Finish! Him, Agnostic Front & The Aggrolites

A random list of bands, you say. I know, but I saw quite a lot this week. And, hey, why be put off by style variety, eh? That and, to be brutally honest, the band I most looked forward to in this bunch was Agnostic Front, who were an utter disappointment. Hey ho. Yes, they have the songs we remember but the rebellious punk ethos seems to have faded and the energy is nowhere near what you'll find at a Terror or Hatebreed gig. Still, it was fun to hear Gotta Go live for the first time.

Finish! Him were more of a positive surprise...they should be back in London some time this month and are worth a glimpse if you like metalcore with a madddd in your face frontman and a loads of weird keyboard effects :-) It is quite loony and yet heavy - and I for one think there should be more up-and-comers this gutsy.

And ahhhh yes The Aggrolites. HOW COOL ARE THIS LOT?! I realise they are in no way shape or form metal, so don't really belong on this blog, but they had such a slick vibe I had to give them a mention. In the name of music, so to speak. Reggae with a smooth frontman and an absolute insistence that you dance cannot be a bad thing.

VOD @ ULU - hell, the man can shout!!

Oh my good god. This is live hardcore at its most epic. Playing London for the first time in like forever, Vision Of Disorder pretty much set fire to our humble ULU mini-venue this Friday.
Intimate but huge, loud but precise, they're all you require of an oldschool hardcore pack leader. And mannnn is Tim's voice awesome! He's an unbeatable frontman; gloriously rough vocally but at the same time meticulous about making sure every word he spits is perfectly pronounced. The band message comes across clean and inspiring and fans look like lottery winners all night as they sing along and slam about in the pit. Wooooo hooooooo thanks guys - pls come again!!!!!

Highbury Garage returns

Oh happy days. Finally, it's official: The Garage re-opens late June :-)

Don't believe me? SEE FOR YOURSELF

Possibly the best hardcore venue next to the Underworld, with a ceiling that used to sweat on you, nice spacey merch stand and no space between you and the bands, it's about bloody time. Sadly Terror play in London late May so will just miss this slightly more cosy option, but it still makes for a summer of other memorable moments.

CONVERGE & stuff

OH YEHHHH - IN-COMING NEW CONVERGE ALBUM! BRING IT!!!!

Check this out for a taste of things to come straight from the studio... Click here to sneak at the new album

And other stereo crushers this week's been all about...

SICK OF IT ALL: Step Down
Yes, this choice was more for the video than the music...Lesson one in 'How to dance the hardcore'
(chuckle)
ANTI-FLAG: Got The Numbers
Still gutted they couldn't play London a few weeks ago and been stuck listening to this album ever since.
ADVERSARY: Ashes of Faith
EPIC guitar solo about a minute in. EPIC.
BLOODBATH: Outnumbering The Day
Just coz it's loud and grizzly. Rarrrrrrrr!
OTEP: My Confession (Live)
A lady with attitude and neatly unique vocals.
NINE INCH NAILS: Please
I know, I know. Shhhhh! We all have our weaknesses!

36 Crazyfists & PTW

Friday the 13th is a pretty choice date for any metal band to rock the London live circuit but frustratingly this particular Electric Ballroom gig had to start and end early to allow for a 10pm club night, so timing were as follows:

Gwen Stacy – 6:45 to 7:15pm
Poison The Well – 7:35 to 8:15pm
36 Crazyfists – 8:35 to 9:35pm

Still, both main bands were on fire and the only downers of the night were a pretty unmemorable first support band and a sound issue during PTW which meant some of the choruses were lost. The rest of the band's acoustics were crystal clear and made for some hypnotic Floyd-inspired instrumental moments, but frontman Moreira's more emotional vocal parts were muddy, leaving only his screams audible. A shame for a band so focused on contrasts.
Alaskan melodic metallers 36 made up for it, though, and Brock was his usual powerful self, storming the stage with that signature hardcore stance as he pushed his unique gurgling vocal style to the limit. In the one early-bird hour they were on stage they even managed to pack in all their best tracks, a wall of death and invite a member of the audience on stage to front an entire song with the band. And after all Brock's shouting about shots it was only right to drink the night away in a few Camden pubs and new favourite snakebite haunt, The Big Red :-) Hell, who needs to feel good on a Saturday anyway...

Tripswitch & Heaven's Basement follow-up

It's kind of tough reviewing these after spending the day listening Anti-Flag and the new Adversary album...but here's goes:

Tripswitch Until
Seven fairly muddled tracks involving confused layers of unimpressive wailing, hysterical shrieks, random electronic samples, moments of forced calms and chugging guitars which lead nowhere. Chaotic and dull all at the same time, I'm not sure this will make it onto the pod. Still, if you ignore the vocalist and former bare knuckle boxer Jamie's arrest on suspicion of murder, they've had a good run of label interest, have previously recorded with Andy Sneap (Trivium, KSE, Machine Head) and had the odd tv feature and rock playlist to boast about...so maybe I'm just having a bad day.

Heaven's Basement Sampler
GREAT fun!!! Lower the shame guard and pretend you're at the front of a Thunder concert (yes, they've toured with them) dressed head to toe in skin-tight leather and head full-throttle down the road to self-indulgent oldschool sleaze-rock. WOOOOO!!! The vocals are shrill, gritty and uplifting, the guitars melodic to the last and the choruses will stick in your head for days. Pretty much all tracks are worth an ear, but Fear of Getting Off is a particularly awesome track with a gutsy guitar solo threaded throughout.
Grab your grin and ride!

PS. And now for something completely different: THE OBLIGATORY JUST-BACK-FROM-HOLIDAY POWDER VIDEO