WHATEVERS – 'Totally Buggin'' cassette review

WHATEVERS – 'Totally Buggin'' cassette review

Well, at seven tracks in probably as many minutes, this is one of the shortest tapes I own, but that doesn't make it any less great. WHATEVERS are a female two-piece (drums and guitars with dual vocals) who play very lo-fi pop-punk with funny lyrics and vocal melodies. It's pretty darn catchy with a bit of a 90s vibe, and you definitely won't forget songs like 'I Hope Not Sporadically', 'I Do Not Wear Polyester Hair' and 'Cher and Dionne' any time soon (those song-titles alone should give you a pretty good indication as to the tone of this stuff). A really fun little listen with cool artwork that also comes on a pink shell cassette; ace!

https://whateversss.bandcamp.com/releases

xox

DOE – 'Some Things Last Longer Than You' review

DOE – 'Some Things Last Longer Than You' review

Before I saw them at Deadpunk in Bristol earlier this year, I liked DOE. After I saw them at Deadpunk in Bristol earlier this year, I Loved DOE. And not just because they did a truly spectacular cover of THE SPICE GIRLS' '2 Become 1' (although that definitely helped). They're a three-piece from London (dual guitar, no bass) who play really awesome garage pop-punk, with ace male-female dual vocal harmonising, plenty of angst, some chuckle-inducing lyrics, and some bloody huge choruses. There are also some great riffs on here ('Respite' has a notably good 'un), and there's a pretty strong 90s vibe coming through (think SONIC YOUTH, THE PIXIES and THE BREEDERS, and also the way TANCRED's stuff has been going lately). There are some great tunes on side A like the opener 'No. 1' and I like 'Monopoly', but I absolutely love side B, which is full of bangers: 'Anywhere' has the energy and intensity of CAVES, 'Last Ditch' gives us one of their most memorable choruses, 'Before Her' is magic from start to finish (those vocal harmonies in the chorus, oh my days!), and the intensity of 'Corin' is fantastic, reminding me of THE YEAH YEAH YEAHS' harder stuff: Nicola's shouting in it gives me goosebumps. A really incredible album by one of the best British bands around at the moment; pick it up now!

https://www.facebook.com/hellowearedoe/

http://www.doetheband.co.uk/

xox

SVALBARD - 'One Day All This Will End' cassette review

SVALBARD - 'One Day All This Will End' cassette review

Oh man, SVALBARD are good; another band I feel hugely lucky to have shared the stage (well, floor) with, they play an astounding and melodically unique style of post-hardcore that is all at once heavy and melodic, epic and emotional, and on here, from what I recall, I bit faster than their previous releases, utilising a bit more double time and blasting, giving it a bit more of a hardcore punk / black metal vibe. Fans of anything from LIGHT THIS CITY, to CIRCLE TAKES THE SQUARE, to old DARKEST HOUR should absolutely love this. The male / female dual vocal works as brilliantly as ever, the two different tones interspersing considerately and intelligently, and occasionally joining to epic effect; the beautiful single string lead guitar melodies pierce the shroud of thick bass and heavy guitars perfectly; and the aforementioned drumming is really something to behold, tearing technically through these eight stylistically varied and well structured tunes (as well as a cool cover of VICTIMS' 'This is the End'). A solid album, well worth a look if you like your stuff dark, heavy, fast and melodic. Also available on record I believe, but the cassette (with chrome shell) is a beaut.

https://svalbard.bandcamp.com/

xox

NACHTHEXEN - 'The Other' cassette review

NACHTHEXEN - 'The Other' cassette review

This is awesome stuff. Punk rock without any guitar; just solid, riffy bass, tight, almost mechanical drumming, shouted female vocals, and a keyboard that sound somewhere between KRAFTWERK and low-budget 70s / 80s horror film soundtracks (think CREEPOZOIDS or anything directed by LUCIO FULCI i.e 'Zombie' or 'House by the Cemetery'). It's rare to find stuff these days that sounds genuinely different, but this really is; the synth sound is somewhat creepy and isn't something that I've heard much in this style, and the way it marries with the highly strung, desperate but angry vocals is something you need to hear to appreciate. Every song on this four track is really catchy, both vocally (with great lyrics) and musically, and has some great vocal hooks that, owing to being based around repetition, will inseminate your mind like few things can. This is especially so in the final two tracks 'Girls' and 'Cheer Up Luv', and the respective, unforgettable lines "it's not a competition; we're not the opposition" and "cheer up luv, it might never happen". Brilliant stuff with a unique quality, the greatness of which is tough to describe.

https://nachthexenpunx.bandcamp.com/album/the-other

xox

FOLGORE - 'Per Sempre Tempesta' cassette review

FOLGORE - 'Per Sempre Tempesta' cassette review

As soon as the first track from this six song tape from Italy's (I think) FOLGORE dropped in, I thought of LOMA PRIETA. So yeah, they play pretty awesome melodic screamo / post-hardcore that is aggressively and distortedly vocalled throughout (save for some ENVY-esque spoken word), and crashes through abrasive fuzzy riffs and the odd bit of finger tapping, backed by chaotic drumming, and interspersed with pretty, picked, melodic sections. I especially dig the second track 'Likho', but this has a consistently similar song throughout (save for the more brooding, largely slower penultimate track 'Mediocrita'), so if you like stuff like LOMA, RAIEN, or LA QUIETE, then this should be worth a listen.

https://upwindprod.bandcamp.com/album/per-sempre-tempesta

https://www.facebook.com/crimenouveau/

xox

CADY - 'Zodiacal Dust' cassette review

CADY - 'Zodiacal Dust' cassette review

CADY (named after Lindsay Lohan's character in 'Mean Girls' of course) features former members of FOR THIS WORLD IS HOLLOW..., and follows on from the intensity of that band, playing awesome blast-beat infused proper-screamo with some really heavy bass, abrasive chordwork in the guitars, accompanied by some ace underlying melody and delay-effect leads, and some seriously chaotic drumming that's as tight as anything. There are parts that make me think of KAOSPILOT, others of TRISTAN TSARA, and others of SAETIA, so hopefully that gives you something to go on. The packaging on this is ace too, with hand constructed, monochromatic cardboard sleeves, and with a little, albeit tough to read, lyric sheet inside. Physical copies may have sold out by now, but go and check this out on their Bandcamp if you like your proper screamo, and listen to opener 'Goodnight Clark Adams' for something to go on. Great stuff.

http://cadyheron.bandcamp.com/releases

xox

OKINAWA PICTURE SHOW - s/t - cassette review

OKINAWA PICTURE SHOW - s/t - cassette review

"OKINAWA PICTURE SHOW is the latest band of ELLY KINGDON whom we interviewed in issue two, and this tape features four tracks of pop punk that reminds me of stuff like MARTHA, PERSONAL BEST and COLOUR ME WEDNESDAY in that 90s reverbed vibe, with Elly's characteristic KATE NASH / LILY ALLEN vocal style. It's hella catchy in the choruses, especially on the first three songs, and there's some strong dual guitar play with a nice prominent lead for the most part. Songs are structured thoughtfully too, and there are some cool yet often appropriately downer lyrics about not-quite-relationships, loss, and...wrestling. A great little four track that you should pick up if you're into the aforementioned bands and / or the softer, more indie side of pop-punk."

https://www.facebook.com/okinawapictureshow/

xox

FINGERS CROSSED - 'Better Luck Next Time' cassette review

FINGERS CROSSED - 'Better Luck Next Time' cassette review

"FINGERS CROSSED are an awesome two-piece from Leeds who play pretty lo-fi pop punk that's fairly basic musically but is none-the-less bright and catchy, with some really memorable vocal and guitar melodies, and clever drum-work that mixes things up and emphasises the multitude of rhythms. A lot of the strength of this six track tape is in the lyrics too, with considered words on a number of issues from gender identity to daily work life monotony, all sung in a somewhat dead-pan style. The artwork and packaging is fantastic on this too, with a lovely red and green colour scheme and hand flicked paint on the cassette shell. So yeah, if you're not averse to a bit of lo-fi recording on your pop-punk, this humorous and thought-provoking little release could be right up your street. Nice one. You can check out the song 'Work / Life Balance' on our tape."

http://fingerscrossedleeds.bandcamp.com/releases

xox

'The Screever' issue eight (plus a cassette and patch!)

'The Screever' issue eight (plus a cassette and patch!)

Well, it felt like it took forever, but issue eight is FINALLY HERE, and it's the biggest yet at a whopping 56 pages, featuring interviews with Mark Bell Illustration, Scottish Riot Grrrl two-piece Bratakus, Tom of CARNIE FILM PRODUCTION talking about his new Acid-Western 'Stranger', Joe Solo talking about 'We Shall Overcome' weekend, new local skate-wear company Crow clothing, and Italian post-hardcore two-piece PASTEL, plus reviews, puzzles, recipes, Gaelic and some other stuff. Not only this, but we also have the new 19 track comp. cassette (more info. on that soon) and another run of patches courtesy of the lovely Lou at 13 O'clock screenprinting.

You can order all of this stuff from here:

http://glassofspit.bigcartel.com/

Cheers :)

xox

'The Stars Are a Free Show' Volume 1

'The Stars Are a Free Show' Volume 1

So yeah, alongside issue six of the zine we released a compilation cassette of bands that had been featured over the years, or were in some way related to the local scene, which included a bunch of genres from thrash-skatepunk, through instrumental emo, ambient, post-hardcore, and up to black-metal. Anyway, the tapes sold out pretty quick, so both sides are now up on Youtube for your convenient listening pleasure. The video in this post is side A, and side B can be found here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seLu6sV_LFE

Thanks a lot; enjoy! :)

xox

Glass of Spit Recordings now on Facebook...

So, our Leeboy has been running a not-quite-a-record-label called 'Glass of Spit' since 2009, putting out his band Sperare's stuff, as well as a bunch of solo projects, and for some reason they never made a Facebook page. Well, now they have, and Lee will absolutely love you if you head on over to the following link and give it a like:

https://www.facebook.com/glassofspit

And here's some other links that already existed:

http://www.youtube.com/user/glassofspit

http://glassofspit.bigcartel.com/

http://glassofspit.bandcamp.com/

Thanks a tonne! :)

xox