Live Reviews

Max Raptor / Yearbook / Swim Good / Let’s Talk Daggers / Sutek [Live Review – The Boileroom, Guildford, 24/2/2015]

max raptor boileroomTuesday was a good day until I got to this show and realised it had started earlier than predicted, and I’d missed not only openers Sutek, but also one of my favourite new bands of math-metal maniacs, Let’s Talk Daggers. Sad face indeed. Still, Swim Good soothed my cravings for complex tunes with a loose but still awesome set. These guys can do no wrong, even when beset by technical issues. They really are that goddamn good. Happy face: restored for the rest of the night.

Yearbook (think a pop-punk Reuben augmented by the occasional bit of fancy guitar work) never fail to Read more…

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Posted on 26 February 2015

Features

TMMP’s Top Gigs Of 2014

2014 has been a difficult time for underground live music in the UK. With small venues across the country facing all manner of issues, it was heartening to see the team behind Guildford’s Boileroom make it through an emotionally trying licence review process and move on to host some incredible gigs and community-oriented events. With any luck, 2015 will see a change in fortunes for venues like the Boileroom.

From intimate showings from ska legends to inhumanly tight math-pop sets via beatboxing virtuosity and an audience with the professor of punk, here are TMMP’s top gigs of 2014. Read more…

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Posted on 21 December 2014

Interviews

Trails Discuss: The Boileroom & UK Live Music

trailsWith Guildford venue the Boileroom facing the possibility of closure, TMMP caught up with local rock legends Trails to discuss the Boileroom and the state of the UK’s live music scene.

This interview is part of a larger TMMP feature which can be read in full here.

What is your general opinion of the Boileroom?

The Boileroom is our home away from home – a great venue that we love playing and love going to. As a band we cut our live teeth there, and as punters we’ve seen too many bands to count – from The Bronx to Reel Big Fish – and so many of our friends’ bands and other bands on the UK touring scene.

What would happen if the Boileroom were to shut down? What impact would that event have?

Guildford would lose a big point of alternative culture, 90% of the times I go out in Guildford it’s to the Boileroom for a good old fashioned rock show. It’s not the only venue that puts on live music but it does sound the best and has the best Read more…

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Posted on 10 September 2014

Interviews

Yearbook Discuss: The Boileroom & UK Live Music

yearbook press shotWith Guildford venue the Boileroom facing the possibility of closure, TMMP caught up with ultra-passionate rockers Yearbook to discuss the Boileroom and the state of the UK’s live music scene.

This interview is part of a larger TMMP feature which can be read in full here.

What is your general opinion of the Boileroom?

The Boileroom is a great venue, especially since it was refurbished a year or so ago. The stage is really spacious for a venue of its capacity, and the sound is always second to none. As far as venues in the area go, its top of the pile.

How did you feel when you heard about the Boileroom’s current problems?

We were all pretty annoyed. They have done so much at The Boileroom to make sure Read more…

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Posted on 10 September 2014

Music Business

Artists & Industry Discuss: The Boileroom & UK Live Music

boileroom bannerSometimes the old ways are the best.

Over the past fifteen years, the music world has been revolutionised by digital technology. There have been many positive developments facilitated by the Internet, from social media sites to digital music stores and crowdfunding platforms. Smart and savvy musicians now have access to a wealth of tools that previous generations could only dream of – but the physical world still holds the key to a thriving, successful career.

The ease with which a band can break through barriers previously manned by a handful of power-hungry gatekeepers represents the bright side of digital music – but there is also a widely recognised and heavily debated Read more…

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Posted on 10 September 2014

Reviews

Yearbook – ‘Old Bones’ [Review]

yearbook old bonesThis EP is a triumph.

Yearbook are masters of syncopation, turning bars of 4/4 inside out and making common time sound as uncommon as it gets. These tracks aren’t so much “songs” as they are guided tours through Yearbook’s collective musical consciousness, unorthodox constructions laced with elements of the familiar and, yes, catchy. As with Yearbook’s live shows, there’s an ever-present middle finger raised in the direction of compromise and comfort zones; if Coheed and Cambria decided to take on the world of math-pop, they would sound as Yearbook do right now. Read more…

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Posted on 01 July 2014

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