YOUTH OF TODAY A FANZINE CELEBRATING THE UK'S HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE.
SWORN TO OATH, PETULANCE, TURNSTILE AND DRUG CHURCH
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WELCOME TO YOUTH OF TODAY. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE MUSIC SCENE. IT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE - READ WITH CAUTION. THIS ZINE IS ABOUT THE UK HARDCORE
WRITTEN AND DESIGNED
BY ALEX WALKER
Starting over is never easy. No matter how hard we try, there are always people and situations that stand in our way, often for no other reason than to make life difficult for us. Stoke-on-Trent based post-hardcore band, Sworn to Oath have transformed these obstacles into a vehicle for their music, channelling their growing pains into their forthcoming ‘New Beginning’ EP. “There is a central theme behind the EP, although we didn’t realise it until we put all the songs together” says drummer Al Junior of the release. “All the tracks tell different stories from the perspective of how we felt in that period of time and how we were in the process of maturing and growing as individuals. Dave
joined the band just after we released our first EP ‘Pillars’ too and the title ‘New Beginning’ seemed like a perfect fit.” Speaking of the new line-up from guitarist Dave, vocalist Tom Shaw explains how the new EP has influenced a change in the bands sound. “New Beginning marks the start of a more honed in and refined sound. We wanted to show that we have grown and matured a lot but wanted to get heavier yet still remain melodic. Generally, our songs are living life to the full while you still have a chance. Lyrically the EP is about personal experiences of being fucked over and rising above the bullshit we face in life.” With ‘New Beginning’ being released shortly, the band are
THE DETAILS BASED: Stoke-On-Trent, England FOR FANS OF: While She Sleeps and Architects SOCIAL: twitter.com/sworntooath BUY IT: NOW New Beginning single is out now on iTunes and Amazon SEE THEM LIVE: Brighton Sticky Mikes (April 17), London Surya (18), York Aatchb (19), Doncaster Social (20).
already looking into the future to where they want the band to go. “We are currently preparing for our European tour which will run throughout April which we’re super excited about. We’ve just finished touring with While She Sleeps and we’re hoping that ‘New Beginning’ is well received and we can make our first jump onto the festival circuit this year and continue to share stages with amazing bands. Once that’s done, we’re heading back into the studio as we’ve already got ideas for our debut album.” ‘New Beginning’ is released on April 1st, via Transcend Music. You can catch the band on their European tour starting from April 10th.
Josh Vocals Luke Guitar
Gareth Bass Josh Drums
wer to hard hitting Petulance is Reading’s ans by the likes of hardcore, highly influenced Will Prevail. With Knuckledust and Brutality t EP under their belt, the success of their firs themselves for their Petulance are preparing at Fightfest. first festival performance
and your band. Please introduce yourself st for Petulance. I’m Josh, I’m the vocali nd from Reading, We’re a heavy hardcore ba to play around the and have had the fortune UK. the band name, How did you come up with Petulance? something like The word petulance means We’re having a being foolish or idiotic. ng a blast and not laugh being foolish, havi y. The word sounds taking life too seriousl cool too so that helped. at was the main When did you form and wh purpose of Petulance? r songs are about Lyrically, all/most of ou g I personally got modern slavery. Somethin ar ago. We’ve been really interested in a ye just over a year, we a band as a 4 piece for llege. came together through co three word and Define your sound and in elaborate on that. Eerie. Fast. Anger. y tempo changes and Our sound is mix of heav change our sound preachy angry vocals, we with the mood.
Petulance is from Read ing, what is the hardcore scene like th ere? The scene used to be am azing and then it died, I wasn’t exposed to hardcore from the time it was live in Re ading but I’d love to have seen it. A lot of people in Reading are fond of hardcore, most of them are my friends and we all know each other and get along. It’s a good crow d of people. You’ve released you ‘S urviving Deprival’ back in August last ye ar, what’s the story behind the EP? The EP was a blast to make, our friend helped us make it and it turned out great! I like the grittiness to it all and how it gets that DIY feel. It’s mainly about slavery, there’s a song in there about my two friends who aren’t with us anymore, it’s lyrically a very sad EP, channelled through vicious instru mentals Petulance are playing Fightfest this month, what are your expectat ions? So excited! Getting to play with friends, have some beers and ha ve a laugh! That’s the case with most gigs , they are fun and cheerful, no nonsense or fighting (ignoring the name of the fest). Who do Petulance take inspiration from? For me, Parkway Drive, Hatebreed, Limp Bizkit. As a band we lo ok to heavier bands in hardcore like Knuckl edust and Brutality Will Prevail as inspir ation, I would say the whole hardcore scene in general inspires us, it’s such a tight, welcoming society of the nicest people. What can fans expect fr om Petulance this year? We’ve got new music wr itten up and will hopefully be releasing it this year, we don’t want to put out any fillers. Expect a more diverse, open re lease from us this year.
Hevy Festival has been the home for hardcore fans since it began in 2009. Based in Port Lympne Reserve Park in Kent, the festival was a small contender amongst the larger alternative festivals such as Download and Sonisphere. They found their niche by offering the fan base a two-day festival solely focused on hardcore music and the chance for us fans to see our favourite international bands such as Madball, Glassjaw and Descendents at a lowcost price.
Six years on, the scene has changed dramatically and Hevy Fest have lost its niche. The festival is now in competition with sell-out DIY day festivals in rough and ready venues, put on by music promoters within the scene. These day festivals run on supporting the local hardcore scene and reclaiming DIY ethics, as opposed to making money. Day festivals such as Ghostfest and Outbreak bring a music scene to areas of the country such as the north which is largely ignored by mainstream festivals. By bringing
DIY shows outside of the capital, it has broken the northern and southern divide and has reinforced unity within our scene. This unity created through DIY festivals is something which Hevy Fest fell short on. On paper the festival sounded like a great concept: A festival in the middle of summer, in a field with a killer line up of international bands on different stages. What the festival was missing was the hardcore atmosphere which can only be created in a close
knit environment and not at a festival with security and barriers. From my experiences of Hevy Fest, it’s a festival which is poorly organised but always tried to create a bill worthy of international and national bands. The recent decision to up sticks from Kent and move to Derby to attract a wider audience to the festival has sparked panic across the community. Hevy Fest was once popular because of the unique location - Port Lympne Reserve Park is home to over 650
animals including endangered species. For every festivalgoer, they were able to explore the zoo free of charge. The relocation to Derby’s Peak District does not offer festival-goers the same experience but furthermore limits festival-goers from in and around London. Since it began, the festival has relocated twice, Derby will be the third. This is a brave move for organisers but the real question is if it will pay off. With the recent announcement of no headliners and no hardcore bands, it seems as if Hevy has
strayed away from its hardcore heritage. I fear Hevy Festival has lost its hardcore community and have failed to react to the changes within the scene. With rival DIY festivals costing a fraction less and big names in the festival industry booking the sought after bands, Hevy Fest can no longer compete.
If gender is absolutely fluid, then why in the music world those who veer too far into a male dominated scene, be punished for it?
There is a stereotype that lives in our scene where women aren’t taken as serious fans of hardcore music. The name ‘fangirl’ implies there is a hierarchy of fan with men placed firmly at the top. It not only belittles the value of women as music fans, but negatively dismisses us and portrays women as being superficial. This hierarchy in the scene does not exclude female musicians; they too experience sexism first hand.
live in a culture of entitlement but some feel the they have the right to exercise that right and invade nonconsenting strangers. Take the Tigers Jaw show back in 2014 when a male fan tried to kiss front-woman, Brianna Collins. It’s not that female musicians aren’t becoming accepted, it’s that there is no respect for them as individuals outside of the public eye.
Sadly, the scene still has a long way to go in order to abolish this hierarchy. From personal experience, I have been groped and held across the waist by a stranger without consent, while stood in a large crowd. That not-so-accidental hand slip ruins the gig experience and makes a woman feel uncomfortable at a place which should represent unity.
This derogatory behaviour just further attests to the fact that women are still not seen as equals in the hardcore scene. At shows there are still the few who roll their eyes whenever a woman enters the stage or gets involved in the crowd. Rather than pointing out the female individual in the band or in the crowd, we should be praising them for the actively getting involved with the music scene.
It sucks that we
Wolf Down vocalist
Larissa, has been one of the most outspoken females in the scene. When I saw Wolf Down in 2014, Larissa was forward with her opinion on women in the hardcore scene “sexism has always been a big problem in our society. In circles everyone should feel welcome, for example women in hardcore aren’t taken seriously. People think that girls aren’t strong which is bullshit, girls are the same as boys. There’s no fucking difference – you can do whatever you want.” Despite her inspirational speech, there were mutters in the crowd of how “she needs to be fucked hard” and using vulgar language of “cuntcore” instead of hardcore to describe her music genre. It is the idea that her worth as a musician does not compare to her male counterparts and because of this, her body exist only for male consumption
and as a result she is judged solely on her fuckability.
In a scene which has long stood for acceptance, equality and progressive thought, it’s a real shame to see such a regression within some members of the scene by their continuation of their sexist attitudes. For the large majority of civilised progressive society, sexism is unfortunately
something that is still deeply rooted into our unconscious thoughts and biases. It’s this lack of realisation which is particularly disruptive and often everyday sexism goes without challenge. The hardcore scene has always been a place for pushing progressive thought and ideals. By eradicating the prehistoric attitudes in our own scene first, we can then propagate this to a wider society. But first it
needs to be met headon internally. How can we do this? By overtly calling people out on their sexism, even if it’s unconscious. Only by calling this out can we start to have discussions about the ubiquitous sexism found in the scene and start to change minds.
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The rise of lo-fi culture Imagine this: away from entrance fees and security guards, there is a world where art and music were made purely for the art and music’s sake. Where profit is not at the forefront and curfews are non-existent. A community made up of individuals who feel passionate to give back to the scene as opposed to exploiting it. Here in Britain, music is our greatest export, yet it is an industry which is confined to rules and regulations of what you can and can’t do. The scene has always gone against the grain and DIY has offered hardcore the means to create a community which is absent of the mainstream norms. DIY shows offer bands the freedom to be nonconformists and create music that does not need to be toned down for a mainstream audience in order to sell records. Bands like Minor Threat and Black Flag have achieved success in hardcore by playing underground DIY shows to audiences who share similar ethical stances.
This middle-finger-up attitude to society and DIY ethics is why hardcore still lives on today. When Minor Threat promoted the message of straight edge to an underground audience, never did they estimate the influence of their message would live on 30 years later. Straight edge continues to plays a huge influence within the scene and only now has it began to filter into the mainstream. Without straight edge, the hardcore community would not be what it is today. It’s a message that has been spread through the underground nature of hardcore with no interference of mainstream medias to dilute the message. Without our DIY culture, hardcore cannot continue to be a form of uncensored means of expression but rather a form of expression polluted with rules and regulations. DIY shows is partly what has kept the scene alive, but in recent times these tiny venues that have served the community in a
way the traditional venues never could, are slowly closing down. Here in the UK, it is estimated in the past ten years 40 percent of London’s music venues have closed. Without small venues new bands have no platform to build up their fan bases, promote the message of hardcore and get their name out there. Independent music promoter Barney Hall has been bringing hardcore to towns across the SouthCoast and London since last year and he has felt the effects of the closure of small venues: “In the last couple of years a lot of venues have been closed down. Due to the lack of venues available, there’s been a new found resurgence in house show culture. Many people and myself included, have resorted to putting music on in our own homes as there aren’t enough venues or venues will charge too much to hire. The hardcore scene is still pumping out good music and DIY part of the community.”
Live performance is where hardcore shines and small venues are the lifeblood of the hardcore scene. You’d be hard-pressed to think of a gig you’ve been to which hasn’t been put on by individuals in the scene. Without these promoters putting in the hard work to put on shows, the UK’s hardcore community would only exist in major cities. It is down to these promoters’ that small towns across the UK have their own chunk of local hardcore bands and followers, whether that be in small venues or house shows. Barney has teamed up with friends from the hardcore community to host their first all-day festival this month “Amongst the Chaos is our first all-day festival. We wanted to have a festival which not only was about the music but offered a little extra. We’ve gone out of our way to give out free vegan food made by myself and Dominique as a way of giving back to the community.” It’s these selfless
efforts to provide for bands and cater for the community that continue to support the DIY scene in troubling times. DIY community is too resilient to let setback like the closure of small venues get in the way of the authenticity of DIY. With the internet culture being predominant today, the hardcore scene will continue to evolve. From the rise of internet culture, we can now record music from our bedrooms without the need for a record label, we can be the makers of our own consumption and we can distribute our creative works via the web with global reach, for comparatively no cost. With the Governments’ new legislation coming into force this month which is designed to protect small venues against property developers, DIY culture will continue to thrive. When there is a community as passionate about each other like the hardcore scene, there will always been a place for DIY
culture. In recent news, £7000 was raised via crowdfunding to save The Owl Sanctuary. This is a perfect example of the hardcore scene and music scene as a large coming together to fight governmental threats to everything they stand for. All being said, it’s important for us as members of the hardcore community to make a conscious effort to connect with our local area and build connections with local pubs, churches, function rooms, and anywhere that could conceivably host shows. Rather than sit back and complain passively about the dying scene, we each must make efforts to help put on our own shows, following the footsteps of regular fans like Barney. Once we each make this ongoing effort to support the scene, we can be confident the hardcore scene will continue to thrive, through the power of the people and that of the hardcore community.
- HOUSE SHOW -
- SOUTHAMPTON, DECEMBER -
DECEIT DISCONNECTED
9.5
BACK DOWN PUSHING FORWARD
7.0
Deceit have released their long awaited debut EP, ‘Disconnected’ via Bandcamp. This is a new project made up by former members of War Charge and Frontline. ‘Disconnected’ may only be 12 minutes long, but this four track EP isn’t your average run of the mill. What Deceit bring to the party a strong 90s hardcore edge with influences from Strife and Unbroken. From the first track, Deceit deliver gnarly hooks, punchy riffs and a sense of angst throughout. If you’re looking for an EP with barrels of energy and infectious gang vocals, check out ‘Disconnected’. Former members of Honour Your Pain, Failure to Follow and Dogfight, have teamed up to create Bristol’s hardcore super group, Back Down. Pushing Forward is their second release following their previous EP, Against All Odds. Compared to their previous release, Back Down have taken a more aggressive approach which Pushing Forward, which in return leaves listeners with an infectious melody from the boundless vocal hooks. With beatdowns and great vibes throughout, this is an EP which is sure to make waves in the hardcore scene. This EP is one not to be missed and it is a must-listen for fans of Trapped Under Ice and Knuckledust.
DESOLATED THE END
9.5
REFLECT DEMO
9.5
The Southampton lads are back with their second full length following their ground breaking ‘Disorder of Mind’. This short but sweet EP, picks up where ‘Disorder of Mind’ left off and is packed from start to finish with heavy grooves and fightinducing riffs. Featuring 10 songs, two of which are pure instrumentals, ‘The End’ offers listeners a harrowing and heavy insight of a man coping with a broken mind whilst incorporating
Desolated’s signature style of beatdown hardcore – this is not one for the faint hearted. Opening track ‘The Beginning’ features the Malevolence vocalist who’s growls compliment the harsh vocals of Desolated. Tracks like ‘Olanzapine’ feature a unique collaboration with female vocalist Larissa from Venom’s Prison whose high pitched vocals provide the hardcore cries. Overall, ‘The End’ is a well-rounded beatdown hardcore album full of intensity and energy.
Hailing from Manchester, Reflect is the UK’s answer to America’s Have Heart and Judge. This is their first EP as a band and from first impressions it’s one that will make their mark within the scene. Between them, members of Reflect have played in bands such as Insist, Unjust and Survival. With a track record of creating colossal breakdowns and hectic riffs in their previous
bands, Reflect shows their melodic side tied in with late 80s hardcore in this short 10 minute Demo. The Demo opens with ‘First To Fall’ which is a monstrous build up fuelled with powerful gang vocals. While ‘Demo’ only consists of four short but melodic tracks, it’s clear the straight edge message has been at the centre of the record and ‘Down The Line’ demonstrates the personal perspective of the straight edge ethos lyrically.
Hardcore quintet return with a sold out killer show, fuelled with explosive energy
Let’s not fuck about: KOKO isn’t the best venue in London to host a hardcore show. The Camden based venue is renown for putting barriers for majority of their shows hosted there. Despite this, tonight the venue is at its full capacity for hardcore punk band, Turnstile. If you’ve never been to a Turnstile show, prepare yourself for mic-grabs, two stepping and bodies flying. With the success of their latest debut album ‘Nonstop Feeling’, it’s not wonder Turnstile have been one of the most talked about hardcore bands of the year. This sold out show is just a testament to their reign within the hardcore community and it is no surprise by the time they are due to take their place on stage, bodies are already flying.
Seconds upon taking arrival to the stage, the quintet make their presence known and make use of every space available in tonight’s venue. You would think a venue the size of KOKO, Turnstile’s intimate and DIY sound would get lost in translation, but vocalist Brandan Yates is more than willing to get involved with the crowd at the barrier. Over the course of the 40-minute pummeling set, Turnstile deliver an infectious vibe that fills the room with high levels of energy. As they rip through material from the latest ‘Nonstop Feeling’ record, tracks such as ‘Drop’ and ‘Gravity’ prove to be biggest crowd pleasers. While there is emphasis on their latest debut album, Turnstile haven’t strayed away from their roots and
perform tracks such as ‘Keep It Moving’ and ‘Pushing Me Away’ from their previous EP’s ‘Step 2 Rhythm’ and ‘Pressure To Succeed’. With their 90’s groove and aggressive sound, Turnstile are hardcore through and through: Guitar chugging, tempo stomping and raw emotion. Their infectious vibe has certainly rubbed off on tonight’s crowd who are left feeling bruised and soaked after Turnstile close with Canned Heat. Turnstile are the real deal: powerful, intense and full of positive energy.
Sweat-soaked punks road-test crazed new songs at grippingly intense show
For Drug Church, this year has been spread across various time zones in order to demolish expectations of what aggressive hardcore punk should sound like. Along the way, the five-piece have found time to make a stop-over at a sold out show at the 1865 in Southampton. This is day two of a twelve-day tour promoting their latest album ‘Hit Your Head’ and anticipation is in the air tonight.
Drug Church’s approach to hardcore music is an acquired taste, for starters majority of their songs sung in spoken word. While their approach sounds great on record, a live performance in spoken word changes all the social conduct and atmosphere at a ‘typical’ hardcore show. Despite my cynical view on how tonight’s proceedings would go, this trippy hardcore band left me wanting more.
From the get-go, vocalist Patrick Kindlon makes this small venue in Southampton his own. He has bundles of energy that creates an amusing and animated stage presence – he is extremely wideeyed and expressive. His dominating stage presence could be down to the fact he is unable to take centre stage in his other band, Self Defense Family who consists of 16 members. Unfortunately, this
energy from Kindlon cannot be said for the other members of Drug Church who mirror a statue-like presence in comparison. Despite this, it’s their gravely vocals and punchy guitar chords that send shivers down the audience’s spine and entices them to get moving. As they smash through ‘Riding the Bus to Schenectady’ fans are reminded why Drug Church are the reformers of hardcore punk. Tracks like ‘Work-Shy’, with its staggered build and the spoken wordinfused ‘But Does It Work?’ proves that they are more than a three-chord, hardcore band. The setlist tonight demonstrates the bands diversity and their blend of hardcore punk with a cool 80s twist. With that being said, there are some touch and go moments tonight. As Kidlton attempts to amuse the crowd with small talk such as “I don’t know what part of the country we’re in, South West Wales? I can’t tell the difference between Wales and England” the crowd are left feeling speechless. He is soon forgiven once he manages to raise an applause from the crowd
following his speech on helping small venues by requesting the audience buy a drink to keep them in business. Overall, Drug Church are gritty, captivating and nothing you will have seen on stage before. With croaky vibes and dirty aggressive riffs, Drug Church will pump adrenaline through your body and send you to a psychedelic universe.
DAN BRAGG, JANNIK HOLDT, OLLY HANKS, JAMES OLDFIELD, SARAH-TSANG, ANDY FORD, PETULANCE, SWORN TO OATH, BARNEY HALL