Tall, cavernous theatres like Koko may not be the ideal setting for a hardcore show, but then Converge are no ordinary hardcore band, and tonight’s line-up reflects this.
A Storm Of Light are armed with some seriously seismic grooves that fill the venue with ease, and give its foundations a bit of a shake into the bargain. Behind the band, a huge projector screen shows footage of rioting, war and burning cities – an appropriate backdrop if ever there was one, as this is perfect ‘impending apocalypse’ music. It’s an assault on the senses, and an oddly reassuring one at that.
A combination of almost non-stop touring and last year’s excellent ‘Parting The Sea Between Brightness And Me’ album have gained Touché Amoré plenty of well-deserved recognition, and tonight they justify the hype in fine style. Every word is screamed back at vocalist Jeremy Bolm as his band rip through the likes of ‘Pathfinder’ and ‘Home Away From Home’ with minimum stage patter and maximum conviction. They’re clearly stoked to be touring with Converge, and with their intelligent, honest approach to hardcore, greater things surely await Touché Amoré.
The last time we witnessed Converge separated from their audience by a barrier (at the Electric Ballroom a few years ago), frontman Jacob Bannon seemed uncomfortable – prowling the stage like a lion unable to savage a nearby herd of wildebeest. This time around, he comes across more like a hardcore Spiderman – zipping around the stage with barely a pause for breath, and that’s when he’s not actually down on the barrier screaming into the front rows.
Never slouches in the live department, Converge get through a good 20-odd songs tonight. ‘Sadness Comes Home’ (a highlight of recent album ‘All We Love We Leave Behind’) is already a crowd favourite, although – as ever – ‘Jane Doe’ era favourites like ‘Bitter And Then Some’ are the ones that really push the already-seething pit into overdrive.
Few bands find themselves making some of their best records after nearly two decades’ existence, but such is Converge’s position. No surprise that their fans are as devoted as they come, and on tonight’s evidence, that shouldn’t change anytime soon.
DEAF HAVANA
w/ There For Tomorrow, Canterbury
Sherperd’s Bush o2 Academy, London
15th November 2012
Shepherds Bush Empire was the venue for Deaf Havana’s biggest headline show to date. Selling out five days before the show, this was shaping up to be quite spectacular, and in no means did the night disappoint.
There for Tomorrow, forming in 2003, have established themselves as a major act on the rock circuit in the US, playing all the dates on the 2011 Vans Warped tour and releasing two full-length studio albums. Having headlined the Garage in London in November 2010 with support coming from Deaf Havana, it was clear from the start that the quartet had some fans around the venue with various screams and dancing, an overall solid performance.
Next up were main support Canterbury. After gaining a major fan base after releasing their debut album, ‘Thank You’ as a free download in 2009, they returned in 2012 with their much anticipated follow up studio album ‘Heavy in the Day’. Playing songs from both albums, including ‘Wrapped in Rainbows’, ‘Survivor’ & ‘Gloria’, at the end of which front man Mike Sparks thanked the crowd for their constant support of both themselves and more importantly the British Rock scene, which he then went onto say was booming which was apparent from tonight’s British acts. Finishing off their set with ‘Friends? We’re More Like A Gang’, Canterbury continue to show why their ones to watch in 2013.
A year on from releasing their album ‘Fools and Worthless Liars’, Deaf Havana are playing their biggest headline show since forming in 2005. Albeit with some technical issues early on, and starting their set with an alternative, slower version of ‘Youth In Retrospect’, it wasn’t long before they sent the sold out crowd into frenzy. Having the option to play material off both their original and deluxe edition, it was anyone’s guess as to which versions of the songs they were going to be played. A song that stood out to me on both versions of the albums was ‘Anemophobia’, tonight they showed how diverse they were as a band both live and recorded as they started the song off on a piano like that of the alternative version and then kicked in as the whole band to finish it off.
During their set it was clear to see how overwhelming the night was to James Veck Gilodi and his fellow bandmates. They used the platform to announce that they will be supporting fellow Brits You me at Six at their Wembley show that was met by a lot of screams from the crowd. Coming on for an encore, they were joined by eight members of the London Youth Gospel Choir to do renditions of their three songs ‘The World or Nothing’, ‘Fifty Four’ and Finished off with ‘Hunstanton Pier’.
This show will stick in the minds of the band and fans alike for quite sometime, and tonight has been a clear reminder that Great Britain have got one of the finest rock scenes, which Deaf Havana will keep climbing.
Monster Magnet,
23rd November
Electric Ballroom
Camden, London.
It’s extremely rare these days to discover an album of this magnitude. Monster Magnet‘s ‘Spine of God‘ was, and still is, one of the very best stoner rock records ever made. When this dropped back in 1991, it blew everything else out of the water. This album, made up of the most potent, acid-tinged, psychedelic rock, is so strong, and so deep, that it will forever live in the top 5 albums ever made in my book. No other album released since could push it down the pecking order. Not even QOTSA. You can argue amongst yourselves on this one, but i’m sticking to my guns. This album is fucking blazing and the OG since Sabbath.
Tonight, singer/guitarist Dave Wyndorf and his current band mates have traveled to London to drop an atomic bomb on a sold out Electric Ballroom. Now 56 years of age and looking the best he has done for years, he takes to the stage to unleash Monster Magnet’s debut album ‘Spine of God’ in its entirety and tells the crowd that he has come only to give all to the “emotional”. As a result, his worshippers give him everything as the band leap into the awesome, spiralling drum roll of ‘Pill Shovel’, one of the truly great album intro’s of all time.
The riffs that follow make a sea of heads nod as the deep, dark crunch of sludge is served up like a tsunami. This is hotknife material that you are fucking with here. The very best airplane toke you ever rose for. This show is for the microdot you lost under your fridge in 1992, the lump of hash you dropped at a festival that was never found. The first ever line of coke you blew onto the carpet in front of a room full of drug dealing Hells Angels. None of this is fiction. This is reality, and this, is the soundtrack of our lives.
Wyndorf’s voice is spot on. As he delivers the intro to ‘Medicine’ with the lyrics “Place the stones in the circle of twelve” we could feel the pre-empted anxiety from everybody around us, all ready to explode from the atomic pounding that was unleashed from the opening riff of this beast of a tune. His evil screams sent shivers down every spine in the house before the epic crescendo burst its banks and made way for that one and only “whoooooooooooooooooshhhhhhh, ……..” as the head rush from the needle point of ‘Nod Scene’ slowmo’d through veins and crashed gently into a mulch of psychedelic bliss. By this point, minds had gone all over the venue. This is the best fucking experience EVER! “Screw you if you think I care!”.
The evil riffs of ‘Black Mastermind’ bring the zodiac levels up to full capacity once again. Air guitar strings are snapping all over the fucking venue as people lose their minds from an overdose of space rock. After a nine-minute jam of frenzied guitar solo’s, Zodiac Lung sees Wyndorf turn from jamming into the drums to fronting classic lyrics: “When I die, It will be cos of you:. “It’s fuck up’s like you, that never seem to die.” I guess he seems pretty thankful he is still alive at all, after a lifetime of drug fueled touring, breakdowns, prescription drugs overdoses and personal trauma, Wyndorf has lived to tell the tale. At the end of set following ‘Spine Of God’, ‘Snake Dance’, ‘Sin’s a Good man’s Brother’ and ‘Ozium’, he apologises to the audience for not writing a longer album. Just like on record, the only way to get over ending this masterpiece is to press play on the first track again, but sadly, this is not possible live. So once the band have a well earnt breather, they return for an insanely good version of ‘Lord 13’ from ‘Tab’. This is where everything changed.
As ‘Traktor’ delivered its laughing pill, Wyndorf moved away from the mic by 4 feet but the vocals rang out through the PA perfectly. I had to ask my buddy next to me for re-assurance, who to my surprise, saw the exact same thing. We looked at each other with jaws open-mouthed. Is Dave Wyndorf fucking actually singing or what?! Is a tape of his vocals playing throughout the entire show? Is it just some helpful backing track for certain parts he can no longer reach? It turns out that the sound man controls a lot of the reverb on his vocals, so that’s that cleared up.
I came here to melt, to indulge, to reminisce, to appraise, to be electrified, and thankfully, I was rewarded with all of the above. So thank you Monster Magnet, for delivering the best gig you have played since we saw you at the Windsor Old Trout on the 4th of September back in ’92, and the Underworld show a day later. It’s a Satanic drug thing…..you wouldn’t understand.
10,000 music fans, 28 bands from 6 countries performing across 4 stages with 4,065 cans of Monster Energy Drink consumed, sums up the triumphant success that was 2012’s sold out Vans Warped Tour UK.
After soaking up the brilliant atmosphere for the early part of the event at London’s iconic Alexandra Palace, team Crossfire situated themselves in the main room to bring you back the info on performances from the Monster stages.
First off, we caught Breathe Carolina [3/5]. Now obviously this sort of electro/screamo vibe is not normally the kind of thing you would hear us raving about, but fair play to the duo, they really know how to work a crowd. The music maybe takes itself a little too seriously considering it is essentially just pop, but nonetheless, Breathe Carolina are widely adored by hyper-active fans.
Breathe Carolina
Following Breathe Carolina comes a completely different monster, UK born and bred metalcore titans, Architects [5/5]. Their thunderous blast beats and sub drops destroy the ear drums of a riff hungry crowd who respond with the biggest pits of the event so far. ‘Follow The Water’ and ‘These Colours Don’t Run’ are particular highlights of Architects’ set which ends with a union of voices screaming ‘You Fucking Pigs’ and the whole band surfing across the crowd.
ArchitectsOn Stage With ArchitectsOn Stage With Architects
3oh!3 [4/5] introduce themselves as a pop band, realistically that’s what they are, not typically a traditional Warped Tour artist. However, when you perform with such stage presence it doesn’t matter what genre you are tied to. ‘Don’t Trust Me’, ‘Starstrukk’ and ‘Punkbitch’ are all guilty pleasures to a crowd usually fed on punk and metal, but there really is no shame in enjoying these pop tarts when the bass is cranked up to such a dirty level.
Bringing the music back to the classic sound of Warped Tour, New Found Glory [3/5] bounce through an energetic set featuring all their hits with ‘My Friends Over You’ and a cover of Sixpence None The Richer’s ‘Kiss Me’ highlighting a charismatic performance. Showing professional brilliance, the band fought through technical difficulties to produce some of the most fun filled pits of the day. Even without being the biggest pop-punk fan, the infectious and uplifting sense of nostalgia was enough to get anyone involved.
After having been away from consciousness for a while, The Used [4/5] return to the UK with a commanding presence. ‘All That I’ve Got’ and ‘The Taste Of Ink’ are captivating and allow fans to reminisce the days when The Used were undoubtedly the king of emo. But it’s ‘Pretty Handsome Awkward’ that stands out of a polished set due to the punishing pit it creates.
Although known for being a bit hit and miss when it comes to live performances, Bring Me The Horizon [5/5] stole the show this time around at Warped. If the sound of screaming was deafening when the band walked on to the stage, words cannot describe the intensity when front man Oli Sykes appeared. It seems this generation’s metal poster boy left his demons behind for Bring Me’s set, as his presence was nothing short of iconic. Technically brilliant, impeccably tight, energetic across the stage and featuring surprisingly impressive clean vocals from Jona Weinhofen, this performance cements Bring Me The Horizon as the ones to beat in metal with new material from forthcoming album ‘Sempiternal’ sounding equally as brilliant as previous work.
Oli Sykes - Bring Me The HorizonOli SykesBring Me The Horizon
Oddly enough, Lostprophets [3/5] appear a little out of place as headliners. Although their extensive and impressive history earns them this slot, they aren’t quite the buzz band they used to be. But ‘Shinobi vs Dragon Ninja’ brings utter destruction whilst ‘Rooftops’ holds the crowd firmly in the palm of Ian Watkin’s hand. When a set list is filled with classics such as ‘Can’t Catch Tomorrow’ and ‘Last Train Home’ you wonder why we ever doubted their dominance.
Ian Watkins - LostprophetsLostprophetsVans Warped Tour UK Crowd
STRAIGHT LINES w/ Evarose, Streetfight Silence, Ascent
Face Bar, Reading
13th October 2012
With arguably a decline in show attendance in the scene at the moment, smaller scale gigs are always going to suffer on an absolutely miserable Saturday night. It seems that the temptation not to venture out in the torrential rain to Reading’s Face Bar was too strong for many as Ascent open up to a grand total of five people. A few more dawdle through the door mid-set but there is a large void in the centre of the room as punters head to the bar rather than appreciate the performance in front of them.
Its really disheartening to see a band play to so few people especially when they are actually pretty decent. Reminiscent of Francesqa, the Newbury based band certainly have a great level of musicianship. The gritty and slightly unclean vocals would set them apart from their peers, if there were people to listen…
Next on are local-ish Streetfight Silence, their presence has an immediate impact as a fair number gather around the stage to engage with their You Me At Six/Lower Than Atlantis inspired pop-punk. ‘We Must All Learn’ is a polished rock song and forthcoming single ‘Low’ is instantly appealing with a dirty, chugging baseline and catchy chorus. By upping the tempo the band captivate the small crowd in what can only be seen as a success in tough circumstances.
The first of the touring bands to perform is Evarose. By being and all girl quartet the group are already standing out from the others, but if you let the music do the talking rather than appearance, they are not so different; its fairly standard pop-rock. Their sound is solid, there are a number of tracks that are pretty good but unfortunately its nothing astounding. However what is impressive is vocalist Dannika Webber and bassist Connie Raitt doing their up-most to hype up a dull audience and their enthusiasm is refreshing. It must also be noted that Robyn Griffith offers some unique fills behind the kit making Evarose sound stronger as a unit.
Headline act Straight Lines have an individual tone to their music; slightly jangled guitars and jerky riffs allow them to be comparable to rock outfits such as The Xcerts, Tiger Please and Max Raptor. Front man Thomas Jenkins is a typically friendly and upbeat Welsh-man attempting charismatic chat between songs. Displaying flashes of humor such as greeting the audience with ‘Hello Reading Festival!’ is an endearing quality of the band.
Although there is little movement in the audience, it’d be fair to say that Straight Lines have a successful night in Reading. By mid set they are playing to a reasonably full room who seem to be fully appreciating the music, but just in a stand-there-smile-and-rock-your-head kind of way. The performance reaches its highlight towards the end when ‘Ring The Bell’ and ‘Commitments’ (taken from the band’s latest release ‘Freaks Like Us’) demonstrate Straight Line’s talent in song-writing through their attentive ear for melody. Straight Lines are a band full of promise, their dedication to touring the circuit gives them much credibility. Lets hope their commitment sees them rise up the ranks like they deserve to.
On Sunday 9th September Gallows played the tiny Fighting Cocks venue in Kingston to celebrate the launch of their third and self-titled studio album. Of course the show was completely sold out and a great success. If you missed out on the gig we’ve got a treat for you. Whack on ‘Last June’ (embedded below) and absorb into up and coming photographer Joe Brady‘s photo gallery and it’s like you’re almost there. In the words of Joe, “Gallows tore the Fighting Cocks a new one.” Enjoy.
WATCH VIDEO FOOTAGE FROM THIS ELECTRIC SHOW COURTESY OF JAMES SHERRY’S MAN CAM
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"My name is Evan and this is Into It. Over It."Jimmy StadtPolar Bear Club working the crowdPBC getting sweaty at BorderlinePBC's Vocalist JimmyJimmy and fan Toby performing ‘Drifting Thing’ as an encore
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.
It’s always a gamble going to see reformed old punk bands. You never know if they’re going to quite cut it, how many original members are left, are they just doing it for the money?
Well, in the case of Indianapolis, Indiana punks The Zero Boys, it certainly can’t be for the money. Whilst they do truly deserve the ‘legendary eighties punk band’ tag (their 1982 ‘Vicious Circle’ album is an absolute classic of the genre – a high octane mix of melodic punk and hardcore, a huge melodic and energetic rush), they are still only really renowned by those who closely follow US punk and have limited appeal having never played in the UK before. Suffice to say, there are only about 60 or so diehards and fans here tonight so any thoughts of cashing in must be long gone! And thankfully, original members drummer Mark Cutsinger and frontman Paul Mahern are still in the band and when they take the stage with two younger hired hands (sorry, I don’t know who they are!) and kick into the set, they sound tight and well-rehearsed.
Admittedly, it does take them a few songs to warm up (drummer Mark thankfully starts hitting a little harder a few songs in, propelling the band forward) and snotty hardcore pop punk anthems like ‘Living In The 80s’, ‘Civilization’s Dying’ and ‘Amphetamine Addiction’ all race past in a flurry of frenzied aggression. And although the venue isn’t exactly filled to capacity, those that are in attendance really get into it and the front area of the stage is soon filled with bodies, hot and sweaty and catapulting across the floor as the band beam back, buzzing on the energy spilling back at them and obviously thoroughly enjoying re-living their youths, casting their minds back to simpler more agile times.
All in all, a worthy reformation. Let’s hope they make it back again one day.
This gig starts early, really early. We arrived just before 8pm, and opening (local) band Gnarwolves had already played. Yeah, that early! And then maybe 20 minutes later Trash Talk takes to the stage. My mate Tony confirms we last saw them in Brighton in 2008 (supporting Paint it Black) – jeez, time flies. One thing’s for sure, Trash Talk have been going hard at it in the meantime, with relentless touring and recording that has gained them a strong young fan base, which is evident tonight. From the opening brutish chords, band and front stage crowd go off. Ok, I’ll be honest; much of Trash Talk’s short, blunt, metallic hardcore doesn’t have that killer impact on me that it promises to, but they are still a captivating live act, amped on anger and loaded with surly attitude.
I managed to catch OFF! on their initial blaze thru the UK last summer, but the gig I went to in Portsmouth was in a huge room, far too big for the show, with a small crowd, stage barriers, lacking atmosphere – a situation not conducive to a good night you’d think. Wrong! OFF! were ace, and we drove home stoked on having witnessed a very great band. So, in the much tighter and more populated confines of The Haunt, they are gonna be really great, right? Right! If, like me, you’ve had the OFF! 7”s and recent album on steady rotation, then you pretty much know you are in for a salvo of fast, tight, belligerent hardcore heavily inspired by the music singer Keith Morris originally cut his chops on, way back in the midst of time, but is delivered in 2012 sounding fresh and totally revitalised. And that’s down to the 3 fellow band members he’s aligned with, all accomplished musicians in their own right, and totally on it in keeping up the intensity.
4 songs bursts are interjected by Keith’s thoughts and anecdotes, and it’s good to know he’s still questioning and refusing to accept what his Government tells him. In other words; Punk Rock. Memories of his long deceased buddy Jeffrey Lee Pierce still cast a shadow on Keith, who questioned whether The Gun Club ever played in Brighton. I can confirm they did, late ’82, or early ’83 at The New Regent in West Street, which is now just another shitty bar, but back then was a hot bed of activity. Ack… the stories I could tell. Meanwhile, back at The Haunt, and approx 50 minutes after they started, OFF! departs to rapturous applause from the crowd… and we gather outside in the fading light, and acknowledge we have just seen a very great band. Intense, in your face and on the road with a vengeance, go see them!
Tall, cavernous theatres like Koko may not be the ideal setting for a hardcore show, but then Converge are no ordinary hardcore band, and tonight’s line-up reflects this.
POLAR BEAR CLUB
