gould is excited. “It’s been a crazy year. More’s changed that you could possibly imagine,” he starts. Gifted time away from the front line, Creeper have finally had a chance to process 2015. “Fucking hell, that was mad,” is the general summary. Last year saw the band achieve all their dreams. This year sees them with new ones. “2016 is a crazy year for us. We’re going to be away so much,” he teases. Kicking things off supporting State Champs and Neck Deep on “the poshest tour” they’ve ever done, Creeper have their eyes on pastures new. “Nice big rooms and we’re all going to share a bus. Me and the Creeper boys aren’t used to that world. We’ve been trying to work out how to do our show on a big stage. We’re going to be playing to kids who have never heard of us before. As soon as you play with these bigger bands, you get a mix of kids but it’s going to be really, really fun to do those shows. We’ve got all these theatrical ideas for it.” In amongst that tour, which will also take Creeper to Europe for the first time, the band will be heading out on their first ever headline run as well as taking on a show at Southampton Guildhall. “Growing up, I went to all the shows there. It’s absolutely mad because Ian [Miles, guitar] and I would never think one of our bands would get to play there. We never thought of ourselves playing big stages like that. All of our dreams, dreams that were more daydreams, are coming true.” A rare pause. “All of our wildest daydreams are slowly becoming real,” he repeats, rolling the words around his mouth. “It’s weird,” Will laughs.

“ALL OF OUR WILDEST DAYDREAMS ARE SLOWLY BECOMING REAL.” to us, and so nice about ‘The Callous Heart’, it did give us encouragement. We’re all very awkward and anxious. Even though we shrug it off and say we don’t give a shit, you always worry that what you’re doing sucks. It was such a sweet reaction though, we weren’t prepared for that.

The three months between the band’s Halloween homecoming and their “biggest show to date” in Birmingham this February is the longest break the band have taken, but they’re not returning emptyhanded. There’s a bombastic new EP on the way. Yup, Will drops the b-word but if anyone can pull it off, it’s Creeper. “It’s a sequel to ‘The Callous Heart’ and introduces a new character, The Stranger, to the fray. It matches the ambition, if not takes it a little further than our last record.” After two structurally similar EPs, this new record is “completely different.” With a “really bombastic” intro that Will is still “really wrapped up in,” the band’s third record nods to High School Musical, REM, The Bouncing Souls, Explosions In The Sky and Jim Steinman while also being self-referential. The record also includes a song that is “really involved in the concept. It wraps it all up,” as well as one of Will’s favourite ever tracks and “one of the hardest, fastest songs,” the band have ever written. “I’m really excited about it. It’s rich with ideas and really different for us.” However you paint it, Creeper are a punk band. There’s only one way they’re ever going to do things and that’s their way. However, there’s a passionate, enthusiastic audience waiting at the door. “Although I’d argue that we’d always do what we wanted to do anyway, the fact that people were so responsive

“I think I’ve said that line so many times (Creeper bingo players, take note - Ed) but we just weren’t prepared at all. We were always completely blown away by the response and it meant we could justify a lot of the decisions we were about to make with this new record. It’s meant that we can kick everything up a gear and be really, really confident in what we’re doing. I have full confidence in all my friends in this band, in everything they do and every idea they come in with.” Not only has 2015 allowed Creeper the confidence to fully explore every one of their fairytale ideas, it’s also gifted them a shared vision to create. “We’ve learnt a lot about how we like to write songs. In the past Ian and I would write a song, bring it to the band and they’d flesh it out for us. This time we came in with skeletons of ideas and the whole band would put it all into one piece. That’s been really fun and we’re all just having a really good time.” “Slowly, something’s really happening at the moment,” offers Will. It would appear Creeper are beginning to catch up to their impact. “We’re in such a good creative space at the moment and there were a number of years where Ian and I just weren’t. It’s difficult to turn it on when you do anything creative and I think that’s why bands make crappy records sometimes. You have to make records because you’re a band, it’s what you do but if you’re not in the right place to do it then it sucks. That’s always my nightmare.” Don’t worry though, for Creeper it’s dreams all the way. “We’re very lucky at the moment, we’re always very inspired and we’ve got a lot we want to get done. We’ve got a lot of songs we want to write. We want to keep this momentum going and keep playing. We’re really just having the time of our lives with this band and trying not to take anything for granted. We’re just like excited little kids about everything, all the time. I can’t wait for people to hear this new thing we’ve got going on, and we’ve got even more going on that we can’t talk about. We just want to keep doing what we’re doing. That’s the plan and next year it goes up. It all gets cranked up in quite a significant way.” P 21

WORDS: JESSICA BRIDGEMAN

HECK

eck have been causing a serious ruckus since late 2009, staking claim on venues up and down the UK with a blend of manic hardcore and thrash qualities that ensured they were noticed by anyone who was fortunate enough to cross their path. It was during a tour with Limp Bizkit and Crossfaith in 2014 that the midlanders really took things up a notch, supporting in some of the country’s most respected venues. A few rolls of duct tape later and Heck are ensuring all that is nothing compared to what they have in store for 2016.

Armed with a “doing things our own way” ethos, the last two years have pushed the four-piece formerly known as Baby Godzilla to the point of combustion. “It’s one of those things that could’ve quite easily ripped us apart,” recalls frontman Matt Reynolds on Heck’s difficult summer of 2015, “Chaos struck and we had to change 22 upsetmagazine.com

our band name.” The Nottingham mob may make an awful lot of noise, but when it came to adhering to the conflicts of a certain Japanese cinema giant of the same name, they were left with little choice in the matter. “This may seem abrupt but following some fairly conclusive and forceful instructions it is time we instigated a change,” the band said in an official statement last July. “We; the collective of Matt Reynolds, Jonny Hall, Tom Marsh and Paul Shelley, will from now on and henceforth be known as HECK.” “This is an exciting new chapter,” the statement continued, “We press on, reinvigorated, focused and with more fire in our bellies than ever.” And they’ve done just that. “We could have

“IT’S NOT ENTIRELY WHAT WILL BE EXPECTED, BUT I HOPE PEOPLE REALLY LIKE IT.” very easily have just stopped,” admits guitarist Jonny Hall, “Because everything that you’ve worked for, for five years, has been ripped from under you and there’s nothing you can do about it.” “But instead it just made us even more determined to not do anything that anyone tells us to do; and do things our own way,” Matt concludes. And it’s hard not to feel the excitement exuding from the two band members as they reveal details about their debut album. “We’ve been perfectionists over it,” Matt says, “but

DIET CIG

It’s no secret that Heck have built their trade of chaotic live shows; where you’ll usually find them clambering on amps, diving from stage rigging or surfing above the heads of fans. But it’s their knack for sharp mathcore techniques and smart hardcore akin to the likes of The Dillinger Escape Plan that deserves the spotlight now. “It’s weird, the four of us have a really diverse range of musical influences,” Jonny explains. “Matt and Tom [drums] grew up listening to Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, I came from a slightly more hardcore background and Paul [bass] basically only listens to Kesha.”

Somewhere between Kesha, prog and the idea of a spotthe-chorus-themed drinking game, anyone who encounters Heck in 2016 can expect a British rock band that’s steadied some treacherous waters and risen a renewed force. “You have to just grow a pair and say ‘right, it’s going to be shit for a while but you’re not going to stop doing it’,” Jonny says. “Initially the response to the name change was great; we had a lot of support for the story but sometimes things like that don’t filter through to everyone.” There remains a subtle tension that suggests they still have an uphill battle on their hands. “We did the tour [in November 2015] and a lot of people were coming up to us and saying they’d only just found out we were Baby Godzilla,” Jonny adds.

As for the debut album, Matt unravels details with the excitement of a man who’s had a tip-off on finding the end of a rainbow around the corner, “It’s everything we’ve worked to before this point and a progression of everything we’ve ever done. It’s got all the hardcore roots that we were going towards before, and the energy, and that’s been focused into everything.” “The influences are worn on our sleeve,” he adds, “It doesn’t just sound like a heavy, shouty album, but you wouldn’t have gone, ‘oh this guy listens to Kesha’.” Just when you think you know Heck, think again. P

WORDS: ALI SHUTLER

we got back on our feet and now we really are ready to get it out there.”

iet Cig, AKA drummer Noah Bowman and vocalist Alex Luciano, met at a house party towards the end of 2014. Noah was playing with his band Earl Boykins and Alex asked if he had a lighter, mid-set. He didn’t but he did hand her a bottle of wine instead. From then on, it just clicked and the pair released their debut EP ‘Over Easy’ a few months later.

The record, a scrawny yet relentless five-track burst of infectious charm and lip-curling honesty, was one of the best EPs of 2015 while the follow up shotgun of ‘Sleep Talk/Dinner Date’ was just as rampant and wonderful. The band spent the majority of last year touring the US and they’re kicking off 2016 with a seven date UK tour. “We’re so excited,” exclaims Alex. “I’ve never been overseas, Noah has once, but we’ve never been to the UK and we’re super stoked to drink some tea and maybe meet the Queen. We’re actually flying out on Noah’s birthday, so we’re going to drink little tiny bottles of champagne on the flight. Well, maybe one.” Despite this being the first time the band has played outside of the US, there are no nerves. “We’re just super psyched to go over there. I’m just stoked. I’m ready. We went across the US this summer so we feel like we’ve seen a lot of that. Now it’s time to see something new.” Diet Cig’s hectic summer schedule has knocked the band into shape. The shows have “got more energy, for sure. When we first started playing together, I was terrified. I’ve never played in a band before this. I was so scared, I didn’t move at all. We were probably really, really sloppy,” Alex admits before pausing. “No we definitely were. Now, we’ve both found our groove and really learnt how to play with each other.

It’s one massive dance party. I have conquered my fear of playing live and totally turned it on its end. I dance around like crazy and jump on stuff and totally just shred. The live show’s changed a lot over the past year. The touring forces you to play every day and perfect your craft.” That idea of starting from imperfection is echoed in the band’s music. “I want people to take away the idea that even if you can’t necessarily play instruments very well or have crazy things happening to you, you can still write meaningful songs,” declares Alex. “I learnt that last year. I am not a very proficient guitar player or lyricist but Noah made me believe that I could do it anyway.” The pair want to pass on that self-belief. “You don’t have to be a professional to just do it. Anyone can write songs about their feelings.” Tea, Gordon Ramsey, the Queen and touring with Bruising – there are a lot of reasons the band are stoked about their UK tour, but the list doesn’t end here. “I think we’re excited to see all those English dance moves, for sure,” ventures Alex. “I want to see the classic moves. I want it to be like a dance lesson over there so I can bring back some moves. I dance a lot. Like, a lot a lot on stage and I come off stage and make everyone dance with me. The dancing is so important. All the shows are going to be one big dance party.” P 23

WORDS: ALI SHUTLER

AGAINST THE CURRENT

A “We’re really lucky to have got as far as we have without having an album,” explains vocalist Chrissy Constanza. “I think it’s pretty unique for any band or artist to be in our situation so it’ll be nice to show off something we sat down and worked really hard on. We can’t wait for it to be finally released and have that out there. I want us to continue to grow the band, expand it and hopefully reach more and more people. Just crush the year, y’know?”

Formed on the pre-existing partnership of guitarist Dan Gow and drummer Will Ferri, Chrissy - introduced by mutual friends - brought a balance to the band after years of turbulence. Christened Against The Current after the last line of The Great Gatsby, the band have lived up to their name. Whether it’s those world tours, their disregard for genre lines or being a YouTube band while not actually being a YouTube band, Against The Current aren’t the norm. And they’re cool with that. There’s a reason the first single from that debut album is called ‘Outsiders’. The track “sets the tone and the pace” for the record and champions the idea of staying true and not fitting in. It speaks on behalf of both fans and band alike. Asking Chrissy whether she’d rather the album shift a million copies or mean something special to a couple of hundred kids, she pauses for just a moment before replying, “I mean, my answer would be both.” At home for the first time in months, Chrissy is enjoying “having a couple of minutes free,” yet somehow she’s

gainst The Current had a very good 2015. Their self released,second EP ‘Gravity’ was so well received they went on a massive world tour. It might have been an “amazing” experience but it was also “mind blowing” for the band, “to be able to go on a world tour without even having a full length record out.” In 2016, that changes.

“WHEN THIS ALBUM DROPS, THAT’S THE START.” “still been running about everywhere.” The demands of both real life and the band playing havoc. “I haven’t been vegging out nearly as much as I thought I was going to be. I’ve been to concerts, had to sign a bunch of stuff and we’re going to be doing some more writing, finishing up the album, stuff like that. We’re keeping busy.” Typically it’s with a debut album that a band becomes properly tangible. Wolf Alice, Marmozets, Moose Blood, Milk Teeth, the list goes on and soon, you’ll be able to add Against The Current to it. ”Everything we’ve done has obviously mattered but it feels like we haven’t even taken the first step. When our fans say they’re so proud of how far we’ve come, I’m like ‘thank you, but we’ve just been warming up’. When this album drops, that’s the start.” The writing for the record was “definitely different”, with the band taking it a lot more seriously. “We always take everything we do seriously, but

for ‘Gravity’ we only had nine days for the entire thing; to go in, to write, to record, everything,” explains Chrissy. “We had half of ‘Gravity’ written and that was it. Some of those songs hadn’t even been started yet; those ideas weren’t on the table. There was no room for error. There was no room to say well, this song doesn’t really sound like us.” Signing to Fueled By Ramen should come with a heap of pressure, but this band don’t do as they should. “I don’t like to think of it as pressure, I like to think of it as an amazing opportunity.” That platform has also given them access to their pick of songwriters. “We’ve had more resources available than we’ve ever had before. We’re always dreaming big so it’s been amazing for the album to have been able to work with these writers that we wouldn’t have been able to even get in touch with beforehand. It’s really helped us develop as songwriters.” Sure, Against The Current have used co-writers - cue those curmudgeonly ’true punx’ alarm bells - but that’s only because they want to make sure the message at the heart of their debut is delivered in the best way possible. “The thing I tell people is just to stay genuine, be true to you because ultimately that is the most important thing. That’s what we’re really trying to get across when we were doing the album. This is just us. We’re not writing it because we need this kind of song, we’re writing it because that’s what we’ve experienced and it’s what we do. It’s just us.” “It was weird at first when we did a couple of co-writes for ‘Gravity’ but when you find those right people, they can completely change how you write a song. They can help you in ways you never thought you could ever be helped. I think next time, with the next album there might not be as many co-writes. We did so many sessions for this album because we were trying to explore every avenue, every style and everything we possibly could so we could make the album the best it could be.” It’s less song writing, more learning how to channel their voice. Even now, three and a half years on from ‘Thinking’, Against The Current still refuse to fit into a box. It’s a flexibility that they’re always going to maintain. “We’re still going to be experimenting with our sound, always changing things and writing different types of songs. Not really defining ourselves from the beginning has left us with a fanbase that was really open to hearing anything we had to offer. I’ve never heard a fan say ‘oh, this song doesn’t sound like ATC’ or ‘this is really different’ because there isn’t really one song that is ATC. We just change it up all the time. We make the music we love and we’re constantly changing as songwriters.” Against The Current’s defiant attitude and the welcoming embrace it’s garnered across the world should sit at odds, but instead it’s been channelled into a full-length release. “It gave us a lot of room with the album to really do whatever we wanted because we knew there wasn’t this expectation there to be something specific, and that’s how we want to keep it. We don’t want people to expect a certain album. We want to keep being who we are, which isn’t one specific sound.” Instead Against The Current is “just who we are. It’s our identities and who we’ve always been. We’ve always just done what we wanted to do and so far, it’s worked out in our favour. We don’t really feel the pressure to appease anyone.” A very polite way of saying the band really don’t care what anyone thinks. P 25

50 SOU N D TH E KL A XO N S! HERE COME...

AMAZING

THINGS

T H AT W I L L H A P P E N I N 2 0 1 6

26 upsetmagazine.com

MOOSE BLOODâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S

SECOND ALBUM WILL SEND THEM S T R AT O S P H E R I C W O R D S : H E AT H E R M C D A I D P H OTOS : SA R A H LO U I S E B E N N ET T

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

ou know when you make an album with friends and it’s just good old fun? Then that album takes you and your band not only around the UK, but the US, festival circuits, and on the road with many, many brilliant bands? Granted, it’s not something many of us can relate to, but for Moose Blood, that’s life following ‘I’ll Keep You in Mind, From Time to Time’, and it’s a chapter for the band that is slowly coming to an end. As fans move into the new year looking back on recently curated ‘end of year’ lists, they’ll sit and pinpoint those who’ll possibly make the cut in 2016, and it’s around now we’d start placing our bets: Moose Blood are on to something special. Behind the mix of their songs that just get under your skin and embed themselves with ease and honest lyrics, 2 8 upsetmagazine.com

” H O P E F U L LY PEOPLE LIKE THE ALBUM AS MUCH AS W E D O.” is a passion for what they do and drive to make the most of every moment. When those elements collide there’s little to stand in their way - as shown by their astronomic 2015. “It has been fantastic,” says Eddy Brewerton, on the past twelve months. “We honestly couldn’t have wished for any more. We have been so busy and we are so thankful for every opportunity that we have been given. We feel very lucky. Our first headline run was fantastic for us, our sets at Reading and

Leeds, Slam Dunk and Warped UK... Spending the summer on Warped Tour was an incredible experience.” To top that off, they recently played their first headline show in the US, which was a brilliant success, and have set their sights firmly on their second offering. “It’s crazy for us. To headline a show so far from home is amazing enough, but to sell it out on top of that just blew our minds. And spending a few weeks recording our second record in LA was a great way to start bringing the year to an end.” That second album will earmark a lot of changes in the band - for one, their fanbase has justifiably grown, and now there’s an anticipation surrounding their next step. The tracking is already done, with mixing and mastering next on the cards, those finishing touches before it’s released into the world. “This record came together a lot faster than the last and we had a little longer in the studio this time around. We have toured so much since the last record came out and I think that helped us

become tighter as a band and play better as the four of us. I think that there is just a natural progression with these new songs and we are really proud of it.” “We started putting a few ideas together when we had some spare time on tour over the summer, but it wasn’t until we got home that we started writing properly,” explains Eddy. “We really thought about the structures of these songs and spent a little more time going over parts in the studio to make them as good as they could be. We were lucky enough to work with Beau Burchell again and he really pushed us to put out the best work that we could.” But while Moose Blood are pushing themselves and aiming higher and higher with their music, they remain firmly settled in their lyrical roots. It’s real to them, it’s about life as it happens, and that won’t change. Their lives can be laid bare in the music. “We write songs about our lives and things that have actually happened over the past year and a half. Relationships, family and everything else that comes with it is what inspires us the most. There are songs on this record lyrically that we really have just given everything to. “We wanted to be as honest as we could and I am really happy that we have done that. I think for us it is just

a natural progression from the last record. This is the most proud of anything that we have been a part of before, so hopefully people like it as much as we do.” While 2015 has been massive and 2016 will, assumedly, be of a similarly hectic standard with the album out, what rings clear is they remain humbled by the experience. At any given opportunity, how lucky they feel to have had these experiences comes through, how appreciative they are to people for giving them a chance. “We honestly can’t believe the things we have done,” he says, not for the first, second or probably third time. “I don’t

think any of us can really comprehend how lucky we have been. We say it a lot, but we really are so grateful for everything and we are just making the most of everything that we get to do.” And that gratitude mixed with a love of what they do is why fans of the band will have a lot to look forward to in 2016, with no plans of sitting back and putting their feet up on the horizon. “We want to be as busy as we can,” says Eddy. “We will be putting out this new record and be touring as much as possible. We love what we do and want to do it as much as we can.” P

READING + L E E D S WILL MAKE

2016’S

T H I S S U M M E R O N E TO REMEMBER...

TWENTY ONE P I LOTS WILL BE THE

P E R F ECT R E A D I N G & LEEDS BAND

ctual, proper festival bands are few and far between. There are only a handful of acts who feed off drawing attention and using that sense of discovery to amplify their own glorious noise but for Twenty One Pilots, it’s all they know. We’re calling it now. Their appearance 30 upsetmagazine.com

at Reading & Leeds Festival will be brilliant. ‘Blurryface’, an album of struggle and outsider mentality, has elevated the band to dizzying new heights. They’re selling out nights at Brixton Academy and Madison Square Garden with ease and their off-kilter, genre-flexing songs are proper radio hits. The band have always been known for their live show and now, armed with an audience and those anthems, they can run with it. Twenty One Pilots are at

that brilliant point where, even if only their fans turn up, they’ll draw a massive crowd but the excitement around Josh Dun and Tyler Joseph shows no signs of slowing. The curious and the converted will be welcomed to the world of Twenty One Pilots with open arms. From the relentless bounce of ‘Stressed Out’, the emotive soar of ‘Goner’ and the absolute party of ‘Lane Boy’, to all the onstage theatrics and chemistry the duo live by, TOP at Reading & Leeds will be a set to remember.

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

F E S T I VA L FACT F I L E

E AG L ES O F

D E AT H M E T A L C O U L D G ET E M OT I O N A L

he tragedy that occurred at the Bataclan and throughout Paris on the evening of 13th November 2015 shocked the world. However, from darkness

came a united celebration of the power of music and with it, Eagles of Death Metal became its unofficial figureheads. The band have already returned to Paris to play live, joining U2 at the

AccorHotels Arena, and will be completing their European tour in February. The Nos Amis (French for ‘Our Friends’) Tour includes Reading & Leeds and promises to be powerfully emotional but affirming. The band’s refusal to quit and their desire to try and find light among all the dark is inspiring and should give their live set, already a vessel for joy, a whole other level. “We are proud

Reading & Leeds 2016 When: 26-28 August 2016 Where: Richfield Avenue, Reading & Bramham Park, Leeds Who: Red Hot Chili Peppers, The 1975, Twenty One Pilots, Slaves, Crossfaith, Eagles of Death Metal, Courteeners, Hinds, Rat Boy, Boy Better Know, DJ EZ How much? £205 + booking fee for a weekend ticket to stand together, with our new family, now united by a common goal of love and compassion,” said the band in the aftermath. At Reading & Leeds, that love will shine. 31

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

B I F F Y C LY R O

A R E O N T H E I R WAY BAC K, W H I C H I S A B LO O DY G O O D J O B TO O

WORDS: ALI SHUTLER

s 2016 rolled in, Biffy Clyro played their first live show in over a year. While we’ve been treated to a frankly ridiculous amount of other music in their absence, no one does weird and wonderful pop songs quite like Biffy. We know they’re working on album seven. We know they’ve got a bunch of European festival dates booked in for summer. And we know we can’t wait to have Biffy Clyro back. Here’s why.

BIFFY KNOW T H E I R WAY AROUND A TUNE From the classic Biffy Trinity of ‘Justboy’, ‘57’ and ‘Glitter & Trauma’ to the modern day triumphs of ‘Mountains’, ‘Stingin’ Belle’ and ‘Living Is A Problem Because Everything Dies’, Biffy Clyro know how to write a good song.

The band write the most incredible pop bangers, disguised as brilliant off-kilter rock songs. They’re intelligent, challenging but oh-sosimple. Having Biffy back means we’ve got every reason to immerse ourselves in all six albums and their accompanying (and equally outstanding) B-sides.

THE ROCK SHOW Biffy Clyro know how to put on a rock show. Over the course of thirteen years, they’ve crafted all the key components to deliver live. From the crowd-uniting ballads of ‘Many Of Horror’ and ‘Folding Stars’, through the arena-dominating anthems of ‘Bubbles’ and ‘Black Chandelier’ until the hard-hitting blows of ‘The Golden Rule’ and ‘Saturday Superhouse’, Biffy Clyro have the textured range to keep a crowd entertained for hours. Chuck in their expanded lineup, their own special little chant “Mon the Biff!” and two decades of brotherhood, you’d be hard-pushed to find a better live band.

CHAPTER THREE Biffy, as a rock trio, love the power of three. Their six album back catalogue can be split into two distinct trilogies and their imminent seventh album marks the start of a brand new chapter for the band. There’s been talk of stripping it back, making it more aggressive and sounding like a combination of Tears for Fears, Death Grips and Deafheaven. While the interviews rarely reflect the truth, one thing is for sure. Their return will see a different type of Biffy. “We’re going to tweak it all. It’s important to force a change because we want to be doing this for the next 20 years.”

H AV E A B R E A K , H AV E A S I D E P ROJ ECT Despite the overwhelming success of the past few years, it hasn’t all been sunshine and rainbows for Biffy Clyro. Death, depression and

NINE INCH NAILS AND

STUFF Trent Reznor has decreed that next year will see new music from Nine Inch Nails. And, y’know, other stuff too. Seriously. He tweeted it and everything: “New NIN in 2016. Other stuff too.” In an interview last year with Rolling Stone, Reznor talked about new NIN material he was working on: “It’s not for a thing, it’s not a record I’m trying to finish in a month,” he explained. “It’s more just feeling around in the dark and seeing what sounds interesting.”

YO U T H MAN ARE

RELEASING alcoholism have plagued the band and in taking some time away, they will have had a chance to process their journey so far. Biffy Clyro are still standing for one reason; because they want to be. The last time the band took a serious chunk of time off was between 2004’s ‘Vertigo of Bliss’ and 2007’s ‘Puzzle’, during which Simon Neil came up with the ridiculous pop monster of Marmaduke Duke alongside Sucioperro’s JP Reid. This time, he’s recorded a solo record under the guise of ZZC with John Feldman. How this work will influence the likes of Biffy Clyro remains to be seen, but we’re excited to hear the results.

I WON’T DO W H AT Y O U TELL ME Biffy Clyro have always done exactly what they wanted. As the band get bigger, so does their ability to do things their way. From releasing a double album in

2013 to not releasing the biggest pop song they’ve ever written (‘Pocket’, FYI) as a single, no one tells Biffy what to do. Since the release of ‘Opposites’, the band have become Actual Festival Headliners and achieved a number one album. Proof that Biffy know best.

C OV E R M E LIKE ONE OF YO U R F R E N C H SONGS New music and live shows are all well and good but really, the sooner Biffy get back the sooner they can start churning out some more ridiculous covers. Timberlake, Lorde, Matt Cardle (wink, wink), Daft Punk, AC/DC, Cheryl Cole, Rage Against The Machine and Starship have all been reworked by the Biffy boys but really, can it get any better than Weezer’s ‘Buddy Holly’? We’ll just have to wait and see. P

AN EP Youth Man are the future. After a string of self-released music, the Brummie trio has signed to Venn Records for a new EP, which is due out this spring. We’ve already heard first cut ‘Pigs’, a gloriously vicious track, and the rest promises to be just as dangerously exciting (or excitingly dangerous, depending on how you look at it.)

GREEN D AY WA N T

TO K I L L POP PUNK That’s what Billie Joe Armstrong tweeted out over the new year. In 2016, he wants to bring the whole genre tumbling down. Or maybe just the fact it’s attached to his band. Who knows? What we are sure of is that Green Day have been working on new material. 33

LETLIVE.

A R E R E A DY TO DROP THEIR “BEST” MUSIC YET WO RDS: JAC K G L ASSC O C K

‘T

he Blackest Beautiful’ - released in 2013 - was an ambitious album, and that’s a relatively tame tag for a band who places no value on the word ‘tame’. It saw letlive. build on their breakthrough masterpiece, ‘Fake History’, tempering their already beautifully crafted posthardcore with influences from soul and rhythm and blues. After the shock of letlive. had dissipated, their ferocity was harnessed and Jason’s lyrics were made more direct; all the while retaining the sense of a very real danger that they present profoundly on stage. letlive. had very quickly become a more cohesive model, surpassing the already high expectations that they had themselves set. How do you even begin to think about writing a follow up to that? Today Jason Aalon Butler finds himself at “a less than motel in San Antonio, Texas” as he is called up to front the ranks of Every Time I Die due to unforeseen complications during the birth of Keith Buckley’s daughter, and he’s in the mood to relate all that is letlive.. “Honestly, the mind-set was just don’t think about ‘The Blackest Beautiful’. We let that album exist as it is, let it isolate itself as that era for letlive. and that sonic representation.” Jason pauses, collects his thoughts and poses, “this is going to sound so trite, but I think that life can continually offer new things. There are these things that you can take from or admire or abhor or discuss; they’re abounding, they’re everywhere all the time. So for me it was just taking a moment to see what meant the most to me to write about in an album. Compared to the last couple of records, I’m able to be a lot more objective and I’m also a lot more knowledgeable as far as the systems that I’m discussing and the conversations that I’m trying to advance.”

he remains extremely vigilant and conceptualises letlive. in such lofty terms that you wouldn’t be surprised if Kanye West had uttered them of himself. “Initially people giving a fuck in the first place is still such a surprise to us. Not because I don’t think what we create is worth it, because admittedly I think that when you create art and you mean it it’s worth something, whether that be people coming to shows or people discussing your art, sharing your art or buying your art. I believe that art is worth something when you mean it.” But the reason that Jason’s grand ideas don’t get lost in a vacuum of bullshit, as is so often the case with Yeezy, is because they are decidedly rooted in what letlive. has built with their fans. “People have already shown me that their investment in letlive. goes beyond just music now. People are invested in letlive. in a way that, even to me as a music fan, is far beyond anything I could really have imagined and that foundation seems too firm to me; it’s unbreakable,” Jason affirms. “When we come back, we can at least know that our foundation is there and is omnivorous enough to allow us to be who we are because, as we evolve, we would like to believe anyone involved with letlive. will evolve concurrently.”

order to make this record. I guess after we were able to get out of our own way and we were A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016 able to get out of each other’s way in order to accomplish the things we wanted to artistically, I think that we were able to start writing a record that is very apparently free. You can tell that we’re not as insecure as artists. I think this record is coming to the people with the least amount of reservation and hesitance and reticence that we’ve ever provided. That’s what I mean about it being the best.”

Yes that’s correct, Jason just implied that ‘Fake History’ and ‘The Blackest Beautiful’ were letlive. exhibiting insecurities. “I guess back then there was a proximity in which we had to exist. We came from this scene, we didn’t want to disregard this scene or this essence and now we’ve found a way to uphold and honour that even though we might be creating music, which may seem, sonically, very different for letlive..” It might come as a surprise to hear that insecurity is an issue for a band that are as bullish as letlive., but Jason is not afraid of presenting the more fragile and sentimental accent of himself in his music. “I wish I could say that it’s fully intentional and I had this plan to do it, but man it’s just honestly what happens when I sing the songs that we write; that’s just what happens. But, with letlive. the spectrum is, in fact, seemingly limitless. I do think it’s important for people to be vulnerable to their music and I think it’s important for people to be transparent and I think it’s important for people to be as authentic as possible.”

“THIS LETLIVE. I S RO OT E D I N S U BV E RS I O N , C O N F R O N TAT I O N , OPPOSITION.”

When posed with the question, that would strike at least some sense of dread into your average band in 2015, as to whether he ever finds himself in a position of fear regarding the loyalty of their fan base in this very temporal and transient era of musical consumption,

Here Jason admits that while he is sure the foundations of letlive. are firm, that the direction they’ll be taking, in 2016’s upcoming album ‘If I’m The Devil…’ is a divergence. Yet alongside that deviation is an unsurprising, unrestrained confidence that has seen him state that it’s the “best” music letlive. have ever written, with profound understanding of the enormity of that term’s application and implication. “I think that it’s just because it’s the most liberated we’ve been as a band because we’ve had to challenge ourselves and each other so much in

Everything Jason says is measured, considered and calculated, but without any inauthenticity that those phrases might connote. In fact, the exact opposite: “I can go on the record saying that however I’m acting or saying or doing, it’s because I feel that way and whenever I’m not doing or whenever I’m not saying it’s because I don’t feel that I’m emotionally equipped, at that time, to fend for that thing.” It’s this emotion that Jason can so readily lay bare that gives vehicle to 35

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

the powerful sense of duty he feels to say something of substance when given the platform of letlive.. “Over the last two records I was trying to find my place in all of it, I really was. This [letlive.] is rooted in subversion, this is rooted in confrontation, this is rooted in opposition,” again Jason speaks as if from the written gospel of letlive.. “That’s where we come from. The root as far as the literature is concerned is being confronted with everything outside. This is going to sound so hyperbolic,” once again predicating his statement with, “but everything around you as well as everything within you is what you should be focusing on when you’re trying to focus on the literature that is letlive..” But, it’s not just as the mouthpiece of letlive. where Jason feels a duty to stand passionately for the beliefs that he preaches and he takes great pains to confess this. “I feel there is such a drought and, I’ll go on record saying this, I feel like there are so many bands claiming that they are part of this revolutionary moment in time and they want to spearhead it, but then they get offstage and there’s no activism, there’s no proactivity. There’s no passion in what you say if you’re only saying it onstage. At times it can seem cumbersome and at times a heavy weight to carry but that’s the 36 upsetmagazine.com

name of the game in revolution, that’s the name of the game in change. A lot of the people that tried to change things, that did change things, are dead,” Jason points out with a morbid chuckle. “That is the sad truth. That’s just the sad truth. So if you really want to be a part of it and really want to disrupt that system that you lament so heavily in your work then you need to scarily invest in something that might, I’m not going to say take your life, but push back and cause a lot of anguish. But if it’s worth it to you in the end then you keep doing it.” With all that conviction, all that belief, what does 2016 look like for letlive.? A band who are set to free themselves from the incarnations that precede them, release themselves from the shackles of insecurity and move confidently in the direction of authenticity. “We’re obviously going to be back on the grind. We’ve got some cool tours planned with friends for the second quarter of 2016,” Jason divulges before once again delivering a mission statement for album four. “This iteration of letlive. is the version of letlive. that just tries really hard to take it as far as possible and is not afraid of repercussions. Whatever happens is going to happen and somewhere that is designated to us in our fate as this band.

So we’re going to keep going and push it as far as we can.” Once again, Jason implicates the seemingly bonkers. If this is album reportedly called ‘If I’m The Devil’ - is going to see letlive. really going for it without fearing the consequences, what was their outlook on ‘Fake History’? What was the intent of ‘The Blackest Beautiful’? The thought of hearing and witnessing a truly unbridled letlive. in 2016 is both unimaginable considering what they’ve delivered already and impossibly exciting. But when Jason, tell us when?! “I know that it has to come out in 2016. I know that much. I can promise you the lead up is going to be fucking cool. We’ll be opening a door to be involved in letlive.. Once we feel that’s made its point and it culminates, then the record will come out. Hopefully before summer; that’d be nice.” With that delightfully enigmatic answer, Jason bids farewell for now. But not before adding, “we’re going to be in the UK in the second quarter of next year, so I’ll see you then,” he teases. If you thought letlive. had delivered their magnum opus already, prepare yourself to be proven wrong. P

FRO

D O N ’ T WA N T TO M I SS A N OT H E R I SS U E O F

U PS ET

EV E R AG A I N ? WA N T

I T D E L I V E RE D D I RECT TO YO U R D O O R ? YO U ’ RE I N LU C K . S U BSC RI B E FO R AS L I T T L E AS

£2 P E R M O N T H , W I T H N O M I N I M U M T E RM , AT U PS ET M AG A Z I N E .C O M RI G H T N OW. W H AT A RE YO U WA I T I N G FO R ?

D I S RU P T T H E N O I S E

£2

MON

G ET U PSET

# 9 D E A F H AVA A RE BAC K! BAC K!! BAC K!!!

pril 2014 must seem like a lifetime ago to the members of Deaf Havana. It saw the band’s ‘Old Souls’ tour culminate in an undeniable triumph at London’s Clapham Grand; performing two sold out dates accompanied by a string quartet, a choir and a band full of beaming gentlemen to match. Just a few months later, to say that the band’s trajectory had performed a 180 would be an understatement. “We were really badly in debt, but we didn’t know because it wasn’t being communicated back to us from various different people that worked for us,” explains frontman James Veck-Gilodi of this turbulent time. “When we finally fired those people, we really found out how bad we were. We were so badly in debt it was horrific.” But the financial crisis that Deaf Havana

38 upsetmagazine.com

found themselves in caused more than just friction. It came close to breaking them. “I was going to quit after Reading & Leeds because I knew after that we would have enough money to have paid our debt off.” Not only was this brutal perspective voiced to the band, it was also said without a hint of sentiment. “I actually didn’t care at that point. I didn’t take much notice of them [the other band members] to be honest; we all just kind of fell out. I think they were in the same boat. I don’t think anyone really cared that much.” From the turmoil of seemingly insurmountable debt and the very real possibility of a dissolution of the band, Deaf Havana now find themselves in a position that would have seemed an impossibility a year ago. “It’s the first time I’ve ever written a song and not actually cared about what it sounds like. ‘Fools and Worthless Liars’ was the first record I wrote. I was really scared and anxious about what people were going

to think because prior to that our old singer wrote everything. Then ‘Old Souls’ I wrote to sound like Bruce Springsteen, and people liked that. So this is the first one I’ve written and not cared what it sounds like. When I wrote that first song I didn’t even know if I was going to use it, so I didn’t have any pressure or expectations.” But that’s not to say that Deaf Havana are out of the woods yet. There are only so many chances that one band can have. Would it be cynical to say that this is Deaf Havana’s last chance? “No, absolutely not,” replies James without a hint of apology. “There are a lot of bands who seem to just keep going and fair play if that’s what they enjoy doing, but things get stale and I’ve always been of the mind-set that the minute this becomes unnatural and forced, then there’s no point in doing it anymore. So if this doesn’t work, I’d say it was probably the last chance.” Before he runs away into quite morbid territory, he asserts, “I don’t think it will now because this is pretty much the most positive I’ve ever felt about it.”

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

When then, will we see this more positive statement and what will it sound like? “It’s all demoed, but we haven’t actually recorded it yet. It’ll be out mid-2016 I imagine. It’s definitely nothing like ‘Old Souls’. It’s a bit more like ‘Fools and Worthless Liars’, but some of it sounds like The Police, but a bit heavier. I don’t really know how to describe it. That’s going to be the hard bit. The last two albums, we’ve written just enough songs to go on the album. But this one we’ve got like 32 songs, so we’re going to have to really whittle it down and choose which ones go together. So it could go one of a few ways.” For now then, Deaf Havana will put their sombre, broken year behind them and battle on with this album as their next statement of intent. “This time, we’re all a lot older and it sounds cheesy and cliche, but we’re all a lot wiser. We know exactly what we want and what we don’t want. We know exactly what works and what doesn’t work within our band dynamic. I’m just a lot more positive than I ever have been.” P

WORDS: JACK GLASSCOCK

“IF THIS DOESN’T W O R K , I ’ D S AY I T W A S P R O B A B LY T H E LAST CHANCE.”

TO N I G H T A L I V E WILL

#10

PUSH THEIR LIMITS

onight Alive announced new album ‘Limitless’ alongside lead single ‘Human Interaction’ and it heralds a new era for the band. The sonic changes are very in-your-face but beyond the step away from their pop-punk origins, Tonight Alive’s third album seems to come with a new-found confidence and sense of self. Both ‘What Are You So Scared

Of?’ and ‘The Other Side’ dealt with struggle and self-acceptance but ‘Limitless’, all epic pop and soaring declarations, is comfortable in its own skin. “We tore away every formula, structure and safety net we knew to embrace a complete unlearning and evolution,” explains vocalist Jenna McDougall. “This record shares our journey of harnessing personal power and acts as the long awaited answer to the questions of our previous records.” With ‘Limitless’ backing them, Tonight Alive truly are.

#11

BASEMENT

A R E A BO U T TO D RO P A N A L BU M TO B E L I EV E I N W O R D S : R YA N D E F R E I TA S . P H O T O S : E M M A S WA N N

ith third album ‘Promise Everything’ on the way, Basement are in high spirits as they’re gathered outside a North London rehearsal room. And why wouldn’t they be? Having just returned from a huge US support-run with The Story So Far, they’re here to rehearse their new material for a rather large upcoming UK tour of their own (as well as a Maida Vale session for the Radio 1 Rock Show that you can probably find online somewhere by now). This time two years ago, though, Basement weren’t an active band. In fact, they were just about to announce their return from a two-year hiatus. The Ipswich group’s popularity had steadily risen in their absence after 2012’s ‘Colourmeinkindness’ – released post-hiatus announcement – had gone on to be one of the highest regarded releases in the genre. Suffice to say, the reformation was big news. However, having played what was understood to be their ‘last show’ only fourteen months prior, there was an underlying degree of cynicism coming from certain sections of their fanbase when the band announced that they were back. At best, those sections felt as though the brevity of the hiatus cheapened the emotions they felt at those ‘last hurrah’ shows. At worst, some considered that the entire ‘break’ was one big publicity stunt. Yet the band were anything but calculated about either the hiatus or the return.

to be in a band anymore. There was no ‘intent’ with it either way. It was like, ‘Okay, let’s put it on hold and see what happens. If we have the time to do it again, we’ll do it and if not, we won’t.’” “The time we weren’t doing anything was just because everyone was doing separate stuff and everyone had decided that they wanted to focus on their careers outside the band. For example, I was teaching.” “Then, I realised I was quite good at managing my time and was able to do stuff on the side, too. So we started talking about whether or not we wanted to try and play some more shows and eventually decided to get together and record something. Halfway through that process, I brought up the idea that maybe we should go for this full-time and everyone was on board. It was a good time to put our professional lives outside of the band on hold, too.” “Honestly though, we could’ve ended the hiatus a week after we took it if we wanted. We took the break for us, so it doesn’t matter what people think about it.”

Basement have delivered the most complete, cohesive album of their career – and it might A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016 well be the one to truly define the band. Where ‘I Wish I Could Stay Here’ drew comparisons to their peers and ‘Colourmeinkindness’ not-so-subtly harked back to 90s alternative, ‘Promise Everything’ is the result of Basement having the experience, tools and selfassurance to write a record truly their own.

The band must know this, too. There’s a tangible buzz among them tonight, despite Fisher’s soft-spoken, humble demeanour. Their excitement remains grounded by their self-awareness though, and when talking about the new album there are obvious reservations about how it might be received. “Part of me thinks – and a lot of us in the band have said it too – that we’re going to put this out and that people are gonna be like ‘urgh, this is not what I was expecting’,” Fisher confesses. “Just because there are things on it that are a bit different to what our fans have heard from us and just things that might not be what they’re used to.”

“ W E TO O K T H E BREAK FOR US, IT DOESN’T M AT T E R W H AT PEOPLE THINK.”

“The whole hiatus thing was pretty casual for us,” explains vocalist Andrew Fisher, sat just as casually on a sofa outside their practice room. “I can understand the cynicism – it was really short – but it was just because I wasn’t sure whether or not we’d have the time

Besides, with ‘Promise Everything’ almost here, there can be no question about the band’s intentions going forward. Nor about whether getting back together was the right move, since the record is by far their most accomplished yet. Somehow, given the circumstances (“A few of the songs were written completely separately from each other. We were in different parts of the country and even the world for some of it”),

In truth, they’re probably overthinking these concerns – especially as first single ‘Oversized’ garnered such a positive response - since the differences on the record are subtle. Basement haven’t taken a too sharp a turn from ‘CMIK’ musically, it’s just not as draped in nostalgia and its foundations are built on vastly superior songwriting and melodies rather than the previous record’s immediacy. Stripping back the 90s-esque sound was a bolder move than it might seem. In the last few years, we’ve heard Superheaven, Title Fight, Pity Sex, Citizen, Moose 41

Blood, Turnover and countless others release records that have built and developed on the aesthetic that ‘CMIK’ played a huge part in legitimising. By late 2015 however, it was beginning to feel like that movement had peaked and their scene was in transition once more. Were Basement to continue down that route, they’d have to release something to top ‘Peripheral Vision’, ‘Jar’ or their own previous efforts. Stepping away, however, allows the album to 42 upsetmagazine.com

“I honestly think we wanted to just do what came out naturally,” Fisher explains. “But there’s definitely truth in [the band wanting to step away from it]. I think we just wanted to try and do something that was different, without it being too obvious that we were trying to do something different.”

a bit different from all of that. We consciously tried to do something that’s interesting and different - as we do with music or art or whatever else - so whether or not that’s just actively trying to make sure we don’t sound like this band or that band, we were definitely aware of what’s been going on in that world and went into it trying for something that would make us a little bit different to everyone else.”

“We definitely wanted to do something

While they’re aware of what’s going on

stand on its own – and it’s all the better for it.

“ I H AV E NO IDEA HOW FA R A BAND LIKE OURS CA N G O.” “It’s scary!” Fisher confesses. “We’re all super nervous about how it’s gonna go, but we said we wanted to take chances and here we are. We wanted to try and push it and see what we could do. It might not work, we might get a really bad turnout and then we’ll be like ‘okay, we won’t play venues this big next time’. It was just a choice between doing something similar to what we did last time, or pushing it, and we thought why not? We have no idea how long this is gonna last, so we might as well try it.”

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

around them and what people might be waiting to see from Basement, they aren’t looking to get too hung up on any of it. “I feel like there’s people looking at us and wondering what we’re going to do next, or trying to figure out what it is that we’re going to be known for,” he continues. “But I think we’d get ourselves in a bit of a stressful situation if we thought too much about that. So we worried less about it and just went

in thinking ‘is this a cool song?’ and if it was, we’d keep it. All we wanted was to come out of it with some good songs.” And they certainly have. These are songs which carry the band forth into 2016 and into the biggest venues the band have ever played. On their first album tour proper (going on hiatus right before a record drops will rob a band of that), they’ll be playing the 2,000 cap rooms of Shepherds Bush Empire and Manchester Academy.

“Pushing it” seems very much the plan from here onwards. With their professional lives now on hold, Basement are grabbing the bull firmly by the horns and going all out this time around, and while they aren’t letting themselves get too carried away with expectation, they are clear in their intentions. “I have no idea how far a band like ours can go,” Andrew admits. “But as long as we just keep doing stuff we’re proud of and that we’re creatively stimulated by, we’ll be fine.” It’s commendable that Fisher and his band remain as unassuming as they are when you consider that everything they’ve achieved up to now, they’ve done so as a part-time band. For everyone else, the prospect of what’s to come from Basement – ‘Promise Everything’ included – should be a source of real excitement. Recording ‘Promise Everything’ was the last thing that Basement would do as a part-time band before giving notice to their respective workplaces: “From now on,” Fisher concludes, “we’re giving it a proper go.” P 43

“P

anic! At The Disco gave us this unwritten law to create whatever – no rules – just do whatever the fuck we wanted. It made us feel free,” Brendon Urie reflected at Reading Festival last year. While he may be the only member left, ‘Death of a Bachelor’ isn’t a solo album. It’s a continuation of that freedom. “The vision is that people take away this idea that the whole thing is different,” explains Brendon. “Panic! has never done this before. That’s been such a huge thing with every album and that’s what I’m pushing for. I’m just trying to do something

R E A DY TO REIGN.

After ten years, and with album five out very, very soon, that desire to do something new becomes a little more complicated. Every record sees the band opening doors which broadens horizons but there’s also a struggle to find those new, unexplored paths. “There’s up and downs. There are times when I feel like everything’s going to be so great and then the next day I’ll hit a wall. Nothing’s good. It’s the whole five-part artistic struggle,” he reasons, referring to the seesaw of love and hate towards your own art. Brendon is “always writing, always working.” That said, ‘Death of a Bachelor’ was “kind of a surprise.” The first song written for the album was ‘Hallelujah’, which was sent off to the label and they decided to put it out the following week. When Brendon told them he didn’t have an album, their reply was “well, write one.” It was the nudge he needed. “I found the discipline to keep writing and finish everything. I feel like I was in a different place personally but mostly musically. I could

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

4 4 upsetmagazine.com

WORDS: ALI SHUTLER

PA N I C ! AT T H E D I S C O ARE

#12

new that isn’t repeated but seems familiar and is totally fresh. That’s tough to do.”

do things that I never thought I could in the past. I’m in a place now where I can produce things, and I’ve hit a stride in certain areas of creativity.” Written mostly at Brendon’s home, the album “stemmed from one instrument, either piano or guitar, and a vocal trying to tell a story. I finished a lot of the production in my studio at my house and from there it went to my buddy Jake Sinclair’s studio. We were talking and a lot of these ideas came from just hanging out. I realised that hanging out with people you’re comfortable with but can also challenge you creatively is really conducive to the creative process.” So an inside joke would turn into a lyric, which would grow into a chorus and then a song. “It just happened that way this time. Now my favourite method for writing is just to hang out and it’ll happen.”

“ PA N I C ! HAS NEVER DONE THIS BEFORE.” A sense of challenging comfort can be felt throughout ‘Death Of A Bachelor’. Because it was created and shaped in the presence of friends, nothing is held back. It’s also given the record an unquenchable sense of energy. “I love staying excited about what I’m doing and bouncing around between different genres.” Album number five sees Brendon trying his hand at producing tracks which gives him another layer to toy with. “I wanted to challenge myself, I was learning new tricks. There are no rules - I knew I wanted to make a new album and I had this vision of something.” Surrounding himself with people who he knew would understand his vision was “a huge factor in making the album. I was just hanging out and learning from my friends, these people who have been doing it longer or just have better experiences with different ways of writing.” The result is a suitably different Panic! At the

Disco album. “A lot of the writing doesn’t happen on tour because that’s when some of the fun happens: try to go out, see the world and gain new stories, just so you have stuff to write about.” Even with a wealth of experiences Brendon, eager to create a diverse record, changed the scenery at home as well. “I went to Long Beach and wrote an entire song in my friend’s studio because it has a different vibe. David Byrne from Talking Heads actually talked about it, how the architecture of sound dictates how a song will sound.” So arena rock bands writing songs during sound checks in arenas will write big power ballads but with Talking Heads, who were in a small studio room, everything was very tight and very rhythmic. “That became a factor as well. Just being cautious of where you’re at and using the architecture of your environment to the best of the song’s ability to grow as an idea.” There are no nerves ahead of the release of ‘Death of a Bachelor’. “I’m only curious and a little anxious to see what sort of reaction it gets. Actually I’m really curious because so far it’s been great. We’ve had three songs released and we’ve had a really great reaction. Overall though, I’m just really excited to play it live.” “I’m always thinking about how I’m going to perform live when I’m finishing an album. It doesn’t dictate how the song gets fully written but towards the end, when I’m trying to figure out production and how I’m going to arrange a song, that’s when I start thinking about the live show. How am I going to pull this off? How can I do this? I want to figure out cool moments like when we pause and there’s just a moment before we scream and a gang vocal comes back in. It’s those moments that have such power.” There’s a forward motion to Panic! At The Disco. A refusal to quit or play by the rules. It’s what makes them such an exciting band to watch grow and even with the shrink wrap still on ‘Death of a Bachelor’, Brendon Urie is ready for the next transformation. “We’ve played a couple of the new songs and I’m so excited about playing live. There’s just so much fun to be had.” P

#13 A G ROUP OF GIRLS ARE FIGHTING AGA I N ST SEXUAL A S S A U LT AT S H OWS

ast year saw a lot of talk about safe spaces, sexual harassment and worse as at least some parts of the scene started to realise they needed to clean up their act. It’s no shock either - with numerous high profile cases of terrible things done by terrible people - any right minded person would want to make our corner of the world a better, and safer place for all. The truth is, though, there’s a lot of work to be done - and far too many are happy with the status quo. Step forward Girls Against. One of many groups trying to help bring awareness of some pretty shady goings on, these five teenagers had had enough of sexual harassment at shows. It’s shocking how often groping happens at gigs - or, depressingly for many, really not shocking at all. Encouraging fans to come forward with their stories, opening discussion, increasing awareness and attempting to get the bands to spread the message, 2016 should be the year we all decide to put a stop to this sort of behaviour once and for all. Find them on twitter at @girlsagainst and get involved.

wenty fifteen was a roller coaster for Modern Baseball. Seemingly at the height of their powers, in the summer the band cancelled their UK festival appearances, as well as an Australian tour citing vocalist/guitarist, Brendan Lukens needing to take time out to address some mental health concerns. As the year drew to a close however, they embarked upon a 38 date megatour with PUP, Jeff Rosenstock and Tiny Moving Parts. Then, they followed that up with something even more surprising still; an out-of-nowhere, free download release of ‘The Perfect Cast’ EP, which just so happened to be brilliant.

#14

That EP saw the band turning to a more obviously indie-influenced style instrumentally – particularly on record highlight, ‘Infinity Exposed’. “I think it’s just the natural progression for us as songwriters,” Brendan supposes. “When we first started touring [debut record] ‘Sports’ and [follow-up] ‘You’re Gonna Miss It All’, Ian [Farmer, bass] and Sean [Huber, drums] had just joined full time. Since then we’ve had two heavy touring years to mould into Modern Baseball. We all have our own individual styles and now Modern Baseball has a sound from those.” 2016, with all that experience and sound-moulding under their collective belt, sees the Philadelphia-based outfit crossing the Atlantic for their biggest UK shows to date and in Sorority Noise, they’re bringing over some particularly talented friends. Taking friends along for the ride has been MoBo’s MO for

MODERN BASEBALL

A R E R E A DY TO H I T A H O M E RU N

a while now, with their last headline stint over here supported by fellow Pennsylvania punks, Spraynard, and it doesn’t happen by accident. “We have so much say [in who tours with us],” he reveals. “All of the say.” There’s more to it than just friendship, though. “We really love dynamic bands and bands that just have a grand ol’ time playing,” Brendan continues. “It helps with everyone’s vibe, we feel.” Clearly in high spirits, buoyed by a triumphant end to what had the potential to be a derailing year for the band, Brendan reveals that there’s even more reasons to be cheerful with new full-length, ‘Holy Ghost’ on the way, “We’re very proud of ‘Holy Ghost’. We were in a challenging situation writing and recording the record while we had so many personal things going on, but we see it as a huge accomplishment for us.” And how far can that accomplishment take them this year? “It’s my favourite Modern Baseball record, so who knows?” Brendan concludes. “We just want to take even more steps forward - we’re always trying to be better.” Humble and unassuming though Brendan might be, there’s an air of genuine excitement underpinning his words – and for good reason. If they can achieve what they did in a tough 2015, 2016 might well be the year that Modern Baseball hit a home run. P

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

“WE’RE A L WAY S T RY I N G TO B E BETTER.”

WORDS: RYAN DE FREITAS

Modern Baseball are truly back, and whatever problems had plagued Brendan seem, thankfully, under control. That particular EP release – as defiantly impactful as the timing and circumstance seemed – was always going to happen, however. “Those

tracks were already written,” explains Brendan. “We had this EP planned and we knew we wanted it released around our UK and Australia trips. But when we cancelled the dates we went ahead as planned with the EP.”

#15 THE NEW

D E F TO N E S ALBUM IS COMING

eftones’ 2015 was a series of false starts. An album that was originally intended to drop last September, a huge Wembley show that was cancelled following the Paris terror attacks; if they’ve been simmering away waiting to unleash, we can expect something spectacular in 2016.

in and, for the first time ever, they were like, ‘Hey, do you guys wanna just take your time, make it right, and then we’ll release it in the first of the year?’ And we were, like, ‘Wow! Yeah. That sounds great.’”

“[The album] is going to come out in the new year,” the band’s Frank Delgado explained in a recent interview. “We had some dates that were already kind of tentative. The label actually came

That Wembley show has been rescheduled to June, and with a Download Festival 2016 appearance to add to the pile, it’s going to be a busy year for Chino and co.

PIERCE T H E V E I L WILL

#16

D E F I N I T E LY D R O P A NEW RECORD We know new Pierce The Veil is coming. Heck, by the time you read this, it may have already been announced. Label Fearless Records have confirmed the band will release their long anticipated follow up to 2012’s ‘Collide The Sky’ in 2016. “I think everyone should try and make their new album the definitive one,” Vic Fuentes told Upset back in August. “I don’t think you should put everything into one album and just be like ‘Hey, this is it for us!’ Just keep changing a little and keep pushing yourself.” After all the waiting, we’re expecting something spectacular.

emember back to 2011, and you might have fond memories of a brilliant, fuzzy album full of hooks and hidden gems. The band that recorded that self-titled effort, Yuck, may not have had the stellar route to the top that many predicted off the back of it - they since lost a founding member, gained a guitarist and delivered a second

#17

YUCK

ARE

RETURNING AND TH EY SOU N D AC E

album that was good-butnot-quite-as-good - but with album three, ‘Stranger Things’, due in February they’re sounding back on fine form. “This record is all us,” explains frontman Max Bloom. “It is everything that we owned and everything that we had. It was just a record that was made completely on our terms. I guess that’s why I’m comfortable with the idea of people liking it or even not liking it. If people don’t like it, then it means they just don’t like the band and I can’t force people to like the band. All we can do is make songs that we love… and we’ve done that.“ 47

BRING ME THE HORIZON

#19 #18

HANDMADE 2016

A L R E A DY LO O K S L I K E O N E O F T H E B E S T S M A L L F E S T I VA L S OF THE YEAR

estivals aren’t all about huge fields and stages bigger than a jumbo jet. The summer is packed with smaller, carefully crafted events that provide a different but equally brilliant vibe. Leicester’s Handmade has been building a reputation over the past couple of years as one of the best. Last year they played host to Eagulls, Slaves, God Damn, Future of the Left, Menace Beach and loads more of our faves. This year, we’re teaming up with them to make 2016s edition even bigger and better than ever before.

Already announced are Lonely The Brave, Los Campesinos!, 65daysofstatic, We Are Scientists and Pretty Vicious, with F E S T I VA L F A C T F I L E loads (and loads Handmade 2016 and loads) more When: 29th April - 1st May names to come. At Where: O2 Academy, Leicester £30 for a weekend Who: Lonely The Brave, Los Campesinos!, ticket, you can’t 65daysofstatic, We Are Scientists, Pretty Vicious afford not to go. How much? £30 + booking fee for a weekend ticket

4 8 upsetmagazine.com

AND A STRING S ECT I O N S O U N D S TA S T Y

ast year, Bring Me The Horizon laughed at the idea of expectation. As 2016 gets underway, the band continue to pay absolute no attention to The Rules.

The band will be taking to London’s Royal Albert Hall to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust on 22nd April. Not only is the venue alien territory to the band, who’ll be faced with private boxes and tiered seating instead of the endless and expansive circle pits they normally inspire, but Bring Me The Horizon will also be backed by a full orchestra. That’s the sort of move usually reserved for stalwarts like Metallica but, if their reworking of ‘Drown’ for Radio 1 is anything to go by, it’ll be a breathtaking gig and cement BMTH as something very special. The band have also “warned” fans there will be another UK tour, and an appearance at Glastonbury Festival has been mentioned more than once. Bring Me The Horizon have enough spirit to go round.

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

UP exploded into existence in 2013 with their unbelievably brilliant debut self-titled album and caught everyone offguard. No one could’ve seen their off-kilter brand of punk rock coming and the album was – quite rightly – universally well-received. Now, with a new record on the horizon and a whole lot of eyes and ears pointed in their direction, the Toronto four-piece would be forgiven for feeling the weight of expectation this time around. It’s not external pressure they’re worried about, though.

“Yeah, Zack nailed it,” continues Steve Sladkowski, the guitarist whose left-field lead lines give PUP so much of their character. “The amount of pressure that could come from the outside will always be minor compared to the pressure we put on ourselves.” It’s hardly surprising to hear that this is a band who hold themselves to a high standard - the cent-perfect musicianship

PUP

A R E E M B R AC I N G T H E I R

H E AV Y S I D E W I T H A L B U M T W O displayed on that first record doesn’t just happen by accident – and that selfcritical attitude lends even more weight to the fact that the band sound so sure that they’re an even better band now. “We know what kind of band we are now and what we sound like, so we just wanted to be that but better,” answers vocalist, Stefan Babcock. “We had no clue about our identity prior to the first album being out. We started writing off folk songs with acoustic guitars and stuff – pretty much the polar opposite of what we ended up as – but now here we are with a stronger, more confident sense of what the band is.” “And we’re just better musicians,” adds Sladkowski. “We play together way better from having played so many shows and that’s really helpful. You could really hear it when we listened back to the new songs in the studio. It sounded better just because we now play better as a band. The importance of that can’t be understated.”

“Yeah, we used some drop tunings on a couple of songs this time,” Sladkowski continues. “I think we all preferred the heavier songs on the first record ourselves, so we just honed in on that and focused on playing everything with more purpose and intention.” “Less sadness, more anger,” Babcock summates. You’d be forgiven for expecting the opposite of this, though. Surely a band on as obvious an upward trajectory as PUP’s would have reasons to be cheerful. It turns out, however, that ‘cheerful’ just isn’t Babcock’s forte as a songwriter.

All positive signs, but what does the record actually sound like?

“I find that I write better when I’m frustrated or angry and I don’t really write when I’m happy. It’s just not something that crosses my mind to do. I go through periods of weeks or months where I’m happy and I don’t write, but then that happiness gives way to anxiousness that I haven’t been writing and leads me back to a place where I can write. It’s a cruel and hopeless cycle, but it works itself out in the end.”

“It’s heavier than the first record,” Babcock reveals. “It’s not like Cancer Bats heavy or whatever, it’s still a PUP record, but there’s definitely more aggression, frustration and angst in there.”

And as cruel and hopeless as it may be, it certainly does work out for us listeners, because before the end of the summer (exact date TBC), we’ll all have a new PUP record to dig into. P 49

WORDS: RYAN DE FREITAS

“There’s no way anyone could have higher expectations for this record than us,” explains drummer, Zack Mykula. “We put our own interests ahead of anyone else’s. Expectation from others is definitely a thing we’re aware of, but it wasn’t the key thing.”

#20

WE ARE THE IN C R O W D H AV E

#21

A R EC O R D TO RELEASE On May 4th 2015 (Star Wars!) Mike Ferri and Rob Chianelli tweeted that the third We Are The In Crowd album was finished while Tay Jardine said she was “excited for the future.” The follow up to 2014’s ‘Weird Kids’ was set to drop before the end of the year but never materialised. We know it exists though. Hopefully the band, who haven’t played a show in over a year either, will spend 2015 making up for lost time. The leap between their sugary debut ‘Best Intentions’ and the fiery ‘Weird Kids’ was huge and there’s no telling just how far the band have pushed it third time around.

#22

CHVRCHES ARE DOING PA R A H OY If there are two bands we’d like to be bessie mates, it’s CHVRCHES and Paramore. The wish has been going well, with Hayley Williams jumping on stage with the Scottish three-piece last year. Now, they’re heading out on the waters for the second Parahoy! cruise. This could be the start of something beautiful.

SLEIGH BELLS ARE

#23

BAC K Following a quite bizarre series of accusations involving the music of Demi Lovato (look it up - Ed), Sleigh Bells are finally returning to the front lines. The first taster of their new material, ‘Champions of Unrestricted Beauty’, may not feature their trademark ear splitting riffs, but with the new album nearing completion, we’re pretty confident they’ll be back soon enough. 5 0 upsetmagazine.com

#24

BRAND NEW

MIG HT RELEASE A NEW A L B U M O R , Y ’ K N O W, SOMETHING

rand New releasing a new album? The release of album five and the will they/ won’t they narrative that’s followed it stopped being frustrating somewhere between those lyric books and the official release of the 2006 ‘Leaked Demos’ but, call us optimistic, 2016 could be the year we get brand new Brand New. Not only have the band confirmed live plans for June, putting to bed rumours the band are all but dead,

#25

Wavves’ Nathan Williams has announced a new subscription service from his label, Ghost Ramp. Costing $35 a DS month in the US, and $50 internationally, from January Ghost Ramp Monthly subscribers will receive a 7” or 12”, a piece of clothing, a trading card – designed by Nick Gazin – and more.

WAV V E S ’

GHOST RAMP ‘ T H I N GY ’ S O U N AC E

but they’ve been sharing in the studio updates for the past few months. Add that to the release of ‘Mene’, the debut of ‘Sealed To Me’ and the news that Jesse Lacey will be contributing a song to Kevin Devine’s ‘Devinyl Split’ series and you end up with a band who are still very active and are still creating. When or how it’ll be released is anyone’s guess, Brand New seem to enjoy keeping people on their toes but the future looks bright. Unless it doesn’t. You can never really tell with this band.

The first release will be a Wavves / Best Coast split single, followed in February by a Wavves / Cloud Nothings split, and in March by a copy of Sweet Valley’s ‘So Serene’ LP.

#26

PA R A M O R E

IS STILL A

BA N D, A N D W E N E E D T H E M TO B E

one of us expected the news that Paramore was down to a core two piece, but that’s what happened, as it was announced bassist Jeremy Davis had parted ways with the band. We don’t know why – a statement merely explains the process “has been really painful” – but really, that’s not the part to focus on. “We really do believe Paramore can and should continue on,” they defiantly exclaim. “And so we will.” Too right too, because really, we all need Paramore – even if you don’t think you do. On their self-titled album, they blew up from scene-leaders to genuine mainstream giants. With that, comes the ability to be more than just a band – and if there’s anyone you want to give that power to, it’s P-more. Few others are as aware of their influence and use it so deftly. Yeah, sure, when that’s said most of the time, it’s referring to Hayley Williams. And – let’s be absolutely clear – you’d go a long way to find a better front person. It’s not just the fearsomely

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

WO R DS : ST E P H E N AC K ROY D

great performance and stage craft; in an industry that has a serious sexism problem but consistently refuses to confront it, few others with her platform talk such sense so regularly. You can’t help but feel if we had to elect a leader to stand for everything we wish we were, Hayley would win by a landslide.

who has had even the smallest dealings with Hayley and Taylor know they understand the responsibility that comes with the scale of devotion they receive. They’re not just custodians of a remarkable level of faith from their fans; they’re also more than willing to use it for good.

But that’s not it. If you’ve ever been to a show, you’ll know the mantra. “We are Paramore.” This band isn’t a two piece. Right now, the Paramore crew is bigger, not smaller, than ever before – and that’s not just about selling records. This is

Doing that as solo projects is so much harder than as a band. Together, Paramore is a family. Apart, we’re all just fans. And even if you’re not, you’d be a dark soul to suggest that we’re not all better off for a fanbase like Paramore’s – positive, engaged and, as much as any can be, focused on making things better.

“ W E R E A L LY DO BELIEVE PA R A M O R E C A N AND SHOULD CONTINUE ON.” a gang where everyone is welcome. Music has that unique power to give a group of very different people a shared focus, and, if directed, confront and change things for the better. Nothing else can overcome the things that set us apart better than the absolute and unconditional love of a song. Anyone

“We’re really thankful for the people who have helped see us through hard times before and what we’ve discovered is that those people are just as much a part of this as we will ever be,” the band say. “We’re hopeful for Paramore’s future and we’re also excited for what Jeremy’s going to do next. Thank you all for your support and your belief in us. It’s kept us going. We will see some of you really soon on Parahoy. If you’re not coming on the cruise, we will still see you in 2016.” Paramore is (still) a band. Let’s hope that stays the case for a long time to come. P 51

# 2 7 S O M E O F Y O U R F AV O U R I T E BANDS ARE SET FOR

A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

D OW N LOA D 2016

he debate about headliners rages on but regardless of whether you think the trio of Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath and Rammstein is The Best Thing Ever or a tired rehash of years previous, there’s a lot to be excited for at Download 2016. Milk Teeth will be there, for one. As you’ve probably already read, the band are going to have the best year. The last time they played the festival was in 2014, on the one year anniversary of the band and the experience, from the actual show to watching Linkin Park, remains one of the best days of Oli’s life.

52 upsetmagazine.com

Also promising to be Very Good are fellow Big In 2016ers Black Foxxes who, after surprising at 2015’s Reading & Leeds Festivals and UK Warped, know their way around a festival set. Don Broco and Twin Atlantic are both acts who are slightly more pop than Download usually attracts but what they lack in stomping guitar breakdowns, they make up for with absolutely massive songs. It’s always interesting to see bands that established out of

their comfort zone but our money’s on them rising to the occasion and leaving Donington with some new fans. Deftones with new material, Frank Carter tearing the place apart, Ghost continuing to buck the trend of Black Metal by being genuinely fun as well as much anticipated returns from Billy Talent and Architects, Download 2016 is already stacked. PLUS there’s still a load more to come.

F E S T I VA L F A C T F I L E Download 2016 When: 10-12 June 2016 Where: Donington Park Who: Rammstein, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Deftones, Korn, Disturbed, Frank Carter, Don Broco, Neck Deep, Milk Teeth, Twin Atlantic How much? £195 + booking fee for a weekend ticket

#28

FUNERAL

FOR A FRIEND BOW OUT I N ST Y L E

oodbyes are never easy but there’s something about Funeral For A Friend’s looming breakup that’s particularly hard to swallow. The band have been such a staple of the UK scene for the past 14 years but, with ‘Chapter & Verse’, they’re going out on a high. There’s still time for one last dance though. “We’re not a complicated band,” vocalist Matt Davies-Kreye ventures. “We don’t like pomp or over dramatic theatrics. I’ve always believed if you can’t captivate an audience with just the music and the 4/5 people

on stage giving it everything then there’s no point.” Taking over cities around the world for a double bill of ‘Casually Dressed & Deep In Conversation’ and ‘Hours’ offers everyone the chance to give FFAF a fitting send off, as they celebrate two incredible records that “really stand as a testament to what Funeral is in a nutshell.” Funeral For A Friend may be over but their legacy will go on because the band, throughout their history, have done things their way.

WOLF A L I C E COULD

#29

A G R A M M Y ( YO U NEVER KNOW) OK, we’re not kidding ourselves here. The UK’s brightest success story of 2015, Wolf Alice probably didn’t expect to get a grammy nod for ‘Moaning Lisa Smile’, but that’s exactly what happened. If you think about it, getting a major awards nomination for a two year old single that didn’t appear on the domestic version of your album is the perfect celebration of a band that constantly surprise. Sure, they’re up against some big guns, and to walk away with the prize would be a shock, but the way things have been going for the London four piece, would it really amaze us if they triumphed yet again?

year on from their first shows on the shores of the UK, PVRIS will be returning to kick off a headline run that just won’t stop growing.

“It’s a special headline run. Before we get to the US, this is our first actual headline tour. It’ll be really cool, especially to kick it off in the UK. The UK’s been so receptive, welcoming and awesome towards everything so it made sense that we’d do it #30 first.” The shows are HIT THE “part of the ‘White HEADLINES Noise’ Cycle.

PVRIS

WIN

This will be the White Noise tour, finally.” “I’m so excited, I remember those first headliners we did over in the UK in the spring. They were absolutely bonkers. I can’t wait to see the whole tour with that reaction and with production. I think it’ll be really, really special and I can’t wait. I think the energy’s just different when you’re supporting. It’s the same as any opening band, there’s a little bit of hostility there because you have to prove yourself. A lot of people haven’t seen you, or heard you yet and you have to win the over so there’s more pressure. A headline show, they’re there to see you, they’re there to enjoy it and fully embrace it.” 53

#31

N OT H I N G ’S

SECOND ALBUM DROPS THIS SPRING

hilly’s Nothing have announced details of their super anticipated second album ‘Tired of Tomorrow’.

The band have returned to Relapse Records, who released their debut ‘Guilty of Everything’, after plans to release the follow-up through Geoff Rickly’s Collect fell through for – y’know – well publicised reasons. They’ve had quite the last six months, including cancelled tours, deaths, a bassist who also is part of

the not-exactlypopular-rightnow Whirr, and getting a quite literal kicking.

BLINK1 8 2 / 3 R D S ARE

#32

Domenic Palermo, Brandon Setta and Kyle Kimball (for it is they, etc etc) will release ‘Tired of Tomorrow’ in the spring of next year. You can find a teaser on upsetmagazine. com now.

THE STUDIO

es, that’s what we’re calling the Tom DeLongeless blink - and it’s a name you’re going to have to get used to (at least until someone makes us stop), as Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker are currently recording with their all-star stand in, Matt Skiba. It’s thought the sessions will form Blink’s seventh full length, with Instagram shots showing Rancid’s Tim Armstrong joining them in the studio for... something. This isn’t the only album news that blink-182 have teased via the image sharing platform, with Travis confirming the new album will be released this year.

#33 AND

B E AC H SL A N G P E TA L A R E

T E A M I N G U P F O R A TO U R S O G O O D W E M I G H T C RY

each slang released one of our favourite albums of 2015. Petal released one of our favourite albums of 2015. If Beach Slang were ever to tour the UK with Petal in support, we may have to go lay down in a darkened room out of sheer

excitement. Which is why we’re currently looking so peaky, dearest readers. It’s happening, this month, calling at Norwich, Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Newcastle, Leeds, Nottingham, London, Bristol, Southampton and Brighton. If you miss out, you’re mad. This could easily be the small venue tour of the year.

#34

ENTER SHIKARI,

THE WONDER YEARS AND T H E K I N G B L U E S A R E G O I N G O N TO U R

nter Shikari playing their biggest shows yet. The Wonder Years bringing ‘No Closer To Heaven’ to the UK for the

first time. The King Blues reuniting after four years apart. Each band on The Mindsweep Tour has something to prove and - be it taking a step up in the sort of venues Shikari can headline, The Wonder Years stepping out of their comfort zone and playing to an audience that isn’t typically theirs, or The King Blues showing that their power wasn’t left in 2012 - that’s always going to inspire the best from everyone involved. The lineup might look eclectic but with the three very different bands sharing the mindset of inspiring a change through music, the tour promises nothing but powerful unity.

#36

AFI WILL

B E ‘A C T I V E ’ Yep. AFI have plans for 2016. Late last year, bassist Hunter Burgan shared an update on his website. “I know that many of you want to know what’s up with AFI,” he said. “I can’t tell you much at the moment, but we have plans for 2016.”

#37

THRICE

WILL DROP THEIR FIRST P O S TREUNION NEW M AT E R I A L Good news everyone, Thrice have shared an oh-so-subtle hint that they’ll be releasing a new album this year. Late in 2015, they posted an image to their social networks proclaiming we’ll be getting a new album before ‘16 is through. They haven’t released an album since 2011’s ‘Major/Minor‘, having gone on hiatus the following year.

#38 #35 SET

YO U R G OA LS A R E P L AY I N G S H OWS

They haven’t been active since 2013, but Set Your Goals are set to at least play two shows in their native California early this year. “Last time I talked to everyone about the band we all seemed receptive to the idea of playing shows again when it makes sense,” vocalist Matt Wilson explained. Looks like good sense won through.

SORORITY NOISE ARE H E A D I N G TO T H E U K TO SUPPORT MODERN BASEBALL Modern Baseball have got two pretty huge UK shows booked in for February 2016. But huge wasn’t enough. No. They needed to become bloody massive. So they’ve called in some Really Very Impressive support. Sorority Noise, who put out one of The Best Albums of 2015 with ‘Joy, Departed‘ will join the band for the shows in London and Manchester. 55

50 A M A Z I N G T H I N G S T H AT WILL HAPPEN IN 2016

#39

SLAM DUNK 2016

WILL BE 10 YEARS WORTH

W H AT T H E B A N D S S AY . . .

O F AW E S O M E

en years is a hell of a long time to keep anything going in ‘this day and age’ (whatever that means - Ed). As Slam Dunk celebrates its tenth anniversary, it’s pulling out all the stops to bring a line-up of both returning and new acts to a bigger crowd than ever before. It’s hard to remember a time before Slam Dunk became one of the cornerstones of the rock festival circuit, but anyone attending last year’s event will know that this is far from just a big, multi-stage one day showcase. Now, it’s capable of creating those festival moments you only get at the biggest and best events. Last year it was PVRIS, who confirmed their arrival as Biggest Band In The World In Waiting on the Leeds’ leg’s main stage. Which, coincidentally, also has its very own Wetherspoon’s. Seriously. 2016’s edition sees the Midlands leg move to Birmingham’s NEC - meaning the festival will have an Actual Airport and a stellar cast already announced. 56 upsetmagazine.com

Headlined by Panic! At The Disco, Brendon Urie says “It’s awesome, it’s fucking cool, and I’m very excited. We haven’t actually played it before, but we have friends who have, and have heard it’s awesome! And sure, there’s a little bit of pressure, I’m not gonna lie!” Festival founder & Director, Ben Ray, says “2016 marks the 10th Anniversary of the first Slam Dunk Festival. I had no idea back then what I thought would be a one off event would still be going now, let alone continued to grow to the size it has become.”

F E S T I VA L FACT F I L E Slam Dunk 2016 When: 28-30 May 2016 Where: Leeds City Centre, Birmingham NEC, Hatfield Forum Who: Panic! At The Disco, Of Mice & Men, New Found Glory, Four Year Strong, Every Time I Die, Issues, Memphis May Fire, Real Friends How much? £42 + booking fee for a day ticket

.NEW FOUND GLORY “It’s been quite a while since we last played Slam Dunk, but my favourite memories always stem from the fact that there are usually so many bands that we are friends with that take part in the festival, so it’s a great way to catch up with friends and spend time with bands that we’ve toured with.”

.REAL FRIENDS “We had a blast when we played in 2014. Slam Dunk is really unique in comparison to festivals in the US. The kids out there seem so committed to attending the festival every year. ”

.FOUR YEAR STRONG “We always love playing Slam Dunk Festival because we know the shows are going to be insane and the crowd is going to show up ready to get crazy.“

#40

ALL TIME LOW

#42

ARE THROWING ONE HELL

MARMOZETS

O F A TO U R I F YO U ’ R E I N TO

S H O U L D H AV E

SHINY POP ROCK

SOMETHING

fter sharing the spotlight with You Me At Six last year, All Time Low are back and they’re selling out UK arenas all on their own. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when All Time Low got this big but, after years of building, they’ve arrived. Odds are, they’ll be out to prove they deserve to stay.

classics), their set will see the band out to prove they haven’t lost anything. Against The Current will be kicking things off every evening but make no mistake, they’re superstars in the making. The Future Hearts Tour sounds like a very nice time from the off.

Latest album ‘Future Hearts’ has been going down a storm and has injected even more energy into a band who have once again hit their stride.

J OYC E MANOR WILL BE BAC K

Marmozets hit it out of the park in 2014 and 2015. 2016 will see them return with a new album. “We’ve been ready for ages,” Sam Macintyre told us after this year’s Reading Festival. “Almost as soon as the last album was done we were like ‘right, let’s start writing.’ We’ve got a completely different sound. It’s a lot more mature and a lot more together. As you get older your songwriting obviously gets better. That last album, we wrote two years before we released it, so this new one will be four years further ahead. It’s very new and very now.”

#43 WE’LL A L L H AV E

ATL will also be bringing Good Charlotte along for their first tour since reuniting. There’s talk of new material, which is very exciting and, alongside the Good Charlotte classics (which still sound like

#41

N E W. . .

ISSUES

Joyce Manor will have new material out this year. Exciting, no? The band have been working on the follow-up to 2014’s ‘Never Hungover Again’ and, while they’ve shared absolutely zero details about it, we’re expecting more driving anthems of youthful defiance and a whole heap of their charming, lanky personality.

If you’re making a list of bands who will almost certainly have a big year, Issues should be near the top. With an album (probably called ‘Headspace’) due at some point, the band will be heading to the UK in May for both their own tour and appearances at Slam Dunk 2016. They may be one member down, but Issues could be about to explode like never before.

#44 A REAL, ACT UA L

G L A S S J AW ALBUM! And then, from nowhere it arrived. Glassjaw dropped new track ‘New White Extremity‘ at the back end of 2015 with a promise it formed part of an album. Given the band haven’t managed to put one of those out since 2002, everyone, rightfully, got rather excited. They hit the UK with Coheed & Cambria at the end of the month. Expect to hear more then. 57

#45

30STM

#48

L O N E LY T H E

ARE ON THEIR

B R AV E

W AY B A C K ,

ALBUM TWO

L I K E LY A S B AT S H I T A S EVER Fresh from his stint in Hollywood as The Joker, Jared Leto is returing to Thirty Seconds To Mars for more blockbuster rock. We can’t wait to have them back because there’s not another band like them. Their level of self-belief is only matched by the scale of the songs they write and, after a handful of back to basics trips to the woods alongside their Echelon, the band will be eager to return to the spotlight. It’s where they call home.

ARE COOKING UP

wenty fourteen’s ‘The Day’s War’ established Lonely The Brave as a force to be reckoned with, but with the follow up the Cambridge quintet are aiming even higher. That debut may have only been released just under a year and a half ago, but they recorded it long before that - having to sit on it for as long as a couple of years. Since

then, they’ve evolved as a band and are eager to put that down on record. “There’s some electronic stuff on there,” says drummer Gavin ‘Mo’ Edgeley, “and some heavy, ballsy rock numbers with a more progressive slant, but at the same time it’s still us. [The progression is] something we could never get rid of if we tried.”

#46

A RC H I T ECTS H AV E N O T H I N G TO LOS E Architects last album ‘Lost Together//Lost Forever’ saw a band fighting, and ultimately winning, to remain in the game. Finally escaping the shadow of ‘The Here And Now’, Architects have gone into album seven with absolutely everything to gain. It feels like the band are on the cusp of something great and we couldn’t be more stoked to see just how far they can take it.

# 47

S AVA G E S

#49

AGA I N ST M E!

WILL RELEASE A NEW

ARE MORE ROCK

A L BU M ( I F L J G I S N ’ T TO O

THAN THEY

BUSY BEING A JEDI)

U S E D TO B E You might have Savages down as just another arty-punk group, but one listen to ‘The Answer’ - the opening track from their new album ‘Adore Life’ - will put that right. Thundering with a top drawer choice from the big book of riffs, things in the Savages camp just got very interesting indeed. 5 8 upsetmagazine.com

Against Me! have been working on the follow up to ‘True Trans Soul Rebel’ since September last year and spirits are high. Before going into the studio Laura Jane Grace told us that she doesn’t feel the band has reached its full potential yet and that, with the new songs, “It’s about wanting to have fun. I’ve always wanted to have fun but

this feels different, not caring what other people fucking think.” Just as long as the band release the album before Laura gets drafted into Star Wars Episode 8 following some tasty Twitter back and forth, and a subsequent fan campaign. Either way, the force is strong with Against Me!.

here was a moment, half way through The Gaslight Anthem’s tour for fifth album ‘Get Hurt’, when the band had to make a choice. “The guys came to me and said: ‘So, what are we going to do? Are we going to do another record, or take a breather for a minute?’ They asked me: ‘Do you have any songs?’ and I didn’t have anything. Normally I’d be the one to say ‘okay, this is what we’re gonna do - we’re gonna listen to nothing but The Jam and go from there’, but I had nothing, and it was the first time that had happened.” This led to the band announcing the now-dreaded term - an indefinite hiatus - and the start of work on Brian Fallon’s first solo LP, ‘Painkillers’. “As the band got bigger, we found ourselves in a situation where we felt a massive pressure to deliver something every time,” he explains. “We had to make decisions quickly, and there were a lot of big people we worked with. You’ve got to deliver the goods.”

BRIAN FA L LO N IS

#50

TA K I N G T H I N G S BAC K TO BAS I CS WORDS: WILL RICHARDS

For ‘Painkillers’, Fallon set up in Nashville with producer Butch Walker, and relished the relative isolation. “[His studio, Traxidermy] is tucked away from everything, and I don’t really know anyone down there, so you don’t have your friends coming into the studio saying ‘hey, what’s that you’re working on? Let me hear! Maybe you should change this bit! I think this would be better!’” Fallon speaks of wanting a complete reversal from the pressure and expectation that fell on the later Gaslight Anthem records when beginning work on ‘Painkillers’. “This time I quieted my mind a little bit, and started with me, and made sure I did the right thing, and did something I’m passionate about. After that, I could let the pieces fall where they may and not worry so much about bigger expectations of me. I stripped everything back to how I used to write, and immediately felt like I was back in my own skin.” “The only goal I set myself when I sat down was ‘can you write a good, simple song that means something to you and to those who will be listening?’ I feel like, as a solo artist, you don’t really have ‘a sound’. I didn’t have to check that

what I was writing was fitting in any boxes. I didn’t have to think ‘oh so how does this compare to ‘The ‘59 Sound’? Where will I play it in the set?’ I had nothing, and could start fresh. It really freed me up and I needed that. I was burning out. I was having a hard time.” It was another opportunity for Fallon to reassess the reasons he writes songs, spending nights digging out Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan records, “everything I did at the start”. “To me it feels like I got a re-birth to a lot of music. I felt really connected to what I do across the whole process.” Fallon is keen to emphasise the differences between the songs on ‘Painkillers’ and a Gaslight Anthem record, believing that “some people will hear the record and think that Gaslight could have played these songs, but I know the band, and it would be so different.” A number of Fallon’s solo songs were released as scratchy acoustic demos back in The Gaslight Anthem’s infancy, and were revived during the ‘Painkillers’ sessions. They don’t make it onto the album, but received full recordings and are being kept in the vault for another day. While a first solo LP in this style may have been expected, it wasn’t something Fallon wanted to recreate. “I had so much fun doing this, and I think that it comes through. I said that to myself: don’t make the boring record. You’re not old enough and you don’t know enough to sit in your chair with an acoustic and write these depressing songs. That’s not me, I want to have a good time.” P

RATED

MILK TEETH VILE CHILD

Hopeless Records

eeeee EVERY SO OFTEN THE UK UNDERGROUND SPITS OUT A BAND SO BRILLIANT THE WORLD NEEDS TO PAY ATTENTION. WITH ANY JUSTICE, MILK TEETH ARE ONE OF THOSE BANDS.

‘V

ile Child’ is Milk Teeth. Capturing the tension and chemistry of each member before roughly grabbing a loose thread of influences and running with it, their lightning in a bottle debut is the perfect snapshot of who the band are. From the opening roar of ‘Brickwork’, through the swaggering growl of ‘Burger Drop’ to ‘Leona’, all rugged expression, harrowing soar and beyond, ‘Vile Child’ is consistently yet astonishingly great. The quirky sidesteps and stolen glances that defined the band’s earlier work as

6 0 upsetmagazine.com

something special are still present but Milk Teeth have learnt how to deploy them with devastating accuracy. In amongst all the noisy brilliance, the band find space to show off their darker side. Away from the battle to be heard, ‘Moon Wanderer’ deals with a more internal struggle lamenting, “I’ve given up on giving up”. ‘Kabuki’ is just as fraught and just as pained yet stripped of the rest of the band, Becky Blomfield’s

admissions are even starker. The bedroom confessionals would make for an uncomfortable listen if not for their arching poetry and hopeful shimmer.

‘Vile Child’ sees Milk Teeth all grown up. Retaining the confusion, the lust for life and the potent defiance that’s carried them this far T R AC K L I ST under their own fire, this record marries 1. Brickwork charming DIY punk 2. Driveway Birthday with an ambition to 3. Burger Drop take it worldwide. 4. Brain Food Make no mistake; 5. Swear Jar (again) Milk Teeth aren’t part 6. Get a Clue of any scene but their 7. Moon Wanderer own. With a debut full 8. Kabuki of wonder, they’ve 9. Crows Feet come good. As the 10. Leona band marches on, 11. Cut You Up they’re only going to 12. Sunbaby get better. Ali Shutler

TRACKS OF THE MONTH

SAVAGES ADORE LIFE

Matador

eeee .LIKE A PUNCH TO THE GUT, SAVAGES TAKE NO PRISONERS

.GLASSJAW NEW WHITE EXTREMITY There’s a new Glassjaw album coming. We know! Finally! The lead track is as good as you’d expect.

On their debut, Savages were hardly without a sturdy backbone, but it only takes seconds of their follow up to see that this time round, they mean serious business. ‘The Answer’ rides a fevered riff into battle like a warhorse. Arty-protopunk is matched to flat-out rock muscle, and it works. ‘Adore Life’ is every bit the clenched fist of its cover art. Sure, its opening gambit is the most in your face moment, but the brooding tension never drops off. Savages make the widest vistas feel pleasing claustrophobic; the machine-gun drum and bass thunder at the heart of ‘T.I.W.Y.G.’, the hissing groove of ‘Evil’ - take them on at your peril. Stephen Ackroyd

.LAST HEIR WEIGHED Rule one. You can never have enough scuzzy, kinda-thrashy, sort-of-but-not-quitemelodic pop music. Last Heir know that better than most.

CONRAD KEELY ORIGINAL MACHINES

Superball

eeee

BURY TOMORROW

ten tracks bursting with pure Bury Tomorrow.

Nuclear Blast

It’s a bit like the guys went out with a question to the public: “What would you want in a Bury Tomorrow album?” Then they made their to-do list. Heavy - tick. Vocal interplay - tick. No filler - tick. The last one, really, is that the album is a total belter, and that’s another big ol’ tick. Heather McDaid

EARTHBOUND

.THE STARTING LINE ANYWAYS This Will Yip produced track is the first new material from the band in absolutely ages, with their previous album dropping in 2007.

eeee What happens when your last album seems to have found the finest version of your band to date? Well, you distil it. Instead of taking ‘Runes’ and making ‘Runes 2.0’ with experimental bells and whistles, ‘Earthbound’ digs a little deeper, with

Twenty four tracks. That’s how many songs ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead’s Conrad Keely has managed to cram onto his debut solo album. Don’t go glassy eyed yet, though. Each one is a polished gem never left long enough to outstay its welcome. Often immediate, always interesting, ‘Original Machines’ is a trip around Keely’s mind; swapping between genres, styles and cultures at will. A genuinely fascinating listen. Stephen Ackroyd 61

BASEMENT PROMISE EVERYTHING

Run For Cover Records

eeeee BASEMENT CRAFT A SOUND THAT’S UNMISTAKABLY THEIR OWN. Following a particularly shortterm hiatus, Basement have had a rough time of it with cynics in certain circles. But there’s no more emphatic way to silence those voices than to write the best record of their career, and that’s exactly what the group have done here. There are moments of flair on show here that ooze with the selfassurance of a band acutely aware that they’re hitting top form. With their last full-length, Basement helped to usher in the ‘90s-revival’ sound that has reigned supreme in contemporary punk ever since. Now, with that movement starting to wear thinner than the cheaply reprinted My Bloody Valentine shirts that adorn it, Basement come with a true authenticity that might just turn the game on its head again. If this is what the new era sounds like, we’re all in for a treat. Ryan De Freitas

THE BLACK QUEEN FEVER DAYDREAM

Self-Released

eeee

TUFF LOVE

SHIP THIEVES

WEATHERSTATE

Lost Map Records

No Idea Records

Failure By Design Records

Charting the band’s three year infancy with a 15-track compilation of their three EP’s; Tuff Love’s debut album, ‘Resort’, sees the duo shining a light on bedroom indie pop. From the creeping hooks of ‘Slammer’, to the twanging base of ‘Doberman’ – the guitars are key to the Tuff Love formula. That, and the addition of Eisenstein’s mellow vocals. But the fact that it’s so easily picked apart is what makes ‘Resort’ such a tuff (sorry) listen: it’s annoyingly predictable - and 15 tracks is a bit much, really. Emily Pilbeam

Having travelled the familiar road of swapping out power chords for country, for Hot Water Music’s Chris Wollard and Samiam’s Chad Darby to come back and make a punk record feels defiant. ‘No Anchor’ carries that straight from storming opener ‘Middle Man’, a track that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Movielife album. An undoubtedly good thing. Sure, it doesn’t diverge very far from a well-established formula, drenched in nautical references, but it’s a solid record with some great moments. Kristy Diaz

In the midst of British bands reviving the vibes of slacker-punk, wrapped up in a big fuzzy ball of 90s nostalgia, Bristolian fourpiece Weatherstate have approached their third EP with striking tones of postteen angst. While ‘Piss It All Away’ sees the band throw in some unsettling changes of pace, this is music made to be played at breakneck speed. As a result, the double-barrelled skate-punk opener of ‘Stutter’ and ‘ILL’ blasts a gaping hole through the rest of the EP, leaving the more downbeat tracks to lull. ‘Dumbstruck’ is the start of something bigger. Danny Randon

RESORT

eee

6 2 upsetmagazine.com

NO ANCHOR

eeee

DUMBSTRUCK EP

eee

A FANTASTIC RETRO SYNTH ALBUM. For the most part, ‘Fever Daydream’’s tracks stick to a similar tack; mixing darker synth verse textures with upbeat choruses and sparing use of both guitar and Dillinger Escape Plan frontman Greg Puciato’s falsetto range. Nevertheless, it’s the more uptempo tracks like ‘That Death Cannot Touch’ that really get the head bopping. It’s gauzy, brilliant synth pop that belongs in the wind down from a hedonistic night; cathartic in a similar way to the exhaustion one might feel after moshing at a Dillinger show. ‘Distanced’ has more than a bit of a ‘Year Zero’ Nine Inch Nails vibe about it, but most of the album has more in common with bands like Glowbug, who have discovered neon synth textures after years absorbing the dynamic shifts and aggression of post-hardcore. Alex Lynham

PANIC! AT THE DISCO DEATH OF A BACHELOR

Atlantic Records

eeeee .PANIC! HAVE NEVER SOUNDED MORE LIKE THEMSELVES. Once again it’s all change for Panic! At The Disco. Swapping the decadent homecoming of ‘Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die!’ for the theatrics of ‘Death of a Bachelor’, the band still manage to shock and delight in equal measure. From the opening chant of ‘Victorious’ through the swinging glee of the title track until ‘Impossible Year’, a haunting ode to the future, Panic! At The Disco rage with an unstoppable lust for life. Backed by a ten-year career of doing whatever the fuck they like, ‘Death of A Bachelor’ sees Brendon Urie pushing that mantra

as far and wide as he can. Flirting with an everexpanding pool of influences, Panic! At The Disco have never sounded more like themselves. There’s a confidence to the way the record carries itself, bouncing from the stomping ensemble of ‘Crazy=Genius’ to the solitary reflection of ‘Golden Days’ without a second glance. It’s not the brash assurance that caused ‘A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out’ or a simple desire to shock that was ‘Pretty.Odd’. ‘Death of a Bachelor’ is confident because it is content. There’s a comfort to the way Brendon now uses his voice to full effect and the eclectic nature of the record is there because it needs to be. How else are Panic! At The Disco meant to show off their many, many sides. Nestled between the

Danny Elfman pomp of ‘Emperor’s New Clothes’ and the west coast party of ‘Don’t Threaten Me With A Good Time’ lays ‘Hallelujah’, the track that started it all. Still glorious, still electric, it promises a night you’ll never forget. The band have taken that desire and run with it. ‘Death of a Bachelor’ is Panic! At The Disco at their most vibrant. It’s Brendon Urie on maximum. In amongst all the sequins and shine though is a nuanced record of heartfelt honesty that’s constantly entertaining. Some things just don’t change. Ali Shutler

ROAM BACKBONE

Hopeless Records

eee To be a good pop punk band in the mid-2010s is hard. There’s a wealth of acts trying their hand at the genre: you can’t get away with being formulaic, the bands of the modern era’s

canon simply won’t allow it. ROAM’s debut, ‘Backbone’ shows promise. The opening track sees the album introduced in a ‘Songs For The Deaf’-esque radio format before ‘Cabin Fever’ kicks in with some, now retro, Lower Than Atlantis-style deadpan guitar. There are moments here - if perhaps a little too few and far between - when the band deliver some truly exciting fast-paced, hardcore rooted riffs on songs like ‘Deadweight’ and ‘All The Same’, with the vocal lines following a similar course with skate punk tinges throughout. Jack Glasscock

Conrad Keely Original Machines

Conrad Keely, mastermind behind …AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD, releases his first solo record of 24 brand new songs. Available as Ltd. Deluxe 2CD Artbook of 56 pages of new and original artwork by Conrad Keely (incl. a bonus disc with demo versions of the album songs and five additional demo tracks) and as 180g Gatefold 2LP Vinyl Edition (incl. album on CD)

In Stores January 22nd 2016

On tour across Europe in spring 2016!

The Demon Joke

VENNART

KUTS

MATT SKIBA & THE SEKRETS

More Stately Mansions

CHARLIE BARNES

TOUNDRA

Superball Music – the best of 2015

LIVE

BRING ME THE HORIZON + PVRIS ALEXANDRA PALACE, LONDON

Words: Ali Shutler. Photos: Sarah Louise Bennett.

eeeee

ring Me The Horizon have built a career of taking risks. From their determined beginnings to the infused chaos of ‘That’s The Spirit’, there’s been a looming sense that every step might be one too far. Tonight at London’s Alexandra Palace, they step up once more. Backed by production that screams business (and makes Metallica’s look DIY) there’s not a moment during their set that fails to light up the cavernous room. The sheer size of Ally Pally is usually bad news for support acts and headliners alike, but PVRIS look born to play spaces this grand. From the opening twinkle of ‘White Noise’, they appear accomplished, confident and like they’re having fun. “I think this is only our second time playing London,” Lynn mentions half way through their set. It’s a casual reminder of just how fast things are moving for the band, yet they refuse to be outflanked by the

ever-growing success of their debut. Be it the party-starting bounce of ‘St. Patrick’, the crackling of chemistry between the band or the gritted teeth purge of ‘My House’, PVRIS are a marvel. From the murmuring introduction of ‘Doomed’ through the extended, streamer laden cheer of ‘Happy Song’ until the gargantuan conclusion of ‘Drown’, Bring Me The Horizon dominate Alexandra Palace. The set is short, thirteen songs, but sweet with every track feeling vibrant and offering something new to the evening. It would be all too easy for Bring Me to lose themselves in pomp and polish but that abrasive, defiant charm is ever present. Guitarist Lee Malia stands centre stage for the duration and the band proudly splash “The C-Word” across giant video walls. They look amazing, but sound even better. With songs destined for venues this size, tonight ‘That’s The Spirit’ comes home. Bring Me The Horizon stopped following the rules years ago and for that, they’ll always attract naysayers – but with nights like this, who’s even listening? P

DON BROCO + ARCANE ROOTS eeee

O2 BRIXTON ACADEMY, LONDON

alm trees, a string quartet and some very white trousers. It can only be Don Broco at Brixton Academy. Rounding off their first proper headline tour for second album ‘Automatic’, the four-piece manage to shake off their past while remaining true to everything they’ve ever been. Arcane Roots stand out tonight. Their rugged, off-kilter rock might be at odds with the polish of what’s to come but the room embraces every turn. Latest

6 8 upsetmagazine.com

Words: Ali Shutler. Photos: Sarah Louise Bennett.

EP ‘Heaven & Earth’ was written with challenges like tonight in mind and it certainly delivers. Bounding about the stage, Andrew Groves and Adam Burton throw themselves into ‘Slow Dance’ and ‘Leaving’ with total self-belief on away ground. The Kris Kross close of ‘If Nothing Breaks, Nothing Moves’ is heartfelt, dynamic but oh so simple: Arcane Roots will make you jump, jump. There are synchronised claps, there are fireworks and before the end of the third song (‘Automatic’, FYI) frontman Rob Damiani has the whole of Brixton Academy crouched down low. From the off, Don Broco have a sense of familiarity with the crowd; the whole thing feels wonderfully effortless.

There’s still a contrast to the band though. From the jingle of ‘Yeah Man’ (complete with Tom Doyle stacking it) and the video game chime of ‘Superlove’ (still not a cover of Charli XCX) to the flame emoji worthy ‘Fire’ and carnage of ‘Thug Workout’, Don Broco are still straddling expectations. Tonight is the biggest show the band have ever played and they don’t hold back. Don Broco live sets used to be defined by a few key moments, but this evening it’s their brazen showmanship that shines through. In fact, the only mistake the band make is forgetting to ask for a photo, only remembering once everyone’s turned to leave. Even at their very best, Don Broco are only human. P

LOWER THAN ATLANTIS + MOOSE BLOOD THE ROUNDHOUSE, LONDON

eee

Words: Ali Shutler. Photos: Sarah Louise Bennett.

e’ve been reminded time and time again of just how much Moose Blood have grown over the past few months (Warped UK, Reading Festival, that headline run) but tonight is something else. The crowd isn’t theirs, the opening notes of ‘Bukowski’ seem tentative, but within minutes, ‘Swim Deep’ has transformed the place. The band carry themselves with confidence while the songs - one year older and one year grander - have become genuine, wholehearted anthems. The atmosphere for their set is electric with the whispering echo of ‘I Hope You’re Miserable’ dancing down the spine. In the changeover, Lower Than Atlantis have to send out a curtain technician [curtain technicians are definitely a thing, right? - Ed] with a very tall ladder in order to sort out the white sheet that will mask the band for a chunk of ‘Let It Go’. They’ve waited a long time

for tonight and there’s a sense they want everything to go off without a hitch. And for the first part of the set, it goes to plan. The likes of ‘Emily’ and ‘(Motor)Way of Life’ create carnage before a Mike Duce solo ‘Deadliest Catch’ (“I’m on my own so it might sound a bit shit”) starts a more reflective pull. With the chaos turning to choir, tonight is more a lap of honour than dizzying ascent. Well, almost. Returning to the stage after the briefest of encores, Mike explains that they aren’t something the band are fond of. “We just like playing music and not being cunts, even though I’m probably the biggest cunt,” he jokes, before encouraging people to “get on each others shoulders, take your bras off and all that shit.” There’s brief pause before he once again asks the crowd to “please get your titties out.” Words, apparently, don’t come so easily. Some would be best left behind all together. P

LONELY THE BRAVE TALKING HEADS, SOUTHAMPTON

Words: Emma Matthews. Photos: Amie Kingswell.

eeee

“D

o you guys want us to play you a new song?” tease Lonely The Brave. It’s been a long time in the making for the Cambridge rockers: having sat on their debut record for two years before it was released 14 months ago, now it’s time to raise one last pint to ‘The Day’s War’ before the release of next year’s follow up. Tonight’s cozy pub surroundings make Black Peaks warm-up set even more special. ‘Saviour’ seems heightened with frontman Will Gardner’s shrill screams echoing off the walls, while ‘Glass Built Castles’ offers a sense of frantic urgency that sets the tone for what’s to come. By the time it’s the headliners’ turn, Will has successfully dished out a hearty dose of whiplash. He’s unapologetic. “Hi by the bar, everyone alright over there?” Lonely The Brave start, as the room becomes even busier, people are packed in every nook and cranny. It’s a setting that suits the five-piece. Not that Lonely The Brave aren’t capable of bigger landscapes. They very much are. ‘Backroads’’ riffs linger in a way that leaves you humming them for days, ‘Trick of The Light’ is the perfect anthem to belt out to the stranger next to you and ‘Kings Of The Mountain’ is goosebumpsequipped. As glasses rise in the air for an encore, the appreciation for ‘The Day’s War’ is one that rings true. P

70 upsetmagazine.com

DEAF HAVANA + THE XCERTS ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL, LONDON

eeee

Words: Ali Shutler. Photos: Sarah Louise Bennett.

ot only are Deaf Havana and The Xcerts brilliant at London’s Islington Assembly Hall, the evening also captures a glimpse of transience: one door opens, another closes. With The Xcerts drawing the curtain on ‘There Is Only You’ and Deaf Havana back on the road, with new songs and an album on the horizon, tonight is a snapshot of two bands in perfect balance. From the opening clatter of ‘Live Like This’ through the swelling glee of ‘Shaking In The Water’, The Xcerts throw themselves into every moment. Frontman Murray Macleod wails, tumbles and swaggers about the stage. It would almost look ridiculous if the band weren’t having the absolute best time. A realigned ‘There Is Only You’ brings things to a close with a more lush, adoring reflection. If the band can get this energy and confidence into

album four well, I’d start getting excited now. Already riding a wave of new album excitement is Deaf Havana. The band released ‘Cassiopeia’ earlier this year and it hinted at a band who had rediscovered their purpose. The show tonight confirms it. Deaf Havana are back. The opening flourish of ‘The Past Six Years’ sees vocalist James VeckGilodi leading a choir of discontent before the rugged wall of ‘Youth In Retrospective’ slams through the room. ‘Cassiopeia’ swiftly follows, removing any doubt that this is a night for nostalgia. Throughout the sixteen song set, Deaf Havana sound complete. Every instrumental twist and vocal turn is at one with the rest of the band and this united front devastates the welcoming rabble before them. “Thank you very much for waiting around for us to fucking sort ourselves out. We’re ready to do it again,” offers James with absolute conviction. As ‘Anemophobia’ rounds out the night with beautiful poignancy, the door is wide open for the next chapter of Deaf Havana. P

+ Alcopop! Djs

Thursday 7th April 2016 The Garage Highbury

T I C K E T W E B .CO. U K | T H EG A R AG E H I G H B U RY.CO M

FEBRUARY 2016

* VENUE UPGRADED DUE TO DEMAND - ORIGINAL TICKETS REMAIN VALID

THU FRI SAT SUN MON WED THU FRI SAT SUN TUE

04 05 06 07 08 10 11 12 13 14 16

T MANCHESTER ACADEMY 2 * SOLD OU LEEDS UNIVERSITY NEWCASTLE RIVERSIDE T SOLD OU GLASGOW GARAGE BIRMINGHAM LIBRARY T NOTTINGHAM RESCUE ROOMS SOLD OU T CARDIFF GLOBE SOLD OU BRISTOL MARBLE FACTORY BRIGHTON CONCORDE 2 PORTSMOUTH WEDGEWOOD ROOMS LONDON KOKO

GIGSANDTOURS.COM SEETICKETS.COM A METROPOLIS MUSIC, KILIMANJARO, DF CONCERTS AND DHP PRESENTATION BY ARRANGEMENT WITH PRIMARY TALENT INTERNATIONAL

OUT NOW