I’m going to skip any introductory stuff and just jump to…
For Astronauts And Satellites
…because fuck me, I have no idea how these guys do what they do. I’ve heard of chiptune before, but since I’m not much of a gamer I always dismissed it as being a bit too geeky for my tastes. Judging by this display, I was dead wrong. Read more…
When I first heard of Trails (via the title of their tune SHT FKR), it seemed somewhat tempting to write them off as silly, immature kids and move on ASAP. I didn’t, though – and I’m glad I chose the less obvious path. Far from being the Blink 182 / Bloodhound Gang crossbreed I’d expected, an actual listen to SHT FKR showed me just how Trails really work. There’s plenty of fun-having, yes, but Trails definitely stay on the right side of the line between humour and playschool-level childishness. The real order of the day here is straightforward rock awesomeness with a bit of flamboyance and serious attention to songwriting detail. Read more…
When checking out a female-fronted band, it can often be hard to focus on the music. Frankly, in such situations it’s common for everything except the vocalist’s makeup to suck horrifically. After all, it’s a sad (if unsurprising) fact that sex appeal sells – and many acts aren’t above milking said time-honoured marketing ploy until it’s dry, shrivelled, and flaccid.
Thank god, then, that Fine Fine Titans are above that bullshit. Read more…
Hool-a-Palooza is a punk festival crammed with bands whose speciality is keeping things short and to the point. So, in that spirit, we’ll do the same here. Read more…
Genrebomb and the Boileroom are always a great combination if you’re looking for an epic night out. Throw in local promoters GU1 PUNX, and you’ve got something really special; an eclectic evening of varied and exciting bands. Read more…
First things first. Beneath Dead Waves are a great band. They clearly know their shit; their instrumental technique is borderline flawless; and any self-respecting metalhead will find something to love on Inertia. Personally, I felt as if this album had been written just for me, clearly influenced as it is by many of the bands that defined me as a metal fan. There’re moments that bring to mind Dream Theater, Tool, Mudvayne, SikTh, Slipknot, and Meshuggah – and it’s clear that Beneath Dead Waves love those bands as much as I do (if not more). For that reason, Inertia has earned a special place in my heart. Read more…
Very few bands give as few fucks as Baby Godzilla. Even fewer bands use this trait to their advantage; there’s a very fine line between “putting in no effort” and genuine fuck-giving-free music. Baby Godzilla, however, are on the right side of every line. Every track on Knockout Machine is intensely chaotic, and yet makes perfect sense. In fact, if you were to force Baby Godzilla into a tightly-quantized corner, the results would most likely lose every last iota of structural integrity, and just dissolve into something utterly unlistenable. Read more…
Well, fuck me. These kids are pretty angry! Hardcore prog-punk’s been a fairly trendy genre since the rock world wised up to the genius of The Dillinger Escape Plan, and few bands following in Dillinger’s wake have made a serious, crystal-clear-obvious effort to escape their heroes’ back-flipping, ceiling-walking, onstage-shit-flinging shadow. But on Tell-Tale Hearts Now, Voyager do precisely that. Read more…
Bands like Evilness never fail to make me nostalgic. Until almost a decade ago, I spent almost every night of the week heading out to rock and metal gigs and one particular club where I spent many relentlessly intense nights pumped full of Red Bull and jumping around to music like this until I inevitably crashed and headed home. Those days were fun, though unsustainable; today, the Red Bull has been replaced by J2O, and my life’s soundtrack has become infinitely more eclectic. Read more…
I’ve never made a big secret of the fact that I love Guildford’s music scene. The sheer amount of musical talent hidden below the level of fashion-clone high street shops and uppity snobs with Come Dine With Me dreams is mind-boggling. Scratch away the net-worth-obsessed surface and you’ll find pop singers, gypsy jazz quintets, folk dreamers, alt-rock groups and, in Doomed From Day One, prog-metal titans in waiting. When they get big, many will assume DFDO’s success to have been some overnight phenomenon – but that’s simply not true. Doomed From Day One have already spent countless nights slogging around the local gig circuit, and their hard work is finally paying off. Nine Fingers is evidence of this. Full track-by-track analysis below: Read more…