Ten reviews you might have missed

Reviews from Sunday 24 June 2018

Panic! at the Disco – ‘Pray For the Wicked’

It can’t have been easy to write a follow up to the Grammy nominated Death of a Bachelor, but Brendon Urie – now known for his determination to keep Panic! at the Disco alive – has persevered. While ‘Pray For the Wicked’ might not have the same pizzazz of

You Know The Drill – ‘Selfhood’

The Midlands. Home of heavy metal, chocolate, the world’s most confusing motorway junctions – and now, pop punk. Birmingham five-piece You Know The Drill are back with the follow up to their 2016 EP ‘Losing Streak’ – and with involvement from ROAM’s Alex Adam and guitarist Luke Astley stepping

Wednesday 20 June 2018

LIVE: Download Festival 2018 – Sunday

Download Festival is arguably the biggest and best heavy metal festival in the UK. The hallowed grounds of Donnington have seen just about every band ever grace it over the years. And this year was no different from some huge headliners to debut performances, and to top it all

LIVE: Download Festival 2018 – Saturday

LIVE: Download Festival 2018 – Friday

Tuesday 19 June 2018

State Champs – ‘Living Proof’

Drop. Everything. Now. Sound the pop punk sirens, dig out your backpack and get your dancing shoes ready (preferably chukkas but we’ll let you off with anything vaguely skate-shaped) – State Champs are back! It’s only five years since the New York band released debut album ‘The Finer Things’, but

LIVE: Slam Dunk Festival 2018

When choosing a festival to attend, location and line up can be two major factors. Slam Dunk’s ability to cover both of these goes some way to explaining why this well-loved event is now on its twelfth year, and getting seemingly bigger and better every time. By taking its

Monday 18 June 2018

LIVE: The Bronx @ Gorilla, Manchester

The downside of the summer festival season is the dearth of regular club shows. For those that decided against shelling out hundreds of pounds to slop around a field in Leicestershire or road-tripping across Europe, the sunnier months can prove to be relatively quiet affairs. It

Proud Parents – ‘Proud Parents’

Some bands are rooted as a job. Take Kiss for example. Half the members of the original line up joined after responding to an advert in Rolling Stone. Essentially, applying for a job. Other bands are formed as friendships that slowly progress into something more substantial. Proud Parents are

Friday 15 June 2018

Blue Heaven – ‘Volume One’

Spawned from the ashes of their previous bands, Maryland natives Blue Heaven have traded the pounding sound of hardcore and punk to become a more delicate and polished band. Bordering between jangle-pop and surf rock, there is a freeing, laid-back element to the record that settles nicely within the

LIVE: You Me At Six @ Keele SU

It may have been their first live show since November last year, but for the duration of the 90-minute pre-Download Festival set, You Me At Six were anything but rusty. Supported by Bath-based band Decade, the room was thick with moisture long before YMAS took to the stage, a great

LIVE: Camden Rocks Festival 2018

For the 7th year of Camden Rocks, the organisers pulled out all the stops to curate a diverse and impressive line-up that was sure to please rock fans of all ages. Whether you were there for punk, classic rock, or alternative there was something for everyone. The Punktastic team

Monday 11 June 2018

Mayday Parade – ‘Sunnyland’

When bands release outstanding debut albums, there’s always a concern that they’ll spend the rest of their careers struggling to top it. If you ask any fan of Mayday Parade what their favourite album is, they will in all likelihood respond with ‘A Lesson In Romantics’, the band’s very

Sunday 10 June 2018

Tremonti – A Dying Machine

Over the course of the last two decades, Mark Tremonti has created no less than thirteen albums. His talent as a songwriter and guitarist is without question, and his work with both Creed and Alter Bridge has put him at the top of the pile of contemporary

Wednesday 06 June 2018

LIVE: Twin Atlantic @ The Waterfront, Norwich

If you’ve never experienced a Twin Atlantic headline show then it’s time to rectify the situation. The Norwich crowd was sufficiently warmed up by the time both supporting acts Bellevue Days and The Pale White had finished their sets, and yet nothing could have prepared anyone in the packed

Tuesday 05 June 2018

Haggard Cat – ‘Challenger’

If you don’t support the things you love, they will inevitably disappear. The music industry has undertaken a terrible sea change in recent years, with even the bands on the major labels struggling to make ends meet. The stories of Deaf Havana’s guitarist still working at the

Monday 04 June 2018

LIVE: PVMNTS / The Faim @ Night People, Manchester

PVMNTS? Who are PVMNTS? With only one demo available on the usual streaming services and a relative dearth of information online, no one could be blamed for being surprised that the three-piece band from the States were heading out on a (sold out and upgraded) four date headlining tour

LIVE: The Spook School / Peaness @ Belgrave Music Hall, Leeds

Have you ever taken a moment to truly appreciate the beauty of Linda McCartney sausages? Have you ever noticed how they effortlessly balance out a delicious vegetarian full English breakfast? Have you ever been amazed at just how utterly delicious they are in a sandwich bathed in

Thursday 31 May 2018

LIVE: Machine Head @ The Roundhouse, London

Machine Head are one of the bands that truly define heavy metal. Their continued influence of the genre is still felt to this day, with many modern bands struggling to play catch-up to their recorded output and ferocious live shows. Their latest record ‘Catharsis’ divided opinion amongst their

LIVE: Employed To Serve / Conjurer / God Complex / Hundred Year Old Man @ The Parish, Huddersfield

The heavy music scene in the UK is extremely healthy right now, and tonight is a showcase of some of the most exciting young bands our nation currently has to offer. Leeds post-metal sextet Hundred Year Old Man are gathering attention at a rate of knots, and from the intensity