Category: Live Reviews

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Live Reviews Music

Torche Live at XOYO


Torche
w/ Old Forest
XOYO, London
16th September 2012

An unfortunate injury to a band member sadly meant Hang The Bastard were unable to play XOYO this evening, leaving just two bands to share the stage. There has been more conjecture among underground pundits about the potential of Old Forest rather than their music: tonight’s performance did little to quell the excitement of the former, but raised some inevitable frustrations regarding the latter.

The south-west London three-piece grab strands from Seattle grunge and stoner rock with remarkable confidence, weaving them into a set of loud, down-tuned rock music, the proficiency of which belied the obviously tender ages of the band members. There can be no doubt that they have written some killer riffs and play them with intuitive composure, but it is not merely the fresh-facedness of the band that shows them to be a touch unfinished. It would be good to see them once they have taken possession of the prerequisite self assuredness to rock out, strum hard and loosen up. At present, it all makes for a rather stilted spectacle, and while their live sound is already formidable, it could just be spectacular with time.

Torche’s new album, ‘Harmonicraft’, tends very much towards the melodic side of the band’s sound. It is a brighter and less overtly riffed-up version of what some have felt the need to label, in abhorrent taste, ‘bubblegum stoner.’ The horror. However, such fuss has certainly played a part in wafting the band’s sweet yet heavy tones to some very lofty ears and there was a sense of expectation in XOYO. The venue was unusually busy for a Sunday night, thronging with an amusing blend of people who had presumably been told to be there by Zane Lowe and others who would not have needed any prompting to see this band play a genuine shore, or ditch.

Those who might have feared Torche’s newest material might be a case of ‘too much Grohl and not enough soul’ should, I imagine, have been assuaged by their blistering performance this evening. The songs from ‘Harmonicraft’ sound refreshingly heavy live – even the saccharine-sweet ‘Kicking’ had something of the night about it – while diehards were well served by a generous haul of older songs from ‘Meanderthal’ and their self-titled debut. This was a great set. It had the populism of the Foos alongside the pugilism of Floor (frontman Steve Brooks’ previous, highly recommended sludge metal band). And, support bands of the capital take note, they looked like they were having a great time.

Words: Martin Brown
Photos: Graham Berry

Old Forest
Torche

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Live Reviews Music

Devil Sold His Soul Live

Devil Sold His Soul
Shadows Chasing Ghosts, The Elijah
Album Release Show, The Fighting Cocks, Kingston
17th September 2012

Devil Sold His Soul released their third album ‘Empire of Light‘ on the 17th of September and courtesy of the folks at Banquet Records, they celebrated with a release show at the Fighting Cocks in Kingston that night.

If you’ve ever been to the Cocks then you know it’s a rad little rock pub that has a leopard print pool table, and has hosted some amazing shows in conjunction with Banquet (the local independent record store, run by people who love their music as much as we do). For example Four Year Strong, Tonight Alive, Let Live and New Found Glory have all graced this tiny stage. So, keeping all that in mind as well as this show being a sell out, the evening promises to be something very special.

First up to break the ice is the jaw-droppingly amazing band The Elijah. If you haven’t seen them, or heard them before, then this is a band you have to see to believe. Their music is a big batch of prog-rock, alternative and melodic songs that hit you hard. Although their set is only a short one tonight, within a minute of playing they’ve captured everyone’s attention and hold it right until the end. Their headline Underworld show on November 16th, is definitely a date for your diary, you won’t regret it.

Shadows Chasing Ghosts are up next, if I had to define SCG’s style I’d say throw Alexisonfire into a room with Asking Alexandria. So to follow The Elijah is a big ask, and to warm up the stage for the Devil boys is a pretty big ask too, one can’t help but feel a bit sorry for Shadows Chasing Ghosts as the room empties a fair bit. Unfortunately, he sounds not quite right either, making it a set full of good intentions, but it’s only just adequate in comparison to The Elijah.

Then with a quick sound check out of the way Devil Sold His Soul come on, and the room erupts as the band launch into their set. The room starts to heave as one mass, and everyone’s heads start to rock as the boys launch into an epic metal soundscape. The band are pitch perfect, you actually get nearly the same sound as you hear when you listen to the albums at home. It’s genuinely amazing. Every single person in the room is moving (to some degree) all the way through this set. Think metal meets the Pied Piper of Hamelin as everyone’s hypnotized by the set.

It was genuinely a pleasure to witness this intimate gig from a band that could definitely command the attention of a far bigger audience. They rip their way through most of Empire including a searing rendition of ‘A New Legacy’, but they also throw in some older material in the shape ‘An Ocean of Lights’, ‘Drowning/Sinking’ and ‘Dawn On The First Day’. I thoroughly recommend catching them on their tour later this year.

Words: JJ Nattrass

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Live Reviews Music

The Xcerts Live at The Borderline

The Xcerts
The Borderline, London
13th September 2012

I remember the first time I saw The Xcerts. It was a cold and damp late summer night up in Glasgow. Having just moved there, and therefore knowing nothing about the Scottish music scene, I was truly happy and surprised to be watching them play in the crypt of a converted Church. So I set off for Soho, pumped and in an almost euphoric state, to see this trio blast their own brand of distorted punk-rock pop laced music into the faces of Londoners.

The first thing to mention is that the Borderline has never been the biggest venue, but tonight it is rammed, as you walk down the stairs you have to squeeze past people trying to get a view of the stage. On top of this it’s hot as hell, but there’s a real buzz in the air as we all wait for the band to walk on stage. All of a sudden they appear and the music starts.

Now this is the part where I’m suppose to tell you how much I loved the show, and how it was ‘THE BEST GIG EVER!’, but it wasn’t. The sound at the start of the set was shocking, and when I say shocking I mean really crap, as you can hardly hear the guitar or vocals beyond a wall of distortion. Thankfully after about three songs the problems with the P.A. is sorted, however, although the majority of the audience seems to be really loving this play-through of their 2011 Scatterbrain album, I’m not blown away at all. I loved their first album, 2009’s ‘In The Cold Wind We Smile’, and I have to admit that I’m not the biggest fan of ‘Scatterbrain’, but I really thought it would gain a whole new dimension live. It didn’t really have that effect. While you can’t really say it’s a bad album, in my opinion, it’s just not as good as their debut effort.

The crowd are ready enough to sing-along towards the end and the band thank everyone for their enthusiasm. You can really tell it means a lot to them to see an audience who has embraced their music and a gig format such as this completely, but then it’s all over as they round up the set up after about 45 minutes and there’s not a trace of any earlier material, just one older track could have done the job.

You can’t fault the band’s musicianship, they played exactly the same way as the very first time I saw them in Glasgow, but the poor sound at the venue added to the lack of a truly gob-smacking set list made this, very sadly, just another ‘good but not great’ gig.

If you went and were new to the band, then I can appreciate you’re going to disagree entirely, but for anyone who’s seen them play live before this was not the best gig the boys have played.

Words: JJ Nattrass

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Live Reviews Music

B.Dolan’s Church of Love and Ruin Live

B Dolan Portrait B.DOLAN’S CHURCH OF LOVE & RUIN TOUR
Feat: B.Dolan, Sage Francis, Madge of Honor, The What Cheer Bridage, Dan Le Sac
Sub89, Reading
06th September 2012

*FULL GALLERY FEATURE BELOW*

As Dan Le Sac wrapped up his triumphant home town DJ set, there came an alarming sound from the back of the venue. A procession appears and they kept on coming, taking everyone by surprise like an ambush. Masked and covered in zombie-like make-up, the marching band arrives from all angles. Drums, cowbells, trumpets, flutes, it was a complete free for all in the intimate venue and the crowed were left in utter shock…

They have no interest in the stage, as far as they’re concerned, the whole venue is a stage. So the crowd dodges drum sticks, ducks under the dude with the massive trombone and dances along with the band. What an into. It was something special.

As the the tempo slowed down the band started to lower themselves to the ground, kneeling, then eventually sitting down, taking everyone with them. Now that’s the 1st time I’ve ever seen a room full of people, at a gig, boogieing their buts off whilst actually sitting down!

They eventually found the stage. But not until after the percussionists had sat chanting together in the centre of the venue like a tribe from the depths of the amazon rainforest. They then did laps getting everyone involved. Reading’s Sub89 was treated like a carnival. We were all in shock. What the heck was that, who are these guys B Dolan found? They are, The What Cheer Brigade.

Its clear straight away that ‘The Church of Love and Ruin’ tour is an experience, not you’re average concert. None of the tedious waiting around whilst each performer finishes their set. After What Cheer left for the back-room, there is an interim performance, B Dolan welcomes the next act on tonight’s bill, Madge of Honor, a burlesque artist. “Does anyone know what burlesque is? It is the art of ass and titties” says Dolan as Madge takes the stage and deliverers her somewhat titillating performance

B Dolan reappears dressed in a robe, with an ornate cross around his neck and black wayfarer sunglasses. He is the pope, the priest of the Church of Love & Ruin. He takes the stage, the bass drops, and he does what he does best, the lyrical mastermind keeps the audience engaged for the next hour. Delivering the best of the best from his albums ‘The Failure’ and ‘Fallen House, Sunken City’. He also opts for the controversial, yet hilarious ‘Open Letter to JT’.

Meanwhile Sage Francis comes on stage dressed like a Biblical shepherd, with a cloak and a white scarf around his head, and of course sporting his legendary lengthy beard. If all shepherds could rap like that, they’d be a force to be reckoned with! The mix of spoken word poetry and and hip-hop was received well by the audience, Finished off with the gripping fan favorite, ‘Best of Times.’

The Church of Love & Ruin is going to be an experience which will be hard to forget!
Dan Le Sac Sub 89

The What Cheer Brigade

The What Cheer Brigade

The What Cheer Brigade

Sage Francis Sub 89

B Dolan Sub 89

B Dolan's Church of Love and Ruin Sub89

Words: Arif Noor
Photos: Adam Waugh

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Live Reviews Music

Polar Bear Club live at Borderline

POLAR BEAR CLUB
Into It. Over It.
The Arteries
The Borderline, London
31st August 2012

*FULL GALLERY FEATURE BELOW*

As the opening band, The Arteries finish their hardcore and clear up all the gear, a bearded man emerges begins to sets up, checks if everything’s in working order and sits on his stool addressing the audience. The man is Into it. Over it, the sole operation of Evan Thomas. The first thing he says is, “So how many of you know I’m actually an acoustic act?”. Personally it comes as a surprise as the album is raging pop-punk. Its soon revealed that he records everything but tours as a single unit, just one man and his guitar. It was a tad strange I must admit, most of the other newbies probably felt the same. A hardcore band just left the stage and the crowd in a sweaty state, the headline act are gonna go mental, yet there’s an acoustic act sandwiched between it all?

Those apprehensive in the audience were quickly converted. Evan charged through his set, with such energy and passion as though he was fronting a full band. You could feel his passion, every song he had was attached with some kind of emotional story with the crowd are left to immerse themselves in the song as he crashed through it. Into It. Over It. Are a different kind of acoustic act, this guy was shredding and singing along with such energy that he struggled to sit still on the stool! The Arteries didn’t take the mosh pits with them, even Evan kept the crowd going.

You can always tell when the headline act grace the stage. Always. The atmosphere shifts, the crowd start to roar and everyone’s ready to tear the place apart. And of course, the same was experienced at the Borderline. Tonight is Polar Bear Club’s night, they own the this tiny basement of a venue in heart of London.

Borderline couldn’t have been a better choice of venue. Its as intimate as they come, with fans climbing onto shoulders and making their way onto the actual stage, shaking vocalist Jim Sandt’s hand whilst he’s singing, and then taking a platform dive straight back into the pool of people below.

Polar Bear Club powered through a varied set list, mixing classics from ‘Sometimes Things Just Disappear’, the epic, ‘Chasing Hamburg’ to their latest efforts from ‘Clash Battle Guilt Pride’. Whatever the song played on the night, it was received with a roar of an applause and continued stage dive action.

The band finished with the fan favorite ‘Living Saints’ and left for the back room. The crowd then started to sing the ballad, ‘Drifting Thing’. Everyone in the room, shouts as loud as they can to each word from start to finish. A call for an encore doesn’t get better than that!

So low and behold, Jimmy turns up on stage, quickly mentions that their current guitarist is a fill in and he might not know the song, to which a fan fumbles onto the stage and says if he could have a go. He introduces himself, Toby. Toby straps on the guitar, strums an a chord and the crowd erupt. He composes himself and is told, “3 strikes and you’re out kid!”, No pressure right?!

A few miss timings here and there, but the rest is perfect. You have to give the sweaty teenager credit, he’s on stage performing to a sold out crowd! Toby pulled through, Polar Bear Club loved it as did the crowd. This was clearly a stand out show for 2012 so far.

Words: Arif Noor
Photos: Alex Langworthy

Into It. Over It.
Into It. Over It. warming up the crowd at the intimate Borderline
Into It. Over It. warming up the crowd at the intimate Borderline
"My name is Evan and this is Into It. Over It."
Jimmy Stadt
Polar Bear Club working the crowd
PBC getting sweaty at Borderline
PBC's Vocalist Jimmy
Jimmy and fan Toby performing ‘Drifting Thing’ as an encore
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Live Reviews Music

7 Seconds, Madball, H2O live at Underworld, London

7 Seconds / Madball / H2O
London, Underworld
6th August 2012


It’s safe to say that London feels like a pretty special place to be this Monday evening, a line up of this calibre is the stuff most festivals are made of and not a regular night in the subterranean confines of the Underworld. Each of these hardcore heavy hitters is capable of headlining this place on their own so it comes as no surprise that the venue is packed to the gills and the sold out sign is up on the door.

H2O are billed here tonight as the rather obvious ‘Thicker Than Water’ and are a last minute addition to this already strong bill. The NYHC posi-core outfit are as entertaining as ever, vocalist Toby Morse bounces from left to right as they tear through ‘1995’, ‘F.T.T.W.’ and ‘Fair Weathered Friend’ oozing PMA from every pore. You have to love hardcore back slapping and both Madball and 7 Seconds are given their props tonight as H2O rip out covers of ‘Pride’ and ‘Satyagraha’ respectively.

Next up are old school bruisers Madball, front man Freddy Cricien inciting the now heaving crowd on the Underworlds floor. For forty five minutes they stomp with an anger and energy that’d put their younger contemporaries to shame. A set culled from their whole back catalogue is delivered with venom tonight, ‘We The People’, ‘Spit On Your Grave’ and ‘Set It Off’ are a steamroller of riffs and beatdowns that incite the crowd into whirling dervishes. Cricien leaves the stage to rapturous applause, sweat dripping from his shit eating grin.

You have to pity any band that has to follow the runaway train that was Madball, this is something 7 Seconds vocalist Kevin Seconds acknowledges as the Californian melodic hardcore four piece take the stage to a slightly diminished audience. Undeterred the four piece rip through a set of classics including ‘The Crew’ and ‘In Your Face’ that soon get the remaining crowd whipped up into a suitably moshing mood. Their faster, melodic take on punk a welcome tonic to Madball testosterone fuelled set. All in all this was a stonking night of hardcore royalty from the old to newer school, from speed to crunch, that shows that this movement is as alive and well as it has ever been.

Words: Miles Hackett

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Live Reviews Music

Kvelertak live at Borderline, London

Kvelertak
Borderline, London
16th August 2012

After the collapse of this years Sonisphere festival many of the estranged bands from the fallen line up have been turning up in London to continue to make their presence felt. In a week that’s seen two sold out shows by Refused it’s the turn of Norway’s hottest metal export Kvelertak to slay London with two sold out nights at the uber tiny Borderline.

The bearded throng of punters chant as the sextet saunter on to the tiny stage and launch into ‘Sjøhyenar (Havets herrer)’, vocalist Erlend Hjelvik hurling himself into the crowd. We’re treated to further choice cuts from their 2010 debut as the powerhouses that are ‘Fossegrim’ and ‘Blødtorst’ rain down upon the swirling audience. There really is something unique about this band and their punk/metal/rock/blastbeat hybrid is difficult to define or imagine on paper yet it gels in with a sadistic coherency both on record and in the live setting. Some new tracks are aired too tonight and if monsters like ‘Spring Fa Livet’ are anything to go by album number two is going to be a bruiser.

As their frenetic set rumbles on the crammed confines of this miniscule venue really begin to heat up and mic after mic is replaced as crowd surfers and divers alike get entangled in Hjelvik’s cables as he stalks the stage. The climax of the show is a rousing rendition of ‘Mjød’ which featured in the Troll Hunter movie, fists punching in the air and the crowd mouthing along to Norwegian lyrics they can neither understand nor pronounce. This is the beauty of Kvelertak, a band who let the music do the talking and transcend language barriers. More bands need to play with this venom and conviction, album number two soon please?

Words: Miles Hackett

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Live Reviews Music

Your Demise live at Reading Sub89


Your Demise
SUB89, Reading
14th August 2012

Your Demise at Reading’s Sub89 was a show made up of a mix of emotions; brilliant fun, nostalgic, painful and at times embarrassing. The embarrassment is really down to the crowd. At the start of Your Demise’s set they just aren’t into it. You wouldn’t think they have paid to see one of the UK’s most exciting bands that launch into their business all guns blazing, you’d think its some mediocre act that no one gives a damn about; the half empty room just doesn’t respond to the energy bouncing around on stage. Ed Mcrae does his very best to excite the crowd, and part way through the show, his efforts begin to pay off. His ability to entice some action on a miserable midweek show is definitely an asset and no matter what people may think of Mcrae on a musical or personal level, he is showing classic traits of a skilled showman.

Earlier this year, Your Demise dropped ‘The Golden Age‘ an album that divided opinions to say the least, with the main stream of criticism coming from older fans despising the poppier sounding tracks such as ‘These Lights‘. However, Your Demise clearly love ‘The Golden Age‘ and enjoy performing it. Its great to see a band sticking to their guns, Mcrae shouts, ‘Recently we dropped a record, ‘The Golden Age’, and there’s nothing you can fucking do about it!‘. The band needn’t worry though, as tonight, ‘These Lights‘ is triumphant. After his hard work hyping the crowd, Mcrae is in his element as the younger generation of Your Demise and hardcore fans lap up the high tempo track.

Considering the crowd were so dull at the start of the Your Demise’s set, the polar opposite response for ‘Burnt Tongues‘ is electrifying. Taken from one of the bands earlier albums ‘Ignorance Never Dies‘, the simplicity of the song unites the audience in movement. ‘Miles Away‘ keeps up the intensity as crowd surfers start to fly over the barrier. Set closer ‘The Kids We Used To Be‘ is euphoric. Looking around it’s hard to spot anyone not screaming lyrics, ‘So let’s bring back the best years. Nights spent hanging out. Not giving a fuck….‘. It’s a sincere reminder to cherish the good moments in life.

Yet its bizarre how quickly events can change, one minute everyone is having the time of the life, the next the sound cuts out and bassist Jimmy Sampson is crying for help. It appears in the chaotic, high energy end to the set, Ed Mcrae has hurt himself; badly. ‘He’s dislocated his knee!’ Another band member shouts and poor Ed is dragged off the side of the stage to receive medical assistance.

The lights go up and background music plays through the club’s PA. The crowd leave in dismay, contemplating what just happened. Its such a shame the show ended on a downer after all the effort the band put in to to raise the tempo. Your Demise won over a boring audience mainly due to Ed Mcrae putting in a stellar performance. However their commitment won’t go unnoticed, this crowd will be back for more at another Your Demise show as punters walk away from Sub89 still hungry for more.

Words & Photo: Emma Wallace

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Live Reviews Music

Overkill live at 100 Club, London

Overkill
100 Club, London
9th August 2012

Tonight’s odd ‘metal’ bill is part of Converse’s ‘Represent’ series of gigs at the legendary birthplace of punk, the 100 Club which it saved from closure last year. The venue is hotter than Satan’s armpit and a misty haze of perspiration hangs in the air as the Skill Wizzard DJ’s drop some of the finest metallic tuneage to wash away the sour taste of the indie rock bands that have preceded them. The throng gathers around the elongated 100 Club in anticipation of the headlining appearance of veteran power thrashers Overkill. When they take to the stage the volume is so earth shatteringly loud it could dislodge fillings and is riddled with painful distortion.

It takes a couple of songs for the quintet to hit their stride and for the sound to level out but by the time ‘Wrecking Crew’ tears past they are an unstoppable powerhouse.

Playing in the confines of a sixty minute slot tonight they crank through a greatest hits set from the rousing sing-a-long of ‘Hello From The Gutter’ to the anthemic stomp of ‘In Union We Stand’ and ‘Elimination’. Vocalist Bobby ‘Blitz’ Ellsworth’s sinewy frame contorts like a sort of metal Iggy Pop as he bellows forth his trademark baritone howl then darts stage right during instrumental breaks and gasps on oxygen in the oppressive humidity.

Overkill climax with their cover of Subhumans ‘Fuck You!’ as the crowd’s last drop of energy is rinsed from them, shouting profanity with their middle fingers held aloft. As they rumble to a close Ellsworth has a shit eating grin and is drenched in sweat. Despite Overkill being over thirty years old they ably prove they can still hammer it hard and it’s a testament to their longevity that a venue as small as this simply cannot contain them, awesome.

Words: Miles Hackett

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Live Reviews Music

Refused live at London Forum

Refused,
London Forum
12/8/12

RefusedFinally, ‘The Gig That Would Never Happen’ has arrived. It’s hard to imagine how the Swedish quintet could have emphasised their (arguably premature) demise more strongly than recording a song called ‘Refused Are Fucking Dead’, but it’s amazing what time can heal. Fourteen years later, they’re back, and after incendiary performances at Coachella, Groezrock and Download festivals (amongst others), Dennis Lyxzen’s crew are back in London to play to far many more people than they did in their original incarnation.

London quartet Pettybone are powerful and bleak as hell, and certainly don’t sound like a band on the verge of splitting up. They deserve all the attention they get, but ultimately the crowd are here for one band only.

It’s inevitable that Refused’s set leans heavily on their classic ‘The Shape Of Punk To Come…’ record, but it’s surprising how fresh and relevant these songs sound after all this time; the stop-start riffs of the opening ‘Worms Of The Senses…’ whipping the floor into a frenzy.

The band sound and look fantastic, and set against a simple backdrop with good use of lighting, they’re more than happy to let the songs do the talking. By the time Lyxzen has crouched on an upturned monitor for ‘I’d Rather Be Dead’ and clambered up the Forum’s side staircase for ‘Summerholidays vs. Punkroutine’, the energy levels have gone through the roof – and remain there.

It is, of course, an encore airing of their signature track ‘New Noise’ which truly unites all present, and gives the Forum’s foundations a serious test in the process. Refused are a band who’ve frequently had the ‘legendary’ tag thrown at them in the last decade and a half, and tonight, they more than justify it.

Alex Gosman