Ten reviews you might have missed

Reviews from Thursday 12 December 2019

LIVE: The Xcerts / swim school @ Omeara, London

The Xcerts jump onto the stage, in a flurry of strobes and electric guitar. It’s clear from their smiles that this show has, literally, been ten years in the making. Earlier in the month, Murray revealed how much they were looking forward to this night, and their

LIVE: Jamie Lenman / Haggard Cat @ Moth Club, London

When it comes to British DIY figureheads, nothing and no one compares to the aura that Jamie Lenman has. It’s fitting that his most recent tour finishes in London’s dreamy Moth Club – a venue where the ceiling is decorated in shimmering gold glitter whilst the stage retains the

Monday 09 December 2019

LIVE: Cult Of Luna / Brutus / A.A. Williams @ Stylus, Leeds

Swedish experimental post-metallers Cult Of Luna returned to the spotlight this year with the release of ‘A Dawn To Fear’, a spectacular record that contains some of the best work in their repertoire. It’s a bit of a mixed bag of light and dark, quiet and loud, and everything

Sunday 08 December 2019

LIVE: Tiger Army @ Club Academy, Manchester

It’s been three long years since Tiger Army last visited these shores. Pioneers among the punkabilly genre, today the band that ‘never dies’ is a refined beast spinning yarns of country music and old fashioned rock and roll. The brainchild of Bay Area punk scene stalwart

LIVE: Ceremony / High–Vis / Child’s Pose @ New Cross Inn, London

For Ceremony’s first London show since August 2015, they chose an unassuming, 350–capacity pub in South East London for the venue, and sold it out weeks in advance. It means that, on this miserable Monday night, the New Cross Inn is teeming with body heat, sweat, and anticipation –

Friday 06 December 2019

LIVE: Impericon Never Say Die! Tour 2019 @ Club Academy, Manchester

Let’s get one thing straight – 5.30pm is an punishingly early time for a gig to begin on any day of the week, let alone a Tuesday night in wintery Manchester. The Never Say Die! tour, however, has become an institution, with more than a decade of putting on

Thursday 05 December 2019

LIVE: Highly Suspect @ Oslo, Hackney

It’s 8:33pm on the dot, and the New York raised, LA based Highly Suspect take to the stage accompanied by two things you would never expect to exist in the same place: Elton John’s ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’ and an overwhelmingly strong stench of marijuana.

LIVE: Dashboard Confessional / Cory Wells @ Deaf Institute, Manchester

When Chris Carrabba said he’d be “back next year” during his 2018 tour, we probably weren’t the only ones who were a tiny bit sceptical. After all, it was the first time we’d seen Dashboard Confessional on our shores in ten years – surely we couldn’t be so lucky

Sunday 01 December 2019

LIVE: PUP / Sløtface @ Stylus, Leeds

There are many things to love about PUP. Whether its their triumphant live shows, poignant, beautifully crafted angry punk, their brutal honesty, or just their relentless drive to prove every doubter wrong, there’s a reason why they are one of the most exciting bands on the punk

Thursday 28 November 2019

Strigoi – ‘Abandon All Faith’

Strigoi is a brand new project from Greg Mackintosh and Chris Casket, both of whom have spent time in notable heavy bands like Paradise Lost, Vallenfyre and Extreme Noise Terror. From this pedigree alone, you’re right to expect something visceral and intense, but what you won’t expect is how

LIVE: Sleeping With Sirens / Palisades / SHVPES @ Electric Ballroom, London

When Sleeping With Sirens conclude their set with an almighty ‘If You Can’t Hang’, the band bow and take photos as the confetti falls around them. It’s been another successful UK tour, each year building up their fanbase more, with more dates and more sell outs to boot. London’s

Friday 22 November 2019

Bellevue Days – ‘It Can’t Possibly Go Wrong Ever’

It seems that despite certain things ‘remaining’ the same over the last few years, a lot has changed. Not least Croydon four-piece Bellevue Days, who’s debut album ‘It Can’t Possibly Go Wrong Ever’ shows that not all change is bad. Since the release of their first EP, 2015’s ‘The

LIVE: FEVER 333 @ O2 Forum Kentish Town, London

Every so often, a band comes along with the intention of changing the world through their music. Promoting change, critiquing current affairs and politics and trying to make a difference. These bands have a tangible uniqueness to them and for Fever 333, it doesn’t hurt that they are led

LIVE: Dragonforce / LoveBites / McRocklin & Hutch @ The Welly, Hull

Despite being geographically one of the bigger cities in the country – not to mention current holder of the prestigious UK ‘City Of Culture’ title – Kingston Upon Hull is not a regular stop for most touring bands’ itineraries. Stuck at the end of the motorway on

LIVE: Marianas Trench @ Scala, London

Marianas Trench’s ‘Suspending Gravity’ tour is in London tonight – it’s a chilly November evening and with the sun now setting before 5pm, the respite of an energetic pop-rock show is welcomed by everyone in the long, long queue outside tonight. Having brought their friends and

Thursday 21 November 2019

LIVE: Dream State / Normandie / Behind Blue Eyes @ ULU, London

As upward trajectories go, it’d be hard to find a band with a steeper line than Dream State over the last year – and it’d be even harder to find a band who’ve managed to achieve it more organically than the South Wales quartet. Their honest, open approach to

Monday 18 November 2019

LIVE: Boston Manor / Modern Error / Gender Roles @ Craufurd Arms, Milton Keynes

There’s no better place for a rock gig than a pub. Said no one. Ever. And yet somehow, tonight, that statement is entirely true. Before the show even starts, you know it’s going to be utter carnage. If you’ve ever seen Boston Manor perform live before,

LIVE: Martha / Orchards @ Gorilla, Manchester

“It’s really shit out there at the moment, but at least there’s good rock music,” Martha’s JC Cairns proclaims, and tonight’s line-up highlights that there’s never been truer words said. The County Durham punks headline a show that encapsulates a room full of people completely infatuated with

Friday 15 November 2019

LIVE: Machine Head @ O2 Brixton Academy, London

It’s a(nother) cold and rainy Saturday evening in south London. Drinkers are getting turned away from Brixton pubs because they’re at capacity – a sure sign that there’s a sold out gig at the Academy later on tonight. Californian metallers Machine Head have come to town to celebrate 25 years

Live: Creeper @ 229, London

Some bands create fan bases that become movements. The originals of this mantra were My Chemical Romance and, more recently, twenty one pilots. Bands who transcend the line between fan and lifestyle. After a year away, Creeper announced this show under the guise of the ‘Fugitives of Heaven’ –