Glasspiders Self Titled EP

As I write this, the sun is beaming down on an unusually sunny British spring day. Who would’ve guessed that I’d be outside writing reviews in the middle of April? And if the weather wasn't already enough to kick start my excitement for the summer, I can’t seem to get enough of Pink Lemonade; the 4^th track of Glasspiders’ new EP. Glasspiders is the newest side project from, pop punk band, Decade’s front man; Alex Sears. The EP is yet to be released and after getting my hands on it early, I cannot express my excitement for it to be released in the coming weeks.

After my first listen, Pink Lemonade seemed to grab my attention the most. The song itself is a shouty, punky, riot of a 2 minute track with grungy noisy elements in addition to the usual emo guitar riff expected from bands such as Pity Sex.

I have to be honest; within the first few listens of the entire EP I was immediately hooked. Something about the catchy emo riffs and the punky feel gives the entire EP its own original flair that will be extremely valuable upon release. Recently, we’ve all noticed a sudden surge for bands such as Pity Sex, Snowing and Tigers Jaw and I’m certain that Glasspiders will steadily climb to the top of the game in the coming months and really make their mark on the seemingly undercover scene.

Each song packs a punch with poignant and true-to-feeling lyrics disguised in a punky head-bang rhythm which it makes them all the more effective in conveying a raw and edgy feeling hiding behind a feel-good guitar. The tracks are evidently budget recorded, yet still carry the clear, executive, professionalism of a studio EP without removing and editing the personal flair of the band itself. The raw gritty guitar doesn’t fail to grab your attention, bum notes and all!

All I have to say is, Glasspiders are one to be watch. And before you know it, they’ll be travelling around the UK with their poppy dance beats and shouty message taking the noisy emo pop scene by storm.

Enter Shikari / 22.02.2015 / Middlesbrough Town Hall

After reviewing Enter Shikari's new album 'The Mindsweep' back in January, I was expecting great things post release. And on February 22nd, I was given the opportunity to see whether my expectations were correct. And not only were my expectations matched, they were topped.

 

In my last review of their album, I identified how strong they were and how they'd really harnessed the best version of the band and made it even better (despite it seeming impossible to many). I was incredibly impressed to see that they had not only harnessed this version of themselves for the record, but were able to put this across in their live shows and give a performance the band and every single fan should be passionately proud of.

 

Enter Shikari exploded onto the stage at Middlesbrough Town Hall to show the small North Eastern town what they were made of, and I can assure you; the crowd were impressed. A band who carries a strong fan base and impressive repertoire of combining rock, heavier elements of alternative/metal and drum & bass certainly attracts a very varied and diverse crowd. But nevertheless, the atmosphere was electrifying. I was previously aware of Shikari's epic reputation of putting on a spectacular, consistently impressive show, and I was definitely not disappointed.

 

I was noticeably impressed with the set list. A 17 song set with the combination of 5 of the band's top releases including 'Common Dreads', 'Rat Race', 'Take to the Skies', 'A Flash Flood of Colour' and their newest release, 'The Mindsweep'. This combination of older songs was seamless. This is something I do search for in live performances of established bands. I find a performance very rigid if the transition between earlier music is obviously contrasted to their newer material. But with Shikari, this was not the case at all. They had control and confidence and originality in the execution of both their older and new material. I also felt that they executed songs from 'The Mindsweep' with incredible confidence and felt that the performance was established as though they had been familiar with performing this material for much longer than they had.

 

Finally, not only was the musical performance one to be remembered, the visual show was impeccable. The light show was something else and was visually attractive and genuinely captivated your attention for the majority of the show. However, I do not think it was off putting from the show at hand. In sync with the drum and bass parts of their music that the fans admire so much, it was an impressive addition to an already electrifying set from Enter Shikari.

             

MALLORY KNOX WITH SUPPORT FROM MOOSE BLOOD, FORT HOPE AND FRNKIERO ANDTHE CELLABRATION – 11TH NOVEMBER 2014

I had been incredibly excited for this gig from the minute I found out about it. Two of my favourite bands were performing in one gig and if that isn’t something to get excited about then I’m not sure what is.

The first act on, with a strangely short set, was Moose Blood. They are a 4 piece emo/alt rock band who has rocketed to the forefront of alternative music scene with their brand new album “I’ll Keep You in Mind From Time to Time”. Their grungey and original sound has become something that many people, including myself, have found addicting. After seeing them perform live before, I had a reasonable idea of what to expect from the band. All my original expectations were matched and exceeded, they were passionate, dedicated and original as per usual and attracted the interest from the crowd immediately, and sustained this interest to the end.

Frnkiero andthe Cellabration are new on the music scene and have made a startling impact with both positive and negative opinions surrounding the band. The lead singer, Frank Iero, is finding his own musical career after the break up of his previous band, My Chemical Romance. This break up came as quite a shock and this new music has also been the same. It’s different, quirky and definitely original and is something every individual who is interested should check out for themselves. I originally formed a negative opinion after hearing about it, but went to the gig with an open mind and I was actually proved wrong. However different this music and style may seem, it still has that raw and poignant sound that I associated so well with MCR. He has developed it and harnessed it as his own and executed it with such precision that I was incredibly impressed and it was evident in the crowd response that they were equally as impressed.

Last but certainly not least, Mallory Knox. After already creating quite a stir and impact within the current music scene, they did it again by releasing their brand new album “Asymmetry”. The album is a further developed version of their previous music, showing positive progression and consistency. Sometimes consistency can be seen as boring or predictable, but in this case, it’s neither. It’s their style that people adore so fondly and I found, purely from the crowd response, that they were adored by the audience who were raring to see them perform. The set list was a variety of older popular songs of theirs and some clear favourites from the new album creating a great response from new and old fans throughout. Their performance was energetic, confidence and electrifying from a band who were clearly experts in their field of performance with bags of experience and self confidence. All in all, I thought they were amazing and I’m sure many critics would agree that Mallory Knox are a permanent feature of the alternative music scene and will be for many years to come.  

Review of Arctic Crescent

Arctic Crescent, an Irish band playing what i would relate to as indie acoustic with some alt rock features seamlessly weaved among the poignant acoustic guitar and piano. It is an original mix, something that works incredibly well, and did not fit into my previous expectations. I find the vocals are beautifully haunting in a strange and individual way. After listening to the 2 available songs as a sample from their YouTube channel, I discovered a theme of peacefully strong vocals and lyrics. I found this theme was a feature on both songs which to me signaled the beginning of a firm musical identity. This firm identity is something I find many new bands are lacking. If this identity is already a feature in the early days, I find them promising. Their potential is really just beginning and I believe that within the future they will progress and expand and grow, hopefully furthering their individualistic style and making promising changes to really expand this original sound and identity.

All in all, I believe Arctic Crescent are ones to watch as a strong band with big promise.