I'm Seb, a 17 year old aspiring music journalist. If you dig what I write let me know and share it with your friends!
Twitter: @Get_WhatYouGive email: sebwainwright@gmail.com
Architects have been busy holed up in Gothenburg, Sweden recording their sixth album at Studio Fredman. Well, today they announced it is scheduled for release in Spring of 2012 and according to the band is "sounding splendid - ya gonna love it."
But that's not all. They also announced they have put ink to paper on a new deal with none other than legendary punk label Epitaph Records! Simultaneous to this they have also singed with UNFD in Australia and New Damage Records in Canada!
ON TOP OF THAT in the same announcement they revealed a UK/Europe wide tour in support of the new album starting March 7th in Manchester. Who said good things come in small bunches!
Great to see to see the guys in Architects still working their asses off to put music out. expect a monster of a new album. Nothing less.
Architects UK & Ireland Tour Datesare as follows
Fri March 7th 2014 - MANCHESTER Academy 2 Sat March 8th 2014 - GLASGOW O2 ABC Sun March 9th 2014 - SHEFFIELD Leadmill Tue March 11th 2014 - CARDIFF Solus Wed March 12th 2014 - BIRMINGHAM Institute Fri March 14th 2014 - LONDON KOKO
So, I saw The Story So Far at Bristol's The Fleece last night. I got headwalked on and screamed lyrics in my friends face in an intimate venue. What could be better, right?
Openers Save Your Breath are on point more than ever before in their career. Being from South Wales myself like Save Your Breath, I have grown up the last four years watching this band grow themselves. The straight up, no nonsense pop-punk they now effortlessly generate is impossible not to like. Singer Kris Richards is now better at his live performances than ever too. Closer Nothing Worth Having Comes Easy you haven't already heard it is a must listen!
Main support Seahaven bring a wholly different atmosphere but thoroughly appreciated by a vast majority of the audience. The simple grooves and complex overlaying melody compliment each other in a live setting so well. Lead singer Kyle Soto's eerie vocals, sometimes lost in the mix, captivates many a listener, especially second song Black and White. Keeping a close eye on these guys for a new release soon.
Now then, The Story So Far. It seems to be a focal point of TSSF's music to be as effective played live as it is catchy and gritty on record. I tell you what, it works a charm. Right from the first line of opening song Right Here the band had a roomful of 400 people feeding off the palms of their hands. I'm not just talking about the gig I attended either, this happens universally. With the What You Don't See album tour cycle still running on all cylinders, "new" songs are dropped in the set list with a reception from the crowd like they were 5 years old. The band sound as tight as the day they left their garage and there's certainly not going to be a let up soon of that. Drummer Ryan Torf gets a personal kudos for the physical performance he has to put in every night behind that drum kit. Awesome stuff.
The crowd just go nuts at these gigs. Every lyric is sang right back to singer Parker Cannon's face. Crowd favourites like Quicksand and Mt. Diablo, I don't think I heard Parker's voice over the overbearing crowd raucously singing through every song. Stage dives and crowdsurfing left, right and centre, which is a given, you knew that? I wouldn't go as far as to so say that TSSF are a unique live band, there are many like them, but they certainly will be talking point with your friends for many months to come.
I'm not going to rate these, there's no need to. Just given you an insight what what these gigs are like, innit. Hope you liked my first live review, tell me if you did on twitter, yeah?
Next live gig for me is Heart Of A Coward (gulp) but one may pop up in between, I'll let you all know.
Loads of you probably already know that, though. Oh well, Volumes return right where they left off with new single Vahle but with an important topic to get off to get off their chest.
Volumes are an LA metalcore-meets-djent outfit that with their 2011 debut VIA turned all of heads their way. This single picks up where VIA left off, a barrage of charged, heavy-but-melodic music that makes you want to headbang... 24/7.
Vahle touches on the tragic circumstances in which they lost a close friend of the band, James Vahle. It's the reason I want to focus on the lyrics first. The lyrics are not metaphoric or clever. They are the blunt, unrelenting truth. Duel frontmen Michael Barr and Gus Farias lay down the lyric multiple times during the song "and I should have pulled you out of that truck". Lyrics don't get more real than that. Musically it's the same beautiful cacophony of sounds: chugging seven-string guitars, soaring electronics and vocals that can pin you down such is the force. Drumming- wise too the effortless double-bass grooves never let the others get too carried away with speed. They even fancy a little complicated breakdown every now and then... I joke, when they drop, they are huge.
Mediaskare like to release pre-production singles (don't really know why) but anyone would be forgiven for thinking this was a mixed album track. If anyone has ever listened to VIA it means you'll excited to see what Volumes producer and their guitarist Diego Farias does to this track to further the track. If anything like VIA, expect a polished, slick and bass-y as hell mix!
Scheduled for release early 2014, Vahle in it's full produced glory will feature on the record. You'd be mad to miss it, seriously.
Seems as though yesterday I was talking very excitedly about my return to the gig routine, I thought I may as well share some I'm looking forward to.
I've mentioned a few I intend to go to before on here but one tour that got announced just last week has got me rather excited. It's Gnarwolves first headline UK tour! This band caught many underground-scene lovies' attention last year with their brilliant debut EP Cru. DIY punk from a bunch of Cornish guys that now live in Brighton, what's not to like? Support slot after support slot, (including landing a huge support slot to Funeral For A Friend) house gig after house gig, they continue to impress and humour us with goofy, energetic live shows. With their release of their third EP Funemployed this summer the Cornwall trio look to expand the Cru, one basement at a time.
Guess what guys... I'm going to a gig on Thursday!
Holy shit it's been so long (5 months to be exact) but I start my hectic gig schedule starts with The Story So Far in Bristol on Thursday. I very much plan on live reviews being a part of this blog and I apologise for not having any gigs to go to since this blog started. When they drop, I hope you enjoy the live reviews!
Okay, so I've said what I needed to say. So, here's a picture of my cat...
Keeping this one concise, guys. Can't be rambling all the time, can I?
Don Broco are a Bedford four-piece with something up their sleeve that's taking the UK by storm, any US viewers on this blog... LISTEN UP, you need to know these guys! After releasing their highly anticipated debut last year in the form of Priorities, they've captured the hearts of a vary melting pot of music fans. This, their new single You Wanna Know, is released on the cusp of a gigantic UK that involves The Camden Roudhouse, a venue three times the size of their last London show only 6/7 months ago. So, this write up is only really of the single You Wanna Know as the EP is just full of remixes and acoustic stuff.
The song it's self is characteristic of the sound Don Broco have been mastering since their inception in 2009. Power-pop? It may well be. Big, thick slabs of rock riffage over a beat driven rhythm section provides the basis for this whole song. Verses break down into 80's picked guitars and slapped bass, I tell you now heads will be a'bobbing. The lyrics crooned out by the frontman Rob Damiani are literally of the scales cheesy. HOWEVER, used in the context of the song and how it sounds, wholly appropriate. That is the mastery with which Don Broco pull off song after song. So infectious is the groove the OTT dance moves you'll be pulling won't seem out of place or weird at all. This is a band that know exactly what their doing, down to the last note.
I'd highly recommend this band for their sheer enjoyment. Cynicism surrounding all music goes out the window. This will make you smile.
(I haven't done a review on it, but their debut record Priorities is a must listen if you dig this write up!)
I'm back again! School hit me like a ton of bricks this year (I'm a wimp) but I return with more reviews and opinions to share with you wonderful people! Thanks for sticking with me...
As I'm writing this I am listening to the much anticipated release from A Day To Remember. Common Courtesy is self-released and is out now on this here website commoncourtesy.adtrstore.com the physical release date is somewhat vague because of the self-funded nature of the album.
Boy, A Day To Remember aren't half good at what they do, aren't they? This their fifth studio album further solidifies their position in an area of music they totally, totally, dominate. After bursting onto the scene with their sophomore album For Those Who Have A Heart they had tapped into a field of music that was refreshing if, however, slightly controversial. The unusual mix of pop-punk and crushing metalcore/hardcore styles resonates with many people who find ADTR a perfect median between the two.
Album opener City Of Ocala is straight up pop-punk. No bullshitting. Full pop-punk songs was an experiment ADTR conducted on their last record What Separates Me From You. While not perfect on the last release even the first song on this album has the nail hit on the head. While not breakdown laden and heavy, the finest New Found Glory-esque pop rock song is the outcome.
Okay, so pop-punk is not an issue, what about ADTR's heavier side? Has that taken a sideline in favour of their poppier, more accessible songwriting?
Hell no...
This album is filled with a very Homesick type array of pummelling, fist-pumping anthems. Lead single Violence (Enough is Enough) is a perfect example of this renewed angular assault. The edge that many said was missing from their somewhat sugar coated previous record is back with a vengeance. Songs like Sometimes You're The Hammer, Sometimes You're The Nail are nothing new in terms of content but it is the execution that sells this and basically the whole album. Alex Shelnutt's drumming is precise and powerful as he double-basses away in perfect unison with the guitar section made up of Neil Westfall, Kevin Skaff and Joshua Woodard. The licks that penetrate the overriding rhythm are very reminiscent of a certain Parkway Drive (which, as a avid Parkway fan, suites me perfectly). Life Lessons Learned The Hard Way involves singer Jeremy McKinnon's layered screaming over jumping, flying guitar riffs and enough breakdowns to make you break your house... down, pun regrettably intended.
Lets take a step back, though. This is a step in either direction for ADTR. The softer, more melodic songs have also had modification and tweaks made to them. Again, nothing drastically different but more so a band developing their type of music. Right Back At It Again and I'm Already Gone are perfect examples of this. Neither style is hindered by another and on many occations ADTR just do what they do best. Merge the two together.
That's not to say this album doesn't have its faults. The simple fact that the song positions within the album are just not right is a starter. The album flow from one end to the other is sometimes painfully broken up by a misplaced, out-of-place song that, while good as a singular softer song for instance, may not sit well when the song beforehand mad you want to punch walls.
Then there's the issue of Jeremy's voice harmonies. The natural voice of Jeremy McKinnon is that of an angel don't get me wrong. But sometimes the harmonies laid out over the top of many a chorus sound too superficial to even take seriously. Lyrically, yup, he's still fighting 'cause no one can bring him down...
Common Courtesy is the beautiful, expertly executed mash up of a record we were all hoping to hear from the Floridian quintet. Fat has been re injected to the mix and the result is a masterclass of ADTR doing what they do best. What they do best hasn't changed for the last seven years either. A bad thing?
