Upset, April 2020

** Plus ** The 1975 The Amity Affliction The Chats Ocean Grove Creeper Waxahatchee Silverstein Dream Nails + loads more

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upsetmagazine.com

Bury Tomorrow Code Orange Brian Fallon

All Time Low are back, but after nearly two decades together, what next?

APRIL 2020 Issue 53

HELLO. Generally, these Ed’s letters are pretty generic. Don’t worry, you’re not hurting my feelings thinking that. A quick intro to what’s in the issue - oooh look, it’s All Time Low, etc etc - and on we go. But this month feels very different.

At the time of writing, we’re currently in a period of uncertainty due to the spread of coronavirus. Festivals and tours are being cancelled as countries shut borders and cancel mass gatherings. There’s an expectation some of the stuff covered in this very issue might actually never happen - but right now, we simply do not know for sure.

There could be months ahead where our scene finds itself up against it, as live music struggles in the face of something altogether more serious. Support what you love, be kind to each other, and most importantly of all - stay safe.

S tephen

Editor / @stephenackroyd

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Editor Stephen Ackroyd Deputy Editor Victoria Sinden Associate Editor Ali Shutler Scribblers Alexander Bradley, Dan Harrison, Dillon Eastoe, Jack Press, Jamie MacMillan, Jasleen Dhindsa, Linsey Teggert, Martyn Young, Rob Mair, Sam Taylor, Steven Loftin, Tyler Damara Kelly Snappers Angela Owens, Frances Beach, Luke Henry, Maclay Heriot, Marieke Macklon, Molly Matalon, Sam Wong, Sarah Louise Bennett, Wyatt Clough P U B L I S H E D F RO M

W E LCO M E TOT H E B U N K E R.CO M U N I T 10, 23 G RA N G E RO A D, H A S T I N G S, T N34 2R L

All material copyright (c). All rights reserved.

RIOT 4. PVRIS 6. SILVERSTEIN 8. OCEAN GROVE 10. BRIAN FALLON 14. THE 1975 16. GENDER ROLES 18. CREEPER 20. THE AMITY AFFLICTION ABOUT TO BREAK 24. DREAM NAILS FEATURES 26. ALL TIME LOW 40. BURY TOMORROW 44. THE CHATS 48. CODE ORANGE 52. WAXAHATCHEE REVIEWS 54. ALL TIME LOW 56. MILK TEETH TEENAGE KICKS 58. LIZZY FARRALL

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THIS MONTH IN ROCK

EVERYTHING HAPPENING IN ROCK

PVRIS

A new album, a new label and a refreshed focus, PVRIS’ leader is grasping possibility with both hands.

PVRIS have announced their new album ‘Use Me’, and it’s coming on 1st May. Preceded by lead single ‘Dead Weight’, the record sees frontwoman Lynn Gunn “own[ing] her role as PVRIS’ leader and sole architect”.

Lynn expands: “I allowed myself to support a narrative I thought I had to support of PVRIS being a band. I didn’t really have a role model for this.

Coming from a ‘band culture,’ it’s about how the group is always greater than the sum of its parts, and you’re not supposed to take credit, even if you do everything. There’s no template or role model for really owning it as a woman. I wanted to make everyone else happy and uphold an image I thought we had to.

“Growing up, I learned I don’t have to do that anymore. I’m finally allowing myself to take credit.

I’ve got the full support and encouragement of my bandmates. PVRIS is a unit and very much a team, but the heart and soul of the vision and music always has sourced from me. I’m just saying it now. I fulfilled my own vision of what a role model should be.” P

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Aussie bunch Ocean Grove are back with their second album, ‘Flip Phone Fantasy’. p.8

It’s been seventeen years since The Amity Affliction burst onto the scene. Seven albums later they’ve been through the wringer. p.18

Brian Fallon is at a fork in the road as he releases his third solo LP. p.10

Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett.

Dream Wife have dropped their comeback single, ‘Sports!’. It’s an early teaser from the Londonbased trio’s second album ‘So When You Gonna...’, due 3rd July. “‘Sports!’ sits on multiple levels; of satire and celebration, of nonsense and common sense, of the body and the mind, of IRL and digital,” they explain.

Biffy Clyro have announced their new album, ‘A Celebration of Endings’. Due on 15th May, the news follows teaser-track ‘Instant History’, and new ‘un ‘End Of’.

“This is a very forward-looking album from a personal perspective and a societal perspective,” explains frontman Simon Neil.

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Photo: Wyatt Clough.

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Everything you need to know about...

Silverstein's The working title for the album was ‘AGRO-CULTURE’. We have a fake album cover featuring a grain silo adorned with a spraypainted anarchy symbol. It has a parental advisory sticker, too. As a way of celebrating a good vocal take or something, we’d say “that FARMS, dude!” and the performer would know they did a good job. I don’t know which of those things happened first. I suppose we’re still trying to find out if the chicken came before the egg. Oh boy, there I go talking about farms again.

‘Madness’ and ‘Say Yes!’ were written in the ‘Burn It Down’ sessions which took place nearly a year before we started tracking the actual album. Those two songs felt a little disparate at first, but as the record came together, it became obvious they weren’t out of place at all. We don’t usually get to spend so much time with songs, but in this case, I’d say both tracks benefited from the long look.

We are firm believers in the “coffee fuels creativity” model, so we, ahem, “borrowed” some money from the recording budget to buy the best coffee maker on earth. Don’t tell the label.

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new album 'A Beautiful Place To Drown' We’re told we had the longest ever booking at Union Sound, beating out our pals PUP by only a couple days. The extra time allowed us to take a step back when things were getting too stressful.

On one such occasion, Josh, Shane, producer Sam Guiana, and myself played basketball at the school across the street. I chose Sam – who appears to be in good physical shape but as it turns out has the cardio of a small baby – as my teammate. By the end of the 20-minute game, he was so destroyed that he spent the rest of the day on the couch trying not to throw up. I think we cancelled the rest of the session, but we still won the basketball game, so I guess it was worth it.

Paul Marc Rousseau (guitar/vocals) fills us in on Silverstein’s new album ‘A Beautiful Place To Drown’, an ambitious record featuring guest spots from Princess Nokia, Caleb Shomo, Pierre Bouvier, and more.

The future is now! Pierre’s feature on ‘Take What You Give’ was written over FaceTime. He

called us in the middle of our session and dropped some sweet melody ideas. We workshopped it, and like two days later he hit us back with the final product not just with the vocal, but with a full arrangement including bass and some guitars. We kept it all because it was awesome. He thought about the part differently Josh rode his bike to and from the than any of us had, and that’s studio every day. I’m not a skilled what makes collaboration so cool. math-man, but by my calculations, Bonus fact: we wrote this song with he rode over 850km over the course Dead Reflection producer Derek of the recording. I like to ride a Hoffman. He invited us to a Kappa bike as much as anyone, but YIKES party after the session, but we dude! You need to CALM DOWN. didn’t go because we forgot to bring You should see his quads now. He our tracksuits and thought they looks like a centaur but with the wouldn’t let us in. P legs of Lance Armstrong and the Silverstein’s album, ‘A Beautiful torso of Hugh Jackman and the Place To Drown’ is out now. brain of Jack Black.

RELEASED 4TH APRIL

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“WE WANTED THE ALBUM TO HAVE A MIXTAPE FEEL”

Aussie bunch Ocean Grove are back with their second album, ‘Flip Phone Fantasy’. An ambitious full-length that sees them take on mixtape culture via sprawling genres and influences, “this record is the first of its kind,” frontman Dale Tanner asserts.

world. It’s never felt better!

Your new album’s really fun and interesting, what was your starting point for it?

Was there anything you wanted to try out for this album that you hadn’t had a bash at before?

Twiggy: We got together in the studio, wrote down the collective goals of what we wanted to get across in the songs and then put our heads together. We knew for certain, beyond anything else, that it needed to be colourful, feel-good and packed with PMA energy. We challenged ourselves to create the most sonically diverse compilation of music we’ve ever created. We wanted the album to have a mixtape feel and to really push the boundaries of what listeners have come to expect, not only of us, but of rock albums in general. We also hoped to show the entire rainbow of human emotion - the dark, the light and everything in between.

You guys have been talking about this record for a while now, is it coming out later than you expected it would?

Twiggy: Nope, everything is going down just as planned and we couldn’t be more excited!

How are you finding the line-up switch, has it impacted the way you create your music, or the way the band runs day to day?

Dale: Ultimately, no. We’re all energy right now and still hold the core values of OG at the centre with everything we do and write.

PMA! No holdbacks. We’re all primed and ready to take on the

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Dale: Stylistically, we hadn’t really explored the Brit-rock sounds a lot of us love so much and grew up on. So with the big inclusion of Twiggy and his writing capabilities, we were able to inject a whole lot of that into the album. The main attitude we embraced while in the studio was that of taking risks and going with the flow and not hesitating when it came to any idea - and that included shutting down said ideas. Songs on this album came about a lot more organically this way, because a song idea could start from literally a lyric, sample or bass line rather than usually starting with a guitar riff.

Did you draw on any surprising influences?

Dale: We actually drew upon quite a few blockbuster hits from the early 2000s and past millennium that we all grew up watching. This really helped direct the types of soundscapes we wanted to create and imagery we hoped to reference and elicit.

Are any of the lyrical themes especially personal for you?

Dale: Almost every song and lyrical theme on this album is of real personal importance to at least one of us. There wasn’t just one lyric writer on this album, so there are special moments, highs

and lows for all of us. I, for one, am closely attached to the album closer ‘FREAKS’ and its topic of embracing one’s individuality and oddities, and in doing so, casting aside judgement and selfconsciousness.

It feels like a lot of bands are up for talking about mental health these days, is that something you’ve felt a shift in during your time with the band?

Twiggy: Talking about mental health has been a healthy stressrelieving method I’ve actively partaken in well before the band.

Since coming into the band, I realised we all deal with our separate demons, but they all have a commonality in the way of being crippling without warning.

Knowing your mates are going through some shit can be the best thing to happen to you and a solid reminder that you’re not alone and plenty of our problems are a deeply rooted universal mess that needs some untangling. Don’t be afraid to talk to your friends, family or anyone in-between.

How do you cope with the stresses of band life? Do you have any tips or tricks that are especially helpful?

Twiggy: I think I can speak for all of us in saying that one of our go-to forms of de-stressing is a good old ‘blocky’ (walk around the block) to remind ourselves that we are constantly moving in a forward motion. It definitely helps kill cabin fever when we’ve been locked in the studio for hours on end or just need some time off from the weight of the world on our shoulders.

What are your plans for after the album?

Dale: We plan to take this album worldwide. We will start with an Australian headline run and then look to take ‘Flip Phone Fantasy’ abroad. We can’t bloody wait! P

Ocean Grove’s album ‘Flip Phone Fantasy’ is out now.

“WE’RE READY

Photo: Sam Wong.

TO TAKE ON

THE WORLD” Upset 9

Words: Dillon Eastoe.

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“I’M NOT TRYING TO BE THE NEXT CELEBRITY, THOSE DAYS ARE DONE FOR ME”

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Brian Fallon is at a fork in the road as he releases his third solo LP, ‘Local Honey’. His heady days rolling with Bruce Springsteen and pummelling festival main stages every summer fronting The Gaslight Anthem are behind him, and the mainstream success that band flirted with is in the rear-view mirror.

Chatting ahead of the new record’s release, Fallon is quick to draw a definitive line under Gaslight’s 2018 anniversary shows. “That was just a one-time thing,” he affirms, politely but unequivocally. “We wanted to do it just to wrap that thing up and say okay, we’re acknowledging this record and we’ll go one more time. Because the last tour we did we announced after the tour had started [that the band was going on hiatus]. So I think that [2018] was that chance to say, we’re gonna do this tour to celebrate this record. And then also it’s your chance to come see us if you wanted to.” That chapter is closed then? “As far as I’m concerned, I don’t see anything else to be done.” Oof. That clarity may have informed the most restrained record Fallon has put his name on. ‘Local Honey’, sparse at eight tracks, resists the louder heartland-rock sound that continued in the first two stanzas of his solo career.

The album rests on carefully picked acoustic guitars, delicate piano and gently brushed drum skins, Fallon’s vocal never aiming further than the microphone.

“I did not intend to do that,” he admits. “It was something I’ve been working on for a long time in my head. The idea of making a loud record right now just didn’t feel like it was working. I was

making demos of some songs, and some of them were loud, the tempos were faster, and it seemed instead of like, getting more exciting, they were getting less exciting.”

Expanding on this, Brian picks two groups to illustrate how the record ended up softer, more acoustic than his past releases. “If I watch a young band, like Slaves, I really like that band. They’re wild, they’re shirtless jumping on the stage. Sometimes they’re bleeding, it’s loud. It’s awesome.

To me? I get excited when I see that. But then I go and watch the Grammys, and I see Aerosmith.”

Fallon pauses to stifle a chuckle. “I would rather do anything, but be in that band. And I feel like I don’t want to ever be in Aerosmith and it’s funny because when I was a kid I used to think Aerosmith was insane, these are crazy people, these are animals, playing the wildest rock and roll. And what I feel like is I’m not young enough to be like Slaves, but I’m not old enough to be Aerosmith, but I definitely don’t want to go on this Aerosmith vibe, so I’m getting out of this thing... I gotta get out of the ship. I’m doing something different completely, because I can’t fit in either world.”

And while this may have steered Fallon away from things he didn’t want to create, where the record landed is more down to fate than a grand design. “I guess that you don’t have control over what you get. You get the book you’re given.

You don’t get the book you want to write.”

Writing more directly about life as he’s living it, rather than the romantic vignettes of his Gaslight days, the music naturally took a more introspective tone, with quieter arrangements and plenty of space between individual instruments. “You create a world around yourself with the music. If you have a loud sound, it wants to be a loud statement or something that’s a big statement,” Fallon elaborates. “And when I’m sitting there by myself, a piano or a guitar

and it’s quiet, it lends itself to digging around in the other parts of your mind that maybe would be more contemplative and just immediate.”

The album opens with ‘When You’re Ready’, imagining his children growing up and flying the nest, with Fallon’s narrator convincing himself to allow them to make their own mistakes just as he surely did (why else all those heartbroken songs for Maria?). ‘Horses’ is a hymn of hope and resilience, moving forward past strife and into a brighter tomorrow.

“It’s talking about people’s lives in general and what they feel matters to them. And for some reason, my grandmother always liked to watch the horses run. When I see the animal, there’s something that seems otherworldly to me, like they know something more than we do. Maybe they’re connected to something that we’re not connected with. In mythology and in poetry, they represent lots of things, but they also have been used to carry people’s souls, and they seem to know something more than meets the eye.” He’s on a roll now, “You look at the animal in their face, and you can see their eyes are very black, but that’s not frightening, horses don’t seem that way. They seem inviting, like they almost care about you. It’s very odd, they’re a mystifying animal.”

Pulling back from the source of the metaphor for a moment to reflect on his own interpretation, Fallon continues, “It’s looking at your life at the moment and saying we don’t mind the weight we carry, it’s not so bad. There are things that we have to do to get by and then also in a positive way to say…” After a moment Fallon regains his train of thought, “I don’t talk about wasted years, I don’t. There’s a lot of mistakes that go on, but I don’t dwell on those. Just keep trying to move forward. It’s about living a good life and finding peace and

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“THE IDEA OF MAKING A LOUD RECORD RIGHT NOW JUST DIDN’T FEEL LIKE IT WAS WORKING”

happiness in what you have today, not some kind of undefinable future… or some regrettable past.”

‘Local Honey’ is also Brian’s first release in a decade not to be associated with a major record label, a decision that Fallon took himself. “I started to think, I’ve had a long career, but I don’t own anything that I’ve done. I own nothing.

“It’s as if I’ve written seven books, and I don’t own any of them. And I got, not upset about it, but I just started thinking, I’m not sure that’s the best way to do this, the best investment to make in my kids’ future, or in my future. And

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I think for me that works better because I’m not trying to be the next celebrity. I’ve got it, those days are done for me. I don’t really want to do that, it’s more about the creation. Will I sell fewer records?

I don’t know. But, at the end of the day, it’s mine. So at least I can say, that’s my record.”

Not that he thinks his old major would have vetoed the album entirely for its style and substance. “Would they have let me? Sure. But I think it would have gotten completely lost, because I don’t know that there are any radio songs. They have a lot of records to put out. It’s just

a different kind of machine, and when you’re a big company, you have to think about that stuff.”

If the record seems short at eight tracks, that’s because Brian, always considerate, doesn’t want to weigh the listener down with too many of these slow-burning songs. “I don’t think that’s a place you wanna stay in all day. It’s a heavy record, and some of the subject matter is really heavy.

You don’t want to sit through a record like that because it’s really hard emotionally. It costs you something emotionally to listen to, to feel that and empathise.”

It’s a wise choice; these songs reveal more with every spin, and the fact the tracklisting and recordings aren’t too crowded allows the listener to pick apart the craft of the compositions with repeated listens. “And also, you know, people are running around a lot today, and they’re busy,” Brian jokes “I’m not trying to make them sit down for an hour and a half and listen to a record because I don’t think anybody has the time for that.”

It’s unlikely he could ever have put out this kind of album earlier in his career, and it’s cleverly put together, not demanding too much of the listener on first glance but rewarding them more with each revisit. ‘Local Honey’ is a fine addition to Fallon’s oeuvre that only strengthens his overflowing pile of classic songs ahead of a world tour later this year. P Brian

Fallon’s album ‘Local Honey’ is out 27th March.

Riot_ Live report

THE 1975 A RE STIL L RO C K’S FAVE POP BAN D Words: Ali Shutler.

Photos: Sarah Louise Bennett.

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The opening snarl of ‘People’ sees The 1975’s Matty Healy prowling the stage, telling a crowd of interlocked souls that people need people. It might seem like they’re preaching to the choir with their bubbling anthems of togetherness, vulnerability and being open, but The 1975 have had to fight every step of the way. It’s easy tonight, as they headline London’s O2 Arena for the sixth time, to forget that for most of their career, the band have had to scratch and scrap for this.

Their headline slot at Reading & Leeds last summer saw The 1975 finally silence the last remaining doubters with its bold brilliance and fearless desire to dream just that tiny bit bigger. And so tonight, a few months later and with a delayed album hanging over their heads, isn’t exactly as simple as it should be. But this band have never craved standing still.

‘People’ kicks like a nu-wave, nu-metal anthem, all aggression and urgency while a few songs later the sunshine pop float of ‘TooTimeTooTimeTooTime’ and the pop-punk smirk of ‘Me And You Together Song’ wears its heart firmly on its sleeve. There’s the noisy, post-rock breakdown of ‘LostMyHead’, the teenage kick of ‘Sex’ and their hometown infused lighters up sway of ‘I Always Wanna Die (Sometimes)’. Like most gangs their age, The 1975 don’t bother with genre. Following their gut, tonight shows just how fast and furious those swathes hit. It’s unpredictable but exhilarating. Ladies and gentlemen, The 1975.

Their ever-evolving stage show is now a collision of industrial intensity and pop sparkle. Screens point in every direction, making sure every corner of the arena is involved.

As the crowd bundles together for their collaboration with Greta, welcoming in a time to rebel, and throws their arms out wide for the posi-banger of ‘Love It If We Made It’, it’s clear The 1975 wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Couple of classics, then bed,” promises Matty. We can all sleep a little easier knowing there’s a band like The 1975 leading the way. P

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“THE AMOUNT OF TIME WE’RE NOT HOME WOULD SURELY MEAN WE’RE GOOD AT THIS, BUT WE’RE NOT. WE’RE IDIOTS” picked up along the way?

Big Scary Monsters punks You’d think, right? The amount of Gender Roles are currently time we’re not home would surely on tour in support of their mean we’re good at this, but we’re debut album ‘PRANG’, and not, we’re idiots. Here are our top they’re about to land back in tips: Bring a sleeping bag; Buy a the UK. Guitarist/vocalist Tom sleeping bag when you realise you Bennett checks in from the forgot it; Lose said sleeping bag; Get road. some Barroca.

boost when it came out, it felt like justification for the blood sweat and tears leading up to its release. We never expected to even get this far in all honesty. Then you have day one of the album tour - sold-out show in London with everyone screaming the words of the whole set??? We couldn’t be more thankful.

Hey Tom, enjoying the tour so far? Have you ever accidentally left Hey! All good, but got a lovely tour something important in a hotel cold [Uh-oh - Ed]! It’s been great so room?

Have you started to think about its follow-up yet?

far, amazing responses and a lotta fun.

Yes. A lot of times. All our money.

Van keys. Pedalboard. Brain.

Are there any spots in Europe you especially enjoy visiting?

You’re back in the UK at the end of March, do your home country Germany has a soft spot for all of us, gigs have a different vibe to those but maybe it’s just because we’ve elsewhere? been there the most? Going through Italy for the first time on this tour was amazing. Everywhere is better than the UK, though.

What’s the best meal or food item you’ve ever had while away on tour?

Ooooh, the food in Italy on this tour was well good. Of ALL TIME it’s either in Glasgow at a Thai restaurant (was incredible) or the first time we stopped at Tebay services (was incredible).

You guys must be pretty good at travelling now, do you feel like you’re pros? What tips have you 16 Upset

The shows themselves never seem too different compared to other places, just everyone going bananas and having loads of fun. Touring is way different though; for instance, mainland Europe has beautiful landscapes, friendly people, hot food, and the UK has ‘spoons.

How are you guys feeling about your debut album now it’s been out a while? Happy with how it all went?

Feeling great and couldn’t be more stoked with the reaction it got. Had some fantastic reviews, people are still buying it and our mums said it was good. Really gave us a

We have indeed. In amongst our crazy calendar is some time we’re going to force ourselves not to play for a little bit and get new material materialised. Spoiler alert: sounds sick already.

What else are you working on?

Trying to keep full-time jobs and see our better halves. I’m trying to do more illustration. Jed is killing the animation/design game, and Lilford has been DJing da clubs with phat beats.

Anything else we should know?

Breakfast this morning ended with us making loads of ‘road baps’, I stubbed my toe on the way out, and we’re currently smashing it down the autobahn listening to Violent Soho. Probs gonna have a road nap now. Peace out. P

Gender Roles tour the UK from 26th March.

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Diet Cig have announced their second album, ‘Do You Wonder About Me?’. Due out on 1st May via Frenchkiss Records, the news arrives alongside new single ‘Thriving’, the follow up to early teaser ‘Night Terrors’.

Ever had to pack for a tour?

You’re gonna be spending weeks in a small, intimate space with several other smelly people and - for hours a day, not a lot to do. You’re gonna need to be prepared. That’s why we’ve asked our fave musicians for tips. This month, Hannah Hermione from Creeper let us inside her tour suitcase.

There’s a chance that by the time you’re reading this it’ll be cancelled, but AS OF TYPING, Hayley Williams is going to play The Great Escape on 15th May with her Petals For Armor project, and a night at Electric Brixton in London the following day, too.

arture: “I am incredibly grateful and proud of everything we have achieved.

Asking Alexandria have announced their sixth studio album, ‘Like A House On Fire’.

Due for release on 15th May via Sumerian Records, the news arrives alongside new single ‘Antisocialist’, and an October tour that will see them play Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham and London.

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Denim spray: This is great for keeping my jacket and jeans smelling fresh throughout tour.

It’s great for getting stains out and smells amazing.

Travel perfume set: I’m obsessed with the company Le Labo. They make the most amazing perfumes. I cycle through a different smell every day.

Orange Carhartt jacket: My favourite jacket I own. It’s super comfortable and waterresistant. I love bright colours, and orange and yellow are my favourites.

FIND OUT WHAT YOUR FAVE BANDS TAKE ON THE ROAD. THIS MONTH...

Hannah Hermione, Creeper Gisou hair oil: A friend of mine recommended this to me. It’s honestly a magic serum infused with honey that keeps my hair tame and smooth.

Lucky lanyard: I’ve had this Vans lanyard for years. I genuinely don’t remember how I acquired it, but it’s become my lucky charm and I don’t like going away without it now. It also clips my earplugs on so I don’t forget them.

Creeper tour the UK from 12th April. (Or at least, at time of press - Ed)

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Words: Steven Loftin.

It’s been seventeen years since The Amity Affliction burst onto the scene.

Seven albums later they’ve explored change and been through the wringer with it. Never ones to give up, they’re back for more with ‘Everyone Loves You… Once You Leave Them’, and they’re not going down without a fight.

Hi Ahren, how are things going since the release of the album?

Oh, everything’s been received very well. I think it just hit ten million streams on Spotify. ‘Soak Me In Bleach’, we’re playing that every night, and it’s probably the biggest song so yeah we couldn’t be happier, honestly, very very stoked.

Do you still get that same excitement after so long?

Oh yeah, definitely, it’s always fun for us. Writing and recording music is my favourite part of being in a band. Creating something from nothing and watching people enjoy it is always

a very rewarding part of the whole thing. Especially because our last album didn’t do too well in Europe and the UK - it did really well in America, so we were kind of like, ‘Alright, let’s try and do the best parts of ‘Misery’, and add some heavier stuff that we’ve never really done before’. And, you know, Bob’s your uncle; it’s a good mix of heavier songs, and everyone seems to like it.

How do you go about processing some people not engaging with an album?

Well, it’s very odd. Australia

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‘Misery’ went down so well but I think we lost a bit of traction in Europe, because, you know, the Europeans, by the numbers, really liked the heavier stuff more so we thought okay let’s try and keep everyone happy - us included. It’s always more fun to play heavy stuff live, so we just incorporated that and listened to the fans.

How does that balance with the integrity of doing what you as a band want to do?

You just have to keep as many people happy as you can while not throwing away your integrity. By listening to people, and writing the songs that you want to listen to, I think we’ve got a nice balance on this record. As a band, you have to always listen to the fans because they’re the ones listening to the music. You can write whatever you want to listen to, but at the end of the day, you want other people to like it too, so it’s a real tight rope balancing act. I think with this record we nailed it by the looks of things anyway.

Having those expectations from fans, and yourselves, does that ever feel suffocating?

Not at all, but it is a challenge, and we welcome it. It makes it more difficult. Kind of like gilding the lily, we really want to make the perfect album each time. We keep it in the back of our mind, but we don’t ever really go ‘Alright, we need to do this, and this, in this formulaic way to please everyone’. We just kind of go, ‘We’ve got three heavy songs written, but let’s focus on a softer song just to try and keep the album as diverse as possible’. At the end of the day if you just write the same song, and they’re all fucking heavy bangers, that’ll get old to people regardless of what they think. If you mix it up with some different stuff here and there, it just keeps the listener interested on the journey throughout the album, and that’s

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what we always try to do - just make a not boring album. Does that make sense?

Sure. Has the dynamic of the band writing changed as this mindset develops?

We all have different jobs. Back in the day I used to write everything, but now Dan [Brown, guitar] has written most of the music on the last three albums, so I just wait for him to write songs, and he’ll send

them to me in the Dropbox, then Joel [Birch, vocals] will write the songs lyrically. So I have all these songs or poems from Joel, and I get the job of being the composer; putting all of the lyrics to the empty songs, and then put the melody to it. For example, the first song we finished was ‘Soak Me In Bleach’ where I just took my favourite song that Dan had written musically and my favourite lyrics and went ‘Fuck yeah, this is a banger!’ and it just

went from there.

When you’re writing, what are you trying to achieve?

For me it’s trying to write the fucking best songs that I would want to listen to. I’ve always pictured just fucking you know, a ball-tearing song that people can just get down to. I’ll just keep waiting until that happens. The lyrics themselves they’re Joel’s outlet, and he writes what he

“THE SAME PEOPLE WHO ARE BEGGING FOR CHANGE, ARE THE ONES THAT SHIT ON YOU WHEN YOU DO CHANGE”

discovering punk rock and stuff like that, gave me this feeling of ‘fuck the world - punk rock is everything!’ kind of vibes. That was my real outlet as a teenager - just turning up fucking heavy metal and punk rock in my room.

Given you’re piecing the songs together, how does it feel when certain places don’t buy into an album?

I think people might just be a little bit confused, honestly. I think if they go back and listen to ‘Misery’ now, you’ll find it really quite heavy and pretty similar to our new record, but I understand that people are terrified of change. When they hear a band do something slightly knows about, and I think that’s one different to what they are usually of our unofficial gimmicks, that he’s doing it’s a kick in the guts - it’s happened to me with some of my always writing about depression favourite bands, but we definitely and how he feels and that really resonates with fans. But to me I just swung to the fences on it, and they’ve loved it in certain countries. envision a kick-ass song and when On that album tour, we did it comes out exactly as I imagined Germany, and we played ‘Feels Like it’s an awesome feeling and that’s I’m Dying’, it went off. I think it’s what drives me. I just want to keep writing better and better music, and mostly more of an industry thing, we didn’t get invited back to the what I want to want to hear.” festivals in Europe this summer.

Probably because it wasn’t a Given the nature of the lyrics, particularly heavy album, and it is that something you apply to wasn’t received well here, but that’s yourself when singing?

I never think about it like that, I just fine. We’ll get invited back next year think of it as cool words. I don’t ever just because we did a blast beat and a fucking breakdown. But that’s just go any deeper than that. I mean, how it is, it’s slightly disheartening I know Joel, better than he knows but, again, like I said, it did so many himself. We’ve been in a band together for fucking fifteen years or good things for us in America. more, so it’s not lost meaning, but I Is that something you think is know how he feels, and I’ve always relative to being in an alternative been singing his words, so it’s kind genre? of just second nature to me now. I The same people who are begging don’t feel connected as such to the lyrics. His lyrics are beautiful, but I for change, are the ones that shit don’t really think much deeper than on you when you do change. It’s an echo chamber, people going ‘You that into it. As a kid, I never really cared about lyrics, and still, it’s the sound different, I don’t like you.

Now you sound the same, and I least important thing to me when don’t like it anymore either’ So you I’m listening to a song. just can’t listen to it, you have to do what you want, and just play the So music for you is more about game - it is what it is. P feeling?

Yeah, basically. I just want to The Amity Affliction’s album write songs for kids to trash their ‘Everyone Loves You… Once You rooms to. The songs that I grew Leave Them’ is out now. up listening to, when I was first

Upset 23

THE BEST NEW BANDS. THE HOTTEST NEW MUSIC.

24 Upset

WANT A NEW BAND CRUSH? CHECK OUT THIS LOT! >>>

DEB NEVER Described as an “alt-emo star”, Deb Never’s latest tune ‘Stone Cold’ is an ode to none other than Stone Cold Steve Austin, and it really packs a punch.

HOTEL LUX Londoners Hotel Lux are a little bit like wry comedian Stewart Lee in music form. FFO LIFE and Do Nothing, they’ve a debut EP on the way, too.

GAYGIRL Grungy South London duo Gaygirl sound like they could off you with a withering look alone. Their debut EP ‘Pleasurehead’ is due in April.

DREAM NAILS The members of Dream Nails - vocalist Janey Starling, guitarist Anya Pearson, bassist Mimi Jasson and drummer Lucy Katz - are all sitting in an Indian restaurant on a gloomy Tuesday evening in Islington.

It’s ridiculously cramped, noisy, and they are all tightly squeezed around a table, but they don’t mind.

“IT FELT LIKE THE EXACT RIGHT TIME TO START A FEMINIST BAND”

recording experiences which were quite minimal, to going into a studio with a professional studio with a label behind us, it was really nerve-wracking,” Lucy adds.

Anya smiles, “We worked with [ex Spring King frontman] Tarek Musa, our label introduced us to him. It was like going on a blind date! Long email exchange, swapping musical interests, Skyping and getting Lucy hadn’t been in bands, but to know each other. We went to Words: Jasleen Dhindsa. Photo: Marieke Macklon that seemed to be the perfect setLiverpool and did two big sessions up for them, “I guess that’s why I in the studio up there.”

They’ve got beer with them, plates was so excited by punk.” explains “I think what a lot of people don’t full of food and are beaming, wide- Lucy, “Punk is by no means my realise is it’s not just what comes eyed, giggly and excited as they are favourite genre, I don’t listen to out of the band, but also the inner on the brink of releasing their debut that much punk, we listen to soul, workings of it,” Janey continues. self-titled record, which has been a jazz and pop. When I first started “It’s important to us as queer labour of love for the past five years. playing drums I did it because I feminist musicians that we have Janey and Anya first met in the always thought it was cool and 100% direction on what we do and summer of 2015 through feminist always wanted to play, and never what’s really nice and is a gesture direct action (“when loads of shit had the confidence. Punk seemed of solidarity is that Alcopop will was kicking off,” according to like a genre where enthusiasm just back us and give label weight to Janey), which involves breaking the could make up for what you lack in law to protest against government technical skill. I think that’s why it’s what we are doing and saying.”

And that’s exactly what this cuts to women’s refuges. Even such a good genre; it’s a forgiving record feels like, 100% Dream Nails, before their official inception genre for musicians who don’t feel authentically and unapologetically.

Dream Nails’ intersectional ethos technically very skilled yet. With From the lyrical nature of the was rife. punk, it’s not just about being a This was followed by Lucy who musician it’s about us, and you and tracks to the fact they all sing on the record, it’s something they’ve put answered a Facebook ad and joined your crowd, and what you’re doing every ounce of themselves into and the band the year after, with Mimi collectively together.” worked tirelessly over (their work completing the outfit in August The debut record sees Dream 2017. “Me and her [Mimi] knew each Nails’ release their music on a label ethic is to be applauded, as they meticulously go through a contract other from Gumtree, and a previous for the first time, and despite now at the end of the interview). One band that we were in for one gig being a signed band, they’re still noticeable factor that gives the only, which was in my kitchen,” very much a DIY punk band. album a special Dream Nails twist is Lucy laughs.

“Even though we’ve made that Dream Nails are fundamentally transition from unsigned to signed, that there are several skits featured throughout, born from the fact they a feminist punk band, and the we are still self-managed. In some are 90s kids. Their favourite skit decision to have that message at ways, we are still in control of our their core was a no brainer, “it was creative logistical world... we spent is a secret track only available on physical formats, “it means they the only music we wanted to make. a long time choosing the right have to buy the vinyl!” Janey grins.

It felt like the exact right time to producer,” Anya admits.

P Dream Nails’ self-titled album is start a feminist band,” Anya says.

“Compared to our previous out 3rd April.

Before Dream Nails, Janey and

Upset 25

What would All Time Low do? It’s a question the band held close during the recording of their eighth outing, ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’. They’ve thrived embracing the cavalier, carefree attitude that comes with youth, but after nearly two decades together, what next?

LOOK AL SU 26 Upset

LIVE, UNSHINE Words: Steven Loftin.

Photos: Sarah Louise Bennett.

Upset 27

“You start to have that identity crisis of you either become R.L. Stein, writing another Goosebumps book; where you just end up churning them out and simply change some names of the characters,” singer and guitarist Alex Gaskarth muses, chuckling.

“Not to say that there’s anything wrong with that. But it’s a very fine line to walk where you’re either regurgitating the same thing that you’ve done a million times, or you’re going completely off on a tangent at the cost of maybe alienating some of your fans.

“We’ve built something up over 16 years, and there’s an expectation for what people want from this.

It’s finding that space and meeting those expectations while also staying true to ourselves as artists and not just regurgitating another Goosebumps novel.”

After the touring of 2017’s ‘Last Young Renegade’, which saw them explore different territories both sonically and conceptually, the good ship All Time Low needed to dock.

“We should be clear about this, too: there was no, ‘Alright guys, it’s time for a break’,” drummer Rian Dawson dazzles with his Hollywood smile. “It was not a hiatus. It was more, ‘We don’t need to do anything this year, we’ve earned a vacation.”

Just as Rian says, the time off wasn’t for any need to escape each other. The core of All Time Low, finished by guitarist Jack Barakat and bassist Zach Merrick, has always been the teenage bond that still runs as strong today; with the four of them sat around a bar table with Upset, at ease, and a clear air of ‘friends before band’ and smiles never wavering.

“I remember Alex told me about Simple Creatures,” he motions to his bandmate. “We’ve been in the band for fifteen-plus years, and we’ve never really talked about side-projects at all. I remember the call, he’s like, ‘Hey, so I’ve been writing with Mark [Hoppus, from blink-182] a lot, and we’re thinking about doing this thing’.

And it was just same with Jack [and

28 Upset

“IT’S LIKE COMING BACK TO SCHOOL, EXCEPT YOU LIKE SCHOOL, AND YOU LIKE EVERYONE THERE, AND YOU ACTUALLY ENJOY IT”

you need to, and then when we come back, we’ll be able to focus in on what we need to do next.”

“It definitely refocuses you to take that year off and to be able to do whatever creative processes you want to do on your own maybe. And then it also just made me realise at least like ‘Fuck, I really miss it’ in a very good way,” Rian says.

“It’s like coming back to school, except you like school, and you like everyone there, and you actually enjoy it!” Jack laughs behind sips of gin.

When it came to the four of them getting back in the classroom, or studio, it had to be something special. While they did drop the double A-side of ‘Birthday’ / ‘Everything Is Fine’ out of the blue back in 2018, “At this point, we didn’t feel like we needed to do that again,” Alex says for their decision to go all-in on an album.

“We’d done that, and it served its purpose. The big thing with those two tracks was that we felt as though ‘Last Young Renegade’ was tapering off record cycle wise, and WhoHurtYou, his band with singer/ we had a lot of touring left to do. So, songwriter Kevin Fisher] - there was we felt like it needed some kind of nothing but excitement. There was injection of a new excitement. It was no resentment about it or anything a nice little transitional moment to wind down that record cycle, but like that. We were all very much in without it feeling like we dragged contact.” it out.”

“It was really nice to have some So, endeavouring to keep time to ourselves,” Alex agrees. everything barebones, they took “You know, we all got to do various things; whether it was just spending themselves away to a house in the desert, where the band set up shop some time at home with our with one simple purpose in mind; to families, which is always great be All Time Low. and very welcome, or whether it To do this, they stripped things was diving into new projects new back to basics, no rigid timescale, endeavours. Jack started a new just living and breathing what they thing, and so did I. It was kind of a love. No one was aware a new record way to reset, get some headspace and clarity and just move away from was being made, it was just the four of them - and a producer, Zakk All Time Low world for a minute.

Cervini - hanging out, pushing We’d been on tour for so long too.” away any of the bullshit that can “Fifteen years!” Rian laughs. crop up from being a band for so “Everything just kind of fit into long. place in the discourse. There was “We’re in a unique position zero contention, zero anxiety about because we’ve made a lot of that. No, ‘But what about All Time Low if you’re doing that, and you’re records,” Alex ponders. “This is record number eight for us, and doing that?!’” He continues.

I think, to be honest, there are “It was just like, ‘Okay, yeah, you advantages and disadvantages to guys flex that creative muscle that

Upset 29

both. Sometimes having a more rigid timeline and needing to deliver on time actually pushes you to make something great in the constraints of what you’re working with.

“But at the same time, it’s all cyclical, and sometimes that can be too much. The beauty of this album is that the break and a lack of pressure came at the right time.

It came at a time when we needed that to make a record that truly represents what All Time Low is in 2020.”

While all four figures of All Time Low were present, and doing what they do best, it was the addition of producer Zakk that helped Alex, Jack, Zach and Rian bring it all back to that question; what would All Time Low do?

“Zakk is the first producer we’ve ever worked with who was a fan first of our music,” Alex says. “He said to us before that he grew up listening to All Time Low, so it’s pretty cool to make a record with a 100% professional and insanely talented producer, but also with that added caveat that he grew up on our music.

“You don’t often look back and reference your own music when you make new stuff. But in his mind, he was able to know where the energy is, and what he wants to unlock from you and that made for a really interesting time again.”

Having met Zakk after Alex worked with him on the Simple Creatures EPs, “He was someone that was fresh in our mind to do our record,” Jack says. “I think that had a lot to do with it as well. Alex liked working with him a lot, and we knew him personally, but All Time Low hadn’t worked with him a lot.”

“Speaking personally, creatively, Simple Creatures gave me an avenue to do something that was very different and off the wall,” Alex says of its marks on ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’. “There were no expectations tied to it, and it was nice to be able to go do that and then come back with

30 Upset

an almost even more focused sense of what All Time Low is and should be. It should sound like what we are trying to do.”

The moments in their career that haven’t kept the same timeless sparkle as the cough that introduces ‘Dear Maria’, or the positivity laden chugging guitars that welcome ‘Weightless’, are still ones that have a story.

There’s no animosity to anything they’ve touched so far ultimately because it’s helped shape ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’, and the All Time Low of 2020.

“I wouldn’t use the term like, not worked out,” Alex reasons on any past endeavours. “But I would just say that, in the context of this album, doing it in this free-flowing way felt very appropriate. It felt like having that freedom was the best way to get this out, it created a great environment for us.”

“If it wasn’t working we were like, let’s

just swim for two hours,” Jack pipes up, confirming the relaxed nature with another chuckle.

“And what’s cool about [having no expectations] is that wasn’t the intent really,” Rian says. “Again, after taking some time off and exploring other avenues, we all came back because we all knew what we wanted to do for the next record without even discussing it. Which shows how genuine it is; how it feels, and I don’t think that would have happened if we didn’t take some time and

reassess to figure out where all the pieces lie.”

“It wasn’t a board meeting record where you sit down, and everybody goes, ‘What are we gonna do?!’” Alex eludes to past experience.

“The beauty of where we sit with it is that I’m still a fan of all the music I grew up on, and the music I grew up on is what moulded the sound of All Time Low - for all of us,” he says, met with resounding nods around the table.

“So, because I’m not ashamed of our roots and our beginnings, and where we came from, it’s very easy to still exist in that space and feel comfortable doing so.

We’re not looking at ourselves and being over-analytical and going like, ‘Oh, we’re fucking 30, we can’t write fast songs anymore. They have distortion!

It’s like we’ve got to grow up and make moody analogue, with clean guitars’, you know what I mean?

“Not to say that there’s anything wrong with that either because our last album, we very intentionally went a different direction and made a more synthy, weird album, and at the time, that just felt right.”

“It felt like it had been kept in for a while. We just needed to write that, and get that out there,” Rian adds.

The lesson that these toedipping exercises brought forward was predominantly selfbelief. “It’s our name on it, forever,” Rian reasons. “So we have to be proud of it, even if it’s at the expense of some fans

“I’M STILL A FAN OF ALL THE MUSIC I GREW UP ON, AND THE MUSIC I GREW UP ON IS WHAT MOULDED THE SOUND OF ALL TIME LOW” sometimes. If we’re not stoked on it, then it becomes a case of to not mention it, or to play it live. We connect with our fans very much in a live setting, so if we’re playing songs that we don’t love or do feel regurgitated or anything like that, it’ll show through pretty easily with us.”

Admitting that they’ve made records with the compromise of songs being written, or put on them, as “what’s beautiful” about where they are now is proof that the All Time Low are a band that are still yearning to develop.

They’re still the four boys that formed a band in high school, where opportunity called, and they aren’t letting it get away.

They take losses on the chin, and break down the essence of what those missteps may have been, to lead to them making ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’. And it’s this balance

Upset 31

It’s this energy that propels through the London underplay show they play while they’re in town. Alongside every classic track from across the All Time Low arsenal, the likes of ‘Some Kind of Disaster’ and ‘Get Away Green’ slot so naturally alongside that Alex’s next exclamation is beyond agreeable.

“Those are both songs that had that energy about them. It just felt like this is quintessential All Time Low - but in the here and now. I had those moments where I would listen to the songs, and I’d be like, ‘I feel like I’ve heard these songs 5000 times and they’re still career-defining - but [the album’s] not even out yet!” he smirks.

When asked what their favourite moments on ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’ are, given it’s a fifteen-song strong effort, the conversation ends up snowballing into the band naming every song with its merits, not a single one forgotten. “This is going to sound douchey S

that keeps Alex’s words of “we didn’t want people to see through it; it’s not just us that end up feeling - there are songs we never play for a reason,” echoing through those carefree desert days and nights.

“There are some songs we don’t play anymore because we didn’t really vibe with them to begin with, and then on top of that, when we did play them you could tell that the fans didn’t even buy-in because we didn’t either in our hearts.”

“Even we didn’t buy-in,” Alex continues his admission. “So at this point for us, the biggest thing is it has to feel so rad in the moment. We all have to be stoked on the energy that occurs right when you create it, because that thing is the magic moment.

Eight months later, you might hate the song, but remember how you felt in the first five minutes when you were first writing? And if everyone in the room was jumping up and down going ‘Fuck yeah!’ That is what’s going to translate at the show, right?”

32 Upset

Live report

ALL TIME LOW THE GARAGE, LONDON Words: Ali Shutler.

Photos: Frances Beach.

All Time Low are underdogs. Despite headlining the likes of Slam Dunk, selling out arenas across the country and with a back catalogue to rival the best of ‘em, the little brothers of pop-punk are constantly underestimated. Tonight, we’re at London’s The Garage for an underplay to celebrate the announcement of eighth album ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’ and it’s the same story.

Despite the fact the front rows have numbers Sharpied on their hand to organize their hours of queuing outside the venue, there’s just two security guards between them and the stage.

As opener ‘Weightless’ kicks in and the chaos erupts, that number quickly swells. Even Alex Gaskarth admits he’s had

to adjust his in-ears from a four to a ten, such is the noise the 300-capacity venue is generating.

“I’m going deaf for you,” he smirks.

But All Time Low don’t have anything to prove. Tonight’s set is a beaming run through their brightest moments. Nine classics, from the lush hand claps of ‘Backseat Serenade’ through the jittery urgency of ‘Lost In Stereo’ to the closing jubilance of ‘Dear Maria, Count Me In’, inspire sing-alongs, crowdsurfing and on-the-shoulder celebrations of youthful abandon. A tiny taste of Wembley, the confines of the venue don’t hold All Time Low back even if it is probably the smallest stage they’ve played in years.

The band also play three new songs from that upcoming album. Somehow, the energy

doesn’t waver. ‘Some Kind Of Disaster’ takes the room to church, all stained glass selfreflection and confessional warmth. ‘Sleeping In’ is a burst of sunshine, giddy with possibilities while the unreleased ‘Getaway Green’ (that was first played live last year at Slam Dunk) flickers under neon promise and cherry cola. “Have you been scouring the Internet for shitty videos,” asks Jack as the room echoes every word with a knowing confidence. Obviously it’s a yes but the track is so sugary and infectious, who can really blame them?

All Time Low still have their doubters but if tonight is anything to go by, it’s time to Wake Up, Sunshine. P

Upset 33

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to say, but there was just no fat to trim - I’ve listened to it so many times, and I’m just in love with it,” Rian sparkles.

Last year marked the tenth anniversary of ‘Nothing Personal’, undoubtedly the album that cemented All Time Low’s place in the pop-punk canon, where they tacked a more focused view on growing up with the acceptance of their success and the voices they were speaking for and to.

Celebrating their seminal effort brought with it various facets, and for Rian the hunger was there to keep going. All Time Low have always been the kind of band that revels in the chaotic madness that comes from the electric energy of a gig.

This little break from the break to honour this chapter should have had an effect on ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’, given its return to their roots, right? According to Alex, not as big a part as you’d think.

“I think they helped for a lot of reasons, but I wouldn’t say that the shows, or even the 10-year tribute; I don’t think that they had any bearing on it because most of the music was written at that point,” he shrugs.

“But I will say that from a reinvigoration standpoint, it definitely got us thinking about our beginnings and being appreciative for the fact that we were where we were.”

“Seeing how excited people were at the shows and realising how meaningful that record was to people,” he continues, “I think really amped up this new record because it feels to me like it’s going to fit in as a very classic All Time Low record. One that, three or more records

Upset 35

“AT THIS POINT FOR US, THE BIGGEST THING IS IT HAS TO FEEL SO RAD IN THE MOMENT”

The first time we played it, we were like, ‘Ooop there it is!” Zach says, amazed.

“That was one of those moments in a band where you’re like,” Rian says with his mouth agape and wide-eyed. “And that was definitely one of ‘em. Even ‘Get Away Green’, when we did it at Slam Dunk - that was out of nowhere.

We just played a new song. It was Alex’s idea we were like, ‘No, we’re not doing that’,” Rian chortles.

Jack adds, laughing: “Yeah, I was so against it, but it ended up being really good!”

“And then by day two, everyone’s singing along!” Rian marvels. “I was gonna say the opposite happened when we took that year off. I was just from now would be like, ‘Oh, that’s a like, I wanna play more top three or whatever else’. shows! I mean, “I just think that it speaks so finally, we did much to what All Time Low is - it at the feels very much like this band’s end record, you know? Which is weird of to say because it makes it sound like I value other records less or differently. But it’s just like, this feels like such a culmination of everything we’ve ever done slammed into one thing, and you don’t always get that magic.”

“It was also playing those shows and feeling that connection with the audience while playing those songs. When we were writing new music a lot of the time all I could think about is how is this going to be live… but how are we going to do this live? And every single one of those songs just makes sense live like there’s no real thought process of how it will work the crowd.

“It’s like all this work, and I feel like those ‘Nothing Personal’ shows, like you said, reinvigorated that sense of that fan-band connection - we’re all in this together and all of these songs I believe will have that connection, which isn’t always the case. Sometimes you need to prove it, but with these, it’s just like, ‘Oh that’ll work’.”

“We found that out real fast playing ‘Some Kind of Disaster’.

36 Upset

last year, when we did those ‘Nothing Personal’ shows. I remember on the last Jersey one we were texting, and I was like, ‘Can we just fucking keep going?!’”

His excitement palpable.

“Sometimes we have to step away from something to realise how much you take it for granted,” Jack adds.

“Yeah, you not so much take it for granted, but it’s like, ‘Okay, we’re doing another tour’,” Rian reasons.

“I take it for granted!” Jack jokingly retorts. “[It was an] autopilot of like, ‘Okay, this year is set’, and then it goes away and it’s just like, ‘Oh my god!; like, halfway through the year I was just so ready to get back on the road.”

The bare essence of All Time Low can no doubt still be heard echoing from the concrete of Rian’s parent’s basement when they first began, chaotically rattling through blink-182 covers. So, it’s fitting that this should be the sentiment that rounds off All Time Low Mk VIII with ‘Basement Noise’.

“That song was written in a moment of reflection and looking back on the very beginnings of this band and what it was all about,” Alex says.

“I think what’s interesting about that song, and how it frames and ends the record is that it very much describes what we were feeling while making this album because it was reminiscent of how we started making music in Rian’s parents’ basement. It was very much a callback to those feelings, those emotions and so exploring that in that song felt very…”

“It’s very meta!” Jack quips.

While love, yearning, and the inevitable heartbreak, are the bread and butter to all music genres, in pop-punk the angst

that thrashes around, hoping for someone to understand, does have a life-span. Often, bands that start out in this world fall into the trap of being proper adults still trying to process those thoughts that do change with time, through nolonger-youthful eyes.

Alex’s reasoning for how All Time Low adapt to this pitfall continues the trajectory of self-awareness and knowing how to balance being true to processing what he needs to while ensuring the factors that drew the world to the band stay.

“A big part of it is that it’s all the lens that you’re looking through,” he says. “Even when there are songs that feel reflective of our older material, it’s all being done through where we are now as people and as friends and as, you know, encounters that we’re seeing in our 30s or whatever.

“At the end of the day, it would feel insincere to be writing about the things I was writing about when I was 20. We’re not forcing it and being like, ‘We’ve got to sound like we’re still 21 years old’, it’s more about just casting the right net and getting the thought out of it, whether they’re memories or whether their experiences or whatever and then putting it putting it through the lens that feels right.”

Which is why ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’ does genuinely feel like the next great All Time Low album. It dabbles with the future, while deeply rooted in that understanding that the actionpacked tunes, and the minds that created them, are in this with us.

Exposing the main trend for the album, even its title feels like Alex talking to himself, reminding he and his bandmates of the fact they’re living their childhood dream.

“A lot of the album is very reflective,” he says, eyes focused.

“Like a kind of self-reflection, but there are a lot of parallels between talking about the band, and fanbase, and how we’ve all come up as a unit together.”

Of course, the All Time Low

fanbase - including their own official Hustlers Club - is an important factor behind the band’s success, but they’re also the ones who whip the tide of creative change into a confusing mess of stillness and wary adventure. But for All Time Low, they know they know they have a responsibility to evolve, as referenced on ‘Melancholy Kaleidoscope’ which sees a rousing chorus ending with “Can’t be 100 if you’re only giving 95.” “[That is] a perfect example of a line that does speak to the band.

You’re never going to be your best self if you’re not giving your best,” Alex says.

“That is how, at least I, personally, felt at the end of the ‘Last Young Renegade’ cycle, you know? I think we were just a little burnt out,” Jack adds.

“Sure. That’s why we weren’t ready to go make a record,” Alex continues. “But for me personally, that song is also about being okay mentally. You can’t begin to fix what’s going on with you, or whatever, if you’re not invested in starting to fix yourself. It was kind of that song for me. It was a wakeup call for myself to say, ‘Hey, like, you know, you can feel better’.”

There generally tends to be three components to growing as a band, and in the vast majority of cases, most only get the choice of two; success, founding members or longevity. But somehow All Time Low have all three. What do they put that up to?

“I think the brotherhood of this band is what has kept this band going,” Alex muses, “and has kept the band feeling fun and fresh and like we want to do it. And I think the reason you see a lot of bands over time dis-band is that it does become a job.”

“As much as that sucks to say because you’re doing the coolest thing in the world, it’s true. You know, there are people that do get to a point where they’re like, ‘I can’t fucking stand being around this person anymore, I need a break’. I need to go do something for myself,

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whatever it is, and in this case, we’ve never had them. I feel like whenever we’re off tour for a long time, we’re always texting each other being like, ‘I fucking can’t wait to be on tour again’.”

Now All Time Low is a bonafide name that can pull headline slots and arena tours, the fact bands they grew up listening to, and formed their sound around, haven’t lasted as long with such success, or zero line-up changes, yet they have is remarkable.

Even blink-182, the band that gave them cause to start scrappily covering pop-punk songs, succumbed to a ‘hiatus’ after sideprojects became involved, and had line-up changes after less time than All Time Low to boot. All told, they’re a band who are a solid form of just what it means to be a band.

“I mean, it’s pretty wild when thinking about that, we, sixteen years into a career, still get to make albums and they still feel great to us, and people are still engaged.”

“WE’RE ALWAYS TEXTING EACH OTHER BEING LIKE, ‘I FUCKING CAN’T WAIT TO BE ON TOUR AGAIN’”

always been fun to kind of push the walls and the envelope what that is and what we sound like,” he continues.

“With every record, we hone and enhance and change that style a little bit. But to me, especially with this album, it very much feels like a quintessential All Time Low record.

And this is going to be one that you know, ends up feeling very classic in our catalogue.”

Hours after Upset’s interview with All Time Low, they head off to a BRIT Awards party where afterwards Jack posted a band selfie on Instagram with the caption; “You know how they say don’t start a band with your friends? That’s Alex beams. “They want them why I started a band with my BEST and want to hear what we have to friends.” say and do next. Beyond that, it’s There’s no more proof needed. just cool to see this band grow and They may have taken the odd change and evolve and shift with, you know, sort of what All Time Low detour, but the lost young renegades is and what people perceive us to be. are once again found. P All Time Low’s album ‘Wake Up, Sunshine’ “We’ve always operated within is out 3rd April. a wheelhouse of All Time Low. It’s

TOMORR Words: Jack Press.

40 Upset

ROW

We live in a society where subjects too taboo for the establishment’s prescription for the perfect normal life are brushed under old carpets and locked away in bedroom wardrobes. Depression and anxiety are part and parcel of modern-day life, yet mental health is still often not allowed to leave the lips of anyone struggling through their own ordeals. Music, perhaps more than any other artform, is prepped and primed to open its doors to the voiceless generation. In 2020, there’s one band flying the flag for British metal’s mental health brigade, and that’s Bury Tomorrow.

“We’re very scared of being vulnerable, but there’s a lot of strength in that, not just from ourselves but strength from others supporting us through that vulnerability. It’s not something to be afraid of, it’s something we should relish in,” states frontman Dani Winter-Bates, currently in the midst of juggling his role not only as the frontman of one of British metal’s flagship bands on the cusp of releasing their sixth album, but his life away from music in the NHS as a culture

Upset 41

improvement facilitator.

‘Cannibal’ is Bury Tomorrow’s sixth studio outing and their darkest yet. Touching thematically on the experiences and trauma Dani has battled bravely over the last two years since the release of 2017’s ‘Black Flame,’ the album is their attempt at wearing their hearts on their sleeves and baring their scars to the world to open up and normalise discussions around mental health and wellbeing.

“I see my depreciated mental health as my superpower; that’s my thing that intrinsically links me to so many strangers. That’s something I’m proud of having.

I have to work through it pretty much daily, but it’s important I view it in that way because there’s nothing to be scared of.

“The pre-requisite of having something like depression is that you feel isolated, the idea nobody is going through something you’re going through. The more we normalise it, and the more we talk about it, the more it becomes really obvious that so many people go through this.

The normalisation of such is that you can talk about it and then someone’s not going to freak out about it, thus reducing the fear.”

On previous albums, Bury Tomorrow have buried their brains in metaphors and anecdotes, telling their stories from a birds-eye view rather than from their own point of view.

Here, there’s a naked honesty that runs through the songs from the obliterating opener ‘Choke’ to the broodingly cold ‘Quake’, and it lends itself well to the band’s ever-expanding evolution lyrically and sonically.

While delving into the depths of his mind was at the forefront of Dani’s motivations, the rest of the band – guitarists Jason Cameron and Kristan Dawson, bassist Davyd Winter-Bates and drummer Adam Jackson – were just as concerned with exploring uncovered, uncharted and at times uncomfortable territory.

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“THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT HAS A LOT TO ANSWER FOR”

By colouring outside of the lines, their straight-up metalcore has evolved into a whole new beast hellbent on delivering blistering blast beats and bulldozing breakdowns alongside some of the most melodic moments they’ve penned in their history as a band.

“There are some really proud moments on that record.

Something like ‘Quake’ is really different for us as it flips our sound on its head between the serious melodies in the verses and then the really heavy choruses, not to mention an absolutely massive breakdown at the end. “’Better Below’ is quite commercial, but it’s the most blatant when it comes to what it’s about. If ‘Cannibal’ wasn’t the title track, it would be that track.

If I could pick one, it would be that one because it’s so obvious of what it’s about. ‘Dark Infinite’ on the other hand, is a straight-up metalcore banger.”

Not only was the songwriting process built on progression, but it was also built on developing an in-house support network for Dani. In previous years, the band have shared their own experiences in the lyrics and poured their own hearts out into the music, however on ‘Cannibal’, they set their sights on capturing the brainwaves of their frontman.

“I feel really lucky that the rest of the boys allowed me thematically to go somewhere personal because this isn’t a band of just me. This is a band of four other dudes who have their own agendas and their own problems

face every day, and for them, it’s not always about mental health.

“It was important to me that I asked the questions to the guys.

We’ve been brothers in arms and have been for a long time, and they were very open. They were willing to put their part into it.

Jason wrote his lyrics focused around me, and Dawson writing the songs and putting his heart and soul into it to bring it to life, and Dav and Jacko doing their part too. They all rallied around me.”

Being brothers in arms has and always will be one of the driving factors between Bury Tomorrow’s stability in a scene too topsyturvy for its own good. They’ve developed a deeply-rooted connection with their fans, from staying way past curfew after gigs until they’ve met every single person waiting for them to sharing their own troubling experiences to encourage and empower them to open up.

They’ve never held a VIP meet and greet, and nor will they. Not only do Bury Tomorrow see their fans as the reason they’re still making music, their fans are also part of the positivity that keeps Dani going.

“The things I get out of being in a band is connecting with people and sharing experiences. I’m not going to ask people to pay for that, that’s just not in me because I get things out of it too.

With their fans driving their desire to continue to make music and take on tours, Bury Tomorrow are using the positive energy from their handout-free longevity and string of barrierbreaking Top 40 releases to stir the pot in the murky waters of the UK’s political consciousness. It’s clear that so many more bands could’ve been standing next to them had there been more of a support network for young creatives.

“We’ve never been the most critically acclaimed band, we’re not the coolest band, nor are we a hype band. Saying that, it’s nice to see that metal can stay in the mainstream world and there’s a lot out there that tries to diminish that and not play it on our radios.

“The British government has a lot to answer for when it comes to the reason why British bands aren’t as supported as Australian bands or Canadian bands, where a lot of effort is put into homegrown talent or music and the arts. We don’t do a lot in this country when it comes to promoting bands; it’s hard for us to even survive.”

It’s not only the government’s lack of support for the creative industries and the arts in the UK but their negligence towards taking ownership of the country’s issues, particularly around mental health and equality that spurs the band on to use their platform for the greater good.

“We should only be preaching compassion and kindness, whether that’s around mental

health, learning disabilities, human rights, equality and so on, and challenging points of incivility or unkindness and points of bigotry. We have an obligation to do that regardless of what people’s political views are.

If you are in a position of power, you have to understand that influence and privilege. You need to use that for good.”

It’s clear in the way Dani articulates the thought-process behind making ‘Cannibal’ that there is an undying love for developing people and inspiring change. However, it’s also clear that we’re all human at the end of the day and that the concept of it being easier said than done will always be a struggle to defeat.

In fact, ‘Cannibal’ is an attempt for Dani, and Bury Tomorrow at large, to begin practising what they preach.

“I preach a lot about talking, about reaching out to other people and being part of a community with people with depreciated mental health. When I’m doing that I need to do it myself, so that’s the brainchild of this album: live by your word.

I’m being negligent if I’m not following my own instructions.”

In a social media world where being yourself is becoming unusual and opening up about your feelings is taboo, ‘Cannibal’ is the flag-bearing call-to-arms this generation needs, and it’s also the album Bury Tomorrow, and Dani in particular, need.

“This album is the last tick on that box, that people will now absolutely understand what I’m talking about rather than people going ‘oh he must be talking about NHS stuff’. Obviously, I’ve played many shows and many tours and come back straight to work the next day, and it’s helped me strike a balance mentally without having to flick between the two, I can just be the real me all the time.” P Bury Tomorrow’s

album ‘Cannibal’ is out later this year.

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44 Upset

BUSINESS Words: Jamie MacMillan.

Photos: Luke Henry, Maclay Heriot.

Upset 45

Having a quiet chat with The Chats isn’t as easy as you’d expect. Not when one hell of a rainstorm is kicking off overhead...

It might have once seemed that those horrific bushfires that engulfed much of Australia would never end, but the reality is a little different tonight. “It’s proper pissing it down mate” murmurs Josh Price, nearly totally deafened by the rain in the background as we chat on the phone, the guitarist and (often) spokesman for the Aussie punks kicking back as we catch up about ‘High Risk Behaviour’. This, the full-length debut for the band who have been on a stratospheric rise ever since they burst into notoriety in 2017 on the back of the ridiculously catchy ‘Smoko’, is about to burst overhead. And it’s gonna result in a deafening storm of its own.

When ‘Smoko’, and the accompanying video went around the world in a flash, it eventually landed on the desktop of one Dave Grohl who in turn recommended the band to Josh Homme. “One night we were sitting there [at home], the next day it had a million views!” Josh explains. Since then, tours with Queens Of The Stone Age and Iggy Pop have followed as well as a string of sold-out shows off their own backs. It’s been a whirlwind journey already then, but Josh isn’t exactly a motormouth when it comes to describing how the last few years have felt. Just like their music, it seems like The Chats keep it short and sweet. “Been good, mate. Played some big shows.

Having fun.” There’s a refreshing lack of bs surrounding both the band and guitarist. Certainly, there’s no lengthy and overused anecdotes or tirades about the state of modern society tonight, a tendency to cut straight to the point that goes hand-in-hand with a record where the vast majority of tracks are done and dusted in under two minutes.

And what a record it is. ‘High Risk Behaviour’, supposedly named after

46 Upset

“WE HAD A CRACK AT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT PISS US OFF” the time that drummer Matt Boggis was booked by an over-zealous police officer for skateboarding in the wrong place, is full of just that kind of behaviour. Josh though, downplays the event. “It’s just about doing fun stuff I guess, but I dunno, it could mean anything really.”

One thing is for sure, however, and that is the sweat you can almost feel on your face on every listen, a distinct live vibe present on a record that is fitting for a band that prefer to simply perform three takes in the studio and pick the best version each time. Recorded over 18 months, (“It only took that long cos we were so lazy, we would only record for a day at a time”), you can hear the progression as the record continues. “Oh yeah, we sorta changed our sound as we went on,” agrees Josh. “We’ve had these songs for ages, we had written most of them when ‘Smoko’ came out. It was just a matter of actually recording them.”

Detailing life on the edges, ‘High Risk Behaviour’ is a blast from start to finish that Josh estimates is a ‘60/40’ split between personal experience and stuff they’ve seen. Tracks like ‘Dine And Dash’ (“Nah, we’ve never done that one” he laughs) flash by, whereas ‘Keep The Grubs Out’ details an experience that Eamon Sandwith, songwriter and bassist, had when he was denied access to a pub for a surprising reason. “Yeah, it was a bar in Brisbane. They wouldn’t let him in cos he had a mullet!” he laughs in disbelief. “I guess you could say we had a crack at

some of the things that piss us off.” Definitely unafraid to ruffle the right feathers, whether it is verbally taking down their PM Scott Morrison for his useless response (or lack of one) to the fires, or in one of the most cringe-worthy television interviews in modern times when they appeared on Australia’s The Today Show. “It’s been pretty full-on, yeah. We weren’t really expecting that response [the band posted a video with a song called ‘I Hope Scott’s House Burns Down’ on it] to blow up, but it did. It’s been a good couple of months,” Josh chuckles again.

With Coachella on the horizon, plus a global tour to follow, Josh seems to take all of the craziness in his stride. “You just learn to deal with it, I guess. It feels right, y’know?” It’s all a long way from their home scene in Queensland.

“It’s only been four years, which seems like a long time but it isn’t at all. It’s all gone really fast, it’s been fun.” Honest about how it has happened so quickly, he is a big believer in the power of social media. “I think there’s always been good stuff coming out of Australia, it’s just easier to access. It’s a great thing for us, we got discovered on Facebook, y’know? Without that, we wouldn’t be here.” Still powered by the same DIY spirit as in their early days, it is as much the classic spirit of punk, as well as the sound, that runs through the band as if it was 1976. Mixed in with elements of Ramones, Buzzcocks, Sex Pistols, Josh names some more influences from closer to home. “Oh yeah, Midnight Oil, all those Aussie pub rock bands. And AC/DC obviously.

That whole Aussie sound, it’s really distinctive, I guess.”

Our time is up. The rain is still falling, and probably will for several weeks by the sound of things. But come hellfire or high water, The Chats seem to be unstoppable. They might not like talking about it, but it looks like everybody is going to be talking about this band for some time to come. P The Chats’ debut

album ‘High Risk Behaviour’ is out 27th March.

Upset 47

O R A 48 Upset

Words: Steven Loftin.

N G E Everything Code Orange do is for the reaction. A push and pull of channelling the rawness of life, while excavating the most brutal parts to contort it into something visceral. It’s for this reason precisely they’re one of the most exciting bands currently rearing their head in the alternative world. Nothing is as it seems, and will test your expectations.

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“For me, it’s extremes of all my moods,” guitarist and singer Reba Meyers muses. “Code Orange does live in a very dark psychological horror movie world, but at the same time, it shows the extremes of that in all facets; extreme light, dark, sadness, anger, raw, [just] every aspect of the human emotional spectrum.”

After the release of numerous albums, EPs and standalone singles, their new chapter is a continuation of this process.

One that spasms and throws itself around a padded cell, ‘Underneath’ is a being quite unlike any other.

Over the Code Orange ascension from straight-up hardcore band to the glitching, transformative monster before us today, the one thing that’s captured the attention of everyone is just, where will they go next?

Well, it would seem, even further beneath the blackened surface, where lies a swirling Kraken; tentacles crusading through the mire, each whipping and crushing with independent thought, inspired by a reaction.

“I just want people to dig deep within themselves when they’re listening to it, and just get sucked in,” Reba intensely continues.

“Because that’s how I feel when I listened to it, especially now it’s done. I’m starting to be able to just take it in as what it is and not worry about all the little technical things.”

Dealing with the expectation of being a band shouldering the evolution of hardcore and metal, as well as combing between their self-styled thirst for forwardmotion and exorcism of whatever lurks down below, means Code Orange are self-pertaining and completely aware.

“What people want out of a band is for you to make your best work and to make something that you are extremely proud of; that you put a ton of time and have a vision for,” she says.

50 Upset

Fully establishing the vision and their immersive world, they released a teasing website that does indeed feel straight from a psychological horror film, more than just your average band teaser. Creeping darkness, bursting sound, and, in the video for first glimpse ‘Underneath’ a struggling, faceless burned body that etches into your memory hardly bedtime viewing.

But the real story comes from the fact that Code Orange are embracing every “facet of being a band” and showing that the album “isn’t just a bunch of songs”.

“The art, music, and visuals.

There’s so much to see of the inner workings of everything, and tools that have made it a lot easier for us to express that so people aren’t confused by the amount of information that’s being given within the record.

There is so much take in.”

This idea of expectation, and holding onto the formidable nature they’ve conjured has meant that Reba along with Eric Balderose (keyboards), Jami Morgan (drums and vocals), Joe Goldman (bass) and Dominic Landolina (guitar) have grown to understand the double-edged sword that can come along for the ride.

“The only reason people like our band is because of what we created,” she reasons. “So we might as well just look into ourselves and find what we want to create and do that in the best possible way. In the end, that’s what people want, whether they verbalize it like that or not” “You’re not going to please everyone,” she shrugs.

“Hopefully we’ll be able to get new listeners, with this and it’s trying to not get caught up in that stuff, and not let it make you disappointed or make you stressed out, but it’s just unnecessary unwanted noise for the most part.

“I tried to use it as motivation to push me. You know, watching the

people around me. Everyone has a different thing that they want from the band, so in the end, you just have to put that aside. We’ve been trying to do that more so especially with this album, have our goals and try to stay focused and work really hard.”

Not only do Code Orange never find themselves treading the same ground, but they’ll also do all they can to dig below it.

Once they find that layer which encompasses the Code Orange horror, they bury their hands in the dirt to find what else they can conjure. A solid creative ethos that bleeds through into the physical productivity of incessant touring and playing shows.

“As long as you’re willing to dig and dig until you come across something you didn’t expect,” Reba explains. “I was talking

“WE ACTUALLY WROTE A COUPLE OF SONGS THAT WERE DEFINITELY TOO BIG OF A JUMP TO PUT OUT” about this with Jamie. We’d start with this small idea, and then it’s a pyramid of ideas; something that maybe was a little bit simple, but turned into something shocking, “Just as long as the original thing was real, and had a feeling which made you excited, it can go so much deeper than that.

You just dig there. And that’s when you create something that

you’re like, ‘Wow, how did we get to there from here?’ In the same way a movie is created; it’s like, someone has an idea or a script.

Maybe it’s not groundbreaking yet, but as long at the core it has a real vision and a goal, it can become something even more insane and groundbreaking only you’re willing to dig into that.”

Each component of Code Orange has an opinion. That’s why, and how, they’ve got to where they are now. There’s no single figure, or pair, cracking out everything and everyone else just turns up. Code Orange are a democracy that since day one hasn’t stuck to a single formula, ensuring nothing is left to blandly middle out.

“When you have a block of inspiration, someone else has a spark, so in that way, there never becomes dryness, or a moment

where you don’t know where to go,” Reba explains. “Everyone has those moments. But when you’re in a group like ours - that has a special kind of chemistry - it’s easy to always be spinning and moving, you never get stuck in a circle.”

Pushing extremes isn’t just a case of mashing a bunch of sounds together, applying distortion and hoping for the best, however. Code Orange have been building their stepping stones dutifully, ensuring to never look back, or down, only keeping focused on where they’re heading.

Sometimes that leads to avenues that even they see as pushing it, as Reba explains.

“We actually wrote a couple of songs that were definitely too big of a jump to put out. I think it was a perfect balance of some of the earlier stuff - natural Code Orange vibe - still with a new spin. But then as we went on, we dug deeper into the more electronic, choppy style stuff...

I feel like we were pushing it further than people would be able to understand.”

That’s not to say they don’t take risks. “[People] expect you to not jump too far ahead,” she smirks.

“Like, they’re surprised when you do something unexpected and it actually creates a backlash of some sort.

“We like to have that expectation of ourselves so that we don’t have to try interpret what people want. We know how good it needs to be because we have our own standard. We have an image of what we want the record to look like, and to feel like.”

It’s this ethos that will run you through the wringer, as they craft and construct a walled prison of abrasive noise. No matter what the internet might say, Code Orange will never succumb and will always be in control - they want you to feel everything. P Code Orange’s

album ‘Underneath’ is out now.

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52 Upset

CONTRO

Words: Linsey Teggert. Photo: Molly Matalon

CLOU

If there is one word that defines Katie Crutchfield’s fifth album as Waxahatchee above all others, it’s ‘clarity’.

Clear-eyed clarity shines through the sublime ‘Saint Cloud’ in every possible way, from the stripped-back simplicity of its classic Americana sound to its exploration of self-reflection and self-acceptance. This new sense of perspective is all framed through the lens of Katie’s decision to get sober.

“I DIDN’T WANT TO MAKE A LOUD ROCK RECORD AGAIN”

CONTRO

its minimal arrangement, ‘Fire’ glitters with light and space, Katie’s voice radiating fragile warmth at its centre. It’s the perfect example of her ability to ground the listener to a particular place and time. Written during a drive into West Memphis, you can almost feel the last heat of the sun setting over the Mississippi River.

“Setting is something I’ve always thought about for so many songs I’ve written for Waxahatchee – even the band name comes from my childhood home in Alabama. In stepping into this more Country, Americana sound, I feel like I’ve leaned even further into the idea of setting. One of my main influences “I knew I didn’t want to make a is Lucinda Williams, and the thing loud rock record again,” begins I love about her records is she really Though Katie jokes that her Katie. “I had always been a little puts you in those places. When I’m choice to get sober doesn’t have self-destructive, and I think I made ‘a super juicy story,’ she is more writing songs, I want to put people music reflecting that, particularly in those places and in that same than happy and deservedly proud my previous record ‘Out in the headspace.” to discuss her sobriety. “I feel like Storm’. I was making music that was it’s impossible to talk about what The clarity afforded by Katie’s chaotic and very raw, and I think sobriety allows for a great deal of the songs on this album are about that while I needed to make that self-examination, particularly without mentioning sobriety. The music at that time, I knew it wasn’t two main themes are addiction and of past negative patterns in going to be sustainable, especially relationships. “I get so angry baby, co-dependency, and the stories after my decision to get sober.” at something you might say,” she of relationships and interactions As Katie embarked on her journey between people are framed by this. recalls over delicate guitar twangs to sobriety, she decided to take her on the folksy ‘Lilacs’ as she obsesses “It’s a precarious, fragile thing time and go back to the drawing over an imagined slight. Such that a lot of people choose not to board, creating something gentler destructive actions are picked apart share, and I understand that too. and more intimate that would place When I was trying to quit drinking - across ‘Saint Cloud’, but there’s no her voice at the forefront of each trying and failing then trying again anger or frustration present, just song. Despite this move towards – I always found it really comforting patience and truth. You get the further exposure, ‘Saint Cloud,’ impression that Katie has learned to to know that other people I looked displays the sort of quiet confidence up to were able to get sober. I feel accept the past in order to let go and that could only come from a move forward. like I’ve almost returned to form, happier, healthier mind.

“You can’t control anything. You to the person I was before I even “My earlier records like ‘Ivy can’t control how people are going started drinking when I was a Tripp’ and ‘Cerulean Salt’ have a to react to you, you can’t please teenager in a lot of the qualities lot more anxiety and insecurity in everybody, and you can’t be perfect.

I have again; the clarity and the them, whereas ‘Out in the Storm’ In deepening my understanding feeling of being hyper-productive. and definitely ‘Saint Cloud’ come of that, I’ve learned not to let those My work ethic came back in a way from a more confident and less self- that had not been there, it had been things that I can’t control dictate questioning place. The difference my happiness. I really feel like it’s fuzzed out for a long time.” between those two albums is that taught me that trying to take care of No stranger to soul-baring ‘Out in the Storm’ is a crazy, raw yourself and love yourself and have storytelling, the shift in sound on record where I was processing my a life outside of all the craziness of ‘Saint Cloud’ allows for a whole emotions in real-time through music is the most important thing. new level of honesty. Revisiting those songs. With ‘Saint Cloud’ I It doesn’t matter what anyone says the sparser sounds of her earlier feel like I was doing a lot of work on work and eschewing the scrappy about this album, as I feel like I’ve myself outside of the music and that lo-fi of recent albums allows Katie made something really honest reflected how I went about writing that feels true and exciting to me.” to take us along for the ride, and with a style that was calmer and P Waxahatchee’s album ‘Saint lead-single ‘Fire’ is a breath-taking more at peace.”

Cloud’ is out 27th March. display of this intimacy. Despite

Upset 53

Rated_ THE OFFICIAL VERDICT ON EVERYTHING

BRIAN FALLON LOCAL HONEY

eeeee A conscious step away from the world of rock, Brian Fallon’s latest record is a mellow self-reflection from a man that is reaching middle-age and appears perfectly comfortable with it. Whereas on previous records he has usually cast a nostalgic eye at a past full of romance and cinematic moments, ‘Local Honey’ instead exists purely in the small moments of the present and is all the more interesting for it. Whether it is growing up, growing old, growing apart or growing more in love, there is no doubting that this is a record that deals squarely and truthfully with the onset of middle-age. Unashamedly a record for the smaller rooms and intimate settings, it marks the entry point into a whole new territory for one of America’s most interesting singersongwriters. P Jamie MacMillan

BURY TOMORROW CANNIBAL

eeeee

Up, Sunshine’ is a band at the very top of their overcrowded class.

ALL TIME LOW WAKE UP, SUNSHINE

eeeee

L

Yes, the salt to their smooth caramel may remains the same - through tales of love, heartbreak and a yearning for more, those genre rules apply - but once All Time Low let rip, those thick painted lines only serve to strengthen the picture the aim to paint. The choruses remain huge; ‘Sleeping In’ and its concentrated saccharine shot a particular treat. As ‘Melancholy Kaleidoscope’ proudly states; “can’t be 100 if you’re only giving 95.”

Living in the fast lane, All Time Low may be a much bigger, more mainstream friendly band than ever before, but they’re still having a riot. P Stephen

et’s be honest, All Time Low know their way round a good old fashioned banger. Eight albums in and they’ve got the art-form down to refined, well trained muscle memory. There’s nothing tired or boring about crafting unifying songs that stand as tall as mountains; in many ways, ‘Wake Ackroyd

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Six albums in and there’s no denying that Bury Tomorrow remain a band on the rise. The follow up to 2018’s standout ‘Black Flame’, ‘Cannibal’ has genuine expectations riding on it. Standing on the edge of something important, it’s the record that should tip the quintet over the edge and outside the confines of their scene.

It’s clear there’s something more personal than big ambitions at play, though. Lyrically, vocalist Dani Winter Bates is unafraid to delve into the muddier, murkier parts of his psyche, laying his experiences with his own mental health front and centre.

Metaphors and clouded meaning left behind, it makes for an even more visceral, essential undertone. From the battering ram of opener ‘Choke’ to the techy-tastic ‘Cold Sleep’, musically it’s just as essential too. Pushing their boundaries hard, ‘Cannibal’ is

overwhelmingly relatable and gush with charisma and charm. As with all good punk records, most tracks don’t hit the three-minute mark, and they don’t need to. The empowering messages and cathartic honesty are delivered in intelligent, short bursts of zealous energy and fiery passion, with a universal understanding of their self-worth. Dream Nails’ are more than a force to be reckoned with; they are ready to take on, change and disrupt the world. P

Jasleen Dhindsa the sound of a band taking that leap.

Just watch them land it, too.P Dan

Harrison

CABLE TIES FAR ENOUGH

eeeee Australia is a country in great musical form right now. From the rambunctious party anthems of Dune Rats to the visceral adrenaline rush in a mullet of Amyl & The Sniffers, there’s been no shortage of names to add to must listen lists over the last few years. They’re not done yet, though. With their second album - and first to be released internationally - Cable Ties are a trio to demand attention. Part rock, part punk and all attitude, there’s a genuine passion burning at their core.

Travel bans be damned, you’ll hear this one coming all the way from Down Under. P Dan Harrison

CODE ORANGE UNDERNEATH

eeeee Code Orange don’t do things by halves.

When they want to make a statement, you best believe they’re going to go in all guns blazing. The band’s experimentation with deconstructing everything in order to re-build it like the second Death Star is ‘Underneath’’s crowning jewel. Feeling like a crashing storm,

they know when to let the eye hit so melodies can shine through. You don’t know where they’ll turn next; exhilarating doesn’t even begin to cover it. P Steven Loftin

DOGLEG MELEE

eeeee Joining Origami Angel, Macseal and Glass Beach, Michigan’s Dogleg are part of a new generation of bands taking emo – in the broadest sense – in new and exciting directions.

And while these bands are all pushing innovation in the genre, none can match Dogleg for intensity.

‘Melee’ is thrillingly relentless in its pursuit of musical nirvana – characterised by lead single ‘Fox’, which starts like a dervish and collapses with exhaustion three minutes later. What you have here is 10 songs of pulsating post-hardcore tinged indie-rock that barrel along at perilous speed. P Rob Mair

DREAM NAILS DREAM NAILS

eeeee From being ghosted to the vapid tasks in office jobs, and the more positive rosetinted sugary sweet feelings of crushing on girls, Dream Nails’ debut record is full of feminist punk songs that are

HAGGARD CAT

COMMON SENSE HOLIDAY

eeeee Haggard Cat are pushing the limits of their already chaotic noise and using their platform to express their angst at modern society. At times buried beneath an echo chamber of ruckus, Matt Reynolds’ vocals are ever gravelly and almost pained in their desperate yelling, but ‘The Native’ serves as a reprieve in its more subdued delivery. Thematically, the main point on ‘Common Sense Holiday’ is finding out how to work through unrest, and while the album is in no way revolutionary to a new listener, it is testament to the saying that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. P

Tyler Damara Kelly

LIZZY FARRALL BRUISE

eeeee Lizzy Farrall knows what’s going on.

That’s the takeaway from her debut album ‘Bruise’.

While she’s definitively her own voice, she’s also got her finger firmly on the zeitgeist.

From the classic 1975-y bounce of ‘Knight Rider’ to the neon pop-rock brilliance of ‘Love No More’, she’s a welcome addition to an arsenal of artists that understand there’s joy to be found in high fidelity fun. P Dan

Harrison Upset 55

Rated_

MILK TEETH MILK TEETH

eeeee A lot has happened since the release of Milk Teeth’s debut album. Label changes, line-up swaps and a whole heap of struggle to push through - it’s remarkable just what a vibrant, strong willed beast their self-titled second full-length sounds. In Becky Blomfield, they have a voice that’s both gloriously loud and determined - unafraid to drag experiences across hot coals in an attempt to purge demons past and near-present. Opener ‘Given Up’ strains against its bindings, while ‘Sharks’ - predictably almost - has more than its fair share of teeth. More confident than ever before, Milk Teeth’s current incarnation is doubtlessly their strongest yet. Get out of their way, this train is coming through. P Stephen Ackroyd

OCEAN GROVE FLIP PHONE FANTASY

eeeee Ocean Grove aren’t wallflowers, that’s for sure. ‘Flip Phone Fantasy’ is an album dripping in attitude - like air raid sirens demanding rapped attention at every turn. ‘SUNNY’ is infectious, sunkissed, swaggering rock at its finest, while opener ‘Superstar’ crunches into the tackle and comes away with the metaphorical ball. No room for delicate subtlety here - Ocean Grove are guaranteed to make you look. P

Dan Harrison

ORCHARDS LOVECORE

eeeee To reference Paramore’s ‘After Laughter’ when talking about Orchards’ debut fulllength ‘Lovecore’ is the ultimate in tributes. Run through

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with the same tropical brilliance and juxtaposing party-while-theroom-burns dynamics, opener ‘Sincerely Overwhelmed’ is nothing short of glorious. This is far from a one trick album, mind. ‘Girlfriend’ is a vampy, bombastic monster, while ‘Social Sobriety’ is a spoken word, twinkling pause. It’s the album’s centrepiece ‘Magical Thinking’ that really stands out, though. As spellbinding as its name suggests, it’s a rush of sparkling joy - an apt description for a band tapping into something genuinely special. P Stephen Ackroyd

PARKWAY DRIVE VIVA THE UNDERDOGS

eeeee How do you celebrate your fifteen years of slugging it through blood, sweat and tears? You release a documentary so people know just what you’ve gone through, of course. Accompanying the onenight cinema release of ‘Viva The Underdogs’ - the Parkway Drive story - comes a live album recorded at one of the largest open-air festivals in the world, Germany’s Wacken Festival. This shining stage of Parkway’s success so far is full to the brim of everything we’ve come to love about them, and more.

While the set itself is an explosive listen, the crowning moment and pure unadulterated joy comes from the three re-recordings of originals

(‘The Void’, ‘Vicecut’ and ‘Shadowboxing’ feat German rapper Casper) tucked at the end. It’s this little present which pushes ‘Viva The Underdogs’ into a truly special package. P Steven Loftin

THE CHATS

HIGH RISK BEHAVIOUR

eeeee Any worries that ‘Smoko’ was gonna be a tough act to follow are slapped clean off faces within the first couple of minutes of ‘High Risk Behaviour’, the full-length debut from The Chats. Obviously inspired and influenced by the classic first wave of punk bands, the album resonates with a heat and intensity that can’t be easily put out. Like Amyl & The Sniffers’ debut last year, it hits that sweet spot of matching a classic sound with a set of rampaging anthems, unafraid to dabble in new styles that will continue to drag punk by its hair, whatever the style, deep into the 21st Century. P Jamie MacMillan

THE GARDEN

KISS MY SUPER BOWL RING

eeeee Four albums in, and So-Cal duo The Garden have certainly ploughed their own furrow.

Gloriously ragged, their latest remains a record

playing by its own rules. Opener ‘Clench To Stay Awake’ drifts between dreamy, woozy drone and visceral, screaming assault, while follow-up ‘A Struggle’ pushes through a disjointed avalanche of screams and thrashes before settling into a groove. Not always the easiest listen, it’s an album designed to keep the listener on the edge of their seat, before knocking them firmly off it.

P Dan Harrison

WALTER ETC.

Still, his re-badged Walter Etc. emerged triumphant. Something of a warts-and-all study of a disintegrating relationship, ‘Dark Comedy Performance…’, is a powerful and compelling example of narrative storytelling, filled with pathos and resigned humour.

Stylistically exciting and thematically brave, it’s an exceptional follow-up to one of 2017’s finest indie-pop records. P

Rob Mair

DARK COMEDY PERFORMANCE PIECE OF MY LIFE

WAXAHATCHEE

eeeee

eeeee

It’s been quite the recent ride for Walter Etc.’s Dustin Hayes.

From rebranding his longstanding folkpunk act Walter Mitty & His Makeshift Orchestra to moving back to his native California from Oregon, the latter part of the last decade has been marked by personal and professional upheaval.

SAINT CLOUD

“Where do you go when your mind starts to lose its perfected shape?” mourns Katie Crutchfield on the closing title-track. It is a question that runs through all of ‘Saint Cloud’, a record born from change and shifting emotional territories.

That feeling of change extends to

the sonic landscape too. Gone are the loud outbursts of ‘Out In The Storm’, vanquished too are the eccentricities of ‘Ivy Tripp’. In their place, a sense of calm and selfexploration on a journey that feels like it is happening both literally and spiritually.

Written in the immediate aftermath of a decision to go sober, ‘Saint Cloud’ deals with addiction, loss of control and a battle for Crutchfield’s very soul. Distinctly quieter than her previous work, the Americanatinged reflections act as a huge step-change for Waxahatchee and the record is all the stronger for it. Every song seems to exist in its own distinct location, and paints an evocative picture of her state of mind. By the time the gorgeous closing track that gives the album its name reaches its finale, it’s obvious that a resolution, of sorts, has been reached even if the final destination still remains unclear. A fascinating journey continues. P

Jamie MacMillan

And while one can make comparisons - to Nine Inch Nails, to the untethered nihilism of Slipknot s debut ‒ Underneath is its own species of wild animal 5K

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EVERYONE HAS THOSE FORMATIVE BANDS AND TRACKS THAT FIRST GOT THEM INTO MUSIC AND HELPED SHAPE THEIR VERY BEING. THIS MONTH, LIZZY FARRALL TAKES US THROUGH SOME THE SONGS THAT MEANT THE MOST TO HER DURING HER TEENAGE YEARS. WITH... LIZZY FARRALL LINKIN PARK Runaway Linkin Park was one of the first bands that I found myself relating to lyrically and inspired me to write more personal, honest music. They were also my gateway into heavier music.

‘Hybrid Theory’ is such an iconic album to me; it really connected with me in my early teens when I was unable to cope with my mental health. Runaway is one of my favourite songs by Linkin Park, and it is one I would find myself listening to the most when struggling.

Whenever I listen to it, it always takes me back to such a specific time in my life.

AVRIL LAVIGNE Nobody’s Home I saw Avril Lavigne as a role model; I even dressed up as her for my tenth birthday. I used to listen to this song on repeat on my MP3 player. She was very popular within my family, and I remember my older sisters going to her first ever UK tour. I used to watch the music video to this song a lot as well.

GWEN STEFANI Hollaback Girl As well as Avril Lavigne, I was obsessed with Gwen Stefani and looked up to her a lot while growing up. I loved her attitude and style. I used to drive my mum insane listening to this song on repeat and singing it word for word.

Recently I’ve had a lot of people say I remind them of her, which for me is honestly mental.

play it while cleaning up, and I specifically remember acting out this song with my beanie babies.

My love for Elton John and his unique fashion sense has carried on throughout my life.

ELTON JOHN Crocodile Rock

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE Killing In The Name

This song reminds me of my childhood as my mum would

I’ve always been a fan of Rage Against The Machine; I remember

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when this song got to the Christmas Number One spot, overtaking the X-Factor single. I love everything the band stands for. When I was 14, I joined a cover band, and when we played our first gig, we covered this song, and I sang. P

Lizzy Farrall’s debut album ‘Bruise’ is out 27th March.