January 2013
1 post
4 tags
Thoughts on Bandcamp Collections.
So over the past day or so, Bandcamp has, with very little fanfare, released its Collection pages for fans. Basically, you sign up with the email address you’ve used to buy music (you can add multiple ones if you’ve used more than one over the years), and it makes you a little online record collection of all the things you’ve ever bought from bandcamp! It also lets you...
December 2012
3 posts
9 tags
Shows of the year, 2012.
So I wrote about the records already, but I feel like some of my favourite live performances warranted a mention too. I don’t have as grand an introduction as last time, although my increasing apathy towards music did extend in to the live arena too - not that I’ve been stood at shows not enjoying them to any greater extent than I ever have before - just that I’ve not had as much...
6 tags
Tall Ships - Everything Touching.
So I’m a bit late for this one, but that’s mostly because I deliberately put it off for two very good reasons. Firstly I put it off because there’s been a lot of expectation and hype around this record due to Tall Ships quickly establishing themselves as one of the best live bands in the UK, but mostly I put it off because BSM were charging too much for the digital download. But...
24 tags
Records of the year, 2012.
2012 has been an interesting year for a whole host of reasons, but mostly I think it has just been the year that I got really fucking bored of music. 2011 was a year of twinkly emo, pop punk/hardcore crossovers and ‘The Wave’ bands dominating this extended, interconnected scene we loosely call ‘punk rock’, and it carried over to this year with such an irritatingly...
October 2012
7 posts
6 tags
Converge – All We Love We Leave Behind.
Converge really are a band whose best work is long behind them. Let’s just be honest with ourselves – they (or, arguably, any other hardcore band) were never gonna make a record better than Jane Doe. Nothing that came before it really matches it, and the immediate followup, You Fail Me, was a disappointment that was more than a little bit limp in comparison. No Heroes was something of a...
9 tags
Dessa Sons – The Tape.
Although at first it sounds like Dessa Sons are gonna be straight up chug chug chug pop punk, they take a left turn pretty early on and actually come off sounding a lot like 1994!, which is a good thing, because 1994! are amazing. Not enough bands rip off 1994! - short bursts of guitar work that walks the line between mathy virtuoso and thrashy punk, frantic drumming and dual vocal yells - and...
12 tags
Malon - Reverie.
Gotta stop listening to recommendations for emo bands – I’m even getting bored of complaining about them all sounding the same. These guys are alright though. Their EP’s cover has a nice drawing of a bird and there was some cool gang screaming on one track. Actually, there’s pretty good screaming throughout – no yelping or throaty shouting, just some full on screamo vocals that...
9 tags
By Toutatis - Three More Nights of the Rough...
I’d be lying if I said I checked out this band for any reason other than their name being an Asterix reference. I stumbled across them because they’d had some packaging done by the awesome ACDSleeve, and couldn’t not give them a go. They make the kind of folk music I went through a bit of a phase of listening to a couple of years ago – not really intentionally, just because it...
6 tags
Small Steps – Whoops.
Ugh. Twinkly emo punk with throaty shouty vocals because no one in the band can sing. They’ve got a song about bikes, too, if their song titles actually match what the songs are about. The noodlin’ is competent, albeit a little bit shaky at times, and there’s a really good bit where they bust out some horns in a very Cap’n Jazz style manner, but other than that there is...
2 tags
lukeleighfield replied to your post: Sam Isaac – When The Lights Went Out.
Thanks.
Haha, sorry Luke. You still have the best guitar solos in pop music.
6 tags
Sam Isaac – When The Lights Went Out.
I’ve always liked Sam Isaac, from the first time I saw him. This big ginger acoustic singer/songwriter dude with a big deep voice and some really heartfelt songs. He toured with Luke Leighfield a whole lot, which is how I discovered him, but was always way better (Sorry Luke). He had this one really great EP/mini-album thing that I still love to this day, expanded more and more to a full...
September 2012
18 posts
9 tags
Driveway – South Ossetia.
Driveway are this Irish band I caught opening for Into It. Over It. and Koji last year. The only reason I remember this is because they were giving away free demos, and their demo happens to actually be pretty good. Good enough to make me want to pick up their new EP, anyway, which I did, and I love it. The thing I think I really like about Driveway is… emo music, something I like a lot, has...
7 tags
Wegrowbeards/Young Attenborough split.
You know, when I first heard Wegrowbeards, I thought they sounded pretty uninteresting. Gruff and rambling pop punk, blah blah blah, heard it all before. But a closer listen to their lyrics is pretty much essential because I honestly cannot think of any other pop punk band that gives such succinct history lessons in song format. ‘Emmeline’ is about the Women’s Suffrage movement,...
7 tags
T-Shirt Weather – Is This The End For Zombie...
I reviewed T-Shirt Weather’s first EP a while back and I think I basically said that it was a pretty good collection of simple pop-punk, and that I was looking forward to their next release to see if they could up their game at all. The second EP has been out for a while, and I’ve finally got round to listening to it, and I think it’s pretty fair to say that they have upped it a...
8 tags
theHELL – Suave Les Requins.
So it was kinda tragically funny with Matt Skiba had that big breakdown on stage with the new backing band for his solo stuff, The Sekrets. I’ve never paid much attention to Skiba’s solo work, or Dan Andriano’s, really, for that matter, but I’ve always found that other bands from the main guys in Alk3 have been worth the time. Tuesday are boss, obviously, and Heavens...
8 tags
Swearin' - Swearin'
Swearin’ – Swearin’.
Swearin’ are one of those bands who I’ve seen mentioned here and there for ages, but have never bothered to check out. Apparently one of them was in P.S. Eliot, who were basically like Best Coast except actually really good, so learning this fact made me pretty eager to hear their first full length. Although there is a little bit in common...
chrisxlafferty replied to your post: Dads – American Radass (this is important)
Dads definitely aren’t bro-dudes
Nah, they probably are not bro dudes. I don’t know them personally. I’m sure they’re lovely guys and have heard a lot of people say that’s the case, actually. But, if I’m honest, I get a very forced-ironic bro vibe from this record and from some of the...
10 tags
Dads – American Radass (this is important)
Ahh, Dads. I liked that first EP they did, and the reissue with all the extra tracks was pretty good. Twiddly two piece emo, nowt special, but pushing all the right buttons making for a nice listen every now and then. It got them quite a strong following, probably deservedly so, but that following made anticipation for this album so high, whilst Dads themselves seemed to morph in to this...
5 tags
Parks and Recreation – Season 5, Episode 1.
From a shaky start as a half-decent miniseries, Parks and Rec has managed to quickly morph itself in to one of my favourite TV shows. It maybe even takes the top spot. It’s more consistent than the boundary-pushing nature of Community, which can occasionally fall flat as it tries something different and fails, albeit admirably. It’s also more human than the crazy antics of 30 Rock,...
11 tags
Queer'd Science – Girls Gone Wild.
I’m generally pretty wary of anything that describes itself as noise rock anymore – I had a bit of a noise and drone phase a few years ago, but I’ve grown up a bit and for some reason seem to value well crafted pop over feedback and distortion that is meant to drown out some awful songwriting whilst hoping no one notices. I can’t help but be in to Queer’d Science, though –...
7 tags
Lemuria – Varoom Allure.
I make no secret of the fact that Lemuria are one of my favourite bands, and I’ve eagerly awaited every scrap of music they’ve released since their second full-length, Pebble. Whilst their material on the split with Cheap Girls that came out last year felt like a return to the poppier sounds of Get Better, this single has a harder, more straight up punk rock sound with less of the...
12 tags
Pacer – Making Plans.
The Steal broke up and Dave House hasn’t released a solo album in forever, but I’m not so sad about these things now that Pacer have finally got a full-length out. Their first EP and the split with Iron Chic were pretty good, but weren’t really enough to fill the void. Making Plans is, though. It’s not that they’ve got any better, or expanded their sound or anything,...
11 tags
Franz Nicolay – Do The Struggle.
Franz has been one of my favourite musicians for quite a while now, thanks to regularly getting the chance to watch him play live. When he’s not backing up the Hold Steady or Against Me! on keys, his live shows are amazing, full of storytelling, suits, and constant switching between accordion, guitar and banjo. His recorded work has never really done it for me, though. His debut, Major...
8 tags
Joyce Manor – Of All Things I Will Soon Grow...
I’ll be upfront about it – I do not really get this band. They’re pretty good and that, but I can’t seem to see what so many others see in them. Their self-titled record is a fun little burst of raw surfy punk, but it has absolutely no staying power whatsoever – even after a handful of listens I can’t remember any of the songs, and find little to go back to. When the best...
tannerjones asked: hey man, thanks for the review of grow up dude. you write honestly and I appreciate that.
8 tags
You Blew It! - Grow Up, Dude.
You Blew It! have always been one of those bands that have, to me, kind of plugged away in the background. Despite regularly releasing EPs that I’ll give a cursory listen to and enjoy, they’ve never quite blown me away enough to make it in to any kind of regular rotation. Still, universal acclaim has been heaped upon their debut full-length, so I made a point of checking it out.
If...
8 tags
Gnarwolves – CRU.
I think the reason that I put off listening to Gnarwolves for so long was down to two things. First, the played out imagery on the front cover – I am getting really sick of this visual style, and too much talk about pizza as though mentioning pizza will instantly bring a band mass appeal. Second, whenever I asked anyone what they were like, they couldn’t seem to tell me. None of my friends...
8 tags
Girlfriends – Girlfriends.
So I’m a bit late to this one – it came out in 2009 and I’ve heard their name mentioned a bunch but never really bothered to check it out. I’m glad I have, though, because this is one of the most unique records I’ve heard in a while. Emo is currently starting to get a bit stale again – twinkly indie rock with shouty lyrics is easy to do half-decently at, and that’s...
Hello.
I am going to be making a conscious effort to post more to this blog. Now that I work nine to five and don’t really write for any sites anymore, I rarely sit down and write reviews. But today I realised I miss it and I am now going to bring this blog back with more regular posts, writing about anything I feel like reviewing. I’ll also be posting up any other bits that I’ve...
April 2012
1 post
7 tags
Crywank - Narcissist On The Verge Of A Nervous...
A couple years ago, this guy called James appeared out of nowhere and started posting his album all over the internet for people to hear. It was called James Is Going To Die Soon and it was under the name Crywank and I’m guessing that a lot of people checked it out because the name Crywank made them emit a childish little giggle. What they got when they unzipped that folder they downloaded...
March 2012
10 posts
5 tags
Where We Lay Our Heads - Bury You.
It was quite a pleasant surprise to have Where We Lay Our Heads drop unannounced in to the Zest mailbox. I’ll admit that, at first, a band who told us they’d been described as ‘folky rock’ but preferred to just be called pop seemed like the least appealing way to spend three and a half minutes of a Sunday afternoon, though. Would this be another Mumford & Sons-style...
6 tags
Emma Hallows - Anchors Up!
Well, thanks a lot Chuck Ragan. You wanted a folk revival and you got it and now everyone is doing it. Every bloke with a guitar is getting a little bit sensitive and going solo to play some acoustic songs and it’s all very samey and, let’s face it, completely male-dominated. It’s great, then, to hear the occasional female voice stepping in to the ring. I mean, sure,...
8 tags
65daysofstatic - Silent Running.
So this one kind of snuck by me. Last year, 65daysofstatic did a live soundtrack to the 1970s sci-fi filmSilent Running. It’s basically an environmental ‘what if?’ film, where all plant life on Earth died. Probably because people were a bit silly. I’ve not actually seen it, but if there’s one thing I do well, it’s wikipedia the crap out of things. My degree mark...
10 tags
A Silver Mt. Zion - Ruined City Birdsong...
Efrim Menuck has been busy lately. Since the release of the last Silver Mt. Zion album, his old band has blown minds by reforming, with Godspeed You! Black Emperor touring the world and working on new material for the first time since 2002. He’s also done a solo record, been a father, and stayed on the road with the ol’ S Mt. Z fairly regularly. Menuck and his fellow musicians have an...
6 tags
Cheap Girls - Giant Orange.
You know how, with some bands, all of their albums are basically interchangeable, and your favourite one really can’t be picked for any kind of quality-based reason, instead just being the one you heard first? It happens to me all the time, and I guess it’s not necessarily always a bad thing. When some bands churn out the same, phoned in record again and again, it can get very...
6 tags
T-Shirt Weather - It's T-Shirt Weather.
It ain’t big, and it ain’t particularly clever. It’s just T-Shirt Weather, a Durham pop-punk three-piece that play trashy pop-punk with a pretty refreshing naïveté. They’re not getting political, or hopping on current emo revival or orgcore styles – in fact, It’s T-Shirt Weather is probably about as un-trendy as it’s possible to get. Not afraid to wear the...
6 tags
Martha - Martha.
Made up of most of the members of ONSIND and Fashanu, you could call Martha Durham’s first ever punk rock supergroup if that wasn’t such a ridiculously grandiose term for what’s on offer. In fact, Martha seems, if anything, deliberately non-super and purposefully low-key. Where both Fashanu and ONSIND are perhaps best known for their political rhetoric as much as their catchy...
5 tags
Johnny Foreigner Vs. Everything
I’ve reviewed Johnny Foreigner quite a lot over the last few years, and I’ve compared them to a whole heap of bands. Los Campesinos!, Algernon Cadwallader, Weezer, Cap’n Jazz, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Hot Club De Paris and a ton of others that, individually, might not make much sense, but together give a pretty good impression of a band that have been winning over hearts and...
7 tags
Reno Dakota - Popularity.
So Reno Dakota are named after a Magnetic Fields song, which makes them a right pain to Google sometimes. It’s really annoying when bands do things like that, but at least it’s not as hard as having to search out something almost insultingly generic, like ‘Girls’. And Reno Dakota are really good too (unlike Girls), so I’ll give them a free pass on their vaguely...
Queuing up a bunch of stuff I've written for my...
You know my site, Zest For Life, right? I’m pretty proud of it and want to spread it to a wider audience, so I’m gonna post some stuff that I’ve written for it lately that I like up on this blog, because I barely use it. Look out for it over the next few days, and don’t forget to go and check my site out please.
January 2012
1 post
Just a reminder for any new followers here,
often because they’re following me back or something - this blog is rarely updated, and I mostly post here, although I can’t follow/like under that name because I didn’t realise how tumblr worked until it was too late. So that’s the blog you wanna check out if you’re actually interested in the stupid things I say about music or TV or other stuff. You might like it. Who knows.
September 2011
2 posts
3 tags
Zest For Life relaunches today! →
popscenesters:
After a long break, my newly redesigned and super shiny webzine is back today. Awesome. Please, please, please check it out and get involved if you so desire.
My website will be relaunching soon.
popscenesters:
You guys remember Zest For Life? It was the Uni project I did with my friend and former housemate Rob, and we enjoyed it so much that we were determined to carry it on. We’ve had loads of setbacks but we’re finally ready to relaunch in the next few days. We have a date set for our first gig/relaunch party, we have loads of new content, a new site design, a new domain name (we’ve...
June 2011
2 posts
4 tags
Tellison - The 405 Interview
(Interview with Stephen from Tellison for The 405, obviously.)
At the risk of editorialising, I love Tellison. Love. Them. Their debut album, Contact! Contact!, was brilliant, and if their new effort, The Wages Of Fear doesn’t make them one of the biggest bands in the UK then there is seriously something wrong with you all. Their mixture of American Midwest indie rock and UK pop, of...
5 tags
Tellison - The Wages Of Fear
(Written for The 405, very happy with how this came out because I love Tellison and this album.)
I first saw Tellison when I was only fifteen years old. That seems like forever ago now. They were on tour with Ross from My First Tooth’s old band and a band from Scotland called Stapleton, doing a rotating headline thing and Tellison were opening that night. I don’t really remember too much about...
May 2011
4 posts
8 tags
Los Campesinos! - Heat Rash Issue #1.
(A revised version of this post for The 405, have a look here.)
When Los Campesinos! first announced a mysterious project called Heat Rash last year, there were various rumours bouncing round as to what it might be. A new album, a film and a live DVD were the most common suggestions, but I don’t think anyone expected them to come out with what they did. When they announced that Heat Rash...
8 tags
13 & God - Own Your Ghost
(Written for The 405, good to be back on that site.)
Whenever people tried to classify Adam Drucker a.k.a. Dose One’s old band, cLOUDDEAD (which, side note, also featured Yoni Wolf, a.k.a. Why?), usually using some combination of “surreal,” “arty,” “abstract,” or some other term that didn’t really describe what they sounded like, he would implore them to “just call it hip-hop.”...
6 tags
Fight Like Apes at Night & Day, Manchester,...
(Written for my final issue as music editor of my student paper. It’ll be out soon, but I wanted to post this here now.)
Night & Day thinks it’s a hip London bar, but doesn’t quite pull it off. There’s nothing on tap, and even the cheapest cans are wildly overpriced. The place is an odd shape, the stage is uncomfortably high and it’s ridiculously hot inside....
8 tags
Everyone who doesn't listen to Dave House is an...
(Written for my online friend and #1 man crush Corey’s site, Cool Kid City. Go here and have a look, it’s looking like it could turn in to something special).
Do you know Dave House? You should, because I love Dave House. I’m not talking about Dave Hause, the dude from the Loved Ones, though they have often been confused and once played together in a sort of ‘battle of the Dave...
April 2011
4 posts
7 tags
Ghost Saddles at Fuel Café, Manchester, 04/03/11
(Written for my own site, here.)
Ten minutes out of Piccadilly and we were pulling in to Mauldeth Road, the most ominously named train station I’ve ever encountered. Maul. Death. Yeah. Above a devastatingly hip little vegetarian café full of people enjoying spring rolls and imported beers, Greg Counsell played his first ever show as Ghost Saddles.
Greg may or may not still be in The Maple...
