by Dee Massey
There are few bands out there so close to their fanbase that they’d actually raffle off a member of the band, but then The Crimea aren’t your run of the mill holier than thou rock stars, however more of that later..
Rising from the ashes of successful band ‘The Crocketts‘, Davey McManus and Owen Hopkins formed ‘The Crimea‘ alongside Andy Norton, keyboardist Andrew Stafford and bassist Joseph Udwin, reinventing themselves and endlessly grafting over the last three years whilst they recorded a series of demos at their East London house, whilst constantly gigging and forging a secure solid fan base both in UK and US.
But hard work has its payback, and after a showcase at SXSW 2004, they signed to Warner (a US deal which has been reciprocated by UK Warner) and this week sees the release of their debut album ‘Tragedy Rocks‘ things are definitely looking up.
Sitting down in a pizza joint in Chalk Farm on the eve of their UK tour drummer Owen Hopkins and keyboardist Andy Strafford seem relaxed before their Enterprise show to celebrate John Peel Day – (the DJ was incidentally was a huge supporter of The Crimea, describing ‘Lottery Winners on Acid’ as “one of the best songs I’ve heard in years“).
With the album just released they’re setting off on a 25 date tour of the UK taking in all the main cities, “places like Tunbridge Wells and Harlow.” Andy adds wryly. It’s their first tour since getting signed to US based Warner’s, which seems at first an unlikely choice of labels after releases on indie labels.
“Well, we were always trying to sign simply with the right label, we wanted to go with someone who was prepared to put some money behind the band, to really push the band, to really try and break us – and I know there’s a lot of independent labels that are capable of that now, we ended up going with Warner’s because they seemed really really keen.” Andy counters. Their big break happened at SXSW, having spent their last funds on getting over to Texas; they played a set in an Irish pub at 1am in the morning which was, as Owen puts it .. “fucking disastrous!” Andy had hired the wrong keyboard, “pedals were going wrong, the drum kit was going flying, but it was passionate on top of that and it really turned heads and we ended up getting a deal…” he shrugs.
Having already recorded ‘Tragedy Rocks‘ on their own 16 track, the band went into the studio in the deep South, Mississippi (surrounded by “country music..we listened to artists like Blake Sheldon, Gretchen Wilson and Toby Keith.”). It was time to hand the reins over to someone else, which is never an easy thing to do – but was it as hard as they’d thought? Owen concedes ” ..to an observer..absolutely” Giving creative control to an outsider after three years “grafting morning noon and night, Davey specifically… to hand over the reins to a “producer”.. with his own creative agenda, it didn’t quite work. The songs were fully formed already, we didn’t need someone to put their oar in, and there was a little bit of friction did arise, and that’s probably why it was so miserable” Owen explains diplomatically.
But their savior came in the form of Chris Shaw, known for engineering Weezer and Wilco specifically, who was assisting in Mississippi, and the band and Shaw relocated to NY to finish the album.” We got on really well with Chris, we knew he could do the job and it just seemed like the natural decision to use him to mix the album..”.
With the album in the can, they quintet took to the road in US with Ash and then Billy Corgan. Having supported a wide range of acts both here and over the pond (including The Get Up Kids, Dashboard Confessional and Kings of Leon) the band secured a support slot on the Billy Corgan tour through a friend of a friend. “The Billy Corgan tour was excellent, we managed to get an album to Billy and he heard it, liked it, and decided to take us on tour. We were there giving it some, turning the amps up ..and rocking out..and Billy’s there giving it his Depeche Mode impression, so I think people reacted well to our gnarly rock!”.
The US audiences were quick to accept The Crimea (the countless messages of support from American fans on the bands my space page lays testament to their success over the pond).”The American crowds are a little less jaded than we are in the UK because I think fans in the UK are so used to scenes coming and going within five on ten minutes, they’re just a little bit blasé about it.[In America], they’ll be with you for years and years, [the] crowds aren’t really waiting for you to impress them, they’ll take you on face value and if they like your music they’ll come again, whereas a UK audience can be a little bit..you know..with their arms folded ‘impress me’ type of thing ..” Owen explains.
Touring the states was a rite of passage for the guys, “we’d sometimes do 6 or 700 miles in a day, stuck in this RV, this summer we were touring with Billy Corgan in over 100 degrees heat with no air conditioning, seven blokes, in a fucking RV, 12000 miles in 7 weeks, believe me it gets a little steamy!” Andy smiles, “we have our fair share of arguments!” Whislt Davey writes inspired, winding blogs on MySpace, Owen spent the last tour learning French ” there this course…Michel Thomas…you don’t need a book and you don’t need to write anything down, you just need a CD player, I’ve stuck it on my ipod and you just talk along to it.”. Back home he’s well know for his freelance writing for various magazine, including NME, Kerrang and The Fly, whilst on the road the band keep in constant contact with their fanbase through their often hilarious group emails. Hopkins’ emails throughout the last years give fans a sense of belonging, as one fan described them when asked ” you feel like you’re part of the family – you’re really 100% behind the band because they make you feel like you’re part of it.”
The summer was neatly tied up with appearances at Leeds Reading Carling Weekend and Bestival. “I fucking love festivals” Owen grins when recounting his Reading experience. “I love them..in particular I really love Reading , because I’ve been there since I was like 15 or 16, so to play Reading, having always had such a laugh there over the years was special, I’d played there with The Crockett’s and that was amazing, and now I’ve played there with The Crimea, it was amazing, I mean it never disappoints.”
When asked about Leeds he grins. “I hate to sound snotty but we played Leeds on the Friday and Leeds was just a bit of an obstacle before we got to Reading. We were like ‘fuck this’ let’s just get down to reading and act like twats backstage! To play it and be there..was just amazing!” Their enthusiasm is contagious, and anyone who caught their slot at Reading would agree, Davey’s vocal gymnastics drew in the crowds and made it a highlight of the last day.
And so having finished a pre gig pizza the guys wander back for the John Peel Day set, fans new and old pile upstairs in The Enterprise, a homecoming for The Crimea. And what of that raffle – Owen was raffled off on their Myspace site, but through a random twist of fate his sister won him. So not romance there? ” No!..But a lot of beer and drunken dancing like a freak!”
‘Tragedy Rocks‘ (Warners) is available in the shops now.
Catch The Crimea on tour, for further info check out www.thecrimea.net
Dee Massey
When we heard that this gig was for real it was a no brainer, we were never gonna miss it. Both bands have been played to death here at HQ all year round so the promise of a show together was the kiss of life. Sub Pop’s Wolf Parade opened the show but we missed them by an inch but made it in good time to see Dead Meadow hit the stage in good time. Dead Meadow have been around since 1988 and come from the wonderful music state of Washington DC, and area that has spawned some of the best bands in underground history such as Henry Rollins, Fugazi, and Minor Threat.
With the constant flow of bass skills from Steve Kille and the mesmerizing anchor man in drummer Stephen McCarty you have one of the most solid rhythm sections on the planet. This skill helps vocalist/guitarist Jason Simon produce his layered vocals coated in reverb with what looks like little effort although you know somehow he is thinking every note as he twangs yet another 2 minute stoner solo. This band has the knack to jam your lazy arse into the ground. Taking Hendrix by the horns, twisting it round with the heaviness of Sabbath and the psychedelic drugs of the Verve b-sides, the Meadow are a force to feel tonight and drummer McCarty shows how good he is with drum rolls that mulch your brain. I was way too stoned to remember each song but I do know that they finished with a killer version of the hidden track form the end of the Feathers album that destroyed people. It was an amazing show but Black Mountain had not even played yet and it felt as if nothing could ever match what we had just witnessed.
The show Black Mountain played this year at Metro was incredible but also looked a little tight for space on the night. Tonight they seemed comfortable on a bigger stage with a better PA and they managed to turn the entire crowd into a warbling wreck within the first 4 songs. The monstrous Don’t Run Our Hearts Around, No Satisfaction and Modern Music kicked in to get the crowds blood flowing after the Meadow had destroyed all vein action which led to a killer Druganaut session and some early stuff before the folk imploded Heart of Snow, the demanding, blood rushing No Hits and the mellow Set Us Free literally glued people’s feet to the ground.
They’ve actually aged remarkably well, and strut the stage still full of attitude and vigour, blasting through early eighties metal classics like ‘Emergency‘ and ‘Hit And Run‘. Sure, they sound dated and of their time but the energy and attitude is very much intact. Their set ends with Lemmy himself joining them onstage for a blistering run through ‘Please Don’t Touch’, apparently the first time they’ve played it live together. Great stuff!
“We feel about a million miles away from home right now” admits beardy Baroness guitarist John Baizley as the reality of the band’s first long distance tour away from home dawns on him. ‘But thank you for making us feel so welcome.’ The pleasure, however, is all ours! Tonight, Georgia based quartet Baroness are an absolute revelation. Drawing their influences from many different aspects of heavy music, they fuse crust punk, tech-metal, prog rock and slabs of sonic sludge with classic metal riffs for an end result that sounds like Discharge, Isis, Mastodon, Eyehategod, Iron Maiden and the Melvins all at once.
But if any band is fit enough to take on the challenge, it’s London’s Capricorns. Arriving onstage with a tense, determined look upon their faces, they immediately set about giving the Yanks a run for their money. No, this isn’t a competition but it’s a real pleasure to see a UK metal band this good and tonight, still buzzing from the creative success of their debut album ‘Ruder Forms Survive‘, Capricorns show a heaviness and depth within the grinding epic instrumental voyages of ‘Exit Wargasmatron‘ and ‘The Harrying Of The Heathen‘ that is sorely needed on this Island infested with weak commercial crap and a timely reminder of just how breathing-taking and challenging heavy music can be. None more heavy.
I’chelmee is presented to us by Social Misfit entertainment; you can find some of their stuff for sale on line at 
With the emancipation of this 9 track album we can all take a largely anticipated and eagerly awaited breath out in a sigh of relief. Dealmaker records, from the Midlands, have released a proper little gem here. Lost Project, comprising of members; MC Killah, Poorly Fluent and DJ Frenic come true with that real rugged, home-grown sound that (I think) most of us are looking for.
Another track I want to mention is “Mutual Feelings” because it caught me one day walking to work with my ipod on. Again, we’ve got that eerie sound that I like to hear but it’s the quick, keep you on your toes, lyrics that set this one off. Switching between MC’s for different verses and fast lyrical intelligence and witty jives for the shitty MC’s that we all love to hate, really keeps the flow going.
Right then! DPF lives in Norwich, which is also the home of Alan Partridge. Now, for those of you that don’t know any of DPF’s work, he is always impressing with his supa-tight flows and has featured on loads of releases by top notch producers such as; Rob Life, Styly Cee (aka MC Pitman) and Tom Caruana.
This last album was sent to me, along with a couple of other CD’s and a few posters, just for buying a few records from suspect packages and what a treat it is. I’ve never heard of this lot before but maybe I should have done. This debut 21 track CD is full of diamonds in the rough, with light hearted and amusing little skits including a wonderful interview about a very “distracted” mans‘ favourite pets. This crew is made up of two producers, one DJ and three MC’s. Again, Tom Caruana raises his head and blesses us with his presence and some well picked samples. Dr Syntax also shows us how to avoid those syntax errors. This CD is perfect for people that love to listen to those up beat Herbaliser tracks, Jurassic 5 or DJ Format albums.
Pissed Off Stef, Promise Of Stress or just plain P.O.S., it doesn’t matter because after a minute of this, the first single from his upcoming second album “Audition”, you’ll be kicking back trying to figure out just when modern hip hop got so punk rock. The MC used to be in a punk band before taking the rapping route, but he is back to his roots with a guitar led sample, earth trembling bass and sung chorus. His angry, pushed out delivery gives the track a dark rush-hour feel and proves the brilliance of his debut album “Ipecac Neat” was no fluke.
Orange County four-piece Thrice are the type of band many love to hate. A cocktail of raw aggression, shameless emotion and a hell of a lot of pop-hooks; the band have steadily risen to new heights in recent times on the back of their critically acclaimed LP ‘The Artists In The Ambulance‘.
Steve Osborne handled the production duties this time around, and obviously he’s not exactly a hard rock producer having worked with the likes of Peter Gabriel in the past. Why him?
Over the past few years, the increasing popularity of the hardcore/metal influenced bands on the Vans Warped Tour prompted ideas for a separate tour, devoted to these kinds of bands. It debuted in the US earlier this year with huge success, and as a result, a UK leg was put together – with a total of nine bands playing under the banner of Taste Of Chaos (insert your own ‘Casey from Amen‘-themed bad joke here). Tonight is the tour’s last date – a second sold-out night at London’s Brixton Academy.
Before I even walk through the doors of Brixton, my eyes graze a field of tribute Billy haircuts. This is Billy *fucking* Idol. The music we were either brought up with or forced to listen to on loooooonnnngggg drives with our folks. This music marks the revolutionary history that has brought you to this very website, on this very page. Just as Debbie Harry, Black Sabbath and The Doors paved the way, Billy played his peroxide James-Dean punk rock part. There was no supporting band! Just pure 100% uncensored Billy Idol for 2 and a half hours! No wonder he is still sporting a six-pack at 50-odd, which he proudly strips down to between songs, and it still makes the gals holla! He looks the perfect plastic surgery picture of health after surviving drug overdoses, and a bike accident! It was a majestic display of pure speed.., I mean stamina!
Kung Fu, London’s best hip hop club night, brought about a change of scenery as it upped sticks from the Underworld to bop across the road to the Jazz Café for the first time and boasted a might line up, headlined by the ever-fresh Jehst. Getting in just before The Colony took to the stage proved difficult as the venue was packed to bursting point, but once there the ears were treated to a tight set which included a somewhat controversial ending when Grimlock’s accapella ended in a line about Jamie Bulger. Nonetheless, the crowd were bopping and after some fine time filling by Sarah and Harry Love, Micall Parknsun and Dubble Edge bumped the stage with some nice heavy beats and again, got the crowd head nodding.
10 years ago Richard and Stefanie Reines started an independent, punk rock label in California called Drive-Thru Records. Now in 2005, the label has the luxury of issuing a full compilation of the best tracks from various artists from the roster and deliver it to you just in time for xmas!