Ten reviews you might have missed

Reviews from Tuesday 19 November 2024

Polar – ‘Five Arrows’

One way to celebrate your fifteenth anniversary is to release a new album, which is what hardcore quintet Polar have opted to do. Aren’t we meant to buy them a present to celebrate their anniversary, instead of them gifting us this new release? Nevertheless, ‘Five Arrows’ is unyielding in its

Thursday 14 November 2024

Less Than Jake – ‘Uncharted’ EP

Everyone loves Less Than Jake, but who’s really engaged with their music since ‘Hello Rockview’? The endlessly touring and effortlessly entertaining ska kids have found themselves as a reliable staple support band and festival afternoon fixture, becoming the musical equivalent of mozzarella sticks; no one’s sad to see them

Wednesday 13 November 2024

Zebrahead – ‘I’ EP

After twenty six years making rocket-fuelled hybrid punk, you’d think Zebrahead would start slowing down. They could have recorded a folky tribute album a la Dropkick Murphys or announced a never ending retirement farewell odyssey like Fat Mike and co. That’s not quite the So-Cal punks’ style though: why

The Plot In You – ‘Vol. 3’ EP

The way music is released has begun to shift. Though albums are still an enormous part of the culture (and always will be), some bands are moving into a more consistent and lengthy release process, stringing together regular singles and EP’s to better take advantage of the algorithmic social

Thursday 07 November 2024

Sol Invicto – ‘LOOSELY AWARE’

When a project announces itself as featuring members of Deftones, Cypress Hill and Sikth there’s only one question; which members? Given the bands in question, you could get some very interesting answers. Although it’s possible to play a Fantasy Football style game swapping around different lineups and

Wednesday 06 November 2024

Delain – ‘Dance With The Devil’

As we’re moving from the season of skull-shaped candy and into our selection box era, it seems appropriate that dutch symphonic metallers Delain are gift-wrapping us a sampler of treats in the form of their new EP, ‘Dance With The Devil’. To straighten a couple of things out first;

Tuesday 05 November 2024

Every Hell – ‘Vertebrate’ EP

Brighton newcomers Every Hell are an absolute bottle rocket of a band. Comprised of ex-members of Broker, Memory Of Elephants and the much loved, sorely missed Black Peaks, the quartet bring all of the character from their previous projects and splice it with a rich, explosive, adrenaline-fuelled rush. Their

Monday 04 November 2024

LIVE: Alice Cooper @ Eventim Hammersmith Apollo, London

There’s not many seventy-six year olds who can sell out the five thousand capacity Hammersmith Apollo twice over, but then again, Alice Cooper isn’t like most artists in his age bracket. On the final night of his hundred city ‘Too Close For Comfort’ tour, it’d practically be a crime

Thursday 31 October 2024

LIVE: Dream Theater @ The O2, London

The definition of cognitive dissonance, Dream Theater are simultaneously known as one of the most influential prog bands of all time who’ve amassed Grammy wins and a vast fan base, while also accumulating a reputation with some for being cringey, cheesy and a bit boring. However, that split in

Wednesday 30 October 2024

Better Lovers – ‘Highly Irresponsible’

The opening gambit on ‘Highly Irresponsible’ feels like a sledgehammer blow to the eardrums. After a brief, understated instrumental piece, a maelstrom of low end chugging guitars, vocal yelps, and drums being viciously smashed comes together to create a wall of noise. It’s a real statement of intent that’s

Friday 25 October 2024

Chuck Ragan – ‘Love and Lore’

If we can count on one thing from a Chuck Ragan album, it’s honesty. The folk-punk multi-hyphenate, professional wilderness type and occasional Hot Water Music frontman has never avoided laying his soul bare through his music, and ‘Love and Lore’ is no exception. We haven’t had a proper solo

Wednesday 23 October 2024

LIVE: Mallory Knox / Call Me Amour @ Electric Ballroom

This show shouldn’t be possible. Mallory Knox split five years ago, but suddenly reformed for this year’s Slam Dunk festivals. Now they’re on a very limited run of sold out dates to celebrate arguably their best album, ‘Asymmetry’, on its tenth birthday in their original lineup. It’s a treat

Kids In Glass Houses – ‘PINK FLAMINGO’

Maybe you remember Kids In Glass Houses. Maybe you remember their first demos of ‘Flirting With Widows’ being uploaded to Myspace. Their first album. Their fourth. Maybe you attended their farewell tour. Maybe you’re glad they’re back after 11 years. Maybe you’re excited. Maybe you’re going to

Thursday 17 October 2024

LIVE: Snayx @ Village Underground

It’s rare that the ambience of a venue matches a band’s sound near perfectly, but Snayx and Village Underground are a match made, if not in heaven, then somewhere close to it. Raw, unadorned, vital and with a clear sense of where it all began, the Snayx sound batters

Thursday 10 October 2024

LIVE: The Dangerous Summer @ O2 Academy Islington

What’s the best way to end a UK tour? Most wouldn’t say “Sunday night in a venue tucked above an empty shopping centre,” but not The Dangerous Summer. O2 Academy Islington slowly fills with a crowd who meet the definition you’d expect at an all ages show; middle aged

Chrissy Costanza – ‘VII’

The artwork says it all. Chrissy Costanza’s debut EP is stamped with the title ‘VII’. Her photograph is blurred in such a way, she appears to have angel wings, an image that asks if you died, how would you see yourself? If you looked back on your

Wednesday 09 October 2024

Touché Amoré – Spiral In A Straight Line

What happens when grief finishes? That’s the question Jeremy Bolm of LA post-hardcore heroes Touché Amoré wants to address. After his mother passed from cancer in 2014, his band’s album 2016 album ‘Stage Four’ was a natural reaction, as was 2020’s ‘Lament’. But Bolm made a choice to move

Tuesday 08 October 2024

The Offspring – ‘Supercharged’

Dexter Holland and Noodles know who they are, what kind of music they make, and who likes it. That’s not surprising; the Offspring has been a staple in the US punk scene for over thirty years, so if they haven’t worked it out by now, they probably weren’t going

LIVE: Call Me Amour @ the Underworld

Here at the Underworld, things are decidedly… cool. Call Me Amour have dropped in for their one and only UK headline date of the year, which naturally sold out before you could snap your fingers, and we’re a little intrigued about what an evening with the guys could hold

Friday 04 October 2024

Trash Boat – ‘Heaven Can Wait’

Life is complicated, and Trash Boat have embraced the chaos. It’s been three years since we least heard from St Albans’ finest on record, and they’re continuing on the voyage of artistic self-discover that began with 2021’s ‘Don’t You Feel Amazing?’. The collectively-produced ‘Heaven Can Wait’ is one of