The night before this show, Phil Anselmo and the Illegals laid waste to the Underworld with a set primarily composed of Pantera covers. Their audience spent the entire night moshing like maniacs while singing along to some of the most legendary metal songs of all time. Bleeding Through (10/10), however, inspired even more insanity – on a Sunday night, no Read more…
Some bands are born special. I first came across Black Peaks (then known collectively as Shrine) back in 2014, within a year or so of their initial formation, and it was obvious even then that these guys would go on to achieve big things. Fast-forward past their Closer To The Sun EP, 2016’s beautifully batshit debut album Statues, massive amounts of touring, and more than a few Read more…
Although attractiveness is subjective, ArcTanGent happens to be situated in an official Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty – and if you visit it and look around, you’d probably agree with the government’s judgment for once. As for the music you can expect to experience at the UK’s most respected prog, math, and post-everything festival, it may serve a very specific niche, but the fans who love the styles in question tend to Read more…
When a festival’s lineup includes an insane number of inevitably epic sets, it’s hard to know where to start – and ArcTanGent 2018 is packed with intriguing prospects. Hopefully, this list will help prog-math-post-whatever fans overcome option paralysis, and start you off on the path to the perfect ATG experience… Read more…
2000 Trees 2018 was easily one of the best festivals I’ve ever been to. Year after year, the Trees team have consistently worked to build and improve on everything they’ve achieved – and by this point, 2000 Trees has a practically unrivalled reputation amongst fans of British underground music.
This past weekend, one of the UK music scene’s greatest institutions exceeded all expectations Read more…
2018 is shaping up to be a great year for alternative rock, and Black Peaks are representing its more technical and mathy end with some classy festival appearances and the imminent October 5 release of their sophomore album All That Divides. These guys (including today’s interview subject, drummer Liam Kearley) are one of my favourite bands of all time, and I’m not alone in that opinion – which is why… Read more…
If your face needs a good melting, Palm Reader’s third album Braille will leave you unable to recognise yourself in the mirror. Having already reviewed Braille here, I got talking to Palm Reader drummist Dan Olds about personal progress, naked moshers, and a painful truth about the music business… Read more…
A few years back, Palm Reader came into their own on their supercharged sophomore album, Beside The Ones We Love (previously reviewed here). A hectic amalgam of Gallows’ ferocity, The Dillinger Escape Plan’s brain-imploding complexity, and Cult Of Luna’s menacing moodiness, Beside The Ones We Love elevated Palm Reader to the upper echelons of the UK’s hardcore scene. That progress was plainly earned through Read more…
Listening to Will Haven’s latest feels like discovering some vast, alien, rusty undersea structure. The sheer pressure Muerte puts your eardrums under is incredible.
Time has clearly not softened Will Haven Read more…
Rolo Tomassi are batshit crazy in the best possible way. If you fancy trying to pigeonhole them, good luck. You’d probably have to come up with some ridiculous new genre label to make it work – something like “box of mathy death-frogs” or “kitchen sinkcore”.
Alternatively, you could just call Rolo Tomassi “Rolo Tomassi”, and be Read more…