Robyn Writes

Bangers – Good Livin’ [EP]


(Click to be taken to Bangers’ Bandcamp page)

Good Livin’, the latest EP from Bangers clocks in at about 11 minutes. It doesn’t seem like a long period of time, but it’s just enough. The Cornish trio are set for big things, recently scoring a support slot with Blink-182 at their upcoming show at the Eden Project, but is Good Livin’ able to measure up?

The short answer is a huge, resounding yes. Bangers have certainly crafted a fine release. Upon first listen, it’s impossible to not smile. Every track sounds uplifting and yet, unrelenting. In particular, opening track Good Good Livin’ achieves this with the definite potential for a massive singalong chorus and some cheeky palm muting. The Borrowers is slightly more aggressive in its tone but still features some great lead guitar at the start and a clever, intricate instrumental section towards the end. As I said in my review of Crash Doubt, Bangers are excellent musicians – living proof that punk rock doesn’t need to be three chords and some shitty distortion. The Mitigation Committee features yet another brilliant instrumental section and some sweet tempo changes, as well as some nicely done dual vocals that almost become like gang vocals because they sound so impassioned. A Man Like Jack McCall takes a slight change in direction – a much slower pace – but still features some killer woahs to create a superb ending track.

But upon a second listen, Bangers hit a totally different mark. Economic crisis, the problems of working yourself to the bone, feelings of inadequacy and rising above those feelings, as well as feeling like an outsider and an overwhelming fear of succumbing to the idiocy of the masses. All of this bubbles under the surface, the lyrics often hidden under the power of the vocals. While Bangers can craft a decent tune, they also write songs that resonate deep within. The metaphors they use mean that these songs will be relevant for a long time to come, not just within our current climate. It’s seriously clever stuff, but not alienating in any way – at the heart of it, it’s just good honest punk rock.

If you in any way, shape or form, love melodic punk rock, then it’s certainly a crime not to check out the new Bangers release. If you love good music, then it’s even more of a crime not to pick it up.

4.5 out of 5 high fives!

Take One Car – It’s Going To Be A Nice Day



Take One Car’s sophomore release is ambitious, to say the least. But the upstate NY four-piece seem to have struck gold. It’s Going To Be A Nice Day is a blistering journey through several musical territories – post-hardcore, indie and atmospheric rock, to name but a few. And for the most part, it’s a thoroughly exciting ride.

Taking a bit of a gamble, the opening titular track is completely instrumental, clocking in at just over seven minutes. However, the band keep it varied enough and effectively manage to showcase the best parts of their sound in one go. That said, it doesn’t necessarily let you in on what’s coming next – following track and first single Dear Ronnie certainly follows suit but I Know Why You Went Into The Woods is a terrifically eerie affair with an absolute stomper of an intro, very unlike any other track on the release. That’s not to say that other tracks have no lasting, haunting quality at all – Tyler Irish’s half-spoken, half-screamed vocals give that feeling throughout. Most of the time, this works well but occasionally, I found myself longing for a more tuneful approach, especially when teased with it in So Much In Return.

The musicality of the album is incredible. Take One Car are an extremely talented unit. There are some great riffs dotted throughout, demonstrating that rocky feel, and Virtue in particular begins with some absolute swagger. However, the most impressive part of the album is the atmosphere that they manage to create. Every song, at some point, feels epic. Drawing from post-rock, dual sweeping guitars makes their way to the forefront, but Branden Waite’s bass gives it a kick to make sure it doesn’t get boring. The band experiment with different styles – The Ocean Song has a dark country feel to it, whereas Dear Ronnie sounds akin to Underoath’s earlier output in place. They all seem natural though and each song flows together beautifully.

Lyrically, the album feels like a grand concept of some kind. While not officially a concept album, the lyrics spin tales of sorrow and longing, and of death as well, while feeling as if they’re all part of one big story. In final song Is The Best Way To Die, a fantastic lament on the fragility of life, there are a vast array of great lines – the wonderfully morbid “You’ll one day rot into me and that’s as close as we will be” being one of my favourites. There’s good writing all throughout the album, but particularly in The Ocean Song as well.

The album does have faults – though they are few and far between. Towards the end of the album, the songs begin to follow a typical formula; great intro, the vocals kick in with the same shouted tone and then a long instrumental section follows. The craft in each individual component is excellent, but the songs themselves start to feel too similar to each other. Thankfully, it doesn’t last too long as the final two tracks bring back some more variety. There are also a few too many long instrumental sections put close together – for example, Patriarchs, a purely instrumental track, comes far too early; especially given that only a few songs before it was the long instrumental intro. That said, these are only minor issues and don’t completely detract to what is otherwise an intriguing and complex musical experience.

It’s Going To Be A Nice Day is a triumph for Take One Car. As said on their website, “We have spent the last year working, pretty much non stop, on making it an album that “WE” love…an album we would listen to.” And it’s certainly paid off – they should indeed be proud of their creation.

4 out of 5 high fives!

Above The Underground – Autumns [EP]




(Click the pic to download!)

One of Lazy Bear’s latest free(!) releases, Cheshire lads Above The Underground have come out swinging with their latest EP, Autumns. A rip roaring affair, ATU navigate the murky waters of the pop-punk genre with ease.

Straight off, Anchors, a track included on Lazy Bear’s previous compilation, grabs you by the throat and tosses you across the room with its passion and aggression. Some incredible gang vocals, which feature strongly through the rest of the EP, kick this song into gear and the intensity doesn’t let up at all. For All It’s Worth is strongly reminiscent of early Northstar – catchy choruses, a few great woah’s and a melody that’ll stick in your head for days. And yet, my favourite track of the EP is Under The Weather. Guaranteed to be the unsung hit of the year, it features some awesome drums, some killer hooks and breakdowns that’ll have you bouncing off the walls.

While ATU have found their formula and know what works, they’re not exactly averse to some experimentation either. Lights is an atmospheric interlude, showing off what effects the band has managed to master. Don’t be fooled though, it pays off for what makes a great intro into Close Your Eyes And Drive. The aforementioned track is a great one, but it’s where the EP should have ended. Final track, MMIX features some incredibly repetitive and rudimentary piano which jars with the guitars. The track just feels so much different to the rest of the EP and would better have been included in a full length album.

While the EP wears its influences on its sleeve (many tracks sounding fairly akin to You Me At Six, Northstar and New Found Glory), Autumns is still a fantastic release and in many ways, its familiarity makes it all the more endearing. Perfect to brighten up this (so far) weary, rainy June, Above The Underground certainly deserve your time and your love.

4 out of 5 high fives!

Kerrang: Fuelled By Relentless (Skindred, Yashin, Feed The Rhino, With One Last Breath) – The Garage London, 5/6/12

As the Kerrang Awards loom, a loosely linked ‘tour’ with varying qualities of headliners can always be anticipated – 2012 was no different. The first of this short string of gigs was held on a freezing cold, very rainy Jubilee weekend, an hour and a quarter after it was supposed to start. Christ, even Queenie had to be having a better time than this.

Firstly, music aside, we were at the ‘Fuelled by Relentless’ tour, held at the ‘Relentless Garage’…

‘Can I have a Relentless?’

‘Nope, we don’t have any.’

‘What energy drinks do you have?’

‘None. Not Even Coffee. We hate Caffeine. Dirty Dirty Evil Caffeine,’ ( I may have paraphrased).

‘In that case, fine sir, can I have a thimble-full of lemonade?’

‘Yes, yes you can. That’ll be fifty quid.’

True story bro.

The tragedy of caffeine absence aside, myself and my drowned companion eventually made our way through the crowds, rung out our sodden coats and set up camp near the overpriced, understocked bar.

First up were With One Last Breath (3.5/5), a pleasant Asking Alexandria-style outfit, fresh from a triumphant support slot on Of Mice and Men’s most recent tour. Now, I rather enjoy this relatively new genre – the smattering of synths, the inevitable clean nasal-y vocals, some chunky riffs and just enough shouting to piss of your mum, but not enough as to scare off the teenagers. And, on the whole, the boys did good. With some catchy hooks and near pitch-perfect clean vocals, WOLB managed to create an atmosphere that almost crackled with energy. Yet while I enjoyed the majority of their set, sometimes their riffs dwindled and fell into mediocrity. But hey, not every song can be a cracker, right? Despite this, with such a fast-growing young following, they’ll no doubt be heading towards large tours of their own.

To say Feed the Rhino (3.5/5) were the wildcard booking of the night would be a massive understatement. This was hardcore, bearded, angry and ready to flatten you; a musical shovel to the face. The Kent five-piece delivered a blistering slab of aggression to an enthralled and increasingly bruised crowd – the first mini wall of death of the evening was nothing short of a joy to behold. A tip of the cap to all involved. Throughout their set, old material from ‘Mr Red Eye’ blended seamlessly with new tracks from the upcoming ‘The Burning Sons’, cementing FTR’s place as British hardcore stalwarts. While I can’t say they’ll have many crossover fans from the WOLB and Yashin camps, it’s safe to say they definitely won over a chunk of the audience who were otherwise unfamiliar with the genre.

Yashin (4/5) are going places. They have the songs, the musicianship, the showmanship, and most importantly, the hair, to become Kerrang’s new darlings. Firstly, I’d classify myself as a Yashin fan; I’ve seen them multiple times, have the CD, the t-shirt and the overriding sense of age that comes with attending one of their shows (At such gigs, as soon as you pass 18, you’re automatically demoted to drinking at the back of the room with the dads.), and their set was good. Not brilliant, but good. Yashin have damn good songs – catchy, often anthemic, and a lot of fun to listen to. They’re arguably masters of the clean/scream dual vocal approach and have a very tight, practised stage presence. Despite this, they seemed to fall a little flat on the night; clean vocalist Harry Radford seemed to be slow getting on his game, and their choice to play predominantly new, unfamiliar material may not have been the best. While down the front, they had their obligatory die-hard screaming fans, at the back, those of us who fancied a nice drink and a dance were forced to endure the overly-vocal musings of a decidedly anti-Yashin herd of elephants. You’re facing forty, pissed and hungry. We get it. Now shush. Despite their valuable input, the set was incredibly enjoyable – vocalist Kevin Miles unfurled a vocal versatility that just about blasted everyone else’s efforts out of the water; the screams had a great natural tone, and the growls were deep and clear enough to wake Cthulhu from his watery home. The new material, despite a muted reception, sounded catchy as hell, and like so many others, I’m more than keen to hear their upcoming offering ‘We Created a Monster’.

Skindred (5/5). Where to start? I’ve been to hundreds of gigs, seen countless bands, endless musicians and enough gimmicks to finish off Eurovision, but never, ever have I seen a band that consistently delivers like Skindred. Being charismatic, animated and distinctive is one thing, and being note-perfect and skilled is another, but somehow, by some cosmic interference, Skindred were created to embody all such traits. Benji Webbe’s showmanship is almost as notorious as their genre-destroying sound; Ragga-Metal…Punk…stuff. Whatever it is, it works; it’s a sound so distinctive and personal to the Welsh outfit, that to hear anyone else try to imitate it would feel alien at the very least. The set thrown at the Garage was a well-considered mix of old and new- starting with the veritable aural assault of ‘Roots Rock Riot’, and finishing with crowd-favourite ‘Warning’ (where the patented ‘Newport Helicopter’ was out in force). Anthemic tracks such as ‘Trouble’, ‘Nobody’ and ‘Stand for Something’ were delivered with all the ease of seasoned professionals, yet performed with all the passion and intensity of a Rottweiler on crack. As ever, Skindred’s set was intermingled with a plethora of samples and mismatched outros – from recordings of the Imperial March and Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies’, to brief performances of AC/DC’s ‘Back in Black’ and their own ‘Rudeboy for Life’ (a hugely underrated song that should really grace more setlists). Samples and snippets aside, it is Webbe’s stage presence and empowering speeches that really wrap up the live Skindred experience; through collective gestures and shirt-swinging, the crowd move as one, but through his speech, we all feel as one. His impassioned sentiments of ‘liking what you like, and fuck everyone else’ ring true through the generations and result in a palpable sense of unity and togetherness. Quite often, Webbe takes digs at the audience, layers on sarcasm like concrete, or uses high levels of self deprecation to get laughs from the audience – yet tonight his tack was different. It was positivity from start to finish; no mid-way pauses, no insults and no slurs. To leave this Skindred gig as anything other than sweaty and happy, was nothing short of impossible.

Crash Doubt Festival – The Showroom Lincoln, 3/6/12 [pt 2]

The Sunday started off wet and miserable. On our drive into Lincoln, Kitteh and I stared gloomily out of the windows at the grey skies and thanked the hardcore gods that the venue was indoors. When we were inside, they tried to foist off some Powerade onto us instead of Red Bull. Kitteh was perturbed, I was ecstatic. Full of sugar and a new found zeal, we stumbled upon Towering Heights (3.5/5), a pleasant surprise for the first band of the day. Instead of the screamo-esque sort of thing we were expecting, we were hit by some “Faith No More times Guns And Roses taking a segway via Neil Young and being pretty good” rock and roll. A soulful start to our Sunday, Towering Heights had some great musical talent on show. The bass in particular was magnificent and the vocalist had some powerful lungs on him. It was an odd fit, but one we were very happy with. With a bit more confidence, Towering Heights will be incredible. They Say Fall (2/5) were another story – kiddie hardcore but without the typical screaming vocals. While the band played some highly recognisable but relatively tight melodies, the vocalist wailed over the top like a banshee who’d been impaled with a flaming spear and had just been told their cat had died. Best to be avoided unless they get a new vocalist.

Never Cry Wolf (2.5/5) were yet another of the bro style hardcore bands we stumbled in on (and usually promptly walked away from) throughout the weekend. They played fine but unenthusiastically and failed to grab us, there being nothing particularly individual about their style at all. Brotherhood of the Lake (3.5/5) were a great improvement on this, assaulting our eardrums with their furious yet doomy hardcore. Peppering their set with movie quotes started off cool but got a little bit stale as it happened before every song without any real concept behind it, but ignoring that, they were solid, if requiring a little more movement (personally, we were just a bit upset that the hammered guy from the day before wasn’t pulling some moves in front of them).

Upstairs, Astpai (3.5/5) played some great gruff punk. Bouncy and heartfelt, it was the stuff of Tony Hawk games. While we only caught half a set, they made for a fine interval in between bands on the Big Cheese stage. Then downstairs, Mallory Knox (4.5/5 from Ripper, but a resounding 5/5 from Kitteh) blew us away. A fantastic deviation from the identikit hardcore, Mallory Knox are heartfelt, honest and catchy as hell. Their fine-tuned melodies flooded the venue and were received by an enthusiastic and highly grateful crowd. Woody from POLAR also made a far less threatening appearance, which was nice.

Above Them (5/5) are never, ever anything short of amazing. On Sunday, on the Punktastic stage, it was simply a joy to watch them perform. Above Them have brought out my favourite record so far this year (and if you haven’t got Are We A Danger To Ourselves, go and get it now from Specialist Subject Records, one of the best decisions you’ll ever make) and while only a few songs from that made it into their set, their positively electric performance showed them at the best I’ve ever seen them at. Melodic punk rock at its absolute best.

Departures (3.5/5) were pretty good fun. Good melodic hardcore. A clear Parkway Drive influence coming through, and I’m sure if they were on a bigger stage, they’d be a bit more lively but were a bit too timid to step off and parade in the pit like a few of the other bands. Nevertheless, I’ve heard their album is great and based on their performance, I’ll be bound to check it out. TRC (4.5/5) were possibly our biggest surprise of the weekend. Absolutely crushing hardcore with a rap element to it. Incredible breakdowns too. Kitteh and I were left scratching our heads, holding extremely hot cups of tea, thinking “how have we not heard of these guys before?” Now we have, and we’re happy that TRC are in our lives.

Our final band of the weekend was Random Hand (5/5). Random Hand are brilliant wherever they are. But on the Punktastic stage this weekend, in their own words, they KILLED IT. The best performance of the weekend, Random Hand made us all dance, skank and lose our minds at their simply sublime ska-punk. Ever the masters of banter (“I once tried to reach the French town of Evian on a novelty pedalo but didn’t get there cause I only had an hour and had to take it back”), there were dual circlepits, police sirens, general mayhem and I thought the floor was going to collapse. The lads were on top form. And with that, Kitteh and I decided to be not-so-punk, go home, get a cup of tea and a cheese and tomato pizza and watch The Cowboy Way in our pyjamas because we were absolutely knackered and The Skints are supporting Less Than Jake later this month anyway. But there wasn’t a better way we could have ended the weekend, and we couldn’t have celebrated the end of our degree anywhere better than Crash Doubt.