OBEY THE BRAVE
Young Blood
Epitaph Records
Ferocious drumming, intense vocals and deep riffs epitomise Obey The Brave‘s first release through Epitaph records, ‘Young Blood’. Ex-Despised Icon vocalist Alex Erian delivers sinister shouts and brutal screams, an example of his deathcore roots coming into their own and making ‘Young Blood‘ heavy. Very heavy indeed. Yet, although essentially a metalcore album, the two-step rhythms of modern hardcore raise ‘Young Blood‘ head and shoulders above the rest with guest vocals from Terror’s Scott Vogel on ‘Get Real‘ emphasising the ‘core’ element of this genre in all its glory.
With experimental interludes such as ‘Grim‘ flashes of more recent Emmure shine through, but the most relevant comparison has to be to The Ghost Inside’s ‘Get What You Give‘ which was released earlier in 2012. Originality is a slight down fall for Obey The Brave, there are plenty elements similar to Parkway Drive, Stick To Your Guns, Hundredth and many other metal/hardcore acts. But in all honesty Obey The Brave aren’t trying to be something special or something unique; during opener ‘Lifestyle‘ the lyrics “Not trying to reinvent the wheel – we keep it simple, we keep it real,” are performed with vehement passion, this band just want to make an impact with the intensity of their music and with ‘Young Blood’ thats a task well and truely achieved.
You have no excuse not to know who Bloc Party unless you have been living in a South American rainforest, licking neon coloured toads for the past 10 years…
I can sum up their latest release in one sentence. It’s absolutely bloody amazing.
However as this is a review, I won’t leave it there, so let’s get the simple things out of the way first… ‘Four’ is a tour de force of indie guitar licks, riffs and hooks with all the Bloc Party trimmings.
Kele and co. have made us wait a while for their latest offering, but as soon as you press the play button, and you here the drum beat and distorted guitar that signal the start of ‘So He Begins To Lie’ you wont be able to sit still. This album works its way into your subconscious and induces some serious moments of tourettes-style head banging and foot stomping.
There isn’t a ‘bad’ track on this album. It swings between slow burning songs that build to a crescendo with squealing guitars through to some southern delta blues inspired throat-ripping guitar chords. The truth is, it is easy to love every single track on the album; so to pick a standout song is a bit of a task. Saying that, the songs that went down best here at Crossfire has to be the hauntingly epic ‘Real Talk’ and ‘V.A.L.I.S’, the hooktastic indie anthem that will have you singing along in not time at all.
If you’re into indie/rock then you should own this album. It’s one of the best albums to grace 2012 so far. A near perfect example of what Indie music should be.
Punk band Title Fight are streaming the first part of their tour documentary online (which was directed and edited by Alex Henery). The film features Title Fight performances on massive stages as support to Rise Against from the April/May 2012 “Endgame” Tour.
Title Fight are over in the UK next month for a one off co-headline show with La Dispute at The Garage in London before heading of on a full Euro tour.
American band Circa Survive have announced the release of their fourth full-length album, ‘VIOLENT WAVES‘, due out on August 28th. The five-piece band recorded and self-produced the eleven-track album earlier this year at Studio 4 in their hometown of Philadelphia and will be self-releasing the album using direct-to-fan distribution, a step away from thier previous endevaours with Equal Vision and Atalntic Records.
In conjunction with Topspin Media, The Uprising Creative and Firebrand, the band has built a web delivery system that will allow them to deliver their new album directly to fans without any record label or distributor involvement. The band – who’s style is rooted in progressive-rock and punk- have a close relationship with their fans and believe this method as the best way of connecting with them and establishing the future of Circa Survive in the current economic climate.
Guitarist Colin Frangicetto comments:
“Collectively we’ve run the gamut from working with really small DIY labels to big indies all the way to a major label. The band has learned a ton from each of those experiences and at this point feel confident in our ability to successfully produce, release and promote a record on our own. There’s really nothing more satisfying to us then bringing our vision to the world in this way.”
Vocalist Anthony Green added:
“By choosing to download our music directly from us, you are choosing to give our band a future and directly supporting us and our families.”
A variety of bundle options are available including deluxe vinyl packaging hand-painted by the band members, or for just $5 fans can purchase the digital version of Violent Waves.
Orders can be made directly through the band here.
Expect an album review and UK/Euro show announcements to follow here at Crossfire.
Monster Energy has teamed up with Aussie metalcore giants I Killed The Prom Queen for the exclusive premiere of their brand new live video for the song “Memento Vivere“.
New material from IKTPQ has been a long time coming, but it seems its been worth the wait, “Memento Vivere” is heavy. Check it out below.
So this morning there was a lot of fuss and bother over this Thursday’s intimate Green Day show selling out in seconds. Well who gives a damn when in all honesty the place to be this Thursday is actually London’s Old Blue Last where Californian hardcore band Ceremony will take to the stage.
Whats more, in true punk style Ceremony’s intimate gig is FREE entry, so rather than selling a kidney in order to purchase a Green Day ticket on ebay (reportedly priced at £295.00!) you can spend your pennies on beer and have an awesome time at this tiny show.
All the details you need are listed on the poster below.
It appears the brave Baroness guys are on their way to a full recovery after receiving injuries when their tour coach overturned whilst travelling between shows in the UK. Guitarist/vocalist Peter Adams is already back in the USA and the rest of the band are now well enough to post an update via Facebook:
‘Thank you to all of you who have been sending the tidal wave of positivity our way. We are uplifted by its sheer magnitude, and power. Every single one of you is making our days and nights easier and our recovery quicker. Thank you all so much, we are truly lucky to have such incredible people on our side. A sincere and heartfelt thank you from each of us to each of you.
– Baroness’
Its great to see the band staying positive and on the way to full health. We wish them our best and can’t wait to see the sludge-rock heroes back on the road again.
After dominating the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival Tour in the US alongside Slipknot, Slayer and many others, metalcore heroes As I Lay Dying have announced details of thier sixth studio album…
‘Awakened‘ will drop on September 25th with a UK/Euro tour to commence in the following month.’ Awakened‘ was recorded in the Blasting Room in Fort Collins, CO with renowned rock producer Bill Stevenson (Descendents) and mixer Colin Richardson (Bullet For My Valentine). The track listing for the follow up to 2011’s ‘Decas EP‘ and 2010’s ‘The Powerless Rise‘ is as follows:
1. Cauterize
2. A Greater Foundation
3 .Resilience
4. Wasted Words
5. Whispering Silence
6. Overcome
7. No Lungs to Breathe
8. Defender
9. Washed Away
10. My Only Home
11. Tear Out My Eyes
On the 4th August, New Brunswick Punk rockers, The Bouncing Souls announced via their social networking sites the devestating news that they had been robbed whilst touring the USA.
‘Once again we have been ripped off. K8 is Great, our tour managers, bag was stolen tonight from the backstage. Laptops, passports, paperwork, and lots of money was in there. If you care at all about the music scene or people trying to come to your town to play shows for you, please return it to us. This is all we got. Thank you.’
In order to raise funds lost and replace gear stolen, The Bouncing Souls are auctioning rare items from their archives via ebay. The items include artwork, tapes and vinyls. The following statement from the band explains more:
‘As many of you know, a couple weeks ago we were robbed and lost many thousands of dollars, computers, and a lot of important documents and files. In an effort to get back on our feet, we have dug deep into the archives, and have decided to auction off some really cool stuff on eBay. From the bottom of our collective heart, we appreciate all the kind words of support from our fans, friends, and family…but now we need to pay the bills! Please check out our auctions and keep in mind that only auctions from seller account “bouncingsoulsnj” are verified as being sold by us. Thanks so much for all your support and good luck bidding!’
As commendable as this is, its a sad situation that such a legendary band have had to resort to selling treasured artefacts to survive due to the selfish actions of others. It seems far too often these kind of events are occurring to much loved bands from all genres – Animals As Leaders, Modest Mouse, Ulcerate, Thrice and Iron Maiden to name a few. Lets hope that karma comes into action and gives the thieves responsible a well deserved slap across the backside (at least).
Support the band and music scene by participating in the auction here or buy purchasing merchandise and attending their shows.
Its fair to say that Hevy Festival was a resounding success this year. Plenty of ‘partying hard’ was had and the sun shone throughout! With three stages of awesome music, we though we’d bring you the highlights, the bands who really stood out, so that you can be sure to check them out at any future shows or events…
FRIDAY 3rd AUGUST
Deaf Havana
Described by some critics as ‘McFly with tattoos’, Deaf Havana are a little out of place here, especially coming on as headliners after Deez Nuts. Leaving their original southern hardcore influences behind and filling their set with pop-rock genius, Deaf Havana impress the critics and cynics a like. Old school fans will be a little disappointed that tracks from ‘Fools And Worthless Liars’ dominated, but when James Veck-Gilodi has the balls to perform a beautiful solo rendition of `Friends Like These’, a vulnerable yet triumphant highlight of the festival is being witnessed for all to see.
Trapped Under Ice
With a hench front man and chugging bass lines, basically, you don’t fuck with TUI. The kids are in their element during Trapped Under Ice’s set, these guys know how to do hardcore, everyone is moving, this is the real deal, a blistering combination of punishing punk and a whole lot of fun. Perfect.
Bleed From Within
After a small amount of heckling from the crowd due their strong Scottish accents, Bleed From Within launch into a powerful performance, a master class in modern metal. Front man Scott Kennedy doesn’t stay still for more than a second and gives the set some real guts. Riffs in the vein of As I Lay Dying blow away any remaining hangovers. After a dominating set here and having recently signed to Raw Power Management and Century Media, expect these guys to become metal titans with their next release.
Last Witness
Hevy’s line up is full of hardcore bands. Some bad ones, some average ones and some real treats. Last Witness are right up there with the best. Adrian Cecil goes absolutely nuts on bass whilst the crowd go a even more insane. The bizarre competition to ride an inflatable dolphin on top of the crowd isn’t needed, everyone is two-stepping and surfing over the barrier as it is. The bouncers certainly earned their money during Last Witness’s set.
SATURDAY 4th AUGUST
Seahaven
Seahaven’s emotive post-punk is blissful in the summer sun. ‘It’s Over’ is a calming yet tormenting track that highlights their set. Their melodies are unmatched throughout the whole weekend and fully deserve the recognition they receive from the Hevy crowd.
Bury Tomorrow
These guys had a rough deal at Hevy. First off the sound cuts out just as front man Dani Winter Bates launches into his first scream. But ever the charismatic front man, it doesn’t faze him; he interacts with the crowd at ease whilst the techies get to work. Once everything is sorted the set is victorious, Mehdi Vismara performs exquisite solos with the crowd lapping up every note with glee. Catastrophically for the band, the plug is pulled as the set over runs during the time of highest momentum. The last song is cut short and the crowd are left in disgruntled. Bury Tomorrow deserved more than just a 20 minute set, however the cheers that resound long after the band leave the stage emphasizes that Bury Tomorrow are the next big thing in British metalcore.
Glassjaw
Despite creating two genre defining albums, recent live outings from Daryl Palumbo and co. have, at best, been mixed. Fortunately, the band delivered a bursting performance of chaotic tracks taken from their back-catalogue, including ‘Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Silence‘ and highlight ‘Siberian Kiss‘.
Andrew WK
Finishing the night, we were treated to a masterclass in partying from the king of not giving a shit, Mr Andrew WK. Opening with ‘It’s Time To Party‘, followed by ‘Party Hard‘ and ramming the theme down our collective throats with ‘Party Til’ You Puke‘, we got exactly what we were hoping for from the set. Chaotic, ridiculous but ultimately a insane amount of fun, the night drew to a close as a sea of sweat and smiles.
SUNDAY 6th AUGUST
Hawkeyes
Despite this being the third festival the band had played this weekend, Leeds bruisers Hawkeyes played one of the most compelling sets of the Hevy. Setting up his microphone in the middle of the audience, singer and guitarist Paul Astick encouraged the crowd to get as close as possible, creating a raucous basement show feel in the middle of the English countryside.
Listener
On paper, an experimental spoken-word act stands out on the Hevy line-up, but with the crowed pouring in to witness them at the Red Bull Bedroom Jam stage proves they were an inspired booking for the festival. Rousing, affecting and impossible to take your eyes off, Listener are a band to be genuinely excited about.
Hundred Reasons
Although they have put out four albums in their career, Hundred Reasons are destined to be remembered for just one. Fortunately, said album ‘Ideas Above Our Station‘ was one of the finest pieces of British post-hardcore of the noughties. Realistic enough to know that they’ll never recapture that time, yet smart enough to give fans what they want, Hundred Reasons played IAOS in full to incredible effect. Despite the waves of nostalgia, the 12 songs still sounded as fresh as the first time they were played and were delivered with boundless energy, with the excitement of the band only matched by that of the crowd.
Vinnie Caruana
Vinne Caruana, the I Am The Avalanche and former Movielife frontman loves to tell a story. So much so that he only managed to play around six songs in the entire set, whilst treating us to tales of New Jersey and his ex-wife. Despite complaining that he’d ruined his voice, the songs he played still held up, with Movielife anthems including ‘Walking On Glass‘ proving a real treat.
Descendents
After a disappointing return last year, it was great to see the Descendents on incredible form. The Californian legends most definitely deserved to play to more people than they did (sadly, this was a true for a lot of the bands over the weekend), but hearing tracks like ‘Everything Sux‘, ‘Hope‘ and of course ‘I’m The One‘ live will be a memory that anyone who still holds a torch for the band will never forget.
WORDS: Emma Wallace & Joe Parry
PHOTOS: Cat McKenzie
Punk band Title Fight are streaming the first part of their tour documentary online (which was directed and edited by Alex Henery). The film features Title Fight performances on massive stages as support to Rise Against from the April/May 2012 “Endgame” Tour. 
