DIE WRECKED - 'Mongrel Hordes' CD review

DIE WRECKED - 'Mongrel Hordes' CD review

"First off, I must apologise for the fact that these guys did post me a physical copy of this with a cool little press release printed on bright orange paper, but for the life of me I can't remember where I put it, and am therefore being forced to review this via the less favourable format of Bandcamp. Anyway, DIE WRECKED from Leicester play really awesome pissed-off political hardcore punk with dirty power-chorded riffs, loose but blistering drum-work, and three way vocals (one shouty male, one gruff male, and one high-pitched female) that layer and intersect brilliantly. I wish I still had the CD with the lyrics so I knew exactly what they were singing about, but song titles like 'Middle Class Hypocrisy', 'Get Off the Fence', and 'Privileged Parasite' should give you a pretty good idea of the tone of this. Favourites for me would have to be 'Subhumans', 'Regression of Progression', and aforementioned opener 'Middle Class Hypocrisy', but if you're into short, sharp, noisy, political punk rock that doesn't let up, then you can't go too far wrong with this."

http://diewrecked.bandcamp.com/

xox

CREEPER - self-titled EP review

CREEPER - self-titled EP review

"So I've heard CREEPER get compared to AFI, and though they may look a little like they used to, I'd have to say that's where the comparison ends. Musically this is far more like ALKALINE TRIO, AIDEN, and THE MISFITS crossed with the big choruses of 'Our Darkest Days'-era IGNITE, which results in something quite brilliant. Right from the opener of this five track EP 'We Had a Pact', we're treated to double-time pop-punk with gloomy lyrics in big, catchy sing-a-longs that should please any pop-punk fiends out there. By eschewing that over the top bounce that a lot of bands utilise these days, and instead favouring more straight-forward songwriting, this definitely has a bit of a 90s / 00s feel to it which I love, especially with that semi-gothic lyrical undertone. Looks like these guys are going to be pretty big so you'll no doubt hear about them soon, but in the mean time, check out this quality EP, starting with the catchy second track 'Gloom'."

https://creepercult.bandcamp.com/releases

xox

TEENAGE BOTTLEROCKET - 'Tales From Wyoming' CD review

TEENAGE BOTTLEROCKET - 'Tales From Wyoming' CD review

So, TEENAGE BOTTLEROCKET's drummer Brandon passed away on Friday night after having been in a coma for the past few days. Having been listening to these guys for a good few years now and seeing them live this year, and having reviewed a lot of their stuff, this was pretty upsetting news indeed; I therefore figured this would be a good time to post a review of BOTTLEROCKET's latest effort, 'Tales From Wyoming'.

"Another album from TEENAGE BOTTLEROCKET and another collection of songs that are a perfect combination of the brilliant simplicity of THE RAMONES and the snot and energy of SCREECHING WEASEL. Whether you like it or not, you know exactly what you're going to get when these guys put out a new album, and this one's no exception; super catchy tunes with some humorous lyrics ranging in subject matter from the undead, comic book heroes and villains, haunted houses, Minecraft, and Metallica. Faves on this one would have to be 'They Call Me Steve', the utterly addictive 'Can't Quit You', and the beautiful acoustic (a first for BOTTLEROCKET) closer 'First Time'. Get this and the rest of their back catalogue if you like your pop-punk simple, catchy, and geeky, and that doesn't take itself too seriously. A really fun listen."

RIP Brandon Carlisle.

xox

CONSTANT WAVES - self-titled CD review

CONSTANT WAVES - self-titled CD review

"Well it's been a hell of a wait but Stourbridge's instrumental post-metallers CONSTANT WAVES finally dropped their album of funky yet epic, face-meltingly powerful tunes earlier this year. Those that have been fortunate enough to catch this four-piece live over the years will recognise a lot of these seven tunes, from the blistering opener 'Chicken in the Blood' to live favourite and album closer 'Dr. Rumack'. This is a beautifully varied piece of work that incorporates sweet, clean, melodic, ambient soundscapes, funky, danceable licks, epic post-metal walls of distorted noise, and massive head-caving riffs, and plays heavily on the contrast between all of these varied sounds, creating a truly dynamic listening experience. Driving all of this is some seriously tight, solid, and wonderfully prominent bass that holds its own against the soaring guitars, and some consistently brilliant technical drumming that's always as heavy or as full as it needs to be. A great and consistent piece of work (with brilliant song-titles!) that was well worth the wait."

http://constantwaves.bandcamp.com/

xox

CASTAWAY / STATUTES split CD review

CASTAWAY / STATUTES split CD review

"So this split CD features three tracks each from CASTAWAY and STATUTES; the former play a kind of punk-rock that's musically a bit like CITIZEN but also makes me think of a heavier version of BANGERS, especially on the gruff vocals, or POLAR BEAR CLUB without the bright chords and melodies. The second track is the exception, favouring a more garage rock'n'roll vibe with a sharper, harsher scream on the vocals. Not too shabby and worth checking if you like those aforementioned bands. STATUTES play a more emotionally driven sound that kind of has that new clean screamo / melodic hardcore sound to it, with bright guitar chords and melodies, slow signatured but punchy drum work, and vocals that sit half-way between a sing and a shout. Fans of PIANOS BECOME THE TEETH would probably dig this. A nice little split if you like clean melodic hardcore."

Have a listen here: https://hellurrecords.bandcamp.com/album/statutes-castaway-split

xox

AS IT IS - 'Never Happy Ever After' review

AS IT IS - 'Never Happy Ever After' review

So yeah, time to start uploading reviews from issue eight, and here's the first:

"I've not really been too impressed lately with a lot of the new, bigger pop-punk bands, like NECK DEEP and DECADE for example, so I was therefore pleasantly surprised to find that this debut from AS IT IS is incredible. Seriously. This is exactly how big, polished pop-punk should be done; a tonne of energy with varieties of pace, huge melodies, and some of the biggest choruses you'll ever hear that stick with you pretty much instantly. It probably helps that the lead vocalist is American (the rest of the band are British) and thus has one of those bright nasal vocal styles that just sounds right, and it contrasts really nicely with that of the gruffer sounding guitarist. They can also both write great vocal melodies that marry perfectly not only with each other but also with the stellar musicianship. It's hard to pick favourites from here but 'Speak Soft', 'Cheap Shots...', 'Dial Tones', and 'Concrete' are all perfect pop-punk anthems, and 'My Oceans Were Lakes' adds a beautiful change of pace and mood. 'Silence' is also fantastic. If you like your pop-punk polished, and maybe with a bit of the old school like NEW FOUND GLORY and THE STARTING LINE, then get this; you won't regret it."

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