Category: Punk
-
Plague Vendor: By Night
One for lovers of a clattery racket, By Night is perhaps louder than their last one and, although more textured, definitely not for the tender of ear. But they have a good sense of melody and fondness for dance that keeps the album civilised. More or less. Opener New Comedown clears out the cobwebs, the…
-
Black Futures: Never Not Nothing
This is their debut and it’s a mighty album; possibly not to everyone’s taste but mighty nonetheless. They’re a duo but it’s a massive sound, with pounding drums, massive riffs and fat bass. The sound is somewhere between Biffy Clyro, Nine Inch Nails (the NNN on the cover looks suspiciously like NIN) and a screamo…
-
Scott Lavene: Broke
This little gem of an album is a cross between 70s David Bowie, 80s Dury and modern day punk/alt poets such as Beans On Toast or even Frank Turner, with a bit of Sparks thrown in. We’ve never heard of Lavene before: in an interview with musicmusingsandsuch.com he said: “I’m an Essex boy. I make…
-
Frank Carter and The Rattlesnakes: End Of Suffering
Carter rose to prominence with Gallows, a punk band famed for their high energy music and even higher energy shows, where Carter would regularly end up covered in blood. He has mental health issues — not so long ago he blamed his “fighting demons” for pulling out of a tour with Papa Roach — and…
-
SWMRS: Berkeley’s On Fire
SWMRS are from the US but they really should be English; equally this CD is ostensibly punk but in reality it’s a gang of lads having fun and playing songs that are the modern equivalent of Knees Up Mother Brown. Opener Berkeley’s On Fire has a guitar riff and some wonky singing — as well…
-
Holy Moly and The Crackers: Take A Bite
This lot are one of those bands that are fundamentally a live band, playing raucous (but tight) gypsy / dance rock. Imagine Mumfords with a brass section and disco high-hats. And personality. Regulars at Rode Hall’s Just So festival will have seen many such a band — indeed, Holy Moly and The Crackers were on…
-
Wallows: Nothing Happens
Wallows are a bit unfortunate with their page-mates this week: Gary Clark Jr and Fontaines DC are both career-defining CDs, Weezer are Weezer and Wallows, an indie rock trio from Los Angeles, are just pretty good. They’re a bit like Weezer, sunshine-infused indie and lots of harmony. It’s bouncy and it’s got lots of energy,…
-
Fontaines DC: Dogrel
We read some profiles from Ireland before listening to this Dublin band; the Irish Press loves them and hails them as the next global hit for the city. This is partly because the band is so Dublin — “Dublin in the rain is mine,” the vocals bellow within seconds of the opening song Big (as…
-
Skinny Lister: The Story Is…
Skinny Lister are one of those good-time live bands, all punky folk catchiness and entertainment; we saw them live at Rode Hall’s Just So and they’ve recorded at Newcastle-under-Lyme, although they’re not local. It’s three tracks in before Skinny Lister hit the sound we were expecting, the first three songs all showing a new pop…
-
Calva Louise: Rhinoceros
Who remembers The Subways? They’re still going (playing with the legendary Die Toten Hosen in Germany this summer), but long ago disappeared into their fanbase. They were a fun rock pop band, most notable for having a couple who split romantically but carried on the band. After an initial bursting on the scene they settled…
Review Corner 