However, what a lineup we have. Three bands from wildly different corners of alternative music, representing post-hardcore, indie rock, folk, post-rock and hard rock/metal in differing ratios. First up are Philly’s mewithoutYou, whose recent prodigious touring effort in comparison to recent years ensures they won’t be forgotten amidst that city’s musical renaissance. mwY have been around for about the same length as tonight’s headliners, making it strange that they still find themselves first on 16 years into their career, but the quartet make the most of the time they are allotted.

Their set encompasses a wide sect of their discography, with tracks like ‘Gentlemen’ from 2002’s debut ‘A->B Life’ appearing alongside cuts from last year’s astounding ‘Pale Horses’ full-length, released on the UK’s own Big Scary Monsters. Frontman Aaron Weiss is a constant ball of energy, showing far more effort his “freegan” diet should afford him, his masterful moves putting that guy from Future Islands to shame (remember them?). mwY prove themselves masters of dynamics, their set shifting seamlessly from softer lulls to coruscating intensity. We had never seen mewithoutYou before this year, but as their set comes to a close with ‘Red Cow’, we’re aching to see more.

Further Big Scary Monsters representation comes in the form of La Dispute, who are part of this tour package following their visit to Bristol’s ArcTanGent festival. Their compacted stage setup is minimal in comparison to Coheed later making full use of the Forum’s large stage, but is representative of their music; sparse, tightly-knit and compact.

Whereas mwY used the ebb and flow of their music to full effect, La Dispute ramp up the intensity, vocalist Jordan Dreyer’s masterful storytelling unfurling to the backdrop of angular riffs and unrelenting rhythms. The setlist concentrates solely on tracks from their latter two releases, ‘Wildlife’ and ‘Rooms Of The House’, which is a shame for older fans, but with the emotional gut-punch of tracks like ‘a Letter’ and ‘Woman (Reading)’, it’s easy to see why. The set closer is the tumultuous ‘King Park’ in which Dreyer puts himself in the mind of a drive-by shooter who accidentally murdered an 8-year old, and the impact its closing refrain of ‘Can I still get to heaven if I kill myself?’ looks unlikely to be topped this evening.

However, if there’s a band on earth that can show up a support act, no matter if they’re as good as mewithoutYou and La Dispute are, it’s Coheed and Cambria. The anticipation is electric in the O2 Forum, and Coheed’s fervent fanbase are baying in anticipation of their cult heroes taking the stage. It’s remarkable just how many fans in attendance are wearing Coheed t-shirts tonight from all different eras of their existence; almost like an Iron Maiden show, with the keywork logo (as seen recently at the Olympics) replacing Eddie. Singer Claudio Sanchez and guitarist Travis Stever finally appear to a rapturous reception, starting off with a short acoustic version of ‘Ghost’, then are joined by bassist Zach Cooper and drummer Josh Eppard, who rejoined the band five years ago, and launch into the anthemic title track from ‘In Keeping Secrets Of Silent Earth 3’.

Like mewithoutYou’s set, Coheed and Cambria visit many corners of their entire canon, with tracks from last year’s ‘The Color Before The Sun’, seen as a return to form by many, slotting in seamlessly alongside old classics like ‘Everything Evil’ and ‘Blood Red Summer’. Coheed are a tour-de-force of a live act, raining riff after riff on a packed out Forum with boundless energy and panache, and Claudio’s unique vocal delivering tales from their alternate comic book universe with just as much passion as ever before.

One slight misstep tonight is a gratuitous cover of Nirvana’s ‘Drain You’ at the expense of one of their own songs, though the band are so good tonight that they can be forgiven for having a little fun, and Sanchez can certainly be forgiven for wanting to sing in Kurt Cobain’s lower register, a welcome break from the high-pitched ‘A Favor House Atlantic’. On their night, Coheed and Cambria are untouchable as one of the greatest live bands on the planet, and as the thunderous ‘Welcome Home’ squeals out its last on Claudio’s double-necked guitar, we leave satisfied (and gasping for cooler air) that we’ve seen the band on their very best form. This latest incarnation of the band seems extremely settled, and as they leave their themed album arc behind, who knows what’s next for Coheed and Cambria? With an established fanbase as fervent as theirs, world domination is surely not far off.

OLLIE CONNORS

Just two bands feature on tonight’s bill, the first of which is Dragons That Make Love To Pandas. A friend of ours often says “All band names are awful”, a grandiose, sweeping statement at face value, but on the evidence of this quartet’s moniker, one that may contain some semblance of truth. However, we’ve learned never to judge a book by its cover, and DTMLTP’s music more than makes up for their heinous name. Fusing the British math-rock sounds of TTNG and Tangled Hair to the energy and urgency of American emo legends such as Cap’n Jazz and Snowing, their recently-added vocalist Sean Westall (who also drums in up-and-coming emo-poppers Itoldyouiwouldeatyou) is a charismatic performer, writhing about the stage to the band’s twisting arpeggiated riffs. One of Westall’s conditions for joining was to enforce a name change, so keep your eyes peeled for the re-brand – they may find it easier to get booked if a promoter can actually fit their name on the poster.

Faced with a choice of seeing tonight’s headliners in either the Boileroom or the Scala in King’s Cross, we plumped for Three Trapped Tigers pushing the sound system of a small venue to its limits of strain, and as the trio crash into an intense version of ‘Cramm’ (from their 2012 début full-length ‘Route One Or Die’), we feel absolutely vindicated in our decision. TTT sound monumental in this room, the atmospherics created by the synths of Tom Rogerson and the guitar of Matt Calvert swarm every eardrum and resonate around the venue, as a compact crowd bang their heads in appreciation.

It’s been a long time coming, but the follow-up to the aforementioned début, ‘Silent Earthling’ is finally with us and cuts from this record nestle in nicely alongside old favourites. Whereas the overall sound of ‘ROOD’ was a display of bulldozering brawn, ‘Silent Earthling’ is an altogether more ambient and cerebral affair, reminding us of the change in tack by British math-rock peers Brontide from the sound of ‘Sans Souci’ to that of ‘Artery’. However, their “spacier” turn shouldn’t be mistaken for a loss of effectiveness; the powerhouse technical drumming of Adam Betts, who we’re not sure is entirely human, anchors their instrumental wizardry and maintains Three Trapped Tigers as a formidable force.

With the recent loss of Maybeshewill, the vanguard of the British math/post-rock scene has an empty space, and even though they’re only on their second album, TTT look primed to take that place at the forefront alongside titans such as 65daysofstatic. It’s easy to see why this group have attracted admirers like Bowie producer Brian Eno and Deftones’ Chino Moreno; put simply they are a phenomenon and tonight’s 70 minute set flies by. Even if you’re not too fond of math-rock this might just be the group to get you into it – these Trapped Tigers have been unleashed and are on the prowl. Sleep on this band at your peril.

Hey Mazz! So, first of all, tell us a bit about who you are and what your involvement is with Holy Roar Records.

Hello! My name is Mazz, I’m from Guildford and I run Esoteric Screenprinting. But as well as that I used to be the vocalist in Pariso and I currently host the Holy Roar Podcast.

So, before you were in Pariso, were you into the label? How did you discover Holy Roar?

Yeah! I was massively into Holy Roar as a label. I first heard of them in 2006 and at that time in my life I identified with their roster musically and it got me to discover new artists within that realm also. At that time I was a live music promoter, I used to put on shows in Guildford and Reading, as I was a big fan of HRR I wanted to put on live shows in my area for those artists. Back in 2007 I booked a UK tour for Throats, Maths and Crocus just because I loved all three bands so much I took it upon myself to book a 7 day UK tour for them.

I met Alex for the first time at the Kingston show and we became equated. After the (somewhat) success of that tour, I then ended up booking a two-day all-dayer comprised mostly of HRR and BSM bands called Rapturefest in 2007.

I was a huge fan of screamo, post-hardcore and anything abrasive and eclectic and at the time Holy Roar was producing and releasing some of the UK’s best bands for those genres.

Sadly Pariso broke up earlier this year, tell us some more about your favourite memories of the band.

I had a lot of favourite memories, most of them involved the fact that I was able to travel the world with my best friends! We got to meet some amazing people along the way that I still consider my friends. I don’t know, we were a band for 6 years and even to some that might be a short career but a lot of it most of the time becomes a blur! That’s why the podcast is good for me because I can remember those funny little stories that scatters our band’s lifespan. We always had a great time touring with Bastions, Svalbard, Employed To Serve and many others. As far as specific memories, I will always treasure the memory of when we hit a horse with a bus! Unfortunately I’ll have to leave that story for another time.

However, this year you’ve ventured into podcasting, and launched the Holy Roar podcast which we must say is fantastic listening! How do you feel about how it’s been going so far? Any dream guests?

Oh thank you! I think it’s been going pretty well, I get a lot of positive feedback on most of the episodes. When we started the podcast last year, I’ll be honest I knew nothing about how to set up or do a podcast, but I’ve been learning from each episode and I can tell by the progression of the episodes. Luckily I have people behind the scenes who help us a lot with the episodes. I’ve really enjoyed the episodes, I’m a huge fan of listening to people chat freely with various tangents, and that’s normally how the best episodes happen. I’m a big fan of WTF with Marc Maron and The Art of Wrestling with Colt Cabana. They have podcasts where they will have a guest who are normally their friends and they can bullshit, that’s what I wanted to achieve with the Holy Roar Podcast.

Outside of Pariso, what have been your favourite Holy Roar bands over the years? Any absolute favourite records or albums?

Well, the way I was introduced to Holy Roar Records was Alex’s previous band Cutting Pink With Knives, I was a massive fan (even though it didn’t come out on HRR) of Oh Wow!; it was a belter of an album. I’ve been a fan of a lot of the bands on the HRR roster who found a lot of success like Maths, Throats, Employed To Serve, Rolo Tomassi etc. As far as this year, a lot of the HRR roster have delivered some fantastic records. I was a big fan of the new We Never Learned To Live record, the new Svalbard record, new Rolo Tomassi record and the new Employed to Serve record.

We understand that outside of podcasting that you’ve just started your own t-shirt company – tell us more!

Well last year year I was made redundant from my dream job. Obviously that was awful but since I was in my twenties I’ve always had a passion for screenprinting and I’d always wanted to screen print full-time. So once I was released from my job, I started setting up Esoteric Screenprinting. I was inspired by my friend Mikee Parker who has been running Vinosangre for many years now. I was sick of being in jobs I didn’t have much passion for, in my mind I thought “Well, I’m going to be doing this nearly all my life I might as well make it something I enjoy”, moreso than the monetary value of it. So in July I opened my doors, I’m based in Guildford which is great because I work in association with The Boileroom who have been so supportive of me over the last couple of months, helping get my name out there and letting be a part of some great stuff in Guildford.

What would you say to someone completely new to Holy Roar Records to sum up what they’re all about?

Hmmm… Well, I’d probably say that HRR is an independent record label that releases music that is passionate, aggressive, melodic, abrasive, haunting and fun. If that’s something you’re into, go check them out. They’ve been the top dogs of UK hardcore, punk whatever for many years now.

Finally, is there any message you’d like to send to Alex and all at Holy Roar on the big tenth birthday?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GUYS! Haha! I can’t think of anything funny to say to them.

Hey Thom! First of all, tell us a bit about yourself; what you did and what you do now.

I used to play in the band Kerouac, providing vocals. Since then I’ve worked as a music publicist for the last 3 years.

Whilst Kerouac weren’t necessarily a part of Holy Roar’s “stable”, loads of stuff you did interlocked with the label. What impression did you have of HRR and has that changed at all since you started doing what you do now?

Well, to begin with, we were a Tangled Talk band, but when Alex caught wind of this he wanted to co-release our first record with Andrej (Presern, owner of Tangled Talk Records). We’d played a lot with Alex’s band Pariso so it made perfect sense to us and after being fans of the label for some time, we were honoured.

As with any time you become friendly with a person you were originally a fan of, it becomes hard to think objectively towards them and their work. Saying that, despite not always being the biggest fan of some of the records they put out, Holy Roar remain an immensely important imprint and one sure to thrive for years to come.

Kerouac were a big part of the “#UKSWELL” scene which involved a lot of Holy Roar bands and associates. Tell us a little bit more about that time.

I think too much gets attributed to that name – it was a joke and then a t-shirt and then a joke again – but the people involved were very good friends of ours, regardless of bands, we’d hang out often and we continue to do so. The name continues to be the butt of a lot of jokes.

Not only were you a key part of the “scene” but you also headlined its funeral, your last gig at the Old Blue Last. Tell us a bit more about your feelings of that day.

It’s hard to think about that day as I was in such a daze, the band was something we put so much into and knowing it was about to end left me feeling extremely disoriented. I could only watch a song or two of each band before having to leave due to the impending arrival of nerves.

When we played it was beautiful to be surrounded by so many friends. I had Mazz of Pariso and Alex Pennie of Goodtime Boys up there on stage with me as my personal techs as well as some of my best friends singing along in the crowd. We were very lucky.

Before you were in Kerouac, were you into Holy Roar stuff? How did you discover the label?

Yeah, being an underground music fan I was hip to all HRR’s stuff but perhaps surprisingly the releases that got me into the label to begin with were those of Cutting Pink With Knives and Rolo Tomassi. Very different to us and very different to who we played with but it goes to show HRR’s eclecticism is something that truly marks the label out.

2015 has been a stellar year for Holy Roar Records, as it has been for Brace Yourself [the PR company Thom works for]. How have you seen the past year and the progress you’ve made?

It’s been a heavy year but one I’m immensely proud of. I get to work with some of my heroes and have a personal connection with musicians I grew up idolising so it’s been an extremely humbling year.

Brace Yourself work mainly with bands on the “lighter” side of things, but do you still keep a check on Holy Roar’s stuff? If so, what have you enjoyed that they’ve released of late?

I think Svalbard are the most interesting and talented heavy band in the country. Power to them.

https://youtu.be/TVy-vJDzrXg

We’ve heard whispers on the grapevine that you might still be involved in musical projects – can you tell us any more?

There’s not much to say but yeah, we’ve all been making music again and we’ve got a couple of tracks recorded for a potential 7″ later on in the year. There’s no name as yet and not much to say but I’m really happy with the songs.

What would you say to someone who’d never heard of Holy Roar Records before, to sum the label up?

There’s no better place to start when looking for forward-thinking and progressive heavy music in the UK. Period.

Finally, is there any message you’d like to send to HRR on the big anniversary?

It’s probably not suitable for this forum.

Hey Justine! Before we get started, tell us a bit more about who you are and what you do.

I’m Justine, I’m 23 years old and from Woking (fun fact: it’s where H.G Wells’ ‘War Of The Worlds’ was based). I have a degree in animation that I never used and after that I was stuck in retail until over a year ago when I started working for Holy Roar. I also do vocals in Employed To Serve.

2015’s been a big year for Employed To Serve, having dropped ‘Greyer Than You Remember’. How do you feel about how the record’s been received?

Really overwhelmed to be honest, there have been people at shows that know the lyrics to our songs, we’ve been offered great shows off the back of the album as well as people just saying really nice things. The response has certainly made us want to keep on touring and record more albums.

You’ve also been touring relentlessly in support of the record, playing some big shows supporting the likes of Funeral For A Friend and Rolo Tomassi. What have been your standout memories of the year on the road?

Watching Funeral For A Friend on the first night of tour was a highlight for me. I just remember being genuinely overwhelmed with happiness. I watched them when I was 14 and it was my second ever gig I went to… I’m sure it’s the same for a lot of people, but their first two records got me through secondary school. My second one was on the last tour we did with Rolo Tomassi, Sammy (guitarist in ETS) and Tom (Pitts, Rolo Tomassi’s drummer) entered karaoke at the Rescue Rooms in Nottingham and won the crowd over with their Bon Jovi and Tina Turner covers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcmwCZnJ92Y

So you started out as an intern at the label, but you’re moving into a more senior role. How did a typical day go for you (if there was ever such a thing), and what will you be doing now?

So I’m in charge of the creative side of things mainly. I’d create social media images, pre-order images and get artwork layouts ready for pressing. I would also sort out distribution and wholesale, so I’d email various shops/labels and be like “Hey, we have this great new release out, would you like to stock copies?” (but worded better!). I also upload videos to YouTube/post to Instagram; the normal kind of stuff. Now that I’m full-time, I’ll be able to do more of the above, I’m concentrating on getting our releases stocked in even more stores around the world and spreading the sickness.

If anyone looking to get into the label side of the “industry” by interning is reading this, what advice would you give them?

Be prepared to be tired, I worked 6/7 day weeks when I was interning at the label. I’d work one day a week at Holy Roar and then the other 5/6 in retail, sometimes I was lucky and got a day off but if I had a tour coming up I had to make up those hours… It was a very tiring but worthwhile year! But if you really want something, you just have to go for it, no use sitting around waiting for something good to happen.

As part of the “new breed” of Holy Roar bands, this must be an incredibly exciting time to be a part of the label! How do you feel about the rest of the current crop? Any other up-and-comers you’d like to give a shout out to?

I definitely joined at the best time! The output of HR has always been great but I feel that this last year was a strong one. I’d like to give a shout out to Eulogy (FFO Botch), ITHACA (FFO early Norma Jean) and Old Skin who have unfortunately split up but they put their album up for free and it’s really great (FFO Cult Leader).

How did you get into Holy Roar Records before you were signed? 

I went to Hevy Fest back in 2012 and it got me into post-hardcore, I was listening to mostly deathcore/grindcore/metalcore before then. Then went to see Palm Reader at a few of their first ever shows and I went to see Pariso at the Guildford Boileroom and it all went from there really!

Finally, is there any message of congratulations you’d like to pass on to celebrate the big anniversary?

Just a thanks really, to all of the bands on Holy Roar (old and new) and our friends’ bands for making the UK hardcore/whatever -core scene incredible. There are people all over the world singing the UK’s praises for its musical output in recent years. So be a part of it, form a band/get down to shows/ put on gigs and embrace it.

So, to start us off, could you give us a little potted history of the label? How did you start out?

So the idea first came out when I was at University, in Birmingham, and I started putting on a load of shows late on in my first year, when I was 18/starting to turn 19. I very quickly realised that, within Birmingham and throughout the UK there was a lot of bands who it felt like weren’t getting represented, or weren’t signed, or weren’t getting their music distributed, released and “out there”. So we tried, as an extension of putting on shows and the music website that went with it, which was called “The Communion”, me and a couple of friends released a compilation CD, that age-old thing that’s such an out-of-date concept now, but that classic thing that lots of labels seem to start with!

It had loads of local, national and international bands that we liked, and we also did 2 EPs, both on 3″ CDs for whatever reason, one was by a band called Sika Redem, who went onto an album on Undergroove, which was quite nice, and another one was a band called Numenor, an old band of mine; so the nepotism was there from a very early stage! But that sowed the seeds of wanting to release music, to do my bit to help and support the bands I enjoyed, and then at the beginning of 2006 I moved to London with my girlfriend at the time Ellen Godwin. Her dad offered us a small amount of money – and believe me, it wasn’t “drug company”, Geoff Rickly-style levels of money – a few thousand pounds rather than a few hundred thousand pounds, to put on gigs, which was really odd, but we decided to use the money to start a record label. It was a loan of £8,000 that we paid back, and we used that money to release and promote, to the best of our knowledge at the time, releases by Rolo Tomassi (their first “proper” EP), a band called Phoenix Bodies, a grind/punk crossover band from Indianapolis, and a split 12″ between Kayo Dot and Bloody Panda, which was more on the avant-garde doom end, let’s say.

So the idea came about in January 2006 and those releases came out July/August ’06, moving a lot more slowly than it does these days – I wish I could move as slowly as that now! But there were a lot of other considerations to take into account.

So you got off to a slow start; what were your big turning points, how did you go on to grow from there?

To be honest it’s a combination of luck and circumstance – out of those 3 initial releases, Rolo Tomassi was the one that carried on – it was a slow start (with them) but it was the release that kept turning heads. Kayo Dot and Bloody Panda was the first release to sell out with a big spike of interest initially, but unfortunately Phoenix Bodies flopped (but I stand by it to this day), but the Rolo Tomassi record kept ticking over, so we had this gradual stream of money coming back, so we didn’t have to feel that everything had gone to shit straight away. We then had a stroke of luck when I sold, via the Punktastic forum, 2-3 t-shirts to Lags from Gallows, and we got to talking – things were just in the process of kicking off for them, and we got to release their demo on a 7″ and again, that gave us another spike of interest just as things seemed to be calming down – and quite a nice little link to Punktastic as well!

So that kept interest ticking along, and at this stage in March 2007, along with Gallows we put out EPs by a tech-metal band called Chronicles of Adam West, and a band called Chariots, who put an album out on Big Scary Monsters and we did the follow-up EP – screamo stuff, basically. At that point, the label was very much a hobby, a labour of love – doing some emails every evening and at weekends, but at the time I was working in media buying advertising space which was quite soul destroying – I was getting the train into Victoria from West Norwood where I lived at the time, literally, physically feeling sick to my stomach, feeling ill going to work because I hated it so much, so I quit and just decided to give it a go with the label, with plenty of support from those around me.

It quickly transpired that I was going to have to sell my car and a load of my records, and temp in various jobs, but I’d made the leap and that was the main thing. This is no criticism to anyone else whatsoever, but I chose to pull that blanket of security from under myself; it’s not a sob story either, it was “I am determined to make this work, to make Holy Roar happen” rather than say that I gave it a go and then gave up. From then for the next 4 years I always did other things on the side, whether that was write for Zero Tolerance, drive bands or manage Rolo Tomassi and Throats but when I couldn’t make ends meet with the label, I always managed to top it up with other things that were related to it, rather than just doing something I really, really didn’t want to do. So that’s how it went from the initial idea into being the full-time concern it is today – those 3-4 years of driving bands and doing the label, that was purely trying to get the label to a sustainable level, and it becomes easier the more releases you do – even if you haven’t sold a Phoenix Bodies release in about 3 months, you’ve still got 10-20 copies being downloaded on iTunes or there’s been streaming (moreso a prevalent source of income now), and that £30-40 adds up. Obviously interest wanes with older releases, but you do have this body of work that helps things along.

Not to turn this too much into a “timeline” thing, but you said that luck and circumstance were big factors in the early days, what helped Holy Roar go from strength to strength from there, at the turn of the decade? At that time we had a fantastic hardcore scene in the UK and HRR bands were a big part of that – would you like to tell us a bit more about that?

As well as having the association with Rolo Tomassi and Gallows, we managed to do one-off releases for Trash Talk, Make Do and Mend, Touché Amoré and all of these things opened doors and made people, whether it was booking agents or people in magazines or distributors, made them take us a bit more seriously, I remember early on in the label, all these people not even replying to me – there was a part of me early on, without a solid grounding of confidence when starting out, which is prevalent in any job or relationship or whatever, that I was doing the right thing all the time, so all these people not replying filled me with doubt, made me think “maybe the music we’re releasing is shit”, or maybe that I’m approaching this the wrong way, but I made a conscious decision to not let that thought process be my undoing or drag me down. I forced myself to take the mentality, a “punk” way of thinking about it, of “fuck you, I believe in what we’re doing, I know this band is great and I will hammer on your door until you give me the time of day and say you hate it”, rather than treat it with indifference.

Still to this day I would rather someone came up to me and said “I’m sorry Alex but I hate your attitude and I hate your label”, rather than say “It’s just okay, it’s 5/10”, I want people to either love it or hate it. I cannot stand fence-sitting and being afraid to have an opinion – I don’t think that anything gets better (that way) and things that are actually good don’t get the chance to rise to their full potential without people being brave and bold enough to say “I really fucking believe in this” or “I love this” – and I hope that that’s something that Holy Roar has never lost, no matter what changes or how people might think we’ve grown (which we have but probably not as much as people think), the one thing is that initial kernel of passion and belief and I think that, more than anything is what has carried us through. I’m sitting here and I know that we’re not sitting on a bank of cash, I worry month-to-month how we’re going to pay each bill because cashflow in the music industry is a very difficult, tumultuous thing, but we’re not gonna stop and I think we’re in a strong position.

I really respect labels like Sub-Pop and Wichita; Mark from Wichita is still out at gigs all the time and you see his passion for the bands he works with, and I feel like that’s a lot less visible or obvious with a lot of hardcore and metal labels, it’s more labels out in America like A389 and Deathwish that display that kind of enduring passion for their bands and integrity and that’s what I use as my benchmark for where I want to be in another ten years’ time. I’m not saying those labels are dinosaurs, far from it, it’s that ability to evolve whilst retaining what gave those labels their own identity.

We touched on bands like Touché Amoré and Make Do And Mend who were The Wave; now I want to talk about HRR’s answer, the “#UKSWELL” scene, which although in essence an in-joke, fostered and engendered a real community. Tell us a bit more about that time, how you saw it.

You’re right, the term was initially a joke, but it did very very quickly come to embody 30-50 people in the bands who had very similar influences, ethics and ideologies all making “non-macho hardcore”. Also, underneath the surface, not that it was ever used as a “selling point” but there was a definite inclusionary, no racism, no sexism, no bullshit attitude as well. I felt like all those bands loved playing with each other, and when they did play with each other it brought people out, but none of those bands were afraid to go and play with some wildly different bands as well. I used to play in a band called Cutting Pink With Knives and after that wanted to start my own thing (initially Betty Pariso, then just Pariso) in about 2009, and within 6-9 months we’d met Kerouac, Goodtime Boys, The Long Haul and Bastions. The friendship between Pariso and Bastions was solidified when we played a gig in Milton Keynes facing an artificial ski-slope, playing to 3 paying customers but we had a fucking great night. That’s what it essentially came down to, friendship and being nice.

It proved that you don’t need to dress things up in scary imagery, scary artwork, or “overtly metal” things, you can be decent to each other and help each other out, it’s not a competition and it was just a good thing with a bunch of good people. There may have been certain characters in that movement who may have done some “interesting” things and I won’t rule myself out of that (!) but, by and large, I thought it was just one of things where a summation of a group of, let’s say, 5-8 bands, was far greater than any one part, and you only had to look at Kerouac’s last London show to get that. Gnarwolves opened that show on a 6 band bill, one of their earliest shows, and people were crowdsurfing from then on and it only got more crazy – people were queueing around the block by the 2nd or 3rd band and I thought that really summed it up.

I’m really glad, and I don’t think that anyone has actually said this, but I like that it hasn’t dragged on and on – I think that Kurt Cobain phrase “It’s better to burn out than fade away” (PT: It’s actually a Neil Young lyric that he put into his suicide note. AF: Well, obviously the reference was lost on me because I grew up on Kurt Cobain rather than Neil Young, I just assumed someone in Camden slapped it on a t-shirt) holds true, because it was something that burned bright and disappeared almost as fast as it came about. It truly ended this year with Pariso’s last gig and Bastions’ (probable) last gig, and those who are left have either evolved their style into something almost unrecognisable like Svalbard, Employed to Serve, Ithaca or Vales, who are still going but came a year or two after. There’s nothing left from it, which is good, because there’s a great body of work for someone to discover there, it hasn’t become muddied, it’s very clear what it was and it was allowed to be a nice little thing.

I also wanted to discuss the collaborative approach you took with regard to Pink Mist – tell us a bit more about that and where you’re at with it now that it’s been going a little while.

So, for anyone that doesn’t know, Pink Mist is a co-operative, or a loose collaboration between Big Scary Monsters Records, Tangled Talk Records, Blood and Biscuits and Holy Roar. We came together in 2011 to try and pool our resources both in terms of meaning we could afford an office together which none of had done before, we had all worked out of our bedrooms before that, and also pooled together to get a better distribution both physically and digitally, and also pooling our contacts and resources and it was great. We achieved many of the things we initially set out to do together; we got ourselves a little office in Dalston.

People’s various individual circumstances dictated that Pink Mist became a looser entity over time – people had to move out of the office, Andrej (Tangled Talk) went travelling, Kev (BSM) now has an office in Oxford because he got married and his life became far more focussed there and Simon (Blood & Biscuits) got a job as the label manager for City Slang. So, while we got together quite closely to start off with, we went off in our own directions, but we still exist. I think the greatest things that came out of Pink Mist, other than furthering the cause of all of our own labels to start with, is what Ross Allmark has done; he runs all of the Pink Mist live gigs as an extension of the brand (God I hate that word!) to put on shows and include some of our bands where appropriate, supporting bigger touring artists. Tonight (when the interview took place), for example, we’ve got Conrad Keely from …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead supported by Alan Welsh from Tangled Hair and Eugene Quell (ex-MMISL/Shoes and Socks Off) (both BSM acts)  – …Trail of Dead are one of those bands I’ve been into since I was 16 and I still respect, they’ve always done what they wanted and used to major label system for all its worth and are still going.

The great success of Pink Mist has been Ross Allmark’s drive and dedication for the live gigs, and it is his baby now, the labels can’t lay any claim to Pink Mist Live more than the initial platform and help for setup. He’s probably now one of the best punk/emo/hardcore promoters in London if not possibly the best; certainly the “coolest” or at least the most credible, consistently filling out rooms with great bands. Just to add to something we discussed earlier, the key turning points in Holy Roar history, in addition to the growth of Rolo Tomassi and going full time with the label 2 years later, the next one was the formation of Pink Mist.- it has enabled our releases to be more easily available and it allowed me to focus even harder because we had the office space, it made things feel super serious and like it was something a lot of people seemed to give a fuck about.

Coming together with those other labels was great because I learned so much off BSM and Blood and Biscuits; I learned so much off Kev but he learned a lot with regards to merchandising off our label – we all learned so much off each other and while we don’t share a physical space anymore, I still talk to all 3 guys quite a lot, I bounce ideas off them and ask for advice, like last week when I asked them for advice on a contract I signed with a band last week, we still implicitly trust each other and help each other, which is something the music industry needs. Independent music shouldn’t be out to try and get one over on everyone else, we should all try and help each other because it’s not an easy industry – sounds pretty hippy but it’s true!

2015’s been one of the best years you’ve had in a while, because of a wide range of artists from different areas of heavy music releasing great material, from Svalbard and Employed to Serve to OHHMS and Slabdragger. Obviously you’ve never exclusively been a “hardcore” label, but how do you feel about the current crop of HRR bands and is this all-encompassing approach something you’ll continue to take forwards?

To answer the first part of your question, I feel it has tangibly been one of our best years – I don’t feel that’s something that can ever be calculated beyond a degree, it was all dependent upon We Never Learned To Live, Svalbard, Employed To Serve, Rolo Tomassi, OHHMS turning in great records, which they did, but that has nothing to do with us, all we are is a facilitator. I don’t mean to sound arrogant or big-headed but the feedback on those records has made it feel like this has been one of our strongest years – we had to repress Svalbard’s record the day it came out, we’ve ordered a repress of WNLTL, the ETS record isn’t far behind now and that hasn’t happened before. It’s still small limited numbers, as it the nature of the sort of music that we release and the sort of label we are, but that does feel like a sense of progress. It’s quite scary in the sense that it’s a chunk of money you have to spend to make these things available again but it has felt like a really great year, which you attribute to the bands and the great music they produce and I’m eternally thankful to them.

I would also attribute it to taking on my first employee this year, Justine. She started working with me from around February, but just having someone else around to bounce ideas off, see if she thinks I’m doing the right thing and also to push aspects of the label that I might have otherwise ignored due to being bogged down in the day-to-day stuff – I would never have time to make sure our catalogue was on YouTube or tidy up our Bandcamp.

So we’re coming up to the big tenth anniversary; what have been your favourite memories over the past decade?

That’s a very big question! Off the top of my head so apologies if I miss anything or have forgotten anything glaringly obvious. The time we curated the hardcore stage at Offset Festival; you look back now at that lineup, which I think was in 2010, and the lineup was incredible, the action was amazing and that had a lot of great sets, that was pretty good. Rolo Tomassi selling out The Underworld when they put out ‘Cosmology’ is another one – they weren’t on the label then, but there’s such a strong association, that was incredible. Throats playing Sonisphere was another one – it was the summer we released the mini-album, which was just a 7-song record (and you’d struggle to get noticed for putting out a mini-album now), and they played Sonisphere to a good few thousand people and were incredible and they got nominated for a Kerrang! award up against what I would personally consider, nothing to do with the label’s perspective, a bunch of guff. I thought it was great that the horrible British child of Napalm Death and Converge were getting nominated and invited to the K! Awards.

It’s not that we yearn or strive for those things, but when they happen it’s a really nice happy accident and a validation from somewhere that you wouldn’t expect it. Those things all stick in my mind; I’m still ridiculously fond of those first three releases and it’s nice to see Rolo Tomassi return to the label and put out what I think is, hand-on-heart, the best release of their career, selling out Oslo with Employed To Serve supporting and Employed to Serve doing incredibly well. It’s the same with Svalbard, the reaction to that record has been amazing for what is, for all intents and purposes, some sort of metal/hardcore record with other bits and bobs bolted on, but for that record to be recognised by so many non-heavy music people has been a real validation of songwriting and creativity without looking at those boundaries.

Loads of indie record stores (and I mean that in the musical genre sense) got behind the Svalbard record and they got a solid review from Drowned In Sound, and it’s lovely that our bands continue to get recognised in places they perhaps shouldn’t be. That’s something I’ve always strived to achieve, I’ve always not wanted to put people off, I’ve always wanted it to be a label where you don’t feel like you’re trying to provoke your parents; it’s not rebellious for the sake of rebelliousness, it’s very inclusive and 10 years on, we get a lot of, for want of a nicer way of putting it, vinyl nerd middle-aged men into the label as well. I think that’s really cool, because they’re clearly appreciating the technicality and the musicality, the presentation and the production of our music – I want the 55-year old vinyl obsessive bloke and I want the 14 year old girl to have an equal chance and opportunity to get into the label’s bands as each other, I don’t want to say we’re just for 22 year olds who wear Touché Amoré t-shirts and I want us to appeal to whoever. I know that’s impossible, but that’s always one of the things I vaguely have in the back of my mind.

Who do you think are the most underrated band you’ve ever put out?

I always have a special place in my heart for that Phoenix Bodies record, but it was a 10-11 minute grind-punk record from a band that were gone as fast as they arrived. More recently – I dunno, struggling to think. I think that Rolo Tomassi should now be headlining to at least 1,000 people a night because they’ve got the musical chops, they’re interesting, they’re inventive, they work really hard – I remember when they played the Radio 1 tent at Reading a few years ago at 12:30 in the afternoon and it was absolutely rammed, that was another highlight. But I think at the moment Employed To Serve are very underrated, they’ve got some very vocal champions in Metal Hammer and various other good places, but I now think that that band should be on tour as first on supporting Architects or Bring Me The Horizon to 6,000 people – I think they could appeal to so many metal fans and hardcore fans and every time I’ve seen them on a bigger stage with a bigger PA they’ve sounded even better rather than them losing that intimate power. I truly believe in that band and truly believe that they should be afforded the chance, the right luck and opportunity to grow.

A lot of our readers may not be immediately familiar with the label and its releases – would there be anything in particular you’d bring to a novice’s attention? What are you personally into right now?

I think if you’re a complete novice, or your music taste has been piqued by this article, then I think the newest Rolo Tomassi record is a great place to start; it’s clever, it’s inventive, it’s melodic, it’s progressive, it’s technical and direct. A few people haven’t been 100% on it but I think it’s a great place to start without delving too far in any one direction. They were there at the start and they still encapsulate what we are in a way. Of this year’s crop, OHHMS, We Never Learned To Live, Svalbard and Employed To Serve are all really representative of all the facets of Holy Roar.

In terms of what I’m into, it would be a huge lie to say that I listen to, day in/day out, the same sort of music I listened to when I was 22 when I started the label. I am a firm believer in not denying your musical past, I have much more respect for people that just broaden their musical horizons but never lose sight of what they grew up loving, and just bolting things on to have a widening palette; rather than people that took a sudden turn and say “Oh, I was into metalcore but now I listen to Foals” or something – it’s a bit weird to me and it seems insincere and faddy, you’re too self conscious about what other people might think of you, rather than being true to yourself.

I was listening to loads of dunderhead beatdown bands yesterday, but then today I was listening to this Icelandic black metal band called Mysþyrming. I also really like half of the new Justin Bieber album because of the production and I also love a lot of electronic stuff, like Rustie’s new album was great. There’s quite a lot of things I’ve found via BandCamp as well, there’s a guy in Germany called HNRK who’s like a woozy electronic version of Burial, a chilled-out guy called Drip 133, there’s also this 16 year old in Dubai called Misogi, and his stuff’s incredible. I like the new Cult Leader record, I’ve just pre-ordered the new Conan record (who we once did a split 12″ for) – so all over the shop! I remember being in my late teens and early 20s, thinking “Oh my god, I’m so upset that when I hit 30 I won’t listen to heavy music anymore” because I’d seen it happen to loads of other people in bands.

I’d put on bands with older dudes in like ZAO or Throwdown and there’d be dudes in these bands in their early thirties and they were like “Oh yeah, I listen to The National and nothing else” and I remember the passion and energy I got off those bands in my teens – I was terrified of getting to that age and only listening to calmer, quieter music, but that hasn’t happened and I’m really fucking happy about that! I still get off on the energy on that easy, simple, direct heavy hardcore sometimes, but I also like ridiculously esoteric pseudo-intellectual black metal bollocks or electronic weird stuff… I don’t really know where I’m going with this but I think you get my point!

What does the future hold for Holy Roar Records?

As far as the future, I want us to be a label in another 10 years time. I think Sub-Pop’s a great reference point, because they still to this day release records that could loosely be termed “grunge” and they helped start that whole thing, and I would like to think that we’ve potentially had a part in shaping the next generation of UK underground rock, especially in terms of #UKSWELL and Rolo Tomassi and all the offshoots of both as the forefathers. I would hope that people would view that and also in the same way as Sub Pop have now released everything from Shabazz Palaces to Wolf Eyes and no-one bats an eyelid, I would like us to be in that same situation. They have the all-encompassing approach, and you see with bands like METZ and Pissed Jeans, they’re still keeping in touch with their hallmarks but still managing to stay relevant in 2015 and push things forward.

We’re releasing an album from a band called Giants who are essentially a punk band, and probably more melodic than most stuff we’ve done. You can probably draw a line from them to Make Do And Mend, but they came to me with this amazing record which sounds, to my ears, like a cross between really early Offspring, Alexisonfire and Backtrack. They’re good dudes, they seem like they’ve got their shit together and they work really hard and I can see that they’re going to fit in ideologically and in terms of ethos, but they will be edging out the parameters of what Holy Roar is just a few more inches and I find that exciting – if we weren’t doing things like that any more then we shouldn’t be doing it, we should be pushing the boundaries of what people think we can do.

https://youtu.be/qftpiq5ESNw

THURSDAY

Having successfully pitched tents in the pouring rain (festivals in late August – never pretty on the weather front), we ambled over to the Yokhai stage to see the first of the early-entry offerings, cherry-picked from the lineups of both preceding ArcTanGents. First up are Cleft and Alpha Male Tea Party; mentioned jointly because this is very much a collaborative set. As the UK’s math-rock pool is rather a small one, bands often form tight bonds through touring together, but few are closer than this six-headed math monster. Liverpudlians AMTP kick things off with their bouncy tech-rock, and are joined by the duo that make up Cleft, who were formed in Brighton but now reside in Manchester.

One set transitions seamlessly into the other, but the real treat is saved for the end of Cleft. Looking to beat their Rage Against The Machine medley of last year as a festival highlight, the two bands join together in a tour-de-force of riff, encompassing the likes of Deftones, Slayer, Oceansize, Daft Punk, Franz Ferdinand and many more. Quite the gauntlet has been laid down this early on by this unit and it seems an almost insurmountable challenge to be able to top that.

Unfortunately, most of the acts the rest of the day puts forth fail to mount even a paltry attempt to match the openers. Mylets go from a disastrous first song to a powerfully mediocre set and even Japanese math-legends LITE fail to excite, their set sounding a little tired in comparison to last year’s theatrics. Most disappointingly of all, headliners 65daysofstatic play a slow, ponderous set unbefitting of their status as closers, their usually pulsating numbers left behind in favour of experimental material. It’s left to old favourites like ‘Retreat! Retreat!’ and ‘Radio Protector’ to resurrect their reputation, but even trundling out those bangers can’t dissuade us from getting an early night. Let’s hope tomorrow will be better.

FRIDAY

Trojan Horse don’t provide the best of starts to the day, their Patton-worship grating fairly quickly, although their predictable thoroughfare is punctuated by a capable cover of Waiting Room by Fugazi. Fortunately, over on the Bixler stage, We Never Learned To Live kickstart the afternoon with a scorching set of cuts from one of this year’s best records ‘Silently We Threw Them Skyward’. Their progressive post-hardcore is both crisp and packed with requisite crunch, and their vocal performance encapsulates their swings between gloom and serenity perfectly.

Body Hound featured next on the festival’s main stage, simply called “Arc”. Featuring two former members of Rolo Tomassi (more on them later), this trio are staggering to behold, with a dazzling array of elements to their technical arsenal. Think of a blend of Meshuggah and Brontide (who sadly had to step down from this lineup), and Body Hound are the wonderful result of said tumultuous affair.

Continuing in the vein of excellent Holy Roar Records bands, OHHMS treated the main stage to their doom-laden stoner metal. More suited to the lineup of fellow Bristolian festival Temples, their Sleep/Harvey Milk-influenced roar fails to attract attendees in their masses, which is a shame as they are bloody excellent this afternoon.

More attuned to the tastes of ATG goers, noise-rockers That Fucking Tank blitz the Arc stage – just a shame they didn’t bring out their rather fantastic cover of ‘Dancing In The Dark’ by Bruce Springsteen. However, we were rather distracted by thoughts of the prospects that are entailed with a set by the aforementioned Rolo Tomassi, who bring their ongoing tour of 2015 album ‘Grievances’ to ATG. Songs from said album are set highlights as they thrash through moments from their four-album canon, their darker atmospherics and some of the freshest ideas they’ve showcased yet proving them the cream of the crop.

Over on the Bixler stage, Helms Alee offer a rare opportunity to see not one but two females feature in a band; sadly math-rock is a very male-oriented atmosphere and I fear the ArcTanGent lineup may fare even worse than Reading’s infamous butchering. Nevertheless, their Torche/Kylesa-esque vibes provide something different in a weekend where variety is much needed, not least in the voices singing the songs.

While we could justifiably say that the reunion extravanganza of the past few years is tired to the point of parody, it’s still a little bit nice to hear those songs you used to love. Therefore when The Fall Of Troy tear into their opening number, it’s no surprise to see the Arc stage go absolutely apeshit. Thomas Erak’s voice is a little hoarser and some of the guitar playing a little sloppier than one might have hoped, the heroes welcome TFOT receive proves there’s room for a little nostalgia even in a genre as forward-thinking as math-rock.

Vennart are another indulgence into yesteryear; the eponymously named new project of former Oceansize frontman Mike Vennart, alongside compatriots from said band, treat the Yokhai stage to a performance encompassing cuts from promising début ‘The Demon Joke’ alongside older material. While the newer material shows glimpses of intelligent, intricate songcraft, it’s tracks like ‘Music For A Nurse’ that garner a huge response for those with fond memories of the Mancunian proggers.

However, it was then time to get the White Russians in for the big finale to the first “proper” day – New Jerseyian metal giants The Dillinger Escape Plan were primed to lay waste to the main stage. It will come as no surprise to anyone who’s witnessed this phenomenon in any context, but their domination of indoor venues has no difficulty transitioning to an open-air setting, stridently using their 15+ years of experience whilst simultaneously playing with the energy and passion of a new band. Tonight’s set is surprisingly centric on material from 2004’s ‘Miss Machine’, with tracks like the thunderous ‘Sunshine The Werewolf’ (including the intro to ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’) making an appearance alongside newer tracks. The only real lowlight of the performance is its abrupt end with no encore; but like the very best showmen, we figure TDEP wish to leave us wanting more.

Dillinger’s Greg Puciato sizing up the middle column of the tent. Yes, he did climb it.

SATURDAY

The early thoroughfare of the day passes by without much to comment on; 100 Onces’ highly technical math rock engages little and Black Peaks’ shapeless, formless noise attempts to scale the heights of latter-day Mastodon but falls to earth with a dull thud. However, Axes bring the cheer to match a rare spot of blazing sunshine with a triumphant set, proving why they’re one of the most exciting newer acts on the UK circuit around.

Axes greeting the day.

Axes’ labelmates on the wonderful Big Scary Monsters, Talons, were next to take on the Arc stage, another British band being given the opportunity to match their big sound with a big stage environment. Fortunately, Talons don’t waste such a moment and wow the crowd with their expansive, melancholic and jaw-dropping post-rock, primarily taken from last year’s phenomenal ‘New Topographics’; the astonishing ‘The Dreams Have No Dream’ a particular highlight.

Confetti cannons for Talons!

As the weather turns sour, the Bixler tent is packed for Tangled Hair to the point where PT can’t get in, and even the lovely vocals of Alan Welsh can’t keep us in the deluge. pg.lost’s generic post-rock is a pleasant soundtrack in moments, but the evening really comes back to life when American oddballs Deerhoof grace the main stage. Vocalist Satomi Matsuzaki is a delight, her yips and yelps a constant source of amusement, and though the wantonly odd sound does wear a little thin over the course of their hour-long set, it’s an important spot of light ahead of what’s to come.

Due to unfortunate circumstances with CoL’s flight, what was originally meant to be a co-headliner situation with Deafheaven and Cult Of Luna has become a direct clash, and after facing a level of decisional anguish even Sophie isn’t familiar with, we went with Deafheaven. Turns out our choice was rewarded with one of the best sets of the weekend; although playing to a greatly diminished audience given the aforementioned clash, the Californians ensured each and every watcher felt confident with their decision. Tracks from 2013’s astonishing ‘Sunbather’ dominate the setlist, but the quintet preview ‘New Bermuda’ cut ‘Brought To The Water’, its darker sound setting the tone for this eagerly anticipated record.

As the exhilarating ‘Dream House’ brings the weekend’s music to a close, we reflect on another great year for ArcTanGent, our beards well-furrowed from constant stroking. Despite more diversity on this year’s lineup, the fatigue of seeing similar bands all weekend unfortunately plays a part in influencing overall opinion, but the ecstatic highs pull it well clear of the doldrums. Overall, it’s another successful chapter in the short life of this celebration of the odd, and in a year where its sister festival 2000Trees has gone from strength to strength, proves small festivals can survive in the current musical economy if tailored well to their audience. Here’s to 2016 being another time-signature change-fuelled extravaganza.

This crowdsurfer’s satisfied grin sums up our weekend well.

Festivals don’t get much more niche than Somerset’s ArcTanGent Festival – now in its third year, this August weekender provides a range of progressive sounds, predominately from the worlds of math-rock and post-rock. As niche, esoteric festivals tend to do, it almost seemed as if ATG was starting to paint itself into a corner (there are only so many bands from this world that can bring the crowds in – a little like Download having to invite Iron Maiden, Slipknot and Metallica back year after year), but 2015 sees ArcTanGent putting its most strident foot forward yet, with an eclectic and wildly varied lineup – just look at those headliners for a start!

With 3 days of music and over 70 acts, it was hard to narrow down to just 10 essential picks for the weekend, but our valiant writer Ollie Connors chose some of the very best ways to kill time during the day, before the semi-legendary Silent Disco takes place at night.

Deafheaven

Co-headlining Friday’s festivities alongside Cult Of Luna, this Californian collective may be a surprising choice of headliner to some, but in our mind, they feel more than apt to bring the curtain down on the day. A blend of black metal, post-rock and shoegaze, this quintet stunned the world with 2013’s ‘Sunbather’, an astonishing effort universally lauded by critics which has seen the band’s profile skyrocket, reaching an audience that may have previously solely associated black metal with church burnings. We may even be treated to a cut or two from upcoming album ‘New Bermuda’, a promise that’s getting us salivating.

The Dillinger Escape Plan

Probably the finest technical metal band in the world, these veterans are no stranger to a UK festival stage, and look to bring their intense and visceral style to the baying masses of ArcTanGent. A rarity in a long-serving act in that not a single entry in their canon could even be slighted as mediocre, let alone poor, the New Jerseyians are sure to bring the weekend to a close in typical obliterating fashion.

65daysofstatic

It may seem lazy for us to feature 3/4 headliners, but all three are of such legendary status that it would be foolish not to. Now comfortably in situ as “godfathers” of the UK post-rock scene and a powerful influence behind the resurgence it has engendered these past couple of years, the Sheffield band return to the festival they headlined in 2013 to once again showcase why they are held in such high regard. They may have switched to the territory of euphoric dance from their “glitch-rock” beginnings, but those who grabbed an early entry ticket will be treated to one of the best live acts these isles have ever seen.

The Fall Of Troy

They’re back! Having reformed in 2013 after a three year hiatus, the technical post-hardcore behemoths finally reach the UK and ArcTanGent festival, a more than natural home for their taut riffs and manic energy. Unlike their appearance at Hevy Fest which sees them playing ‘Doppelgänger’ in full, this set will feature cuts from their entire discography, wreaking mayhem on an unsuspecting Bristolian field.

Talons

Unfortunately with a host of incredible bands playing, it does lead to some awkward clashes, least of all Herefordians Talons coming up against Crows-An-Wra, an enticing post-hardcore act that should send pulses racing in fans of early At The Drive-In. However, we are going to bear witness to the jaw-dropping post-rock prowess of Talons, showcasing cuts from their astonishing 2014 full-length ‘New Demographics’. If you’ve ever wondered who the British equivalent of Godspeed You! Black Emperor are, look no further.

Axes

What gives you joy in life? A baby’s laugh? Your favourite football team doing a goal? Finding an absolute bargain in the Sainsburys reduced bins? Axes are the musical equivalent of these moments of sheer ecstasy, a fist-punch of a set from start to finish. From their juicy, Rush-esque basslines to their chaotic time, they make you feel like a kid running all the way home from school with just the hood of his anorak over their head, the rest flapping behind like a cape.

Vennart/British Theatre

Who remembers Oceansize? The Manchester-based proggers met their demise back in 2011, but fresh from world tours as the fourth member of Biffy Clyro’s live show, their former frontman Mike Vennart returns with not one but two acts at ArcTanGent festival. The eponymous is very much a trip down memory lane for ‘Size fans (especially because former Oceansize members appear in the band), reminiscent of the latter end of their career. British Theatre, a collaboration with former Oceansize guitarist Richard “Gambler” Ingram reaches more experimental territories. Whichever style tickles your particular fancy, ensure not to miss either chance to see this mercurial talent.

Rolo Tomassi

2015 sees Rolo Tomassi celebrate their tenth anniversary as a band, and they’ve seen in their first decade in style with fourth album ‘Grievances’. The album they’ve always threatened to make, this sees their trademark angular riffs and dizzying time-signature changes augmented by the addition of powerhouse drummer Tom Fitts and darker atmospherics. Vocalist Eva Spence is still a treat to watch live, her theatrics and “whirling dervish” presence ensuring that the Yorkshiremen are still one of the most exciting live acts this country has seen.

Body Hound

This festival is a cavalcade of technical superiority, and few bands display this better than Body Hound. Obfuscating riffs, whirlwind lead breaks and breakdowns that threaten to shake the foundations of wherever they play, this trio will provide a more than adequate replacement for anyone wishing Brontide were present on this lineup.

We Never Learned To Live

It may not be evident by our choices, but the weekend does feature a lot more variety than previous editions, not least in the form of Brighton’s We Never Learned To Live. Their début album ‘Silently We Threw Them Skyward’ is a curious revival of the early 00’s post-hardcore sounds akin to the likes of Hopesfall, Taken, Mahumodo and Cave In, and brings something different to the roster of Holy Roar Records (realised this is accidentally the third HRR band in a row we’ve picked – shout out that label). If “identikit math-rock” has tired you out, I can think of few better alternatives.

ArcTanGent takes place from 20th to the 22nd August 2015, Fernhill Farm, Compton Martin, a short journey from Bristol. Tickets are still available.

2015 marks Rolo Tomassi’s 10th (yes, tenth!) year of existence and to celebrate their decade of destruction, the release week of fourth album “Grievances” has been marked by four tiny shows across London, encompassing venues in Camden, Peckham, Dalston and tonight’s destination, Stoke Newington. As soon as we enter The Waiting Room, located below the rather lovely Three Crowns pub, everything about the place screams “sweatbox”. Should be good, then.

Each date of the “tour” has featured a different support, handpicked by the band to represent who they feel are the cream of the UK’s current crop. Tonight is the turn of mathcore mob Employed To Serve, who repay the faith shown in them by the (relative) “veterans” and then some. Despite showing up late, ETS manage to put on a jaw-dropping show; it’s so easy for this particular brand of technical metal to sound sloppy in the live arena, but tonight the Surrey-based quintet are tighter than a gnat’s sphincter.

Vocalist Justine does her level best to battle against an apathetic soundman, but even he cannot put a dampener on the mammoth riffs and irrepressible energy guitarists Sammy Unwin and James Jackson bring to the stage. The centrepiece of début full-length “Greyer Than You Remember” (which is also released in the week the show took place), “Bones To Break” sounds utterly colossal, and their parting shot sees the front half of the room caught in a melée, the “mosh goblins” out in force for one of the most exciting prospects the UK hardcore scene has brought forth in quite some time.

Most bands would find that a tough act to follow, but then, most bands aren’t Rolo Tomassi. The quintet are one of those rare acts that seem to improve from record to record, and “Grievances” is no different, taking a darker turn from the space-prog vibes of “Astraea” and allowing a more malevolent, volatile side to Rolo come to the fore. This is aided by the addition of drummer Tom Fitts, who has applied the style applied in former outfits (Throats, Crocus and Goodtime Boys among them) to augment their atmospheric sound. Cuts from other parts of their discography are just as impressive too, the Spence siblings becoming a whirling dervish during old favourites such as “Oh Hello Ghost”.

The soundman, suddenly springing to life after his doze during the support, ensures Rolo Tomassi, and especially vocalist Eva Spence, sound bigger than this basement can take, and the pit responds in kind. As we emerge sweating, we reflect on what we’ve witnessed down there – the future and the present, two forward-thinking bands who refuse to rest on the laurels, ever changing, ever evolving. Here’s to another decade for the best band in the world named after a cop film baddie, and an act for whom the spoils seem to be for the taking if they take a leaf out of the book of tonight’s headliners.