Ten reviews you might have missed

Reviews from Wednesday 18 September 2024

Charlotte Wessels – ‘The Obsession’

Charlotte Wessels is on a journey. After the breakup of her band, cult Dutch powerhouses Delain (who are still performing under the same name with an almost entirely new lineup), the multi instrumental artist shaved her head and took to Patreon, releasing a double solo album one song at

Tuesday 17 September 2024

LIVE: Burn it Down Festival 2024, Torquay

On the face of it, Burn it Down should never have worked. Little old Torquay just doesn’t host award-winning festivals – or at least, it never used to. Six iterations in, however, and the Best Micro Festival in the country (officially) is only going from strength to strength. Burn

Friday 13 September 2024

Foxing – ‘Foxing’

With the conclusion of their debut album’s ten year anniversary tour last year, it could be easy for a band like Foxing to rest on their laurels, feet up. But that’s not Foxing. With every release, they push their own boundaries, evolving in one way or another;

Thursday 12 September 2024

LIVE: Bambie Thug @ Heaven, London

Deep beneath Charing Cross station, something evil lurks. When Bambie Thug, Eurovision enigma and PVC gender disrupter, promises a brief early set at iconic gay bar Heaven, you can’t ignore the siren song that drags you downstairs into the long, misty basement. Between the folk in the crowd who

Thursday 05 September 2024

Laura Jane Grace and the Mississippi Medicals – ‘Give An Inch’

Laura Jane Grace is the unstoppable punk rock chameleon that 2024 needs. Somehow, when she isn’t masterminding the mighty Against Me!, or releasing her solo albums, or touring with Catbite, or reimagining Operation Ivy tracks, or getting married after a whirlwind romance, she’s recorded an EP with yet another

Wednesday 04 September 2024

Bodysnatcher – ‘VILE CONDUCT’

If music had a code of conduct, it would involve the phrase ‘Don’t talk about genre’. Nothing is more likely to start an argument. This is because genre is a vague classification, a few recognisable elements you can use to describe a band’s music, meaning you can

Tuesday 03 September 2024

Boston Manor – ‘Sundiver’

We’ve entered the age of the sequel. While movie fans bemoan the lack of originality in yet another Marvel instalment, there’s a lot to be said for a two parter; an opportunity to finish a story left on a cliffhanger. That’s exactly what Blackpool natives Boston Manor hope to

Chelsea Wolfe – ‘UNDONE’

Chelsea Wolfe has a new remix EP out and it’s called ‘Undone’. In order to discuss it, we need to talk about the album the tracks are drawn from, so; Earlier this year, Wolfe released ‘She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She’ which paired her

Monday 02 September 2024

LIVE: Rise Against @ O2 Shepherds Bush Empire

“It’s sold out…like, really sold out,” says the slightly worn steward on the stairs, dodging between torrents of eager fans in faded black t-shirts. Rise Against have been making biennial trips to these shores for a long time now, this time sprinkling two UK dates into their European festival

Friday 30 August 2024

LIVE: Korn, Spiritbox, Wargasm, Loathe @ Gunnersbury Park

It is not all too often that nu-metal powerhouse Korn graces the UK with their presence, let alone London – it’s been seven long years – so Punktastic had to be here to witness their largest show to date in the capital. The sold-out event had seemingly

Thursday 29 August 2024

Zeal & Ardor – ‘GREIF’

Manuel Gagneux has a lot on his mind, and our world needs to expand to fit his opinions. As if the first three Zeal & Ardor records weren’t proof enough of that, ‘GREIF’ turns all of the aspects we love and admire about the fusion metallers and metaphorically turns

Friday 23 August 2024

Cassyette – ‘The World Fucking Sucks’

Cassyette has more sides than a fractal Rubik’s cube, and she’d probably appreciate the comparison. Two years on from ‘Sad Girl Mixtape’, and the ‘modern alternative icon’ is simultaneously cementing and diversifying her sound on her proper debut album. Of course, she’s crammed ‘The World Fucking Sucks’ with the

Friday 16 August 2024

Yours Truly– ‘TOXIC’

Everyone looks at their own image. It’s not just a case of mirrors, it’s endless videos and social media posts. Now more than ever people are aware of who they are. On their fantastic 2022 EP Australian pop-rock band Yours Truly dared to ask ‘Is This What

Thursday 15 August 2024

Wrex – ‘THIS HELL GOES A LONG WAY DOWN’

Let’s talk about birthday cake. It’s the ultimate party food, it’s exciting and it’s inherently special. ‘This Hell Goes A Long Way Down’. the debut from Wrex, has a tasty looking cake on its cover, and that implies a lot about its contents. First, some background.

Saturday 10 August 2024

Destroy Boys – ‘Funeral Soundtrack #4’

Forming just under a decade ago, Cali natives Destroy Boys have been churning out music on a pretty regular basis. In fact, with the release of their fourth album, you could say they’re dropping new music with consistency. The real question is whether they’re able to push and progress

Four Year Strong – ‘analysis paralysis’

What happens if a much loved, widely adored pop punk band goes into a studio with no finished material, going into the recording process relatively blind with one of heavy music’s finest producers at the helm? If that band is Four Year Strong and the producer is Will Putney,

Monday 05 August 2024

LIVE: Alkaline Trio / Slomosa @ O2 Ritz, Manchester

It’s a typically chilly July evening on the streets of Manchester, Alkaline Trio are in town tonight. The Paramount – a Wetherspoons within a stone’s throw of tonight’s venue – is already bustling with 30-somethings adorning faded skull and heart tattoos and stone-washed Bad Religion t-shirts. The Chicago three-piece have

Wednesday 31 July 2024

Millie Manders and the Shutup – ’Wake Up, Shut Up, Work’

“Things I did when I was seventeen still haunt me in my dreams,” sings Millie Manders, cross-genre punk firebrand, in an opening line which perfectly sets up the vulnerability and upfront attitude of her sophomore album with the Shutup, ’Wake Up, Shut Up, Work’. One of the leading lights

Monday 29 July 2024

LIVE: 2000 Trees 2024 – Saturday

It’s July, this year’s festival season is fully underway now, and we find ourselves back in scenic Cheltenham for the ever-wonderful 2000 Trees Festival. One of the alt world’s most beloved summer festivals, this year’s bill is crammed full of up and coming talent arena-filling giants, all gathering at

Saturday 27 July 2024