Fatherson released the video for ‘Lost Little Boys’ back in February. ‘Open Book’ will be available from the 3rd June via Easy Life/Sony RED.

JUNE
02 LONDON Scala
04 GLASGOW ABC

They’ve brought The Xcerts and Twin Wild out on the road with them, and it’s the latter that have been given the task of opening the night. But Twin Wild carry off such a demand with overwhelming ease and confidence; they blaze through a sweet set, laden with catchy hooks and melodic choruses. Their singles ‘Fears’ and ‘Another Stranger’ become the huge rock anthems that they’re meant to be, swelling with a huge energy, while new track ‘Bloodstone’ is dark and brooding, showing a different side to this London-based quartet. Twin Wild are true diamonds in the rough and could easily sell out venues like Islington’s Assembly Hall once they’ve released and showcased new material.

The Xcerts are quickly growing to be everyone’s favourites Scots, and they don’t disappoint tonight. Their radio-friendly tracks swell and soar, complete with slick riffs. The ever-charming Murray Macleod’s vocals are elephantine in size, and he has no trouble keeping the room in awe with how strongly he delivers their bruising rock songs. They end with ‘There Is Only You’, a beautiful yet haunting track that bursts into life; with vibrant and bold riffs, it’s the perfect closer to their strong set. Again, The Xcerts is another band that are doing incredibly well and will continue to do so, thanks to their refreshingly honest music.

When Deaf Havana step onto the stage, it’s like a switch has been flicked. The room goes quiet from the moment frontman James Veck-Gilodi first steps out, armed with only his guitar to open with an acoustic rendition of ‘The Past Six Years’. And, from there, the night only gets better. The whole crowd joins in with tracks such as ‘Little White Lies’, singing along with pure joy and enthusiasm, drowning out the band at times. It’s taken all in their stride, with smiles and laughs.

Deaf Havana barely slow down, storming through a set that sees the likes of ‘Mildred’, ‘Smiles All Round’ and ‘Boston Square’ being played to a rapt crowd. And they consistently hit the nail on the head in terms of how brilliant they are tonight; James and Matthew’s vocals complement each other perfectly, and the whole band’s energy is bold and dynamic. They’ve got that Bruce Springsteen confidence and swagger about them, which enables them to deliver the huge and rocky ‘22’. Despite being slightly heavier and darker than their other material, new track ‘Cassiopeia’ fits in well and, with its slick riffs, goes down a treat in the crowd.

They end on a high, with ‘The World Or Nothing’ and ‘Anemophobia’, which rounds off a wondrous night that’s highlighted their outstanding and staggering talent. From beginning to end, Deaf Havana have been awe-inspiring and, after tonight’s stellar performance, waiting for their next record is going to become even tougher.

JESS TAGLIANI

Recorded for ‘There Is Only You’, ‘Bored’ opens snappily and keeps the energy going throughout. Lyrically the song expands on the album nicely, adding a welcome dimension to singer Murray Macleod’s story. It would have been a worthy addition to ‘There Is Only You’ were it not for the long outro, which would have stood out as uncharacteristic and unnecessary on an otherwise lean offering. However, fun is had in the closing section with layered drums pushing along an upbeat, Motion City-esque guitar line.

‘Heaven’, according to the band’s Facebook page “… was so close to making the record but we decided against it at the very last minute. I think we felt like the record would be one song too long if it were to make the cut. Dave Eringa who produced the record undoubtedly still believes we are idiots for not featuring this on the album as he really digs it.” The chorus is massive and leaves you wanting more the first time it’s heard. As it repeats later, it sneakily omits a bar or two, keeping the vocal hook flowing really nicely, without making the casual listener think too hard. Dave was right on this one.

The demo version of ‘Kids On Drugs’ is an utterly different beast to that heard on the album. The lyrics come at you a little quicker in the verses, and the chorus rhythm, whilst interesting, takes a moment to settle in the mind, making it less immediate. Give it another listen though and you’ll find its charm, especially if you are an avid fan that enjoys piecing together a song’s development. The closing riff is a big one and, unlike that of ‘Bored’ doesn’t linger too long and will make you wish that it had been bolted on to the end of the album version.

Sometimes when you hear the start of a song it reminds you entirely of something else. The simple, chugging guitar line that opens ‘Waste Away’ does exactly that, namely Queen Of The Stone Age. Then the vocal comes in and you remember that this is definitely an Xcerts tune. The band have had this one knocking around since ‘Scatterbrain’ yet it’s failed to make the cut on either that album or it’s follow up. It has the feeling of being bolted together from snippets of ideas intended to sound like Nirvana, Weezer and the aforementioned QOTSA, all falling just short of lifting the vibe to the standard that one might presume The Xcerts would be happy with on an album.

‘Live Like This’ serves well to fill the void for the ardent superfans that eagerly await the next album. Those with whom the lyrical content of ‘There Is Only You’ particularly resonate will appreciate the chance to delve a little bit deeper into their own misery (in the best way possible). For those looking to really get into The Xcerts our recommendation is to break up with your partner and start with ‘There Is Only You’. But when it really sticks, which it will, it’ll be time to give this EP a go.

IAIN GORRIE

The demo will appear on their ‘Live Like This’ EP alongside a demo version of ‘Waste Away’, the title-track single and two previously limited or unreleased tracks, ‘Bored’ and ‘Heaven’.

“We rewrote ‘Kids On Drugs’ during a day off whilst in the studio making ‘There Is Only You’,” the band explain. “We personally think the version on the album is infinitely better but we thought it would be really interesting for you all to hear where the song stemmed from.”

The line ‘All the kids on drugs are screaming out who needs love?’ was inspired by a young lady who I met in New York during CMJ Festival who asked if i was in a relationship. I said “yes” and I asked her “what about you? Have you found love?”, to which she replied, “who needs love when you’ve got drugs….?”.”

‘Live Like This’ will be available from Friday, available to pre-order via iTunes.

NOVEMBER
23 LONDON Islington Assembly Hall

Tues 15 Southampton Joiners
Wed 16 Guildford Boiler Room 
Fri 18 Tunbridge Wells Forum
Sat 19 Summersound Festival, Gloucester
Mon 21 London Black Heart
Tues 22 York Duchess
Wed 23 Glasgow Nice N’Sleazys
Thurs 24 Aberdeen Tunnels
Fri 25 Sheffield Tramlines Festival 

Brighton’s iconic new-music showcase, The Great Escape Festival, have confirmed the final acts added to their 400 strong line-up.

Included in the 100 plus additions are Punktastic favourites Marmozets, gritty rockers God Damn and Scotland via south coast trio The Xcerts.

The Great Escape takes place in venues across Brighton, with three headline shows in the Brighton Dome. Thursday 8th sees rapper-songwriter Example take to the stage, followed by Wild Beast and These New Puritans on Friday 9th and Kelis with Ella Eyre on Saturday 10th. The rest of the line-up covers all major genres, and a few surprises dotted around.

Today’s additions in full are:

ALBERT ALBERT / ALICE BOMAN / AMATORSKI / AMBASSADEURS / ANNIE EVE / ANTIMATTER PEOPLE / AUDIENCE KILLERS / BADBADNOTGOOD / BALLET SCHOOL / BANG BANG BANG / BILLY LOCKETT / BITE THE BUFFALO / BLIZZARD / BO SARIS / BOREAL SONS / BRNS / BROLIN / BUFFALO DAUGHTER / CALLING ALL CARS / CARNIVAL YOUTH / CHARLIE CUNNINGHAM / CHILDHOOD / CLAIRE / CLARE MAGUIRE / CLEAN BANDIT / COELY / COVES / DIZRAELI AND THE SMALL GODS / DOG IS DEAD / DROWNERS / EAGLES FOR HANDS / ELIZA AND THE BEAR / ETCHES / ETHAN JOHNS / EYES AND NO EYES / EZRA FURMAN / FRÀNÇOIS AND THE ATLAS MOUNTAINS / FREDDIE DICKSON / FUTURE FOLK ORCHESTRA / GAVIN JAMES / GLASS ANIMALS / GOD DAMN / GOMAD! & MONSTER / GRUMBLING FUR / HANNAH PEEL / HIDDEN ORCHESTRA / HIS CLANCYNESS / HOLLIE COOK / HONEYBLOOD / I HAVE A TRIBE / ICHI / JARGON VA / JENN GRANT / JESS GLYNNE / JLYY / JOSH FLOWERS & THE WILD / JOSH RECORD / JUNGLE DOCTORS / KATE MILLER-HEIDKE / KHUSHI / KID WAVE / KIERAN LEONARD / KIMBERLY ANNE / LAY LOW / LE1F / LISA KNAPP / LITTLE DRAGON / LOLA COLT / LOOKS / LUKE HOWARD / MAJOR LOOK / MARMOZETS / MAYU WAKISAKA / MAZES / MEANWHILE / MEN’S ADVENTURES / MISE EN SCENE / MISTER WIVES / MISTY MILLER / MØ / NEIGHBOUR / NORMA JEAN MARTINE / PALE GREY / PANAMA WEDDING / PEARLS NEGRAS / PERSIAN RABBIT / PRIDES / RACHAEL DADD / RARE MONK / RHODES / ROGER MOLLS / SALT ASHES / SEOUL / SERAFINA STEER / SHEPPARD / SHIFT K3Y / SMOOVE AND TURRELL / SOPHIE JAMIESON / STICKY FINGERS / SUPERFOOD / TARO&JIRO / TCTS / TEAM ME / TED ZED / THE AMAZING SNAKEHEADS / THE ANIMEN / THE CORONAS / THE DIAMOND AGE / THE RAILS / THE ROYAL CONCEPT / THE SUBWAYS / THE WET SECRETS / THE XCERTS / TOMAS BARFOD / TRANS / TWIN ATLANTIC / ULLA NOVA / VIMES / WERKHA / WHILK AND MISKY / WHITE HINTERLAND / WILLIAM CARL JR / XXANAXX / Y.O.U / YOU ARE WOLF / YOUNG AND SICK / ZHALA

Head to the official The Great Escape website for the full line-up.