PERFECT DAY HAS MOVED HOME

HEY,

EVERYTHING FROM HERE HAS BEEN MOVED TO THE PERFECT DAY TUMBLR WHICH WILL NOW BE A LOT NICER TO LOOK AT, UPDATED MORE FREQUENTLY AND GENERALLY JUST BETTERERER. PEACE!

THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN - 'One Of Us Is The Killer'

Holy shit! I’ve just pressed play for the first time after anticipating the new Dillinger Escape Plan release for months and months now. I’ve been a big fan of these guys, who I believe to be the most extreme band to have ever existed, since their early days and have always had a strong opinion when it comes to debating this with others, justifying why nobody can fucking touch this band. Not now. Not ever. But I’m almost entirely lost for words. How the fuck am I supposed to review a Dillinger album and write anything that means a single thing to anybody that is a fan or simply knows about them and what they do already? How the fuck do I analyse these eleven tracks and outline this record and band for people that know nothing about them? I feel like I am completely unqualified to be in a position where somebody might read this review, take into account my opinion, and make a decision as to whether they want to check “One Of Us Is The Killer” out or not. One thing is for sure, “One Of Us Is The Killer” is as good a record as any other if you’re looking for an introduction to the New Jersey party smashers because they never hold back. Not now. Not ever.

Before this record was available to myself and my fellow Britons, I read a few of the early reviews it had received in the States. I did this with the hope of quenching my thirst for this new material by trying to imagine what it was that others were describing. For the most part, this was successful. However, I noticed what seemed to be a rather large amount of people writing essentially the same thing. A lot of reviewers seemed to be mentioning the fact that “One Of Us Is The Killer” is their most accessible album. Now, this is The Dillinger Escape Plan we are talking about, I wouldn’t really describe any of their material as “accessible”, unless you’re already big on extreme metal genres. I can’t imagine many non-Dillinger fans saying “I really couldn’t understand ‘Miss Machine’, but this is a lot easier to get into” or “’Option Paralysis’ was a but too heavy for my liking, so I’m glad they’ve put a few more calmed down bits on this record”. As far as I see it, you’re either a Dillinger fan or you’re not. Simple as that. They aren’t going to be picking up any more fans with this release, save for people that had never heard them before and are only just realising they exist and are incredible (my message for those people is you’re in for a real fucking treat once you’ve explored their entire discography).

Another common theme was “’X’ song would fit really neatly on ‘X’ album” and “’X’ reminds me a lot of ‘X’ from ‘X’”. No way! You’re telling me that one of their songs sounds a bit like a song they might have put on another record? Maybe it’s because they were written by the same band. Maybe it’s because that band aren’t the type to jump on any bandwagon and adapt their style according to the requests and needs of others. Maybe it’s because The Dillinger Escape Plan, despite plenty of lineup changes, stick to making an experimental sound that emulates nobody and has literally no competition. That’s why some of these tracks sound interchangeable with ones from previous releases!

Then we have the early-Dillinger purists, the social network army of ‘mathcore’ snobs that constantly refer to “Calculating Infinity” and how they haven’t liked anything the band did since then. Congratulations guys, you’ve left a YouTube comment to show everybody that you used to listen to them before there was any singing in their music, and now you don’t like them because it isn’t what it used to be. Let me just clear something up for you – that album came out in 1999 and about ten different people have played in this band since then. Their main annoyance seems to be with Greg Puciato (vocalist since 2001) and his use of sung, rather than shouted, vocals. Personally, I believe that this has done nothing but improve their music. The contrast between the two vocal styles Greg exhibits is what makes The Dillinger Escape Plan’s music so much more chaotic. It’s never long before the storm arrives and it gives these parts a much stronger impact than “Calculating Infinity”‘s constant madness. This contrast is very prominent on the new album. Tracks like “Nothing’s Funny”, “One Of Us Is The Killer” and “Magic That I Held You Prisoner” are all testament to the fact that Greg has an amazing singing voice and he’s obviously happy to demonstrate it, regardless of what the YouTube critics have to say.

This album is another masterpiece in terms of structure, it flows perfectly from start to finish and every song is a fantastic amalgamation of crazy time signatures, some of the best drumming you can expect to ever hear, jazz tendencies and brute force. Of course, “One Of Us Is The Killer” is packed with Ben Weinman’s famous biddly-biddly-biddly guitar work and broken riffs that put most metal acts to shame, proving that the only original member of this group is still completely capable of writing insane experimental music without it becoming stale and unoriginal.

My personal favourites are “When I Lost My Bet” for the amount of times it switches up and how crazy powerful each transformation is, and “Crossburner” for it’s stoner bassline and downright heaviness. This release shows that The Dillinger Escape Plan are still at the top of their game, and that nobody is even getting close to matching them at what they do. Not now. Not ever.

5/5 Stars

Original Link - Dying Scene
The Dillinger Escape Plan Offical Website
The Dillinger Escape Plan Facebook
Party Smasher Inc. Official Website

THE GREAT ESCAPE 2013 - TITLE FIGHT @ Concorde2, Brighton. 16/05/2013

Kingston, Pennsylvania’s Title Fight seem to have already secured their place as a hugely influential band in the world of melodic punk rock/hardcore. Tonight is a fine example of why as they blast through tracks such as ‘Secret Society’, ‘Shed’ and ‘Safe In Your Skin’ (which, in our opinion, should always be followed by ‘Where Am I?’ but sadly wasn’t). The crowd are insane throughout the set, and there aren’t many moments when somebody isn’t going up for a surf or piling forwards for a singalong. Top quality show. Imagine if Concorde2 had no crowd barrier…

Brighton Source - The Great Escape 2013 Reviews
Title Fight Facebook
Title Fight Bandcamp

EAT A QUEER FOETUS 4 JESUS @ The Quadrant, Brighton. 14/05/2013

As the title suggests, this show was hardly ever going to be in especially good taste. Unfortunately, we are still in two minds as to whether it was actually any good or not. Fair enough, there were a fistful of laugh-out-loud moments and Richard Coughlan is a very charismatic storyteller, but do we really need any more jokes about Catholic priests touching kids, Michael Jackson being neither black nor white or Nick Griffin being a Nazi? This is where our post-show confusion lies, because whilst these jokes were sometimes incredibly predictable and wholly unnecessary, they still had us and the rest of the crowd roaring with laughter. Coughlan works the room well and clearly isn’t afraid to ruffle a few feathers as he touches on subjects such as abortion and paedophilia. But I guess that’s what you come to expect from the kind of guy that takes methamphetamine for an entire week before shitting himself in Tesco.

Brighton Source - Fringe Reviews Part 2
Richard Coughlan Twitter

ROB AUTON: THE YELLOW SHOW @ The Warren, Brighton. 11/05/2013

“Yellow, and yelcome” announces Rob Auton as his show, entirely about the colour yellow, begins. In actual fact, the show began at least five minutes previously with him awkwardly decorating the room with a multitude of yellow objects, handing yellow ribbon to someone in the front row and gesturing for them to pass it along until the entire crowd was wrapped in yellow and returning to the sound booth countless amounts of times to ensure ‘Yellow Submarine’ continued to irritatingly loop. Does this sound odd enough to you yet? Well, the following hour consisted of conversations between two envious sponges that are sick of seeing their old friend Spongebob popping up everywhere they look, poetry about shopping for pineapples, grapefruit and Marmite (for the lid) and the most epic way anybody has ever made a Berocca. All viewed through his homemade Yelevision glasses. Charming and incredibly bright.

Brighton Source - Fringe Reviews Part 2
Rob Auton Official Website
Rob Auton Twitter

WHY DON'T WE KILL OURSELVES? @ The Caroline Of Brunswick, Brighton. 05/05/2013

Patrick Lappin’s work in progress show is an hilarious insight into his depressing life. Okay, that doesn’t sound like the kind of thing you go to a comedy show to laugh at, but Patrick executes it in a way that brings out the funnier side to life events such as a harsh breakup, the loss of a relative, being an Aston Villa fan and running away from a wedding crying whilst shouting about women staying at home to wash their tits. The bits that he warns us aren’t supposed to be funny genuinely aren’t, but a couple of great callbacks, musical interludes from artists that killed themselves, the greatest/worst hype-man in the world and some relatively heavy drinking put the smiles back on everybody’s faces. Pretty rough in parts, much like Aston Villa’s season, but definitely a show to keep an eye out for if you’re heading to the Edinburgh Fringe this summer. (CB)

Brighton Source - Fringe Reviews Part 1
Patrick Lappin Official Website
Patrick Lappin Twitter

ALLISTER

The Haunt, Wednesday 22^nd May

Back in the early to mid 2000s Drive-Thru Records were the go-to label when it came to pop-punk and emo for teenagers. Their roster included New Found Glory, RX Bandits, Homegrown, Finch and The Movielife. Another of those bands was Allister, who's second LP 'Last Stop Suburbia' recently had it's ten year anniversary. To celebrate a whole decade's worth of “Somewhere Down On Fullerton”, Allister are embarking on a UK tour to perform the catchy release in its entirety.

Support from Heroes For Hire + Hero + As It Is

£10

14+

Ticket Link 

Allister Facebook 

Heroes For Hire Facebook 

As It Is Bandcamp 

As It Is Facebook 

TITLE FIGHT

Concorde 2, Thursday 16^th May

Grungy punk rock band Title Fight have been causing quite a stir mostly after they released second album 'Shed' in 2011, instantly becoming one of the biggest names on the scene. Borrowing elements of 90s emo, contemporary pop-punk and post-hardcore, they have created a distinguishable sound that very few can hold a candle to. A whole wave of young bands both sides of the Atlantic often cite Pennsylvania's Title Fight as a key influence, and it's easy to hear why. 

Support from Sharks + Palm Reader + Champagne + Whirr

£8.50 +B.F

Entry for Great Escape wristband holders is on a first-come first-served basis

Ticket link 

Title Fight Bandcamp 

Title Fight Facebook 

Sharks Facebook 

Palm Reader Bandcamp 

Palm Reader Facebook 

Whirr Bandcamp 

Whirr Facebook 

FRESH PUNK 3

Sticky Mike's Frog Bar, Wednesday 1^st May

Seven bands for £4 is something you can't really turn down. And if you attended the last Fresh Punk event back in September, you'll know this is worth getting down and getting loose for. Gruff Cornish crew Bangers headline, whose name should paint a clear enough picture of what their songs are like. Support comes from four Brighton bands in Fighting Fiction, Eager Teeth, Birdskulls and Wrecktheplacefantastic, along with Eastbourne's ROAM and Norwich's Ducking Punches.

Facebook Event Page 

Ticket Link 

Bangers Bandcamp 

Bangers Facebook 

Fighting Fiction Bandcamp 

Fighting Fiction Facebook 

Eager Teeth Bandcamp 

Eager Teeth Facebook 

Birdskulls Bandcamp 

Birdskulls Soundcloud 

Birdskulls Facebook 

Wrecktheplacefantastic Bandcamp 

Wrecktheplacefantastic Facebook 

ROAM Bandcamp 

ROAM Facebook 

Ducking Punches Bandcamp 

Ducking Punches Facebook 

LET'S TALK DAGGERS - 'Fantastic Contraption'

Living in Brighton for the past four years, I've always been led to believe that Eastbourne doesn't really have much going for it – old people, a just-as-crap-as-Brighton beach, similarly crap attractions and more old people. But if any of that has, in any shape or form, pushed the guys in Let's Talk Daggers to start writing music and thus create this brilliant release, then I'm happy to reconsider my opinion.

'Fantastic Contraption' sounds like the record The Dillinger Escape Plan would've put out if they were English and signed to Household Name Records in 2003 (there's even a bit of horn on single 'Have A Gabble'). A quirky blend of punk rock, technical metal riffs and spazzy time signatures that are easiest to keep up with if you happen to be having a seizure whilst listening. They're a bit like Rolo Tomassi if they were to take themselves less seriously, or if Reuben were more mental than we already remember them to have been.

Let's Talk Daggers are going to be picking up fans from all over with this release, because despite being chaotic and erratic , it is also catchy and accessible. I'm still not so sure about the riff at the end of 'Humannequin', but since I get the impression that it might have been included for a laugh, I'm happy to let that one go and highly recommend giving this mini-album a listen.

Let's Talk Daggers Bandcamp 

Let's Talk Daggers Facebook 

Tangled Talk Records 

A Short Fanzine About Rocking - Spring 2013 Issue Out Now 

C.R.O.W.N - 'Psychurgy'

This gloomy release from French two-piece C.R.O.W.N is a great soundtrack to the dismal weather we have been graced with this winter/early spring (snow in March, in London, seriously??). Combining both ambient soundscapes with Isis style slow-tempo drums and simple yet hypnotic riffs, C.R.O.W.N are definitely a band worth checking out if sludgy post-rock is your thing. The electronic drums are a nice touch on this record, and the synthesised atmospherics give it an industrial feel and help to break up an image of a grey winter forest that is painted by the heavier bits of this release.

I wouldn't say that there is anything groundbreaking going on here, but C.R.O.W.N know how to do slow, heavy and detaching music. You can definitely get lost in your thoughts listening to this album and it's blatantly great music for getting stoned to.

I'm taking this moment to nickname this band “the trance from France”. I wonder if that'll catch on...

C.R.O.W.N Bandcamp 

C.R.O.W.N Facebook 

A Short Fanzine About Rocking - Spring 2013 Issue Out Now!! 

SLAVES @ The Blind Tiger, Brighton. 27/03/2013

The launch night of Sharing Needles was a bit of a flop despite its solid lineup. It was so cold outside, it was Wednesday, the first band started an hour and a half later than expected, next big thing Slaves played to a near empty room and it was obviously under-promoted. It’s a shame because all three bands tonight deserve to be playing their songs to more people than just the other bands, a handful of friends and the bar staff.

Eventual openers Zoëtrope are an all-girl grungey, riot grrrly group. Pretty noisy and angry in all the best ways, they sound like they’ve listened to a lot of Sleater-Kinney. Their music video played on loop as a backdrop and was psychedelic in a “woah, acid!” kind of way. My favourite of theirs was the one where the drummer sang “Don’t fucking look at me!” as it reminded me of any of the Crass tracks that have Eve Libertine on vocals, which is never a bad thing.

I Like The Gogo step it up a notch with their guitar and drums combo banging out raw, pure garage punk party tunes that are ideal for drinking beer to. Sure, they do a relatively similar thing to Slaves, but I Like The Gogo fit perfectly on the bill next to them and are worth keeping an eye on. It’s a shame it wasn’t busier tonight as they provide they perfect soundtrack for it all to start kicking off.

With the few people in attendance slightly more inebriated, Slaves played to a slightly more rewarding “crowd” that were keen on a drunken dance. A set that peaked with ‘White Knuckle Ride’ and the excellent ‘Beauty Quest’ prove why they’re a band you’re going to be hearing a lot about. Slaves have a real punk attitude that takes indie rock by its tiny, shriveled balls and tells it to stop being a pussy. It really was a shame that hardly anybody came out for this gig because this band truly deserve better. The following night Slaves were to play a Vice magazine party in London, which I’m sure would’ve been mental in comparison. Tonight they performed only to a few people, but at least I’ll have that story to tell when these guys blow up.

DISEMBARKED - 'I Do Nothing But Regret The Fact I Left'

Considering the vast amount of screamo/post-hardcore revivalist bands knocking around in the US and UK at the moment, it comes as a quite a surprise that one of the best current records in this genre would instead come from Sweden. It’s true though, there has definitely been an over-saturation of bands that “sound a bit like Defeater” or “sound a bit like Touché Amoré” in recent years. As much as I admire Pianos Become The Teeth for their ferocious onslaught and La Dispute for their off-kilter poetic twist, the influence these bands have had on this new wave of acts both sides of the Atlantic is often far too apparent and it can get a bit boring to hear.

I’m a big fan of this genre and have been since I was a teenager, so in defense of some of these unoriginal “wave-riders” that we see popping up as an opening act for a band that sound exactly like a better version of them, at least they aren’t all playing the tough-guy hardcore or hardcore/death metal crossover you literally couldn’t escape a few years back. You know the types, the kind of bands with fans that somehow think they have more in common with the hip-hop scene than they do the punk scene. Don’t get me wrong, I’m partial to a bit of grunting and a punch the floor breakdown every now and again but my heart will always lie with the emotional side of hardcore music.

This is where Disembarked come in. Not only are they from a country that doesn’t have as big a scene for this style of music as the US and UK, but they’ve gone and created a record that genuinely stands out in comparison to hundreds of releases that those countries have provided in the last few years. ‘I Do Nothing But Regret The Fact I Left’ is an aggressive, passionate and intricate demonstration of why Disembarked deserve to be up there with the bands I mentioned at the start of this review. Sure, there are a few similarities to those bands (mostly Pianos Become The Teeth) but the Stockholm five-piece have approached screamo in their own way, rather than shamelessly copying an existing template.

This record owes as much to post-rock as it does shouty, fast music. Parts of it sound like they could’ve been written by a really angry Mogwai or Explosions In The Sky, if only you were to take away the raspy screamed vocals. This combination of styles is a difficult one to pull off, and Disembarked have hit the nail on the head. The emotional vocals work really well with the spacey, atmospheric music and they switch between the chaotic and the beautiful effortlessly and often.
I’m not even going to go into details analyzing each song or picking out favourites as this whole release is packed full of changes and highlights, all led by some fantastic drumming and clean, graceful guitar leads. Oh, and did I forget to mention that this five track EP lasts only eleven minutes?!!

Two days after deciding I would review this EP I realized they were playing at a small pub venue for Nai Harvest’s record release party, which I had already planned to attend without even knowing Disembarked were on the bill. One of only three UK dates and literally two minutes walk from my house! This band put so much into their live performance and left such an immediate impression on the crowd that they completely overshadowed the two supports that fol
lowed them. Take note – Disembarked are something special.

5/5 Stars

FFO: Birds In Row, Pianos Become The Teeth, Caravels, Raein

Original Link - Dying Scene
Disembarked Bandcamp
Disembarked Facebook

NAI HARVEST @ Fitzherbert's, Brighton. 22/03/2013

To celebrate the release of ‘WHATEVER’, Sheffield’s two-man emo act Nai Harvest held a record launch party at Fitzherbert’s. Copies of the record with limited edition covers would be available to buy at the show, assuming Nai Harvest ever arrived at the venue. Thankfully, they did. And it was great.

I guess it was something to do with the bad weather we have been having lately, and the fact it’s probably worse up t’north. Or maybe their car or van broke down? Or got stuck in traffic? Or maybe just the fact Sheffield is quite far away from Brighton? I don’t know, I never bothered to find out. Whatever the reason, it seemed everybody was a bit worried as to whether Nai Harvest would make it to their gig before they were due to play.

Their tardiness caused them to miss the supports, the first of which were absolutely incredible. Disembarked are from Stockholm, Sweden and play aggressive, emotional hardcore/screamo with plenty of post-rock instrumental sections and vox-only scream-a-thons. Imagine Explosions In The Sky crossed with Pianos Become The Teeth but with a completely insane drummer. The drummer really was the focus of everybody’s attention during their set, screaming along without a mic and still sounding almost as loud as the vocalist, jumping up from his stool to give his kit an even harder bashing and generally just being amazing on the drums. It’s actually quite lucky he wasn’t wearing a shirt as he would’ve probably hulked straight out of it the way he was playing! Their new record ‘I Do Nothing But Regret The Fact That I Left’ is available now through Dog Knights Productions and is definitely worth checking out.

Moose Blood followed this, and trust me, you’ve got to have something special up your sleeve to follow a set like the one Disembarked just played.

I had been really looking forward to seeing Moose Blood for a while, having rinsed the life out of their debut EP ‘Moving Home’ since it was released a few months back. ‘Moving Home’ is a brilliantly produced six track collection of songs about relationships, coffee and listening to other emo bands, with girls, presumably whilst drinking coffee. Remember the first two Brand New albums? The good ones? Well, Moose Blood are a bit like the Canterbury equivalent of that – layered vocals and catchy songs that are guaranteed to stick in your head. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be Moose Blood’s night. I was quite disappointed and it all sounded a bit messy. The size and setup of this tiny venue can sometimes play a huge disadvantage to bands, which is something I’ve highlighted before. People that hadn’t previously heard them but were aware of the hype surrounding their EP were probably even more confused than I was. The vocalist lacked the Jesse Lacey-esque vocals that ‘Moving Home’ really benefits from, often struggling to finish verses and not hitting the notes. It almost made them sound a bit like a teenage school rock band, despite knowing they are actually great songwriters. EP closer ‘Bukowski’ was the best one they played, although it wasn’t the moment I had been so eagerly anticipating. I don’t want to put anybody off of Moose Blood because I think they’ll go quite far, and I’m hoping I just caught them on a bad night.

Glasgow’s The Sinking Feeling were up next. To be honest, I don’t really have very much to say about them. They sounded pretty tight but were nothing special. They were a bit like Basement, or Daylight, but it all felt slightly like they were jumping on that bandwagon without really doing anything original or different. I ended up going for a rollie even though it was ridiculously cold outside, because I was bored.

So, Nai Harvest eventually turned up! At this point I came back in from my finger-freezing cigarette and it seemed as if the venue had emptied out somewhat. However, almost everybody had just pushed forward to surround the pair for the start of their set. As soon as they began, the place exploded and the crossed-armed head-nodding curiosity of the crowd so far was replaced with a fuckload of enthusiastic chanting, and crowd-surfing that literally didn’t stop for the entire time they were playing. Although the carnage did cause the guitar to cut out a couple of times, which isn’t ideal when your music consists of just two instruments. It’s likely to be even more annoying when you’ve already spent all afternoon and most of the evening trying to get to the gig. There were smiles all around though, and the band clearly appreciated how stoked everybody was to be watching them. A sweaty, beer-soaked twenty minutes later and Nai Harvest had reached the end of their set. Having been given the green light to play one more, they burst into an unexpected cover of Nirvana’s ‘Territorial Pissings’ – there were people flying everywhere and the mic was getting passed around the room with anyone that could get their hands on it “singing” along. A few minutes of complete madness to top off an already crazy set. That record got RELEASED!

Nai Harvest Bandcamp
Moose Blood Bandcamp
Disembarked Bandcamp
The Sinking Feeling Bandcamp

DIVORCE @ Sticky Mike's Frog Bar, Brighton. 20/03/2013

The excellently named ‘Riots Not Diets’ hosted a night of what they like to call queercore/riot grrrl/homocore/twee punk at Sticky Mike’s a few weeks back, putting on three great bands with a penchant for being incredibly fucking noisy and slightly odd in their own unique way.

First up was Roseanne Barrr, a two-piece act from London who’s sound can most accurately be described as stuck somewhere between riot grrrl and what sounded like an Amazonian tribe. The intro to their set was truly terrifying – the bassist (a guy dressed as a woman) literally gave his instrument a good spanking whilst emitting animalistic screams reminiscent of 1970s horror flicks whilst the vocalist/drummer pounded away at her toms. Roseanne Barrr were a brilliant opening act, and I’m pretty sure anybody that heard this band without being familiar with the stranger corners of musical/artistic taste would be genuinely scared.

Local group Sealings followed and were equally as impressive, and again, pretty dark and disturbing. Sealings are one of the most underrated bands in Brighton, sounding a bit like a mentally unstable version of Interpol. In a haze of fuzzy, distorted guitar they hammer out lo-fi indie/grunge with a few punky parts where some crazy fast drumming is involved. They bare some similarities to My Bloody Valentine and The Pixies, which I thought to myself immediately before realising that one of them was wearing a Pixies shirt. The drummer (who wears what looks to me like a Skeletor mask, but probably isn’t) alternated between his kit and a drum machine, and it was the songs with the sequenced drums nearer the end of their set that were the darkest and noisiest. Very impressive.

Now, Divorce are a seriously good band I can’t emphasize that enough. Having listened to their debut full-length countless amounts of times, I was really excited about seeing how well their sound translates live and was thoroughly impressed. Divorce play some forcefully tinnitus-inducing, arsehole-tearing, neighbour-bothering no-wave sludge-pop-metal that’s as uncomfortable to listen to as it is enlightening. For a band with just one guitarist, Divorce are able to make a noise that even Sunn0))) would be proud of, although the fact that vocalist Jennie Fulk has a scream that at times is indistinguishable from guitar feedback helps the dynamics of their all-encompassing racket. Humourously reminding us that they are from Glasgow several times between songs, they blast through a set that included ‘Stabby Stab’, ‘Aids Of Space’ and unreleased track ‘Everybody Ruined It For Everybody’. Unfortunately for myself, there was a distinct lack of ‘Snob Value’ – my favourite track on the album – but this was more than made up for by the fact that overall they had just played one of the best shows I have witnessed so far this year.

Brighton Noise - Original Link
Divorce Bandcamp
Sealings Bandcamp
Roseanne Barrr Bandcamp

VANNA - 'The Few And Far Between'

Before writing this review I had never heard of Vanna. A quick Youtube search led me to something so terrible that I had to turn it off, and I was worried about what I had let myself in for. Another Youtube search led me to something that sounded completely different, but was also terrible in its own follow-the-trend way. A quick Wikipedia search to make sure that there weren’t two different bands called Vanna, and disappointingly I was informed that there aren’t. Wikipedia also informed me of the large amount of lineup changes the Boston boys have been through, which helped explain the frankly horrible yet unalike tracks I had just regretfully experienced. With this in mind, I approached ‘The Few And Far Between’ with my teeth firmly gritted together.

I was surprised, as Vanna seem to have matured somewhat and found a sound that has a lot more lasting credibility than their previous efforts. Although, there isn’t much here that hasn’t been done a million times before.

The opening track provides a nice introduction to the album, drawing you in with distant guitars and led by a vocal that would make this a great song to open a set with. Every Time I Die are the first band that this reminds me of, along with label-mates Norma Jean.

By track three, ‘Year Of The Rat’, we are introduced to the cleanly sung vocals. Vanna fall into the trap here of sounding a bit like Atreyu, Trivium or any other mid-2000s metalcore act that were a bit shit. What follows this is a much better speedy hardcore track, ‘I Said I’m Fine’, which features the lyrics “Black shoes, black shirt, black heart” – coming soon to a Facebook status near you! This one finishes with full-on circle pit fodder and vocals that sound a bit like Refused’s Dennis Lyxzén, which pleasantly reminded me that hardcore doesn’t always have to be as linear and restricted as what we have on this record. Thank you Refused, for the memory.

‘The Few And Far Between’ is by no means a bad record, and I’m sure there will be a lot of people raving about this release (if the Youtube comments I read are anything to go by). It just seems like the formula of chugging guitars and big beatdowns has been exhausted, and to put out a record that is going to be memorable outside of your own fan-base you need to bring something exciting to the table. Vanna aren’t doing anything that Stick To Your Guns, Norma Jean or The Chariot haven’t already done better, and I think real hardcore fans will be put off by the singing that tends to spoil some otherwise good hardcore tunes.

The highlights are definitely the introduction I mentioned earlier and ‘Please Stay’, which shows Vanna at their calmest and probably the only time they deserve the post-hardcore tag they are frequently labelled with. The female vocal is a nice touch, but the track doesn’t really fit in with the rest of the album. The fact that this one was my favourite probably says a lot more about me and my taste than it does about Vanna’s quality of songwriting. I’m not especially keen on tough guy mosh-pit hardcore as it is, so whilst this record didn’t do very much for me, I’m sure it’ll be exactly what some others are looking for.

2.5/5 Stars

Dying Scene - Original Link 
Vanna Myspace 
Vanna Facebook 

NARROWS

The Green Door Store, Monday 29^th April

Narrows are something of a supergroup when it comes to the hardcore and metal scene. Comprising of members of various defunct bands, including Botch vocalist Dave Verellen, Some Girls/Unbroken bassist Rob Moran, and Ryan Frederiksen, who played guitar in These Arms Are Snakes. They sound exactly like a sum of their parts, hardcore punk influenced mathcore that left our ears ringing last time they played here. Heavy. 

Faebook Event Page
Narrows Facebook 

Coliseum Bandcamp
Original Link - Brighton Source  

SPLITTING THE ATOM XIV

The Green Door Store, Sunday 7^th April

What are Sundays for? They're for a long walk on the downs, right? For a quiet roast in a small pub somewhere. For taking the dog/kids to the park. A leisurely browse at an out-of-town car boot sale. Just chilling on the sofa watching the football, maybe even a Spaghetti Western. Right? No. You're wrong. All wrong. Sundays are for all day events showcasing brain-melting noise, experimental audio/visual performances and freeform jazz. If you agree, get yourself down to The Green Door Store for this free headfuck.

WESTHILL BLAST QUARTET
A MOUTHFUL OF BALD WORMS
WARRIOR SQUARES
FONDELLA
STASIS 73
EARTH CREATURE
DANIEL ALEXANDER HIGNELL
SCOTTISH JAMES BROWN
UNCOUTH
LORAH PIERRE & EWA JUSTKA
WILD NERVES
DJ MYSTERY LESSON
DJ CHEESEMASTER

2pm-10:30pm

FREE

Facebook Event Page 

RAZOREATER

Green Door Store. Saturday 6^th April

Punk Vs. Hardcore's monthly treat comes in the form of Church Of Fuck Records' Razoreater, who's Pig Destroyer-esque grinding thrash hardcore will leave you feeling like you've been beaten up underwater. Label mates Iced Out play main support. Two local bands begin tonight's chaos – Hove's Protect Ya Neck supply the mosh, with their own brand of south coast hate. This is followed by ex-Dopefight/Jovian outfit, War Wolf. Expect violence. Expect power. Expect beards.

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Razoreater Bandcamp
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MOOSE BLOOD INTERVIEW

Canterbury's emo gang Moose Blood have been causing a bit of a fuss in recent months with their debut EP 'Moving Home'. I spoke with drummer Glenn Harvey for the next issue of A Short Fanzine About Rocking.

How did you decide on the name? Why Moose Blood?

Eddy and Mark both work together and one time they were just saying as many dumb names as they could think of, this one stuck.

How did you guys meet, and how did it all come together?

We all kind of met through our old hardcore bands. Mark and I played in a band, Sam and I have been friends since school and used to play in a couple of bands, Eddy and Mark were in a band and knew each other outside of that beforehand. It came together pretty easily, which was cool. Eddy had some songs written, asked if we wanted to start a band, sent us a couple of demos and we were instantly down.

You've had a really good reaction to your debut EP, a lot of blogs etc tipping you to be one of the next big things. Had you seen that coming?

I knew some of our friends would be into it when I first heard Eddy's demo of 'Bukowski' because I absolutely loved it. But beyond our little circle, I honestly had no idea people would care at all. We've said it a bunch already, but it really is crazy the way the EP has taken off. None of us saw it coming. We're all so happy though, we just really want to play shows all over the place now to make sure people who bought the record are able to see us.
 
It was released by Day By Day Records who are associated with some great bands such as Gnarwolves and Dads. Do you have friends in any of the other Day By Day bands?

Dads fucking rule. I first got into them a couple of years ago, and when I heard Day By Day were working with them I was so stoked! Gnarwolves are our mates and the nicest guys.

Who do you enjoy playing shows with?

Gnarwolves are the best. Always positive, hardworking and just fun to be around. We just played at the Camden Underworld with them and it was the first time both of us had played there. They absolutely killed it. So fun to watch a bunch of kids going off to your friends. I think we've enjoyed all our shows so far to be honest. There have only been about 15 of them but we've been lucky enough to play with some great bands so far.
 
There's a lot of great bands in the UK right now. How do you feel about the whole emo/punk rock scene at the moment?

I think it's great, I'm gutted we won't get a chance to play with Basement (probably/maybe/who knows?) but Sam and I's old band got to play with them and Daylight a while before 'I Wish I Could Stay Here' came out, which was a really cool show. Everything comes and goes in waves. In 2010, Basement were really one of the only decent UK bands doing what they were doing and that obviously led on to a lot of other bands taking influence, which is cool. It's good to see the hard work paying off for Gnarwolves right now, as well as bands like Nai Harvest and The Winter Passing.
 
Any recommendations?

Every band I've mentioned so far and also Pet Symmetry, Dowsing, Great Cynics, Ten Speed Bicycle and Loose Cannons. In a more general sense, I'd recommend that Tigers Jaw not break up, and Basement get back together sooner rather than later. But I'm not sure I have much say with either of those.
 
You reference a couple of bands on tracks on the EP – Jimmy Eat World, American Football, Dashboard Confessional and Death Cab For Cutie if I remember correctly. Do you guys all share the same kind of taste, generally?

Pretty much! Every so often Eddy will put something on in the car that I've been listening to and I had no idea he was into, like Brave Bird or Mansions, which is cool. On the flip side of that, I found out he had never listened to Jawbreaker until recently so I'm not even sure if we can be friends anymore.
 
What's next for Moose Blood?

New music, more shows, some tours. Hopefully.

Moose Blood Bandcamp
Moose Blood Facebook 

ORPHANS - 'Pack Mentality/Jus Ad Bello'

Denver, Colorado’s Orphans have only been together since 2011, in which time they have brought us their debut EP ‘Jus Ad Bello’ as well as the follow-up ‘Pack Mentality’ within only six months of each other! To call them a hardworking band would be a massive understatement, and it should only take one listen of each EP for you to realise this. Never Lost Records have now released the vicious eight track collection on some rather sexy marble vinyl, so it seemed hugely appropriate that Orphans were given some well-deserved coverage.

‘Renegades Of Fuck’, the opening number on ‘Jus Ad Bello’ is a fantastic track. The vocals are spat at you like ‘Adrenaline’-era Chino Moreno in the beginning, accompanied by some snazzy drumming, before the pace slows and we are given the good ol’ screamo treatment.
Two minutes into this debut is where we are first acquainted with a sound that has led to Orphans being compared to Circle Takes The Square, almost every time anybody has written anything about them. It’s not often a band get compared to Circle Takes The Square, and it’s definitely hard to ignore the similarities, especially with the vocals here. High-pitched wails sit behind a shaky-voiced delivery before the heavy-as-fuck ending gives you one last smack in the mouth.

The brilliantly titled ‘Nostalgia Isn’t What It Used To Be’ is everything you want from a screamo track – delicate riffs, slow building drums and overlapping vocals (you’ll really see where the CTTS comparison comes from now). The song then explodes into what really just sounds like another track entirely, not sure if this was what they were going for here. And wait, did I just hear a bit of double-kick near the end of this one?
There’s a definite metal influence shining through on parts of this record, which I feel helps it to not sound like a lot of other screamo and post-hardcore releases that are getting churned out these days.

‘If Ghosts Could Talk (Dead Peasant Policies)’ is, in my opinion, the best one on this side of the wax. A haunting introduction on the piano, and the chant-along you’ve been waiting for and knew was coming at some point.

Then comes the follow-up ‘Pack Mentality’ on the flip. This is where Orphans have really found their feet. The production is a touch better, the songs are more manic, the vocals are more rabid sounding. Overall, it just sounds a whole lot more violent and destructive. Needless to say, the Circle Takes The Square influence is still very apparent, especially so on ‘Dark Satanic Mills’. Typically-screamo spoken word parts are evident throughout much of this EP, often giving you a brief moment to breathe before the chaos and carnage ensues again.

Opener ‘Blood Of The Father’ changes direction numerous times and immediately shows great evidence of them growing as a band, even with it being recorded so soon after the first record. The huge amount of changes of pace, as well as the variation in the different vocal styles in every part of each track really keeps you on your toes, unable to guess what’s coming next. Of course, what comes next is always messy mosh-pit material and heavy-as-fuck.

I realise I’ve already used that phrase to describe Orphans earlier in this review, but sometimes only one phrase can be wholly appropriate. In this case it’s ‘heavy-as-fuck’. Imagine Glassjaw beating the shit out of La Dispute with weapons that they borrowed from The Blood Brothers and you’re halfway there.

Another highlight, ‘White Guilt’, has a bit of everything I’ve mentioned previously and brings this record to a close very neatly. Screeching vocals, fast, technical drumming, a riff that wouldn’t sound out of place on one of the more recent Dillinger Escape Plan albums, a meaty bassline underneath the spoken word poetry that leads to another invitation into the pit, and some noisy feedback to finish.

Orphans are certainly worth keeping an eye on, that’s if this record doesn’t rip them both out and stamp on them.

Original Link
Orphans Bandcamp
Orphans Facebook
Dying Scene

OLA MADRID - 'Distance Is Decay'

New Jersey four-piece Ola Madrid describe themselves as 'post progressive indie rock', and in doing so they have pretty much done most of my work here for me. 'Distance Is Decay' is their debut EP, and it's a real treat. Blending elements of early screamo with indie and post-hardcore, the release rips through five tracks that instantly bring to mind fellow New Jerseyans, Thursday, or maybe a slightly less hardcore embodiment of Touché Amoré.

Opening track 'Collective' is the perfect introduction for what to expect from this band. It begins in a manner that wouldn't have sounded out of place on the first Alexisonfire album, but tighter and with better drumming. The vocals are in-your-face and delivered with a lot of passion and punch. The chanted backing vocals throughout, along with the closing lines “Under all these lights, I'm still cold. I'm shaking!” definitely paint a picture of fans clambering forward to scream the words back at them when this band get more of the recognition they already deserve.

The gang vocals and memorable lyrics return in 'The World Is Not Enough', which in my opinion is the best track on the EP.

With such a huge amount of bands currently riding the post-hardcore wave, it's refreshing to hear something that you are actually going to remember after you've clicked away from somebodies bandcamp page. 'Distance Is Decay' is one of those records, and Ola Madrid sound like exactly the kind of band you want to hear playing at a house show, or in a tiny basement venue with no stage.

Lyrically, this release is very poetic and packed to the brim with honesty and emotion. Musically, they undeniably know what they are doing with their chosen weapons and it has come together brilliantly on this debut. Great riffs, a fall-to-your-knees solo on 'I Am The Sun', interesting basslines and rapid-fire drum fills complete the package.

“In years to come we will be memories and silhouettes, and you will see nothing matters in the end” are the closing lyrics on this release. It might be true, but I'm certain the next few years at least will be exciting for Ola Madrid.

FFO: Single Mothers, Pianos Become The Teeth, Thursday, Hot Cross 

Ola Madrid Bandcamp
Ola Madrid Facebook

Original Link
Dying Scene
Dying Scene Facebook

FIDLAR @ The Haunt, Brighton. 27/02/2013

FIDLAR love drugs. They love alcohol, partying, surfing and skateboarding. It might all sound a bit cliché for an LA band that play feelgood stoner beach punk in a way that The Ramones might have if Dick Dale was their lead guitarist, but FIDLAR are one of the best bands to come out of SoCal in a long time.

Their shamelessly open approach to getting as messed up as possible and generally not giving a fuck is actually quite admirable. Because it’s not as if their tendency to smoke a lot of weed and take acid (or whatever they can get their hands on) has affected their ability to write super catchy party anthems that you can’t help but want to dance to. If that’s how they roll, then so be it, because FIDLAR’s self-titled debut is one of the best releases of the year so far and tonight the Haunt is buzzing with anticipation.

They take to the stage and already one of them has jumped into the crowd before anybody has even played a note. This gives us a pretty good idea of how the show’s going to go. They open with ‘Cheap Beer’ and the lyrics “I drink cheap beer! So what? Fuck you!” are screamed back at them. It’s rather ironic that this is happening in a venue that sells cans of Red Stripe for £4 – but since it’s a 14+ show a good twenty per cent of the crowd probably weren’t drinking it anyway.

They continue with ‘Stoked And Broke’ followed by ‘White On White’ and the constant, messy crowd-surfing leads them to tell us that we “rage harder than any American city” before giving us their formal introduction – “We like to drink and we like to do cocaine. We are FIDLAR. F-I-D-L-A-R. Fuck It Dog, Life’s A Risk”.

After thanking local boys Gnarwolves for introducing them to ‘K’ cider before the show, they crack on with ‘Max Can’t Surf’ during which the stage is excitedly invaded and the drummer loses his sticks, the only two he has, and the bouncers are forced to usher everybody back into the crowd.

During the set the bouncers end up having to clear the stage at least four times, there are bodies flying everywhere, there is somebody in the venue definitely smoking a joint somewhere (unless this is just the scent the band give off), and the younger members of the crowd are given the kind of advice their mothers would certainly not approve of: “If you play an instrument then you don’t have to go to school, you don’t have to have a job. Shit, if we can start a band then so can all of you guys”.

The whole room is bouncing when they play ‘Cocaine’, a song recently covered by their close friend Kate Nash – check out the less drug-related ‘Girl Gang’. She also features on their track ‘AWWWKWAARRRDDD’ (you have to wonder how some people become friends).

‘Wake Bake Skate’, ‘Paycheck’ and a cover of The Descendent’s ‘Suburban Home’ are other highlights of a sweaty, beer-soaked night of fuzzy guitar and smiling faces. It’s easy to see why this band are getting so much attention lately, and we’re sure the Brighton crowd will welcome them back with open arms and open cans.

Haunt, Wednesday 27th February 2013
Words by Chris Biggs

Original Link
FIDLAR Facebook

UNFUN RECORDS PRESENTS

The guys at Unfun Records treated us to a free gig at Fitzherbert’s on Thursday night, with a solid lineup of UK punk rock talent. A lot of the usual Brighton faces seemed to be absent tonight, probably a result of the carnage that was FIDLAR at The Haunt the previous night. Despite having been in the centre of aforementioned carnage, I tackled a hangover/crap day at work and made my way to the pub venue to catch these up-and- coming acts and drink tap water on my own.

First up was Emma Hallows, the punky, folky lady from Manchester. Her songs are heartfelt and sincere and without wanting to instantly name-drop two of the biggest names in the genre, she does bare similarities to early Frank Turner and City And Colour. More accurately though, if you’ve ever listened to the last four tracks on Defeater’s ‘Empty Days & Sleepless Nights’ then you will get a better idea as to what I’m describing. Unfortunately, as she was the first act her set overlapped with most people arriving, and their enthusiastic “Hiya man, how’s it going??!!”’s drowned out parts of the set and I missed what she was singing about.

Local boys River Jumpers almost had to pull out at the last minute due to their drummer being sick, but in the end they decided to play their first ever acoustic show. After a quick phone call to the ill sticksman so that the crowd could all shout “Get well soon, Max!”, they kicked off with ‘Chapters’, the opening track from the brilliant album of the same name. Plenty of people knowing the words and singing along created a great atmosphere when they played ‘Five Doors Down’ and ‘Diamonds’, during which one of the band member’s phones that was sat on top of an amp started ringing. It caused that annoying signal noise you get to cut through the music and the bassist had to remind everybody to put their phones into flight mode as “it’s about to get hectic”. It would’ve definitely got hectic if they had played a full set with the whole band, but it was still really good and they play Brighton shows often enough that you can be sure to catch them again soon.

Three Summers Strong, another Brighton band, demonstrate their fast and catchy snare-driven pop-punk. The gruff vocals sound almost hardcore at times and they perform with a lot of energy. I hear small touches of The Get-Up Kids, The Lawrence Arms and even Greenday in parts but it seemed like maybe they weren’t having their best night. Maybe they hadn’t set up as well as they’d have liked to, but the sound didn’t fill the room as well as it should have so it sounded a bit sketchy at times. It’s something you have to expect in that tiny room and I’ve heard it plenty of times from bands that sound great on recordings.

Woahnows, who released their awesome EP ‘Foma’ (on cassette!) through tonight’s host are next up. They have some great riffs and are incredibly tight when they play. Woahnows hail from Plymouth along with headliners As We Sink. There only need to be two great bands to come from one city for it to stick in my mental musical map, and I think Woahnows have made me realise that PLYMOUTH ROCKS. I’ve never been there. The band were very well received and I think these guys are going to go on to much bigger things. Their sound filled the room better than any of the previous acts, and an observation one of them makes about the fish tank behind the drummer made me consider something – maybe the fish really do hate all these loud punk bands playing in their house.

I felt sad for the fish for a minute and then As We Sink started and I stopped caring. It takes only two songs before the guys (and Emma Hallows) at the front decide to build a punk rock pyramid. I was half expecting the guy on top to come crashing down on the band, but instead he just fell into me and spilled the beer he asked me to hold all over my jacket. As We Sink are one of the most underrated bands in the UK at the moment. These guys truly deserve to be a big deal within the punk/emo/whatever scene. Their songs have some great, memorable choruses and the amount of people passionately singing along only reinforces this. A showcase of their new song goes down really well and I’m really excited to hear the follow up to EP ‘Ventures’. If you like Title Fight, The Movielife or Make Do And Mend then you really need to check these guys out. They are up there with the best.

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Words: Chris Biggs

DIVORCE

Sticky Mike's Frog Bar, Wednesday 20th March

Think Arab On Radar. Think Melt Banana and The Locust. Think Sonic Youth, The Melvins and Nirvana. Think Converge and Oathbreaker. Think The Blood Brothers, Circle Takes The Square and Lightning Bolt. Think Sunn0))), Merzbow and DJ Speedranch. Think Crass. Think Liars, Daughters, Boris, Metz, Korn and Wolf Eyes. Think Ex-Models and Pissed Jeans and Mike Patton. Now forget everything you just read and go and see this band if it's the last thing you do, which is a strong possibility. (CB)

Divorce Official
Divorce Bandcamp
Divorce Facebook

AS WE SINK

Fitzherberts, Brighton. Thursday 28th February

A free night of punk rock in the upstairs of a pub is something that can never be argued with, especially when homegrown talent like As We Sink are involved. Making a name for themselves nationwide and further with the digital release of their EP 'Ventures', As We Sink play catchy post-hardcore tinged punk in a similar vein to bands like Make Do And Mend and The Movielife. Also featured tonight are Brighton based River Jumpers who will be loved by fans of Millencolin and  Goldfinger. (CB)

Facebook Event Page
As We Sink Bandcamp
As We Sink Facebook
River Jumpers Bandcamp
River Jumpers Facebook
Brighton Source Preview

THE BRONX

Concorde 2, Brighton. Friday 8th February

The last time The Bronx visited Brighton they played a packed show at Concorde 2 and an acoustic set in the Vans shop, both as their mariachi alter-egos. This time they return to their hardcore punk origins as part of a UK tour to promote their forthcoming album, simply entitled 'The Bronx' (just like the last three were). They bring with them Canadian indie punk noise makers Single Mothers for their much anticipated overseas debut. (CB)

The Bronx Official Website
The Bronx Bandcamp
Single Mothers Facebook
Single Mothers Bandcamp
Brighton Source Preview

FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND

The Haunt, Brighton. Monday 4th February

The fact Funeral For A Friend are playing a venue of this size may be saying something about their waning popularity in the past few years, but hey, I can certainly think of another Welsh rock group who lost a lot more fans recently. Despite the band having only two original members left, fans both old and new will be excited to hear what their sixth album 'Conduit' is going to bring to the table. Main support comes from the incredible Such Gold  who's album 'Misadventures' was one of 2012's pop-punk highlights. (CB)

Funeral For A Friend Official Website
Funeral For A Friend Facebook
Such Gold Bandcamp
Such Gold Facebook
Brighton Source Preview