I'm with the band

Curious to find out what life on tour with a band is really like, Phillip Thomas describes his job:

“I’m the tour tech for most big one-off shows and almost all tours with the band Chasing Cadence. I say “tour tech” but it essentially is a fancy way of saying I’m the one and only member of the CC entourage. I help set their equipment up before a set, I fix problems that go wrong during the set, and I help them pack down and load up after the set. Most of the time the band are happy to deal with their own equipment however, leaving me to float around and help with whatever needs prioritizing. It’s a pretty fun job to do, and I enjoy being able to travel across the UK with them.”

The typical first day of tour starts off at Rob (rhythm guitar) and Dan’s (bassist) house. People sleep over from the night before so the early morning wakeup call is more bearable. Sometimes, the band and crew get the short straw and have the first date in Wales or Scotland. Despite this, tour starts off with drinks and xbox. The van is loaded with equipment and the journey begins.

When describing the typical tour venue, Thomas said:

“The venues are typically small, maybe ranging between 100-1000 capacity. As expected from smaller venues the sound is usually shocking, as most of the time the “sound engineer” is some average bloke who’s volunteering to do the gig for cash in hand pocket money. We don’t bring our own sound engineer though, as that would require an extra seat in the van and I’d be pissed if I’m getting cut from the team.” 

Another common feature with smaller venues is that crowd draw is typically very low. 

Most bands would be disheartened by this but the Cadence lads just think of it as a free practice. Thomas added: “I don’t think of it as such, especially since they probably just paid £70 in petrol to get to the damn venue. Oh well, optimists right?” 

Talking about the struggles of life on the road, a harsh reality check is always in store.

The tours Cadence have played in the last two years and have found more groups to be unhelpful. Sure, the tour exposure may be beneficial for smaller bands, but they don’t have materials or experience for the bigger bands on their roster. Typically their tours are five or six nights long, and each band on the tour has one home town show. With four bands on each tour, that leaves two nights without a home town show. Chances are each band are gonna be fairly small in the grand scheme of things, which means those shows will be the worst of the tour due to small crowd draw. It’s unavoidable unfortunately. 

The whole tour is about money conservation. Each band member will use their own funds to pay for food and drinks during, but petrol and hotels come from the band budget. Typically on these tours, band budget isn’t huge. These boys aren’t signed by a label, and as such don’t get lump sums to cover expenses. During tours, Cadence have to rely on merch sales from each venue to help cover the cost of expenses. In some occasions, they could find themselves stuck in a city unless they make £X on merch sales. Otherwise, the petrol to get to the next venue is unaffordable. 

Discussing about the lack of personal space when on the road, Thomas said:

“During the tour there’s usually a lot of drama. The Cadence boys try and keep their heads above it and stay professional, and so far with my time with them I’ve only seen some very minor disagreements between them. 

The tours Cadence have played in the last two years and have found more groups to be unhelpful. Sure, the tour exposure may be beneficial for smaller bands, but they don’t have materials or experience for the bigger bands on their roster. Typically their tours are five or six nights long, and each band on the tour has one home town show. With four bands on each tour, that leaves two nights without a home town show. Chances are each band are gonna be fairly small in the grand scheme of things, which means those shows will be the worst of the tour due to small crowd draw. It’s unavoidable unfortunately. 

The whole tour is about money conservation. Each band member will use their own funds to pay for food and drinks during, but petrol and hotels come from the band budget. Typically on these tours, band budget isn’t huge. These boys aren’t signed by a label, and as such don’t get lump sums to cover expenses. During tours, Cadence have to rely on merch sales from each venue to help cover the cost of expenses. In some occasions, they could find themselves stuck in a city unless they make £X on merch sales. Otherwise, the petrol to get to the next venue is unaffordable. 

Discussing about the lack of personal space when on the road, Thomas said:

“During the tour there’s usually a lot of drama. The Cadence boys try and keep their heads above it and stay professional, and so far with my time with them I’ve only seen some very minor disagreements between them. 

of it in a carpark in Harlow.” 

To summarise his experience, Thomas said:

“All in all, tour is great. You make loads of new friends in the bands that support, a lot of whom I still keep in contact with. There’s messy nights and stressful days, but at the end of it everyone walks away saying “this tour was fucking amazing”.

After speaking to Phil Thomas I’ve learned that touring, as easy as it may seem, consists of blood, sweat and literal tears. I walked away from this interview with a new insight to the working of a tour and the immense efforts that go with it.  

Enter Shikari - 'The Mindsweep has swept the world'

I have been totally unashamed to tell anyone that Enter Shikari are the best band to see live. With extravagant and far from minimalist stage productions, they deserve to be top of the bucket list. Their 12 month anniversary of their ‘Mindsweep’ Tour in 2015 the Hertfordshire band toured once again and did not disappoint. With guest support acts like Arcane Roots, The Wonder Years and newly reformed The King Blues. The manifest took place int he one and only Alexandra palace, North London, where theres an almost theatrical feel to the venue. 

It’s difficult to categorise Enter Shikari, they don't fit into your stereotypical genres, if they had to be described they be the love child of political-punk and synth-bass. They ooze sheer rebelliousness, anger and energy. Its also difficult to conjure up compatible support acts, however for this particular set of shows they have produced a ‘fantastic 4’-esque team of bands. 

The first of the fantastic 4 was Arcane Roots. The UK has produced some amazing melodic rock bands over the years, and with Arcane roots we have witnessed another. The monstrous bass and drums often dip their music into more thunderous territory yet the contrasting, twinkling sounds of their guitar and atmospheric vocals give the songs a life of their own. The band combine math-rock and alt-rock riffs and beats but have a more post-hardcore energy on stage making them mesmerising to watch. Andrew’s unorthodox vocal range, screeching out ‘AND DON’T YOU CRAWL’ while trying to move his fingers at phenomenal speeds shows just how musically talented he is. ‘Belief’ being one of the many songs that has been injected with poignant lyrics and contrasting heavy melodies layered on top. Arcane roots played a breath taking gig, including songs from both ‘Blood & Chemistry’ and ‘Left Fire’.

'Resolve', 'You Are' and 'Triptych' were by far the most exciting to watch live. Spidery guitar solos that literally brought Andrew to his knees in the middle of the stage and mosh pits forming like human whirlpools in front of him. It was something else seeing these guys play a 7,400 capacity venue when they started off play 50-100capacity venue only a matter of months ago. 

The second of the musical heroes were newly rebirthed London band, The King Blues. After the controversy on social media as their new album released showed a photo of David Cameron being beheaded, the boys are back with a bang. They show their excitement and happiness of being on stage by playing that on song we all know, “I Got Love”. As Jonny ‘Itch’ Fox darts left and right across the stage the crowd are jumping and singing in unison. Theres a buzz i the room as The King Blues depart off stage and the lights dim. everyone know exactly what expect from he remainder of the show. Floods of people leave the body of the crowd to run off and grab over priced beer, nip to the loo or find missing friends before the  third of the four bands. 

Third in line were Philadelphia sextet, The Wonder Years. If you're the generic pop punk fan you'd know these american lot very well. Dan ‘Soupey’ Campbell was of with such confidence and power, the roar of the crowd causes the smiles to crack on his face. Its clear the impact he causes on fans gives him pride. They play with three guitarists and synchronised onstage smoke explosions. The band open with their most recent released song “Cardinals”, creates a swelling sprawl of human currents through the room, dark blue lights and faint pink flashes create an omniscient atmosphere in the room. There the odd crowd surfer floating around, on the rare occasion a half finished pint of beer will fly past your head and drench you in sticky Fosters. 

The Wonder Years finish up their far from calm set and exit stage to make room for the main event. 

Standard procedure, lights dim, crowd calms and the fine buzz is in the air. Everyone who's seen Enter Shikari will know that their stage productions are made to take you on an adventure. This one did not fail. Anticipation weakens as Rou Reynolds ran on stage and the rest of the band followed, lasers bouncing off the wall and brightly lit up screens stand tall on stage. Nothing about the band’s sound is comfortable or easy – unlike the furry-collared coat Rou Reynolds started the show wearing – and ‘Sorry You’re Not A Winner’ shocked the senses further with an accompanying switch between frantic pink and blue strobe lights and total darkness. The screens behind the band show a slow moving slide show of ‘mans evolution’ and cosmic landscapes. After an appreciative speech about the success of ‘The Mindsweep’ and a lecture on music popularity Shikari pull out the ‘Radiation’ card. Neon green lasers fly around the room and the crowd move as one in a huge bouncing motion. The mixture of the set list was surprising, considering there were song on there they haven't played live in years. ‘The Jester’ was a signature song of the evening, causing buzzing exhilaration in the crowd and swarms of mosh pits forming. Moving onto ‘Dear Future Historians…’ Rou advances to a podium in the centre of the crowd, sat behind a white patent piano. As an extra treat to the crowd a piano version of ‘Juggernauts’ was preformed, with added confetti cannons and glitter. Followed by a mother popular song, ‘Arguing With Thermometers’ and a version of ‘Ghandi Mate, Ghandi’ that had the man himself appearing in cartoon form to ask “what would Robbie Williams do?” The answer? Sing ‘Angels’, of course, so a little bit of 90s pop found its way in to the setlist. ‘Mothership’ added some serious nostalgia to the show, probably a tribute to their loyal and avoid fans. 

An encore of ‘Redshift, ‘Anaesthetist’ and ‘The Appeal & The Mindsweep II’ cemented this show as the best of its kind. Enter Shikari, in a venue overlooking the London skyline, dominated the city and changed the British alternative music scene forever in a show that was gutsy, lively, fun, poignant, political and astounding. With a headliner slot at Hevy Festival this summer, what comes after that? Wembley, maybe? Let’s hope so – there isn’t a band that deserves it more.

The venue starts to clear as tired and sweaty looking fans leave this picturesque location, the city lights of central London laminate the sky and twinkle. People leave to rest their giggled out legs, yet another successful show for Enter Shikari. 

Camden Market - Camden Town

 Coming up the escalators of Camden station, which you could also be described as a wind tunnel, you can feel the Arctic weather before you even step outside. In the hustle and bustle of the city little puffs of peoples breath float upwards while strolling down the crowded high street. Upon approaching the indoor market the whiff of incense sticks and street food fills the air. The food court is packed full of hungry punters, luckily the amount of free food thats shoved in your face you don't have to pay for street food. While sat in the court yard of the stables I take in the sights of countless vintage stores, punk band t-shirts covering the walls of shops and shisha pipes at every turn. It maybe cold, but mulled wine keeps my hands warm as I continue to browse Collectif Clothing and the other edgy clothing stores!

The Old Blue Last- Shoreditch

 Walking through north London on a Tuesday evening in December. Feeling the crisp cold air on your lungs and the bitter wind biting your exposed skin. Its dark. Street lights and bars illuminate the way through city streets as you walk past murals of brightly coloured graffiti. At the end  35 Great Eastern Street sits The Old Blue Last. A small bar and gig venue that houses a collection of taxidermy and expensive pints. It has a warm atmosphere inside, a drastic change from the cold London streets, the sights of edgy Londoners caked in tweed jackets and skinny jeans spread across the bar. Couples sat in corners sharing drinks and the occasional band member popping downstairs to do the beer rounds. Walking up the old wooden stairs to the gig area, weaving in and out the waves of people, walking towards the upstairs bar crushed against people like sardines in a can. Old wooden bars and neutrally painted walls give the venue a cosy home feel.  The little wooden victorian style tables dotted around downstairs serve for a snug spot to sit while you enjoy a £5.90 pint of Wolf Rock.

Wilie J Healy @ The Old Blue Last, Shoreditch.

Hello 2016. We welcome you with open arms and hope for some amazing new music.

Willie J Healey, Oxford red head, beachy guitar extraordinaire and voice shocker. Playing an intimate gig at The Old Blue Last, sharing the stage with three other bands that night, Willie puts on quite a show. The little indie kid looks like he would exert a Two Door Cinema Club esque voice. But no. Deep, cordial and soothing voice oozes out as he sings ‘Palm Trees’, a song about Pamela Anderson. 

The start of the show is slightly awkward, jokes are attempted, family members are the only ones cheering. After the first song ‘Julia and I’ the crowd start getting into the swing of things. Bobbing in unison with the upbeat drums. The american beach rock guitar gives the whole show a Hawaiian Elvis Presley feel. Even his songs have tropical names, ‘HD Malibu’ was a significantly smooth song. It took a while to kick in, but when it did you really go there. His velvety voice making the crowd silent, listening in awe. 

‘Subterraneans’ fills the room with silence as the dreamy guitar echoes around walls. His deep vocals give you goosebumps as the blue lights dimmer. “Plain Jane dreams of nicer things” ripples through the room, the crowd bobbing to the slow beat and chilled out atmosphere. The whole room feels like its underwater, motionless, just captivated by his tranquil vocals. This guy is definitely one to put on the “must see” list. 

His hazy surf rock music keeps the crowd content through the whole set, ginger ringlets bouncing in beat to the bass and the backing vocals creating a perfect harmony. The emotional expressions in his face as he thanks the crowd for “appearing at his show” show his true love for music and what he's doing. This young chap is certainly one to watch. 

Frank Carter and The Rattlesnakes @ The Underworld, Camden.

If you've followed Frank Carter since Gallows you'll know he's had a tough 2014. He has returned with the super group Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, made up of ex Heights and Pure Love members. They exploded onto the scene with album ‘Blossom’ in April 2015 and started touring the UK and Mainland Europe in November an December. Monday 30th November, the gig was initially scheduled for Dingwalls. But everybody knows the brutality of a Frank Carter gig. The venue denied FC&TRS a gig absent of a barrier. Which in Frank Carters words was “a dick move”. The venue change happened on the night of the gig and moved to the infamous Underworld in Camden. Touring with Leeds lads Brawlers and Wolverhampton duo, God Damn. 

Once the first two bands had finished warming up the already elevated crowd, the room goes silent. Waiting. Watching. Ready for Frank Carter to make his entrance. The roar of the crowd fills the room with an electric energy as Frank saunters on stage, microphone in hand and piercing blue eyes scanning the crowd. “This stage is not just mine. This is your fucking stage too.” are the first words that comes out of his mouth before playing the chaotic ‘Devil Inside Me’. Loyal fans echoing the lyrics as whirlpools of mosh pits form around the stage. Bodies being thrown off the stage and small balcony bars into the the sea of hardcore fans. The tumult continues as he powers though ‘Blossom’, ‘Juggernaut’ and ‘Fangs’. Franks terrifying stare could turn you to stone, he's like the Medusa of the rock world. He continues to thank the crowd bluntly. “You guys are the fucking greatest. I fucking love you mugs”, talking about his tough year and leaving Gallows. 

After a significant amount of carnage on the stage and floor, Frank begins ‘Beautiful Death’ probably one of his most heart felt songs he's ever penned down. Requesting the whole crowd to crouch down, not for the cliche synchronised jumping, but instead the crowd fall silent for the whole 4 minuets. Uninterrupted. The heart wrenching song was dedicated to his wife and her father who had died the previous year. Safari as emotional hardcore shows go, this one was indelible. 

Frank Carter don’t do feelings for too long though. Finishing the set with ‘I Hate You’, the whole crowd chanting “You are nothing, you are nothing to me. You're a useless fucking cunt, you are nothing to me”. The heavy metal energy tore through the crowd like a tornado leaving everyone battered and bruised. And of course covered in beer. 

The Wonder Years- ‘No Closer To Heaven’

*punches air* *stage dives* *punches air once more*

Philadelphia emo six piece The Wonder Years have never been shy to perform open heart surgery on themselves to create albums. ‘No Closer To Heaven’ is every bit prepared to undergo the scalpel following in the footsteps of the four albums released before it (2007’s Get Stoked On It!, 2010’s The Upsides, 2011’s Suburbia I’ve Given You All and Now I’m Nothing, 2013’s The Greatest Generation).

Some bands spend years trying to find that progression and perfection, however The Wonder Years have nailed that and keep banging out the goods their fans demand. ‘No Closer To Heaven’ focuses on more gargantuan subjects, other than his usual angst, suburban lassitude and general necessitous. The band have kept those head bopping drumbeats that every pop-punk kid strives on and those sickening guitar riffs that transport you to the suburbs of Philly during autumn evenings. Lyrically the album is so cloak and dagger, at first listen you'd just think front man, Dan ‘Soupey’ Campbell, is shouting about the classic hatred for his home town and adult anxieties. However listening to the whole album closely you realise how dark it really is. “Thanks For The Ride” for example, a song thats catalyse was cored around a deceased friend and the question “what life would be like if she had lived?”. A “What if you'd woken up from the coma?” kind of scenario. The whole album is definitely Soupey’s most unrestricted album to date. 

‘No Closer To Heaven’ kicks off with 1 minute 32 second song “Brothers&”. An unearthly musical song, the only lyrics spoken are the repletion of “We’re no saviours if we can't save our brothers”. 

“Brothers&” starts with a simple journey through The Wonder Years classic guitars and slow drums it picks up once the crying vocals come in. And like a lot of things in life. Stops abruptly. 

“Cardinals” the second track on the LP, named after the iconic red bird, is not the most uplifting song on the album but is very deep and authentic. The truths of troubled America and broken promised are the main basis of the song. “Cardinal crashed into my window, think he might die. I’ll plan him a funeral, I’ll read his last rites. Cause I know what he saw in that reflection light. On the glass was a better life” speaks of the idea of the bird not knowing the difference between reflection and reality. So basically he's saying that at some point in your life you will have the same fate as that bird. You crash into what is a very literal glass window.

“A song for Patsy Cline”&”A song for Ernest Hemingway” paired songs about hitting that writers block and convincing yourself you're doing terribly at something you're supposed to be good at. Dan Campbell is quite simply singing about the struggles he had writing the album and comparing it to the constant difficulties Patsy and Earnest faced during the last few years of their lives as musicians. Musically the song is a progressive pop-punk. Starting with signature slow eerie guitars and eventually moving to a stronger harder hitting melody. The basic definition of pop-punk is melancholy lyrics over merrier melodies. Every song that The Wonder Years bang out hit this right on the mark. “A song for Earnest Hemingway” almost sounds like a gospel choir and yet again, quickly hits back into those violent drums and mellifluous vocals. 

The closing track “No Closer To Heaven” is the only acoustic track on the album, laced with calming acoustics that make you want to sink into a mattress. The song references previous songs on the album, this is a tendency of The Wonder Years Albums. Mentioning the death of birds once again and Ernest Hemingway and their matching forehead scars . The guilt riddled song may be soul destroying to listening but is oddly calming. The humble acoustic guitar sits gently on the ear. Any fan of The Wonder Years would agree that no matter what, you would catch a serious case of the feels listening to this album alone.

Lyrically the Philly hexad have matured, even if it is in the “death is inevitable and everyone hates me” kind of way. The stories behind this set of songs are hard hitting, leak authenticity and show the true colours of Dan “Soupey” Campbell. Any pop-punk fan would end up spiralling into an existential crisis after submerging themselves in the lyrical realness of ‘No Closer To Heaven’. The album screams pop-punk and defies the genre with surgeon precision. They have grown along side their listeners and have a devoted spot on top of the alternative music scene. 

*punches air* *cries into pizza*

Crom Dubh- “Sedition”

Taken from their new album ‘Heimweh’, “Sedition”, the love child of Biffy Clyro and Rammstein. With distorted beats and gruff vocals this London spawned  band have blown the roof with this song. Combining melodic guitar riffs and repetitive drums. The fitting name of Crom Dubh is coincidently translated to “King Idol of Ireland”, knowing this you cant tell they have that Kingly confidence this song and the album for that matter. ‘Heimweh’ is the bands first full length album but they've apparently existed since 2003. That said Crom Dubh definitely seem ready to throw more albums our way. They have that melodic metal sound and hit it right on the arse. As well as the progressive metal guitars the backing music has some traditional Scottish bag pipes. Crom Dubh, despite coming from London, have a Gaelic/Irish root sound. We can undoubtedly expect more fervent music from this London lot.

Frank Carter And The Rattlesnakes- “Blossom”

Gruff. Brash. Heavy. Three words to describe the new band of ex-Gallows lead singer. Frank Carter the former Gallows frontman has finally resurrected his music career and shat out ‘Blossom’. Yeah thats right, shat out ‘Blossom’ like a tattooed metal unicorn. The Rattlesnakes are a venomous bunch of musicians themselves. Made up of ex-Heights guitarist, Dean Richardson, and former Pure Lovers Tom Mitchbber & Memby Jago. The album itself is typical Frank Carter, with him spitting lyrics like “You’re a useless fucking cunt, you are nothing to me”. It weeps authenticity. These lot aren't trying to be edgy. They're not trying to sell records. They are simply just being Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes. The albums power song ‘Juggernaut’ consists of screeching “Even on my own you cant stop me”, herculean drums and those Gallows-esque guitars. The more philosophical, ’Rotten Blossom’, questioning immortality, the afterlife and death, showing Carter’s true musical talent. Overall the album is lyrically genius, musically superlative and we hope to hear more monstrous tracks from the band. 

Trivium- “Until The World Goes Cold”

Florida bred band Trivium, release their sixth studio album since being signed in 2004. Post 2006’s The Crusade’ the quartet have mixed up their sound and become a mature metal band, finally getting that progressive twinge they've always wanted. Following in the footsteps of  thrash kings, Slayer, Trivium have that Slayer modus operandi with the drum patterns. As well as gaining and losing band members over the years Trivium have changed that ordinary thrash metal into melodic thrash metal. ‘Silence In The Snow’ kicks off with the progressive metal sound of “Snøwfall”. The band have kept those dulcet ‘Volbeat’ style vocals but contrasted them with their signature thunderous drum beats and spidery guitars. One of the more heavier tracks on the album, ‘Dead and Gone’ is drowned in sickening guitar riffs, blending that 21st century metal oomph with the anthemic drive of Iron Maiden. Bellowing lyrics “Will you keep fighting when I'm dead and gone”, the song shows the more hardcore side of the band. ‘Silence In The Snow’ is definitely their strongest material to date. Keeping this melodic thrash metal sound will definitely keep the quartet on the right road to even more success in the black metal world. 

Fresh Meat: Luke Woods.

“I’m Going To Get Myself To The Big Cities”

Being a rookie musician is always a hard book to read and for Blackpool folk singer-songwriter, Luke Woods, a mere pipedream is becoming a reality in the name of Bandini. 

“I've been sitting on a lot of these songs for a long time and it’s about time I released something. Having had and played these songs for a while on my own, it was real breath of fresh air to get a band backing them” 

Luke’s current music style has been built on a backwards travel through time. “I’ve gone through so many changes in genres. When I first really started listening to music for myself it was down to my best friends brother in primary school. He was a mosher and into Nu-Metal. About 2002 and I started to get into it too. Although my favorite had to be Linkin Park. From there I got into a lot of pop-punk, then onto indie stuff and post punk bands like Joy Division. That’s when I started looking further and further back. Looking at the musicians and bands that came before, grunge bands Nirvana and The Smashing Pumpkins, punk like the Ramones/Stooges. Going back further to The Velvet Underground and other acts of the 60s and the folk music of Greenwich Village in New York really stood out to me, just striped back, relaxed, really made you listen to what they were saying. Had a lot of heart. Then looking even further back I started listening to a lot of American roots folk, artists like Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly and blues artists like Robert Johnson.” 

When talking about musical and lyrical influences they go down a more poetry and literature path “authors like Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac and especially Charles Bukowski and John Fante. The same goes for Lou Reed, a lot of what he wrote can be interpreted as poetry” it’s a clearly-documented love for folk and 1960’s culture that gives him his musical spark. 

For Luke his local area isn’t exactly teeming with fellow folk singers, “I come across a lot of acoustic acts but nothing I would consider folk, most musicians from Blackpool are brit-pop, indie and a lot of heavy metal”. As far as opportunities go for folk singers in the area there is very few places that accept the calming genre “When I first started playing around Blackpool there wasn’t much platform for new original bands to showcase their stuff, a lot of venues only really welcomed cover bands” he says “Now with the recent opening of The Blue Room and Underbar there’s hope for the future.”

There’s always something nice about quirky venues that support a range of artists, but then there’s playing in a church! “It was in Lytham, the stage was set up on the alter and the audience sat in the pews. The lights were dim; mainly candle lit and the audience was very quiet and respectful. They really listened to every act, the atmosphere was calmed and it sounded great in there too!”

So with the experience of playing in some gritty bars and a church added to the list, there must be a list of gigs Luke aspires to play “I like the idea of playing in an opera house, the audience all around and there’s not much going on, on stage to distract your attention away. Just a spot light. As far as festivals go I’d love to play Newport Festival in the US, but I would happily play any festival”.

Festival season comes pretty much straight after the release of Bandini, surely this is going to create a big stepping stone in the career of this singer-songwriter “I hope it will open more doors for me. Playing bigger venues up and down the country. It’ll also be good to have something to give to people saying, “hey this is what I can bring to you” rather than having to rely on word of mouth alone”. This will be the first full release from Luke’s solo career and for any musician the whole process of creating, recording and producing an album takes a lot effort. Especially with it being DIY. “It makes it much more intimate and personal I much prefer the idea of recording at home, you’ve got everything you need there. Although sometimes you're not as focused on the task at hand ,there’s a lot of distractions around but it’s also good because you not always constrained by time, so you can redo a lot of things if it’s not quite right and you don't have to worry about how much studio time you've got left.” Being time conscious must be a trait a musician needs when forming an album “We recorded the album over four days in December. The time leading up to that consisted of getting all of the parts down just right but it can be hard sometimes. When you think you’ve got something that sounds great then it comes to recording it and then using it in context with the rest of the song it might just not sound right, so a lot of time is used up just making it all fit together nicely. Then there’s the editing and the mixing that can be time consuming deciding on the best takes to use on the final product, luckily I've got friends who know how to do that well”. How did the “behind the scenes team” come to being a collective to help with the album? “I met Rob, who produced/mixed the album, at work, I already sort of knew him though my friends at college. I go to him to help me decide what my strongest songs are and how I could improve them. Jake I met through Rob; they have been friends for a long time. He also produced, engineered and played the drums on the album. He’s also helping me a lot in the other side of things such as promoting. Lloyd who also engineered the album again I met through Rob. Al who played electric guitar and bass on the album I only just met, he’s a great guitarist and I'm really happy with what he brought to the album. I can't thank them enough for the help they’ve given to me and this album.”

The post-album plans are already set in stone and Luke is keen to branch out more “As soon as its released the breaks will be off, I'll be gigging everywhere I can to promote it. I'm also always writing new stuff so who knows how soon it will be till I get another one out” he continues “So far a lot of the places I play have been in the northwest of the country. I'm going to get myself to the big cities and play a lot of the festivals in the summer. I'd also like to get myself into Europe.”

And finally, as far as future plans go, the image of continuing to play music and enjoy life in approximately 5 years’ time is something that appeals to Luke Woods “I just want to carry on with what I'm doing because it makes me happy.  It would be nice to be successful and touring and get the opportunity to release more material.  I'm really more focused on the present at the moment though the future will come regardless.”

Fresh Meat: Your Last Day

Exeter's “Bearded-cat-botherers”, Your Last Day, shed light on the subject of being a DIY band and exciting new releases. 

Devon quintet, made up of Ryan, Chris, Matt, Kevin and Neil, have been hitting stages and releasing EPs since 2012. Now gaining a sustainable amount of momentum, I managed to get an interview with talented drummer, Kevin Marshall.

 Devon doesn't exactly scream out the words pop-punk, but you'd be surprised at the amount of  heavier influenced bands that hide in the nooks of Devon’s countryside. “Its quite sparse, you don’t come across many other pop-punk bands, however there are heavier bands to come out of the area. I Divide, Idiom and The Computers are the main ones. Also Black Foxxes, another band from Exeter who are pretty much in the same position as us”. 

Speaking of being in a certain position, it must be tough for a new band to gain a solid platform to start on. “Of course its tough, it can take its toll emotionally and physically. You really have to put in money and effort and it becomes a brutal struggle unless you really make it in the industry.” For a lot of bands making it in the industry is a mere pipe-dream, however for Your Last Day the effort is starting to pay off. 

“It was always a happy-go-lucky kind of thing, we had to play some really shit gigs and do a lot of self promotion on social media before we got anywhere. You go through shit before it gets better”.

After all the self promotion, gigging and releasing free EPs this must have brought a significant amount of attention to Your Last Day. “Yeah, we bagged ourselves some recording time with Todd Campbell in Wales, where we recorded the single ‘Ship Wreck’. Its a big stepping stone going from DIY recordings to doing it in a real studio”. Does this mean we get to see some new material coming from You Last Day soon, “We’ve got a lot of exciting stuff happening in 2015, the release of ‘Ship Wreck’ on January the 16th and a live lounge-like session with BBC Devon on valentines day, sickeningly cute right?” Looks as if 2015 has got some big things lined up for this Devon five some, maybe a UK tour to treat us lovesick pop punkers.

“We have a few more stepping stones to cross before we can make a tour happen, maybe by the end of 2015/beginning of 2016 we’ll have a solid platform to do it, but for now we’re living in the moment and enjoying it” I know this is way past “the moment” but where would you like to see YLD in 5 years time “In 5 years time we want to be in a position where we’re trading shows around the world with some of our favourite artists, also to be in 2nd, 3rd album territory and still creating, having fun and being super best friends!”

Moose Blood: I’ll Keep You In Mind, From time To Time. Album Review.

For this Canterbury four piece, it’s been two years of creating singles, EP’s and collaborating on split 12” but now they’ve finally released a full length album. Moose Blood have always had that emo-rock sound and with their new album they’ve perfected it, producing a new generation of British punk.

‘I’ll Keep You In Mind, From Time To Time’ is a heartfelt, emotional album full of lyrics about love, life and loss. Going hand in hand with these covert and melancholy lyrics are the warm and solace sounds of, lead singer, Eddy Brewerton’s voice.

The album kicks off with the poignant ballad “Cherry” which interlaces dreamy vocals with melodic riffs. The juxtaposed combination gives the song a certain idiosyncratic personality that gives off a sorrowful and charming aura.

The album them moves to “Anyway”, one of the more upbeat singles on the new release, still including those hazy vocals but over heavier riffs and bass drums. “Anyway” displays Moose Blood’s heavier punk influences such as Brand New and Balance & Composure.

The bands popular song “Bukowski” makes a pleasant appearance on the album, you can tell this is some of their older original music. It’s much more upbeat and contended. The twinkly guitars and simple drum beats lend a more pop-punk vibe.

Even with older and new work on the album, Moose Blood have successfully shown fans their punk influences and added their own unique twist on them. ‘I’ll Keep You In Mind, From Time To Time’ has been sculpted into a pure work of art. It’s truly beautiful.

Review: Howler @ The Cluny, Newcastle.

Howler have a lot resting on their shoulders, not only because of the success of debut album Give Up America, but also for being NME’s third best band in 2011. This Minneapolis four-piece may have roots in Minnesota, but their music sounds like part of the East Coast punk rock scene; along with bands like The Strokes, it’s their guitar riffs that give the band a beachy, sunny California vibe.Give Up America, and their latest album, World Of Joy, both show the band’s love for 1960s garage rock. However, both albums have their own sound, in different ways.

The four-piece take their places on a bohemian-style rug covering a cramped Cluny stage. Front man Jordan Gatesmith takes a spot right of the stage with his black, glossy guitar wrapped round him. He has an aura of confidence surrounding him, as does the rest of the band. Despite the venue’s small size, Howler still show the same energy as if they were playing an arena. Opening the gig with ‘In The Red’ from their latest album, Jordan and Ian request the audience to “get your d***s out”. Thankfully no one responded to this odd wish. They then move on to playing some of their other fast paced guitar and screeching-vocal songs from World Of Joy. ‘Beach Sluts’ and ‘Back Of Your Neck’ make an unsurprising appearance during the gig, and you can tell these are the songs Jordan enjoyed playing most, asking the light technician to give them a “sick lighting mood”.

This was the second time I’ve seen the Minnesota beach band at The Cluny, and they do not disappoint. Last time they were a five-piece, and then, there were four. Jordan, Ian, Rory and Max are bundles of human-shaped musical energy on stage, lit up with gloomy red and blue lights.

They are genuinely great to watch, with ace stage presence and humorous personalities. The gig as a whole was 10/10; they’ve grown a lot since 2011. Not to mention their great choice in support acts! Broken Hands, a grungy rock band from Cambridge, and a local alternative band called TUSK opened the set and got the crowd in the mood.

Review: Arcane Roots @ Think Tank, Newcastle.

The UK has produced some amazing melodic rock bands over the years, and with Arcane roots we have witnessed another. Only just gaining an explosion of popularity in the past couple of years, despite touring with the likes of Muse and Biffy Clyro, Arcane Roots are on album number two and have just concluded their second UK tour in less than six months. While on tour in Europe the London three piece released ‘Over&Over’, yet another infectious song with those blistering guitar riffs and powerful vocals, tied together with covert and deep lyrics. The monstrous bass and drums often dip their music into more thunderous territory yet the contrasting, twinkling sounds of their guitar and atmospheric vocals give the songs a life of their own. The band combine math-rock and alt-rock riffs and beats but have a more post-hardcore energy on stage making them mesmerising to watch.
Kicking off the final night of the show with local boys, Boy Jumps Ship, a punk-rock band from our very own Newcastle. And joining them, Empress, another band with powerful vocals and sickly sweet guitar riffs, creating a juxtaposed sound that only they could pull off.
Despite the tiny stage that’s crammed in the corner of a bar at Newcastle’s Think Tank?, Arcane Roots still manage to give us ball busting guitar and tantalizing vocals that not only set the stage on fire but cause waves of bouncing and dancing from the crowd. The three Londoners had a lot riding on their shoulders after an amazing tour in November that had not a bad thing said about them, plus the final night of the current tour needed to end with a bang. Opening with ‘Belief’ , showing off Andrew’s unorthodox vocal range, screeching out ‘AND DON’T YOU CRAWL’ while trying to move his fingers at phenomenal speeds shows just how musically talented he is. ‘Belief’ being one of the many songs that has been injected with poignant lyrics and contrasting heavy melodies layered on top. Arcane roots played a breath taking gig, including songs from both ‘Blood & Chemistry’ and ‘Left Fire’.
'Resolve', 'You Are' and 'Triptych' were by far the most exciting to watch live. Spidery guitar solos that literally brought Andrew to his knees in the middle of the stage and mosh pits forming like human whirlpools in front of him. Followed by mass singing from every crowd member, all this crammed together created an arena atmosphere in a tiny venue from Newcastle's 'underground' music scene.
Concluding the show, and tour for that matter, with ‘You Keep Me Here’ which brought the whole of Boy Jumps Ship and Empress on stage in a sort of combined rock choir. Slowly building the anticipation by repeating ‘Love, you’re better for me’ before Adam, Andrew and Daryl slam guitars, pound drums and destroy bass in a battle of ‘who can go more crazy on stage’. All while the rest of the bands and crowd head bang away in a mosh pit of emotion and hardcore fandom, right before the three piece walk off stage and the lights dim.
As it was the ending of a tour and what Andrew described as ‘the end of a breathtaking run of gigs’ he thanked everyone for their support and love for Arcane Roots, his speech was almost tear jerking. It was genuinely surprising to see the love that the band had for their fans and how grateful they are for them. Its not often you find such a talented band who are genuine too, Arcane Roots are one of those bands. They may try and look cool and rocky in photographs but really these guys are just like anyone else. They’re the most down to earth band I’ve ever met, if you haven’t already experienced their talent live you’re missing out. A definite must see band. 11/10