First things first: Hyro The Hero is about to drop one of the best – and most explosive – albums of the year.
As anyone with the slightest degree of political awareness knows, our world and culture has been thrown into disarray in recent times. Madmen trade insults, bringing the world to the brink of nuclear war, before shaking hands and smiling – and division is everywhere Read more…
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Just as you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, you shouldn’t judge a band by its name. When I first heard of Ocean Grove, I expected them to be a pop-punk outfit, a happy-go-lucky group of charming cheeky chaps writing songs about looking back nostalgically at teenage years full of good times, sunshine, girl problems, and probably either surfing or skating.
But, of course, expectations don’t always equal Read more…
2015 has been a big year, soundtracked by a slew of spectacular albums. Picking an overall favourite was a pretty stressful task – and in the end, Jon Gomm’s gorgeous collection of live fan picks and what is, in my opinion, the definitive modern-day Joe Satriani album both had to go on top.
Deciding who would ultimately top the tree was made infinitely easier by putting them in alphabetical order by surname; if you put a gun to my head and demanded I choose between Jon Gomm and Joe Satriani in terms of quality, you’d just have to shoot me. They’re two sides of the same coin, Jon Gomm representing the acoustic world, Satriani the electric. Put together, these guys represent almost unparalleled guitaristic virtuosity.
In joint second place, you’ll find a whole host of alphabetised winners who would each be done a terrible injustice were they to be placed in a lower position. From legends with glittering careers spanning decades to stunning comeback albums and a fair few brand new names facing bright and hopeful futures, TMMP’s top albums of 2015 are all here.
Dive in – there’s a lot to get stuck into – and follow TMMP via Twitter for more from the world of world-class music in 2016!
1) Jon Gomm – Live In The Acoustic Asylum
1) Joe Satriani – Shockwave Supernova
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2) Read more…
Fans of metal mixed with hip-hop are going to fucking love this EP. Fat, slick, sharp and intense in equal measure, Downfall contains four fully arena-ready anthems sure to get fans of Enter Shikari, Hacktivist, and recent Ashes To New tourmates Hollywood Undead bobbing their heads under headphones.
Title track Downfall doesn’t mess about and sticks Read more…
The first thing that needs to be said is this: Takedown Festival 2015 was really well-run. Organising an event that takes in over 40 bands across five stages, runs to schedule, and delivers a smooth, hassle-free and fun experience for punters is a serious ask – but the Takedown crew rose to the challenge and did an awesome job. Even the security were nice guys. Or maybe paid actors.
The second thing that needs to be said? Fuck Read more…
Bands capable of speaking out intelligently about political issues are few and far between these days. Most seem set on insisting that it’s all about the music and having a good time, rather than encouraging their audiences to educate themselves and act on issues that mean so much to so many, but are often ignored in the age of cheap flatscreens and Xbox Live.
TMMP’s ultimate highlight Read more…
Over 22 years since its release – and more than half a decade since Killing in the Name famously wiped the floor with X Factor pop puppet Joe McElderry – Rage Against The Machine’s ten-track debut remains as fierce and stirring as ever. This album is one of my very first musical loves – and it continues to be a regular soundtrack to my daily goings-on even in the face of the innumerable songs I’ve given time to while running TMMP.
At the start of 2015, Read more…
The “death of the album” has been declared many times in recent years – but nonetheless, musicians keep making them and are showing no signs of stopping (and thank God for that!). Almost a decade and a half into the twenty-first century, there still exist bands and artists capable of composing immersive, engaging, and fully satisfying collections of songs that stand up to repeated, unshuffled listens. Here are fifteen of them. Read more…
With very few exceptions, Christmas music is terrible. Fortunately, the Boileroom team have good taste in tunes – and so this show was the perfect antidote to the overwrought saccharine pap that’s been unavoidable for the past few months. Read more…
Hacktivist defy categorisation. Their music is a mix of djent’s brutality and hip-hop’s flamboyance – but it’s impossible to merge those two genre labels without generating results that are…well…pretty shit. ‘Hip-djent’ reads like something you’d spot in an out of touch news rag whose contributors only feel truly comfortable with shameless fearmongering and casual racism, while ‘djent-hop’ sounds like a dance move guaranteed to alienate all but the most loyal friends. Read more…