Since the days of their early releases such as the infamous ‘Self Titled’ EP or the ground-breaking ‘Hysterics’ album, Rolo Tomassi have dabbled with mathcore, electronica, hardcore, post-hardcore, metal and just about any other sub-genre you could care to reel off. Their newest release ‘Time Will Die…’ is no exception. Despite following some similar themes explored on both ‘Astrea’ and ‘Grievances’, such as the utilisation of Eva Spence’s cleanly sung vocals that convey so much raw emotion with every word, ‘Time Will Die…’ too tells its own story and stands proudly atop their discography, like a crown jewel on the colourful totem pole that is their back catalogue.

To set the scene, ‘Time Will Die…’ opens with an extremely gentile instrumental introduction track consisting of sparse ambient and atmospheric noises akin to those of a stargazers dream, or perhaps some unheard layers on an Enya record. Either way it’s the perfect set up for ‘Aftermath’, the second single to have been taken from the album.

‘Aftermath’ is almost unlike any other Rolo Tomassi track we’ve heard, entirely cleanly sung and out and out beautiful from start to end. It simultaneously builds walls of sound so great, they’d make the current US President blush. Ending on a positive note, “Unafraid of the aftermath” the track suggests that regardless of reviews or criticisms, Rolo have placed their feet firmly in their own comfort zone and you’d be a fool to try to stand in the way of their progress.

This leads us to ‘Rituals’, the first single taken from ‘Time Will Die…’ which is almost the polar opposite in sound and composition. The track rides along a riff that storms its way through the cleanliness previously put on show and brings back every inch of aggression and intensity the band has to offer. Although ‘Rituals’ and ‘Aftermath’ appear as complete opposites at first, ‘The Hollow Hour’ and ‘Alma Mater’ quickly rush in to fill the void and bridge that gap. Both tracks retain the classic Rolo Tomassi sounds of jagged mathcore and start stop intensity. Despite the unexpected, chaotic breakdown that closes out ‘Alma Mater’ that’s nothing other than ferocious on all accounts both tracks also delve into enormous post-rock crescendos that will forever keep you guessing where the album will go next.

Though the cards may be laid out on the table, Rolo Tomassi have saved their “secret weapons” for those who’ve stuck it out and made it this far into the album. ‘A Flood Of Light’ is eight and a half minutes of unrelenting, unforgettable and breath-taking musical composition. Demonstrating their ability to throw up cathedrals of sound before stripping them back to their foundations in the blink of an eye, Rolo Tomassi have outdone themselves and spoilt us with the generosity of this track. Its grandeur and magnificence are enough to reduce one to tears as trying to put its beauty into words feels somewhat impossible.

From the opening synth chimes of ‘A Flood Of Light’ to the final moments of ‘Risen’, the second half of ‘Time Will Die…’ is where Rolo Tomassi really come into their own and demonstrate once again why they are one of the most exciting bands on the planet. ‘Whispers Among Us’ returns to outright aggression with demonic vocal that send shivers down the spine, making it seem as though the last ten minutes of beauty and emotive music hadn’t even happened.

As the crescendos of ‘Contretemps’ and distorted ambience of ‘Risen’ close out the final moments of the album, Rolo Tomassi have surpassed their own genius and more than proved why they’re in a league of their own. As they bare their souls to the world and continue to push their boundaries even further than we could’ve ever imagined, the scale of ‘Time Will Die and Love Will Bury It’ is unfathomable. This is not merely a ‘new album’ but a work of art. An absolutely phenomenal and jaw-dropping triumph.

JAMES DAVENPORT

Murderhouse have played for Punktastic before and James from the band did his solo set at Four Quarters last year as well, he’s back for this as part of a run of shows with Jordan White, AKA Phaedra’s Love, first PT show for Jordan, first London show in a while, well emotional, well excited for it. I guess ffo old Listener or Shoes and Socks Off. Beth White has joined this one too, Beth plays amazing music and also runs Who Run The World, which is really really really cool and totally check out their shows please. Link at the bottom of this.

Four Quarters is a great venue in the heart of Peckham Rye with lots of retro arcade games upstairs and a small basement area downstairs where we’ll be holding the event. The room holds about 30 people and includes seating (and floor space if the seats fill up) but unfortunately isnt wheelchair accessible as there is a small flight of stairs to the basement, sorry! Four Quarters is about five minutes walk from Peckham Rye station, we’ll get started about 8.00pm and before about 11pm. Come down early though to spend some time playing video games or eating at the venue, there are vegan options and a great beer selection!

For more info, visit the event page here.

Their notorious live performances regularly see the stage decorated with severed animal heads and leave a percentage of the crowd and venues doused in blood. Watain are one of the few acts that can quite firmly consider themselves to be ‘trve’ black metal. One only has to look at the visuals explored in the artwork of their back catalogue to feel a sense of dread.

Breaking the five-year silence, album opener ‘Nuclear Alchemy’, which also happens to be the first single released, wastes no time making its presence known. Pummelling and unrelenting from start to finish, Watain more than prove their ground within seconds and don’t’ let up. Continuing along this same ferocious path are ‘Sacred Damnation’ and ‘Towards The Sanctuary’ which, despite remaining viscous black metal, also explore one or two more experimental elements. The former flirting with a mildly post-metal feeling towards the end, whilst the latter uses storytelling to describe an Odin-ic pilgrim destined to roam through purgatory.

Although furious and an all-out aural assault from beginning to end, ‘Trident Wolf Eclipse’ does have minor moments where it’s essential to take a breather before diving back in. ‘Teufelsreich’ and ‘Furor Diabolicus’ or ‘Devil Rich’ and ‘The Anger of The Devil’ for the non-Latin speakers amongst us, incorporate far more groove and atmosphere than the bludgeoning attack of ‘Nuclear Alchemy’ for example. Despite this, Watain have in no way become complacent, both songs still spew the same venom as ‘A Throne Below’ and ‘Ultra (Pandemoniac)’ which both create an atmosphere reminiscent to that of early Darkthrone; in short, they’re terrifying.

‘A Throne Below’ with its jaggedness and ‘Ultra…’, which utilises the use of maniacal laughter and faded bell chimes, wouldn’t be out of place in a Rob Zombie movie. In terms of what a lot of modern black metal bands such as Carach Angren are creating, this is the closest Watain come to anything remotely ‘symphonic’.

To bring the album to a close it only seems fitting that ‘The Fire of Power’ describes one man’s ascent to an almost God-like figure after watching the world beneath him burn. This track is surely an anthem of destruction with the howling of the words “of fire” still ringing in your ears long into the deafening silence once the album ends.

‘Trident Wolf Eclipse’ is by no means a defining moment in Watain’s career, but it’s an exceptionally strong effort that could easily be the soundtrack to a war as well as a harkening to the ‘glory days’ of black metal. If the production and sound quality weren’t up to modern day standards, this record could quite happily sit alongside some of the classics that formed an entire sub-genre that, despite promoting ‘evil’, is still going strong almost three decades later.

JAMES DAVENPORT

Recorded at Sunset Sound with Joe Chiccarelli (Manchester Orchestra, The Shins, Spoon) and Carlos de la Garza (Jimmy Eat World, Paramore), ‘Sister Cities’, out April 6, is an album about distance, connectivity and the way humanity towers above boundaries.

vocalist Dan Campbell on the inspiration behind ‘Sister Cities’:

“It started with journals and photos. We started by documenting. We didn’t know where it would go or if it would go anywhere at all but we wrote it all down. We took photos of everything. And then when it came to put it altogether, we had this catalog of how we felt and what it looked like and sounded like and we built from there. Figuring out what the moments were that stayed with me the most. When did I feel most connected to the people around me and why? What did being in this place during this moment teach me? It was a difficult year personally and globally and we experienced that through this lens of being everywhere but home, kind of floating through places and seeing how being there altered our perspective.”

The Wonder Years will tour the UK and Ireland this spring in support of ‘Sister Cities’ with Sorority Noise. Tickets are on sale now.

April:
11th – London, England @ O2 Academy Islington
13th – Manchester, England @ Academy 2
14th – Glasgow, Scotland @ The Garage
15th – Leeds, Engalnd @ Stylus
17th – Bristol, England @ SWX
18th – Dublin, Ireland @ Button Factory
19th – Belfast, Ireland @ Empire Music Hall

James Spence explains: “We’ve been trying to write a song like ‘Aftermath’ for quite a while. Whilst it may seem like a bit of a departure from the other singles we’ve released so far from this album, I feel like there has been hints to this melodic side to what we can do across our last few albums.”

“We really tried to push ourselves to the limit with what we can do as a group and I think this song demonstrates another persona we can take on, whilst still remaining true to what we do”.

The band released the video exclusively via Clash and you can read the full article here.

‘Time Will Die…’ is available to pre-order now via Holy roar and is set for release on March 2nd.

Rolo Tomassi play the following shows:
April:
3 Glasgow Audio
4 Manchester Deaf Institute
5 Birmingham Asylum 2
6 Bristol The Exchange
7 London The Garage
8 Leeds Strangeforms Fest

‘123’ is available to stream in full now via the band’s Bandcamp page here.

So what can fans expect at a Doyle show?

“To get fucking pummeled, man. And then go home and ask themselves ‘What the fuck just happened to me?!?’, hahaha…”

As We Die World Abomination Tour 2018 UK / Russia Spring With KILLUS and DeadXlll Dates:
26.03 @ Asylum 2 – Birmingham, ENG
27.03 @ Redrum – Stafford, ENG
28.03 @ Factory – Manchester, ENG
30.03 @ Church – Dundee, ENG
31.03 @ Corporation – Sheffield, ENG
04.04 @ Hobo’s – Huddersfield, ENG
05.04 @ The Hub – Plymouth, ENG
06.04 @ Cobblestones – Bridgewater, ENG
07.04 @ The Lounge – London, ENG
08.04 @ Moskva – Moscow, RU
09.04 @ MOD – Saint Petersburg, RU

‘Real Punk, Real Emotion’ showcases the best of MKR’s roster, with 12 tracks from some of the the scene’s most promising up-and-comers. The sampler, along with a free poster, is available via Manic Kat Records and is streaming in full via Soundcloud.

With a roster including highly-touted emerging acts including The Anchor, Hard To Hit and Noise Brigade, Manic Kat strives to cultivate potential.

Label president Peter James elaborates: “We run our label like a family; that being said, we only work with bands that we absolutely love as people and love as musicians.”

Track listing:
1. Hard to Hit – Asking for a Friend
2. Rival Town – Shot Down
3. Small Pond Big Fish – Hold On
4. The Anchor – Make it Last
5. Wired for Havoc – Confide
6. Noise Brigade – I’m Not Just Sure it Will, I Know it Might (ft. Michelle Boone)
7. Serious Matters – Chasing Sunlight
8. Cult Classic – My Own Resolution
9. NoraStone – Panophobia
10. Jump for the Sails – This Year’s Redemption
11. Brian Milligram – Return to Sender
12. Bad Case of Big Mouth – Love Tonight

The release is preceded by the first single ‘Girl’ which you can watch the video for below:

‘Seatbelts For Aeroplanes’ is to be released on 27th April via Xtra Mile Recordings.

The track appears on the band’s second full-length ‘Place Noire’, which is to be released April 13th via Throatruiner Records and Apocaplexy Records.

‘Place Noire’ was recorded live, mixed in Laval by Amaury Sauvé (Birds In Row, Plebeian Grandstand, Necrodancer) and then mastered by Karl Daniel Lidén (Breach, Terra Tenebrosa, Crippled Black Phoenix).

‘Place Noire’ is set for release on April 13th via Throatruiner / Apocaplexy records.