I Dedicate Too Much Of My Life To Music

65DAYSOFSTATIC ‘We Were Exploding Anyway’

2010-06-09T06:15:00.000-07:00

Depending on whether or not you decide, like me, to sarcastically emphasise the Anyway, ‘We Were Exploding Anyway’ is one of the best and most apt albums titles of all time. A cheap shot at their critics, an awkward stepping stone for their fans and sexy, “come to bed” eyes for the uninitiated, this record is quite something.

While the rest of the post rock world is having an identity crisis, with half claiming they’re not post rock [let’s face it, it’s a stupid way to describe music] and the rest trying to out-epic each other, 65DAYSOFSTATIC have just got on with making their thumping fourth record.

It’s difficult to avoid adjectives such as “vast”, “epic” and “glorious” when reviewing 65DOS, so for now I won’t be looking up pretentious alternatives, but you get the point. ‘...Exploding’, like all 65DOS records is a journey, and one which takes you through an array of sounds, styles and emotions. Uplifting in places, downbeat in others and from the complex, jagged soundscapes to the no-nonsense, dance your arse off, it’s interesting and varied throughout; just another day in the office for the Sheffield quartet.

Mogwai ‘Burning’ Party at the Scala

2010-05-20T04:36:00.000-07:00

There will be a special one-off screening of the awe inspiring film ‘Burning’ at The Scala on Thursday 3rd June along with a special live DJ set with various Mogwai band members. The film by Vincent Moon and Nataniel La Souanec comprises footage shot over three nights at sold-out shows in Brooklyn on April 27th, 28th and 29th 2009 at the Music Hall Of Williamsburg & was shown for the first time at this year’s Glasgow Film Festival.

Ticket Details

ATP PRESENTS: BURNING PARTY

VENUE: The Scala

DATE: Thursday 3rd June 2010

ADVANCED TICKET PRICE : £10.00

VENUE ADDRESS: 275 Pentonville Road, King´s Cross, London N1 9NL

VENUE TELEPHONE: 020 7833 2022

DOORS OPEN : 7.30pm

AGE RESTRICTIONS: 18+ Only

http://www.atpfestival.com/events/mogwaiburningparty/tickets.php

The songs featured in the film are;

- The Precipice

- I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead

- Hunted By A Freak

- Like Herod

- New Paths to Helicon pt1

- Mogwai Fear Satan

- Scotland's Shame

- Batcat

Mogwai's first live album will be released on Rock Action Records on August 23rd. Released alongside the live film Burning. The formats will be CD and DVD and limited deluxe triple vinyl box set which will also include the dvd of Burning, set lists and a poster.

Lifeless - Full Chill review

2010-01-18T14:57:00.001-08:00

It’s got all the hallmarks of thrash; razor sharp, choppy riffing, shouty vocals, wild solos, and of course, one of the common downsides - monotony. Lifeless fit the thrash mould well! Veering towards the hardcore inspired end of thrash, comparisons could be drawn with the likes of Slayer and Send More Paramedics. ‘Full Chill’, despite earlier negativity, still has some greats songs on it. ‘Lifeless’ progresses into a rather intense beast while the solos in the title track ‘Full Chill’ would make Dave Mustaine shit his pants. It’s far from life-changing, but for those loyal to the mosh, you owe it to yourself.

[6/10]

My ebay shizzle

2010-01-18T04:14:00.000-08:00

Right, I'm having a clearout and I need to raise some dosh. So, go on, make me rich and cry a little bit on the inside too.

Clickity click

Dubstep?

2010-01-14T05:24:00.000-08:00

I've been wondering for bloody ages what the hell this Debstep phenomenon is, and I finally bothered to check it out.
I was expecting it to be rad, because anything to do with Dub is ace as fuck, but this just sounds like drum 'n' bass for pussies... and there was me thinking it was this cool new genre that people younger and cooler than me listen to. How wrong I was!

On the plus side, I discovered this amazing video. Oh how I wish I could dance like this!

Alexisonfire Live

2010-01-03T12:29:00.000-08:00

ARTIST: Alexisonfire
SUPPORT: The Ghost Of A Thousand
VENUE, TOWN: HMV Forum, Kentish Town, London
DATE: 14 October 2009
RATING: 5/5

RHV-approved hardcore mob The Ghost Of A Thousand have exploded onto the scene this year, and with their hard work rewarding them with the opening slot on this prestigious tour, let’s hope they’re here to stay. Crashing through a short, punchy and powerful set, the mighty TGOAT won over the uninitiated and left a lasting impression on anyone daring to participate in their wall of death. [5/5]

Four Year Strong stepped in for Fall Of Troy, who unfortunately pulled out, but the disappointment was soon a distant memory as FYS hit the stage like a bulldozer and powered through a new-material heavy set and even chucked in a bit of ‘Raining Blood’ for fun. [4/5]

Anti-Flag are veterans of the punk rock scene and it’s clear how dedicated they are to their fans and putting on a good show. Fast, furious and politically charged, Anti-Flag were on top form and even invited members of the crowd to join them on stage. That said, their set would have been more enjoyable if they weren’t so preachy. [4/5]

RHV were lucky enough to see Alexisonfire at a 250-person capacity venue only a few months ago, and they don’t lose a single ounce of their pure energy on the big stage. Opening with ‘Heading For The Sun’ from their new record, it was instant mayham as frontman George Pettit dived into the pit.

AOF stormed through a fantastic set pulling songs from right across their career: ‘Born And Raised’, ‘Drunks Lovers Sinners and Saints’ ‘Accidents’ and ‘Waters Wings’ were the picks of each record while the youthful ‘Accept Crime’ was a massive middle finger any homophobes and religious nutters stupid enough to go to a punk rock show. Alexisonfire have an incredible amount of outstanding songs, and course they can’t play them all, so a few people would have been disappointed with the lack of ‘Crisis’ and ‘Keep It On Wax’, but with an encore that included ‘Old Crows’ and ‘Happiness By The Kilowatt’ you really can’t complain. [5/5]

Set List: 1. Heading For The Sun | 2. Boiled Frogs | 3. We Are The Sound | 4. Drunks Lovers Sinners And Saints | 5. No Transitory | 6. Young Cardinals | 7. Water Wings | 8. Rough Hands | 9. Born And Raised | 10. This Could Be Anywhere In The World | 11. Accept Crime | 12. Accidents | 13. Old Crows | 14. Happiness By The Kilowatt

I originally posted this on Red Hot Velvet

Alberta Cross Live @ Bush Hall 17.11.2009

2009-11-30T13:33:00.000-08:00

Artist: Alberta Cross
SUPPORT:
VENUE, TOWN: Bush Hall, Shepherd's Bush, London
DATE: 17 November 2009
RATING: 5/5

Bush Hall has been an Edwardian dance hall, soup kitchen and snooker club in previous lives, though nowadays it poses as a tasteful and atmospheric venue with chandeliers, subtle red lighting and a piano in the corner – a perfect setting for the night's soulful headliner act.

After impressing RHV with their record 'The Broken Side Of Time', Alberta Cross take their music to a new level in the live environment. With such a selection of incredible songs, it's impossible for a band like Alberta Cross to go wrong. The new single 'Taking Control' was executed to perfection with flair and style as Petter Stakee and co, in just over an hour, put on a performance that was probably one of the best the lucky 300 fans are likely to see this year.

Rocky number 'ATX' managed to move an otherwise static crowd and inspire middle aged men to crowd surf and jump around like they were 16 again, while 'Rise From The Shadows' created a mood so sombre that had they lost power, you would have been able to hear a pin drop.

Apparently everyone with long blonde hair and is in a band is trying to be Kurt Cobain, and a lot of people are saying this about front man Petter Stakee, but don't be fooled by the fools because if you watch Alberta Cross for yourself, you'll struggle to compare their unique blues, folk, country and classic rock inspired wall of sound to anything you've ever heard before.

I originally wrote this for Red Hot Velvet

Mandelson is a real piece of shit

2009-11-18T13:28:00.000-08:00

If the government gets its way, anyone caught downloading music will have their internet connections either strangled or cut completely.

Our friend at Gravy Train Central [parliament] Lord Mandelson is behind this initiative saying: "Downloading somebody's work without paying for it – whether it be music, film or computer games – is not a victimless act. It poses a genuine threat to our creative industries and to the livelihoods of talented, hard-working people striving to get a foothold in them." Anyone remotely sane would agree with him; most people don't work for free and nobody expects them to.

The fact that stealing is wrong is not the issue at hand – anyone with any love for music wouldn't condone stealing it on a massive scale and not contributing to the industry. What Mandy needs to ask himself however is 'why people steal?' Here's a clue: it's because they're poor, desperate and addicted. It's a shame he's too stupid to see that this addiction is ultimately beneficial to the industry because eventually these illegal downloaders will spend money; I mean a night out to a gig is hardly a cheap affair now is it? A ticket can cost anything between £5 and £100, a t-shirt £15 to £25, £5 on a travel-card, £5 on food… the list goes on.

Further to that, it is possible to legally stream almost everything anyway. YouTube and Spotify allow users to legally stream music and music videos because they pay for licences, which are in turn paid for by advertising and subscriptions (as is the case with Spotify). A simple Ad-Blocker, which anyone with more than 2 brains cells has, will quickly deal with the adverts and the industry is back to square one – well, except this time it's not illegal. Not really a solution to the problem after all.

All cutting off and demonising music stealers will do is piss them off and make them resentful. First rule of business: never alienate your market. If the industry continues as it is, people will lose interest in music. Anyone who's not completely devoid of common sense can see that

The issue has been in the spotlight for so long now that even fossils such as Elton John and Gary Kemp have stuck their noses in, not to mention a couple of artists who are actually relevant [albeit rubbish] such as Lily Allen and James Blunt. But what they all have in common is that they're on the other side of the fence, have money and have all sold a bucket load regardless. Whether or not they support the proposals, their opinions are disproportionately valuable. Chances are, they probably get sent music for free anyway. It's all very similar to America's stance on Iran's nuclear programme: do as we say not as we do, huh?

I originally wrote this article for Fame Online

Fuck touts

2009-11-16T01:16:00.000-08:00

Ticket touts bother me to the point where I actually feel violent. You know the type; they hang around tube stations and pace up and down the queue outside the venue shouting “Any tickets for tonight? Buy or sell”

Why the government do nothing to stop these toothless, cousin bothering, immoral, greedy scumbags is beyond me. I can only assume that it’s because touts remind them so much of themselves.

There is nothing like the thrill of live music. Your favourite band, live and in the flesh, diving into your cranium and rattling your ribs is a fantastic feeling. Thousands of sweaty bodies dancing together like crazed banshees, all your mates with you and a couple of overpriced pints of warm beer – lovely! So it’s no surprise that the gig-going population get so upset about ticket touts.

A quick Google search brings up tales of fans who try to buy tickets the instant they go on sale, only to find they’ve sold out, yet appear on Ebay shortly after with 300% mark-ups. How can this be fair? How dare they profit from the fruits of someone else creative ability? How dare they hold tickets ransom? How dare they get in the way of an individual and the simple pleasures in life?

The popularity of the internet has made it even easier for touts too, so not only are they greedy parasites, they are greedy parasites and cowards who don’t have to look their victims in the eye while relieving them of a week’s wages for something that should only cost £20.

Touts are organised gangs of criminals. Make no mistake. If you buy from them, you are funding their criminal activity. Do you think this is their only source of income? Do you think they have real jobs? No.

They are petty crooks and dole-ites who get away with it because people still buy from them and the government do nothing to stop them. For anyone who’s ever complained about touts – don’t buy from them, don’t fund their trade and tells your friends to do the same.

I often hear many counter arguments in favour of these touts and they’re complete nonsense. Here are a couple of them:

They provide a valuable service for people who can’t get tickets.
Well, that’s because touts bought them all. Touts work in gangs and when tickets go on sale, packs of them will call ticket lines at the same time and purposely attempt to crash websites, making it difficult for the genuine fan to get hold of tickets.

People who have spares can sell them more easily.
People who have spares can just as easily sell them at face value to genuine fans on the night, but are generally unable to because touts intimidate and bully people who attempt to attempt to bypass them. They are thugs who will do anything for money. I read a story about a man who had a spare ticket for Iron Maiden a couple of years ago. The tout offered him £5 for it but was selling them on for £100. The man declined to sell and waited around for a genuine fan and then sold it to the genuine fan for £5, only to then be threatened by the tout and his nasty tout mates. Go figure.

It’s easy money.
So is beating a pensioner to within an inch of death and robbing them, but it doesn’t mean you should do it.

We live in a capitalist society – simple economics baby.
Yes, and look where that got us: millions unemployed, record bankruptcies and families losing their homes across the country. Go team capitalism!

It’s not just gigs either. Sporting events, theatre and comedy also suffer this plague. Let’s hope that one day the government does something to save the entertainment industry and that the stupid cash rich, time poor fools stop handing over big wads of cash to these snivelling criminals.

CKY Live @ The Barfly 6.11.2009

2009-11-15T14:57:00.000-08:00

ARTIST: CKY
SUPPORT: Outcry Collective
VENUE, TOWN: Barfly, Camden, London
DATE: 6 November 2009
RATING: 5/5

It's CKY's second visit to our humble island in 2009, and after their short stint earlier in the year, this time it's an intimate club tour. Announced with less than a week's notice, CKY graced the stage to their hardcore and loyal fans and repaid their patience, and then some.

The Barfly holds only 200 people, though the heat and intensity of the band made it feel tenfold. Uncomplicated and unpretentious, CKY blew the doors off with an outstanding set which included 'Flesh Into Gear', '96 Quite Bitter Beings' and 'Attached At The Hip' from their classic records, 'Tripled Manic State' from 'An Answer Can be Found' and a couple of new ones in the shape of 'The Boardwalk Body' and 'A# Roller Rager'.

Confidently dominating the stage, frontman Deron Miller commanded total respect from the wild crowd and it was more of a party and request show than a conventional gig.

It's a glorious return for CKY, a band who many thought were finished after a 4-year hiatus, but they're back and better than they ever were. CKY are a real fan's band too, hanging around the bar before and after the show to meet and greet, you really can't ask for much more!

Taken from Red Hot Velvet