“We’re off to Greece this weekend – they won’t know what tear gas is until they’ve seen us!” cackles Flogging Molly frontman Dave King, shortly before his band rip into the barnstormer of a title track from recent album ‘Speed Of Darkness’. Flogging Molly have sold out far bigger London venues than the Garage, and although Dave’s frequent one-liners are hardly the stuff of comic genius, they do add to the sense of intimacy that just wouldn’t exist at, say, the Shepherd’s Bush Empire.
Let’s not forget, also, that Flogging Molly cut their teeth in small bars and clubs for quite a while before their hard work started to pay off, so tonight represents something of a return to their roots. By the time they hit the stage, the booze has been flowing freely for a good couple of hours, and the sing-along for the opening ‘The Likes Of You Again’ is proof enough that the band’s loyal following hasn’t deserted them in their two-year absence from these shores.
There isn’t really much in the way of musical surprises on offer tonight, with a handful of newer songs on offer, plus most of the old favourites – the drum and banjo intro of ‘Drunken Lullabies’, in particular, inciting absolute mayhem amongst the increasingly sweaty and delighted crowd. Flogging Molly remain a true band of the people, and even if tonight sees them doing little more than what they usually do (albeit in a smaller setting), they still do it better than most other Celtic punk bands around today.
Death Skateboards have announced today that Sunday July 10th will now be christened as Death Day at Shoreham’s concrete bowl. Expect Death Skateboards and Urethane team rider to be present including Benson, Steak, Rhys Grogan, Boots, Calow, Moss, Patrick, Garbett, Questions, Nowik, Sweeney, The Plasterer, Cov Sid and various guests. This should be one hell of a session.
The jam will be followed by Duane Peter’s band the U.S Bombs playing live at The Hydrant, so get your tickets in advance to avoid disappointment on the night. Spread that word.
With a line-up of hard hitters such as Trail of Dead, Hurts, The Joy Formidable, We Are Scientists, Dananananaykroyd, Guillemots, Ed Sheeran and a host of local talent, the Bristol leg of Dot-To-Dot seems a scintillating enough prospect even if logistically it would be improbable to catch every act.
With the weather looking a tad dubious, I was pleasantly surprised at the turnout for Allie Moss. The promising singer/songwriter played some impressive folk accompanied by some flawless vocals to a nearly full capacity Thekla.
I headed across to the O2 Academy 2 next to catch some of Bravo Brave Bats. Valiant effort from the alt-rockers but lost in the fact the sound was terrible. Local party-core The Hit-ups open up the larger Academy downstairs to a sparse reception. Synth-laden bass driven post-rap with a mixture of quirky guitar parts energises the ever emerging crowd.
Before Ed Sheeran’s set I managed to bike it up the ridiculously steep hill to The Anson Rooms in time to sample the nu-wave antics of Idles. The racket was tremendous as they weave through a brooding mix of joy division driven melody with an epileptic dash of post-punk. The rest of the festival obviously didn’t get the memo as the band played to an almost empty room.
The bike ride down the hill was definitely easier and was just enough time for Ed Sheeran. After the non- existent turn-out for Idles, I realised the punters were all congregating at the O2 Academy which by this point was rammed. Internet super star and grime aficionado Ed Sheeran is on the brink of consequential success and the turnout showed it. Acoustically in tune with Jack Johnson that intermingles swift rapping and sweeping vocal harmonies, the power is in the delivery, mesmerising the crowd with his finely crafted performance.
It was time again to head back to the Anson Rooms. By this point I was pretty knackered and catching the end of Benjamin Francis Leftwich, who played a humble and subtle folk recital, was quite comforting. In stark comparison Dananananaykroyd explode next onto the stage. The duel assault from the animated front men was a real joy to watch as they arduously execute their brand of indie-punk. It was noisy, fun and cathartic. There was even a moment when the bouncy two broke through the barrier and was amongst the crowd flailing and blaring away with infectious enthusiasm.
I decided to stick around the Anson room for The Joy Formidable whose set annoyingly clashed with We are Scientists. I didn’t regret it as The Joy Formidable were immense. The indie-rock sound was big and bold with leading lady Ritzy Bryan taking the reins and guiding us though the intimately ambitious journey. It was truly hypnotic to absorb Rizty’s presence on stage while an array of songs from their acclaimed debut album ‘Big Roar’ resonated throughout the venue.
If The Joy Formidable was an insightful look at an act destined for potential success …And You Will Know Us by The Trail of Dead are a band that over the years never seemed to meet the commercial expectations put upon them however tonight they demonstrated that 15 years and seven albums worth of experience the still exude a youthfully blistering spectacle. They open with the indulgently epic ‘Will You Smile Again’ and set the tone for a passionately engaging performance. It wasn’t until ‘It Was There (That I Saw You)’ that the density of the sound really engulfs the entire place Within the bands frequent instruments swaps and relentless grandiose noise Trail of Dead blast out some tracks from their most recent release ‘Tao of the Dead’ such as the liberating ‘Summer of All dead souls’ and the fluid and dreamy ‘ebb away’ which seems to have rejuvenated their sound. A dynamic and solid performance from the legendary post-rock veterans and a perfect end to this year’s festival.
Yep, it’s that time of the year again! (Although it seems to have come along a little earlier this year). Sonisphere 2011 is upon us, and is currently doing the rounds in mainland Europe with blistering performances from the likes of Judas Priest and Mastodon. This year, however, it’s the UK’s turn to witness the Big Four of thrash – Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax – together on these shores for the first time in history, and it’s arguably this which has made Sonisphere one of the most eagerly anticipated festivals of 2011.
Crossfire will be in attendance, so watch out for our review of the festival afterwards. In the meantime, here’s a list of bands that we’re looking forward to; from the huge Apollo Stage big guns to the up and coming talent that will be gracing the smaller stage. There’s something for everyone here, so get involved!
Slayer (Apollo Stage, Friday)
Arguably the most respected of the Big Four (as well as the only one to still boast all four original members), Slayer celebrate their 30th anniversary this year, but 2009’s ‘World Painted Blood’ album is proof enough that these thrash veterans haven’t mellowed with age. If there was a nuclear holocaust tomorrow, they’d probably still be rocking out amongst the cockroaches, but for now, the smart money’s on them inciting the craziest pits at Sonisphere.
Mastodon (Apollo Stage, Sunday)
What we can we say about this lot? Well, all you need to do is watch thier spankling brand new video here and decide for yourself if this is not one of the raddest bands that will play this festival. Get in there.
Motorhead (Apollo Stage, Sunday)
Some people (mainly fools) complain that Motorhead’s songs all sound the same – and whilst it’s true that Lemmy and co. have never given much thought to musical evolution, neither would you if you could play filthy, gut-level rock n’ roll as well as the ‘Head do. Nearly 40 years in the game, and they’re still delivering the musical equivalent of a gigantic one-finger salute. Expect to hear the classics (‘Bomber’, ‘Ace Of Spades’, ‘Overkill’, etc.) plus maybe a track or two from their surprisingly good recent album, ‘The World Is Yours’.
Gallows (Saturn Stage, Saturday)
The beauty of a Gallows show is that you never know exactly what you’re going to get. With a suitably livewire stage presence, a penchant for audience participation, and rumours of new songs nearing completion, theirs is not going to be the most predictable of sets. That said, the likes of ‘London Is The Reason’ and ‘Abandon Ship’ are arguably the finest marriage of hardcore fury and rock n’ roll awagger that you’ll hear all weekend.
Revoker (Red Bull Bedroom Jam, Saturday)
Coming across rather like a evil hybrid of Stone Temple Pilots, Machine Head and early 90’s Metallica, these upstarts are cut from a more abrasive cloth than the majority of their South Wales musical brethren. It’s still early days for Revoker, but they have determination and vigour on their side, and are sure to give it 100% at Sonisphere.
Cancer Bats (Bohemia Stage, Sunday)
Brace yourselves for this lot, because they’re gonna hit the festival like a sonic wrecking-ball of a band. The Canadian hardcore quartet seem to be getting better (and heavier) with time, and with the indefatigable presence of Liam Cormier on vocals (seriously, this man has no ‘off’ button), they could well be the Bohemia stage’s crowning glory.
Cerebral Ballzy (Red Bull Bedroom Jam, Friday)
Long week at work/school? Well, remove your brain, pop it in its spongebag, and then get yourself down the front for Cerebral Ballzy; five guys from Brooklyn who deal in short, sharp bursts of wonderfully sloppy hardcore punk, and who aren’t afraid to revel in their own idiocy. Full video interview coming from them very soon from their date at Camden Crawl, watch this space.
Turbowolf (Bohemia Stage, Sunday)
There’s something slightly unhinged about Turbowolf. Maybe it’s the way that vocalist Chris prowls the stage, seemingly more hungry for the audience’s blood than their approval. Maybe it’s the way ‘Bite Me Like A Dog’ kicks its way into your subconscious in a mass of skewed electronics and thunderous riff action. Or maybe it’s the band’s ability to whip a room into a writhing, slamming, sweaty mass of bodies wherever they go. Either way…go see.
Young Legionnaire (Red Bull Bedroom Jam, Friday)
The brainchild of former yourcodenameis:milo singer/guitarist Paul Mullen and Bloc Party bassist Gordon Moakes, you might not expect them to be the most hard-rocking of bands, but you’d be wrong. Debut album ‘Crisis Works’ is a mix of scratchy post-hardcore guitars and bowel-loosening grooves, with Mullen roaring himself hoarse over the top of it all. Essential stuff.
Wight Trash Skateboards have unleashed a monster video edit today to celebrate the opening of their online shop.
The Isle of White crew are currently working on a full length team video scheduled for November released called DANG! and have dropped this in the interim.
Discover the weird and wonderful world of Jesse James and Chris ‘Avi’ Atherton who have filmed and edited this beast for your viewing pleasure. The edit features a mash up of 80’s clips and some tech skating from Jesse James, Will Sayer, ‘Avi and John Cattle. Natas also gets a mention as does Frap the Old Deer, and Josh Kalis on puncture repair duties!
Get your eyes round this, it’s also inspired by by Stephen Baldwin!
It was only 2 weeks ago that Mastodon’s singer Brent Hinds featured in a hilarious restaurant advert and now, the internet has exploded in delight at the release of their new and Fragglerock-breaking video for Deathbound that is a must see!
Ali Drummond has a new video edit from his travels in Korea today. If you missed it and are itching for a travel feature with video, click here to check out his Burma feature too.
“We’re off to Greece this weekend – they won’t know what tear gas is until they’ve seen us!” cackles Flogging Molly frontman Dave King, shortly before his band rip into the barnstormer of a title track from recent album ‘Speed Of Darkness’. Flogging Molly have sold out far bigger London venues than the Garage, and although Dave’s frequent one-liners are hardly the stuff of comic genius, they do add to the sense of intimacy that just wouldn’t exist at, say, the Shepherd’s Bush Empire.
