LIVE REVIEW: 36 Crazyfists at 02 Islington

IT was in the early 2000s when I discovered 36 Crazyfists. I was in a Virgin Megastore taking advantage of their 5 for £30 CD offer and needed one to fill my quota. Having heard Slit Wrist Theory, I took a punt on getting Bitterness The Star.

I then followed the band through all the following releases - some critically acclaimed, some less so, but all with enough to warrant regular revisits.

2015's Time And Trauma was perhaps their best in recent times with some absolute belters, the title track among them.

And when I heard Death Eater - the first track from last year's Lanterns - I knew I had to be in London when they came by on their European tour.

The gig at the O2 Islington saw support from US noise punk duo '68 and All Hail The Yeti. The former were strong and engaging but I got distracted by the amount of spitting they did - I guess it was to show how raw they were, but ended up seeming like they had some sort of condition. All Hail The Yeti were OK, but a bit metal by numbers.

Crazyfists, though, stepped things up a gear right from the get-go as they launched into the powerful Death Eater as their opening track.

Frontman Brock Lindow's vocals are unique and while not always hitting the mark, they carry that sense of raw and brutal emotion that endeared the band to me all those years back.

The set is long - 14 songs plus three more on the encore - and interspersed with what feels like genuine thanks from Lindow and the band for the support. He remarks that age and distance means they cannot tour to these parts as often as they'd like, but they appreciate the following nonetheless.

They play new songs like Wars To Walk Away From and Better To Burn along with oldies such as At The End Of August and Bloodwork.

They finish with the live debut of Sea And Smoke from Lanterns followed by Time And Trauma. It's safe to say the crowd are delighted and the demand for more is on.

"I thought we were going to have a beer," says Lindow as the four-piece come back out and play Eightminutesupsidedown and then cover Alice In Chains' We Die Young.

Not unexpectedly, the final song of the night is the one that brought them into many people's consciousness - Slit Wrist Theory. The emotion and power in that song has not faded as the years have passed and neither has the band. A fantastic performance.

Download Festival 2017 - Day One Review

SOMETHING very weird has happened. Download Festival has had a whole day without rain. Not only that, but it was sunny - proper, fucking sunny.

'But what of the bands?' I hear you ask. Well I'll give you a spoiler alert - despite the sun and beer and quality music all around, the day all ended a bit flat. But we'll get to that.

Motionless In White - Picture by Paulo Gonçalves

For once I was at Donnington bright and early and ready when NORTHLANE kicked off on the main stage and the Aussie boys were cracking and followed by the very popular MOTIONLESS IN WHITE. Great stuff to get the juices flowing.

I moved about for a while, taking in bits of ASTROID BOYS, CODE ORANGE and MACHINE GUN KELLY. The latter of those bands I didn't quite get and their cover of Oasis' Wonderwall was appalling - even if it did get the crowd singing.

MASTODON were next on the main stage and they too were a little disappointing. Not the band, I must say. You could see they were working their socks off and giving it their all as always, but the beautiful intricacies of their musicianship were - oddly - blown away in the wind. The sound just didn't carry as best it could. I did still enjoy the set though.

And then came the double-whammy that really cranked things up for me. I love a bit of FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH and they did not disappoint with a fierce set that included many of the favourites including Burn MF, Was It All Away, Bad Company and ended with The Bleeding. 

Five Finger Death Punch - Picture by Ben Gibson

They were followed by PROPHETS OF RAGE, who really rocked. Chuck D has such an amazing presence and the rest of the band were superb. Their set included a poignant tribute to Chris Cornell as they played a vocal-free version of Like A Stone. Beautiful.

SUM 41's return on the second stage was a welcome one. Frontman Deryck Whibley does look like he's been through the ringer, but there is still a power and angst there and some of the new songs are excellent. Alas, I missed the classics - Still Waiting, In Too Deep and Fat Lip - as I had to get to the main stage for the headliners.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN have a rightful place in rock and metal royalty. They are as original as they are brilliant in their music creation. I was excited to see how this translated to a live performance - a first for me. And it was a disappointment. For me, Serj Tankian's voice just didn't seem up to it and Daron Malakian seemed to have the hump with him.

And I don't think I've seen such a static headline act. Shavo Odadjian made something of a fist of it, but Serj and Daron were happy to remain behind their mic stand at all times. That meant the energy that their songs possess just didn't come across. It was OK. But you expect a lot more than OK from your headliners.

WEAK13 release video for Obey The Slave

UNDERGROUND post-punk band WEAK13 have released the video for their song Obey The Slave.

The track is taken from their 2016 album They Live and the video was filmed in a magistrates' court. It revolves around the theme of law and order with the song raising questions about authority and activism.

The band is currently preparing to record their second as yet untitled studio album with producer John Stewart at FrEQ in Coventry, England. 

Frontman and guitarist Nick J Townsend said: "We were so impressed with his engineering on the They Live album; it's important news that we'll be able to work with him again and we know already that he'll do the new material the justice it deserves." 

You can find out more about the band and the album at weak13official.com and watch the video below.

And check out the Q&A the band did with RealSoundsOK here.

Lucid AfterLife Q&A

Your name:

Nat Jack.

Where are you from?

Vancouver, Canada.

Name of band:

Lucid AfterLife.

Who else is in your band?

Thom Turner on guitar, Miles Morrison on bass and Matt Shearlaw on drums.

How would you describe yourselves?

Describing Lucid AfterLife to someone who has not been to see our live show is like describing a five-tab LSD trip to someone using only a stick. We give everything we have in every note. I am half-athlete, half-musician out there.

Who are your main influences musically?

Each member of the band has his own influences and bring them to the table, the styles are all over the place. Lately I have been listening to a lot of Bowie, Porcupine Tree and the The Mars Volta but I would say I played Monster Magnet on repeat when I was a young buck so you’re going to hear a bit of them in some songs

What do you hope to achieve in music?

I really don’t think there is more that I need to achieve, music is here and I can make it and hear it quite well, so I am grateful for that. The business side of things can be a real bore for me but I know it’s just part of being passionate about delivering my message on a wider platform.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

Just getting to know my band mates on the road, jamming with them and making tunes. I am really just a mad man with a mic so being surrounded by the guys who bring real talent to the band allows me to explore deeper as a song writer, there is nothing like a spontaneous jam live on stage.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Forgive but don’t forget amigo.

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

On the upcoming EP we have a song called “In All That I see”  I would say if I had to just pick one it would be her. The song paints an atmosphere that is perfect for the story that transpires. Lucid AfterLife is not about one style or genre it’s about enveloping a story with the certain vibe that allows you to become enthralled in the song .

Where can we listen to it? 

The song is not released just yet but there is a pre-sale link to the album at bandcamp.com (see below). The best way to hear it first is to sign up for our mailing list at lucidafterlife.ca

Where can we find out more about your music?

lucidafterlife1.bandcamp.com

Facebook.com/lucidafterlife

Or just email me directly at info@lucidafterlife.ca and we can chat riffs

Anything else you’d like to say about your band/music that I forgot to ask?

I would like to thank you guys for taking the time to interview us and want to thank all the loyal Lucid fans who have been following and supporting through the years. I hope you guys enjoy our new EP “Occult Mafia Mistress” and we look forward to seeing you in your city.

Decline The Fall Q&A

Your name:

John Castiel.

Where are you from?

Malta.

Name of band:

Decline The Fall.

Who else is in your band?

Ehren Fenech : Drummer

Fabio Negro : Bassist 

Matthew Mercieca : Lead Guitarist 

Kris Farrugia : Rhythm Guitarist

How would you describe yourselves and your music?

We're four Maltese and an Italian that joined the band all in different times.

I personally describe ourselves as two trouble makers (John & Ehren), a father-like member ( Kris), The Italian that we all pick on (Fabio) and the nice Giant (Matthew).

Our music is a lot of different genres because we all come from different styles of music and we do our best to put all our influences in one song.

Who are your main influences musically?

We all have different influences and all have different favorite bands but if I had to mention some bands that we all agree on are Bullet for My Valentine and Killswitch Engage 

What do you hope to achieve in music?

We're working hard so that maybe, we can actually make this our career 

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

I think so far the highlight was the first gig. We had over 200 people for our debut and my first time singing with a band on stage. It was amazing.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Fabio wearing flip flops on a television interview. 

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Well if I had to pick one song that we released I would go for Mortal Men. It was the first song we released and it's something special to us. Now there are more songs that we didn't release yet that we would say THIS is us.

Where can we listen to it? 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IptpdC0hfm8

Where can we find out more about your music?

facebook.com/declinethefall

twitter.com/declinethefall

Leaving Eden Q&A

Your name: 

Eric Gynan.

Where are you from? 

Boston MA, USA.

Name of band:

Leaving Eden.

Who else is in your band?

Eve (lead vocals), Ryan Manning (drums) and Johnny V (bass).

How would you describe yourselves?

Well, we def like to have fun! We consider ourselves rock, metal, progressive, alternative  - so that there’s really no box to put us in. We even do acoustic unplugged stuff too!

Who are your main influences musically?

Let's see, we all are influenced by so many great artists but Ryan likes Suicidal Tendencies, Johnny likes Kiss, Eve likes Janis Joplin and I like Sabbath, Disturbed, and way too many to list. Love Ritchie Blackmoore though...

What do you hope to achieve in music?

Great question! I’m not in it for the lure of $$, or even fame for that matter. I just humbly write songs that I hope people will enjoy. We do write provocative lyrics which are reality based so that maybe one could be inspired.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

So many, that’s a tough question. Leaving Eden has toured the USA, UK and Canada sharing the stage with hundreds of the biggest national bands in the world including; Lacuna Coil, In This Moment, Black Sabbath (Heaven & Hell), Ronnie James Dio, Rob Zombie, 5 Finger Death Punch, Disturbed, Marylyn Manson, Alice Cooper, Lynyrd Skynyrd, ZZ Top, Puddle of Mudd, Korn, Killswitch Engage, BuckCherry (Jefferson Starship, Big Brother and The Holding Company, Country Joe, 10 Years After, 40th Anniversary Woodstock) Shinedown, Dropkick Murphys, Alice in Chains, Papa Roach, Bret Micheals, Halestorm,Theory of a Deadman, Avenged Sevenfold, Seether, Hell Yeah, Trapt, Dope, Soil, Fuel, Queensryche, Saving Abel, Hinder, Damage Plan, 7Dust, Sebastian Bach, SoulFly, Days of the New, NonPoint, Drowning Pool, The Misfits, The Butcher Babies, Collective Soul, MushroomHead, Mudvayne, Chevelle, Godsmack, Powerman 5000, 10Years, Taproot, Gin Blossoms, Michael Schenker (UFO, MSG & The Scorpions), Herman Rarebell (The Scorpions), Nicko McBrain (Iron Maiden), Kittie, One Eyed Doll, Uncle Kracker, Tremonti (Creed/Alter Bridge) Lamb of God, Slayer, Stone Sour, Motorhead, Blackstone Cherry, HOOKERS & BLOW Featuring GUNS N' ROSES, QUIET RIOT, W.A.S.P. Members, Steven Tyler, Ted Nugent, Lita Ford, LA Guns, Trixter, Warrant, Apocalyptic Review (featuring members of Godsmack) & many more..

We were winners at the 2014 New England Music Awards (Best Hard Rock/Hard Core/Metal Act of the Year), winners of The 2015 Pulse Magazine Music Awards (Best Hard Rock/Hard Core/Metal Act of the Year) & (Sexiest Musician "Eve") and submitted for consideration to 15 categories for the Grammys this year. 

With all that said, Sharing the stage with Black Sabbath (Heaven and Hell) with Ronnie James Dio prior to his untimely death was incredible. I think playing Woodstock Anniversary was full circle in terms of where it all started. Got to hang out with Janis Joplin's band Big Bro and the Holding Co, Jefferson Starship, Country Joe, ya man too cool!

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Well, hmmm, I very, very seldom get drunk, maybe once every two years, and I remember on an off night on tour, we let our hair down (I have a shaved head lol) but anyways, ya probably want to forget doing cartwheels down the street somewhere in the Dakota’s...

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Another good question. Let's see, we got four Albums released to date:

Pinnacle - Welcome To My World -  Between Heaven and Hell - Tied and Bound

So I guess on our Pinnacle album released by Rock Ave Records USA, “Feel Alive” where I believe the lyrics and music are inspiring; “Walk on through before the door closes, you have one shot so you better make it right. The door is wide open, why are you waiting to feel alive?”

Where can we listen to it?

https://soundcloud.com/leavingeden

Where can we find out more about your music?

www.facebook.com/bandleavingeden/

www.twitter.com/Leavingeden

www.linkedin.com/in/leaving-eden-39320010

www.instagram.com/leavingedenofficial/

www.youtube.com/user/leavingedenband

www.soundcloud.com/leavingeden

www.reverbnation.com/leavingedenmusic

www.myspace.com/leavingedenband

www.bandsintown.com/LeavingEden

www.leavingeden.com

Anything else you’d like to say about your band/music that I forgot to ask?

Sure man, wanna thank ya for chatting with us here and ya, here’s our video for We Are Not Alone, https://youtu.be/lLMINm6TV3Y 

We are touring the USA, Canada and Europe so hopefully we can catch ya when we come thru! Peace!

William Blackswan Q&A

Your name: 

Ville Ylimartimo.

Where are you from? 

Arctic world called Tampere, Finland.

Name of band: 

William Blackswan.

Who else is in your band?

Henri Soisalo.

How would you describe yourselves and your music?

We are creative and determined fellows. Our music is theatrical horror metal with a pinch of metalcore sound.  Our lyrics bound all together and it is meant to keep that way. 

Who are your main influences musically?

Horror movie soundtracks, most brutal metalcore bands like Motionless In White, In This Moment and Nocturnal Bloodlust. All theatrical movie soundtracks also. 

What do you hope to achieve in music?

A chance to make more music, a chance to give people even more horrors ;) 

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

This whole time has been one big highlight, but the most brightest moment so far was the recent studio journey. There is more to come just wait.

Actually this whole band was an project for 2 years and last summer we decided to put everything out big time! Past 5 months have been heck of a ride, but here we are and the best is yet to come.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

There is nothing we want to forget... yet :D

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Well we have just a few songs recorded but now it would be one called "Infected Minds" because it has all the elements we have looked for and this song was the very first complete song we have ever wrote for this band.

Where can we listen to it?

Nowhere, it’s one song from our upcoming two-song single which is going to be released early in January 2017.

Where can we find out more about your music?

https://www.facebook.com/williamblackswan/

https://twitter.com/wblackswanmusic

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBtcydyBMbXFYS_q64W2w2w

Anything else you’d like to say about your music that I forgot to ask

Remember that we are new outcoming metal band who is going to release debut single digitally worldwide in next January. So now you can follow us in social media to keep an eye out. Music video is already under progress and lots of other stuff is coming, just wait! Feedback of our work has been so great lately that we are not slowing down!

Dark Messiah Q&A

Your name: 

Jonathan Hayward.

Where are you from? 

We're from Winnipeg, Maitoba, Canada.

Name of band: 

Dark Messiah.

Who  is in your band? 

Dark Messiah is made up of Stephen Chubaty on vocals, Lawrence Reimer on rhythm guitar, Jared McKnight on bass, Dustin Tyler on drums and myself on lead guitar. 

How would you describe yourselves and your music? 

We're a couple of greasy metalheads who just love what we do. Our music is heavy duty thrash metal inspired by the classics.

Who are your main influences musically? 

Let's just say that if Slayer and Judas Priest had a baby, and then Metallica and Pantera had a baby and those two babies spawned and that offspring had a threesome with Lamb of God and Zakk Wylde, you'd get Dark Messiah.

What do you hope to achieve in music? 

We want to take this as far as possible, share our music with the entire world and play for as many people as we can.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why? 

Every chance we get to play in front of people is a highlight of our career for us. Every time people enjoy what we do and have a good time listening to us it fuels us. It reminds us of the one reason we do this in the first place.

And what’s the moment you want to forget? 

There's ups and downs for us like there is with any band. It's not so much about the moments you want to forget but how you learn from those moments and how you move forward. We've had to pick ourselves up from some setbacks but in the end it's only made us stronger.

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why? 

No Soul To Sell is the first song we ever wrote and sums up our sound. When we wrote that song it showed us what we have and where we could go as a band. It's a heavy song with a hook and definitely influenced and inspired what we create and what we want to accomplish stylistically  moving forward.

Where can we listen to it? 

We are currently in the studio recording our debut E.P. We will have a website up and running shortly before it's release. In the meantime fans can check out our social media sites for content and footage from our shows.

Where can we find out more about your music? 

www.facebook.com/DarkMessiahWpg,

www.instagram.com/darkmessiahmetal 

www.twitter.com/DarkMessiah204

Anything else you’d like to say about your music that I forgot to ask? 

We like to let our live performances and music speak for itself.

Harlow Q&A

Your name:

Kelly.

Where are you from?

Metro Detroit, MI, USA.

Name of band:

Harlow.

Who is in your band?

Lauren – vox / Tomas – Guitar / Kelly – Bass,vox / Kevin - Drums.

How would you describe yourselves and your music?

We are a female-fronted hard rock band based out of Detroit and you can hear metal, punk, pop and rock influences in our music.

Who are your main influences musically?

A lot for each member but you can hear Pat Benatar, Debby Harry and Pink in Lauren's Delivery vocally and the rest is everything from Sabbath to Bring Me The Horizon.

What do you hope to achieve in music?

We would love to be able to do this as a living and tour as much as possible or as much as the fans will want us to.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

There have been a lot of them but we focus on making each show a highlight for all those in attendance and for us on stage every night.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

There has been a few of them but we don’t let ourselves look towards the past as we head forward.

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Ooooh tough question. Our first single off this album is called “Shattered” and we have a video out on YouTube for it. We selected it because it sets the tone for the album about breaking down and finding your independence. My personal favorite is either Leech or Home.

Where can we listen to it? 

You can go to www.harlowband.com and listen to the track and see the video.

Where can we find out more about your music?

As mentioned before you can go to www.harlowband.com and you can find us on Facebook, Twitter, bandsintown, Reverbnation and YouTube.

Anything else you’d like to say about your music that I forgot to ask?

We love what we do and we value each and every one who supports local music scenes for allowing us to come out and be a part of yours… Get out to a venue, support bands, buy merchandise and CDs and let's rage!!! Thank you for the opportunity to tell people about us!

WEAK13 Q&A

Your name: 

Nick J Townsend.

Name of band: 

WEAK13.

Where are you from?

I'm from the home of heavy metal. Myself and my band members are located in areas of the Black Country in England.

Who else is in your band?

Neel Parmar who is also know as “The Asian Sensation” is our drummer and Wesley Smith mans the bass guitar. I sing and play guitar and it's great working with such an awesome pair of musicians. The three of us click so well.

How would you describe yourselves?

I'd say we are an independent satirical rock band with metal riffs but I'm sure others see us as working class terrorists. That's not stated to make me or the band sound cool either; honestly we will eventually find a way to dismantle the current elitist mainstream music industry, sabotage its brainwashing and reverse the dumbing down of society. The mainstream music industry is a joke; it's like the short tale by Hans Christian Andersen “The Emperor's New Clothes”; when the time is right we'll show the entire world just how naked of talent the corporate mainstream music industry is and it'll collapse overnight.

Who are your main influences musically?

Nirvana and Jimi Hendrix have always been a massive influence in my life. Soundgarden, Love/Hate, Biohazard and Prong are bands that really inspired me during my teenage years and filmmaker John Carpenter is just a musical genius. These days I mainly get inspired by musicians in the underground, people I meet, artists I discover myself.

What do you hope to achieve in music?

To make history by changing the mainstream music industry and open a door for musicians with real talent. The last thing the music industry wants is a band with an opinion or any independent thoughts.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

Working with producer John Stewart and recording the “They Live” album without a record company or any help from the music industry. We've made superb friends along the way and that to us is a career highlight.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

I don't think I want to forget any failure because a bad experience is something you can learn from. Some of my worst experiences have created our best songs.

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

I'd choose “Joke” from the “They Live” album; killer riffs and lyrics that people can relate to. That's not me being big headed; we get fans tell us they love that tune.

Where can we listen to it?

weak13official.com

Where can we find out more about your music?

weak13official.com

facebook.com/weak13fanpage

twitter.com/weak13

youtube.com/weak13

Anything else you’d like to say about your band/music that I forgot to ask?

I could write a book of questions but right this second I'm just letting you know that WEAK13 continues to grow in popularity and we will keep making music in this age of illusion.

Omnis Q&A

Your name: 

Ethan Baker.

Where are you from?

We are all from South Orange County, CA. 

Name of band: 

Omnis.

Who else is in your band? 

There is AJ (Drummer), Kyle (Guitarist), Dan (Bassist), and Dalton (Vocalist). I am the other guitar player. 

How would you describe yourselves and your music?

Our foundation is death metal, but we experiment a lot with other styles and genres. When you combine all of our music tastes, we damn near cover everything. We love metal, but from the beginning we have always tried to fuse other styles with metal. And when we do switch on the fly into another style the look on people's surprised faces is always priceless.  

Who are your main influences musically?

We listen to so many different kinds of music that when we write anything can happen. But I would have to say Between The Buried And Me is a big one. Some others that you might hear in our music include Born of Osiris, Scale The Summit, Dream Theater, and The Black Dahlia Murder. Of course, this is just the metal side of things.  

What do you hope to achieve in music?

We just want to create great music that people can enjoy. If we can one day do this full time, then great. If not, then we are just going to keep putting music out there and play live whenever we can. 

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

Finishing our full length CD Accumulation. We recorded it all at Kyle's studio ourselves. It was a lot of work, and I don't think we had any idea how much goes into a CD when we started. But it was a great learning experience. Most bands do EPs, but we had, and still have, so much music that we went for the full length. We didn't want these songs to go unused. So we went for it. At least now when we go back into the studio to record another, we will know how to handle the process more efficiently. 

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Probably the time we had to pull out of a show. Its very unprofessional to do this as a band, but there was no benefit of playing. We were paying to play in front of no one really. And it just wasn't worth it. The booker was not too happy, but at the end of the day, you need to do what makes sense. Especially when you are paying to play. 

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Dehumanize. It has a killer jazz/groove opener with a clean guitar solo. It transitions straight into djenty heavy riffs, followed by a bass solo, then two guitar solos. And Dalton's vocals sound wicked on that song. All around, it represents the sound we have started moving towards. 

Where can we listen to it?

You can download our full length CD on Bandcamp. We gave you the option to Name Your Price. So you can get it for a penny, ten bucks, or for free! It is completely up to you. Here is the link: omnismusic.bandcamp.com  

Where can we find out more about your music?

facebook.com/Omnis1

You can find us on Twitter and Instagram @OmnisBand

And if you want to hear the album in its entirety before you purchase it, you can find it under the BandPage tab on our Facebook page, on our SoundCloud, or the YouTube album stream we have up. All we ask is that if you like it, share it with your friends! Here are the links: 

soundcloud.com/Omnis1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjN7zBjjrGo

Anything else you’d like to say about your music that I forgot to ask?

I don't think one song on the CD sounds like another. So give each one a shot. You might be surprised what you come across. We are working on a few singles we are going to release later this year. So start following us and stay tuned!