Ten reviews you might have missed

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1 LIVE: 2000 Trees 2018 – Thursday

2 Panic! at the Disco – ‘Pray For the Wicked’

3 You Know The Drill – ‘Selfhood’

4 LIVE: Download Festival 2018 – Sunday

5 LIVE: Download Festival 2018 – Saturday

6 LIVE: Download Festival 2018 – Friday

7 LIVE: Slam Dunk Festival 2018

8 LIVE: Camden Rocks Festival 2018

9 I, The Mapmaker – ‘Searching’

10 LIVE: Cancer Bats / Death By Stereo / Funeral Shakes @ The Underworld, Camden.

Reviews from Friday 27 July 2018

Axis of Despair – ‘Contempt for Man’

Although this is their first full-length album, Axis of Despair are entering the frame with cap-doffing pedigree. Emerging from the ashes of drummer Anders Jakobson’s post-Nasum grindcore mob Coldworker, the Swedish quartet also boast one-third of Livet Som Insats amongst their lineup. It’s with this reputation that they come roaring

Rise Against – ‘The Ghost Note Symphonies Vol 1’

Acoustic records are a product that can divide, lessen or expand a band’s following, popularity and public opinion. For some it is a risky move, for others an inevitability to keep themselves relevant and get another release onto the market to appease record labels. But this series of haunting

Thursday 26 July 2018

LIVE: ROAM / Milestones / Wolf Culture @ Arts Club, Liverpool

Summer is a pretty rubbish time to be a gig fan in the UK. As festival season takes over and temperatures increase from ‘meh’ to ‘perma-sweaty’ overnight, the steady flow of tours dries up faster than you can say “hosepipe ban”. Tonight, the drought ends in more than

Wednesday 25 July 2018

LIVE: Pallbearer / Tuskar @ The Underworld, Camden

Success is a funny thing, especially in the music world. Some bands explode in popularity overnight, then burn out as quickly as they came. Some take years to establish a fan base, their recognition only coming long after they’ve split. Little Rock’s Pallbearer are a rarity in that their

Tuesday 24 July 2018

LIVE: 2000 Trees 2018 – Thursday

2000 Trees is one of the most beloved festivals of the season thanks to consistently superb line-ups that focus on the best of British alternative music, along with an unrivalled atmosphere that embraces the spirit of our own, cosy corner of the music industry. This year’s festival sees US

Monday 23 July 2018

LIVE: The Dwarves @ Rebellion, Manchester

“We are the greatest rock and roll band in the world,” proclaims Blag Dahlia, a man who never could be accused of a lack of self-confidence. The Dwarves are back on British soil and ready to beat on our undeserving eardrums. A sighting of Chicago’s finest

LIVE: UK Tech Fest 2018 – Sunday

Tech Fest began in 2011 with a mission to provide a place where “bands and fans are able to integrate, network and share the passion of music together”. Now in its eighth edition, it’s fair to say the mission has been accomplished, judging by the loyal community that comes

Friday 20 July 2018

Trash Boat – ‘Crown Shyness’

When Trash Boat crashed the punk party back in 2014, the five-piece from St Albans quickly became synonymous with the bigger names in the scene. Leaning towards punk rock, they injected the predominantly American pop punk scene of the time with the visceral energy of EP ‘Brainwork’, before releasing

LIVE: UK Tech Fest 2018 – Saturday

Thursday 19 July 2018

LIVE: UK Tech Fest 2018 – Friday

Wednesday 18 July 2018

Skeletonwitch – ‘Devouring Radiant Light’

When Skeletonwitch dropped their first major release ‘Beyond The Permafrost’ back in 2007, they stuck out from the then-burgeoning retro thrash crowd like a sore thumb. Where everyone else was content to play from the 80s crossover playbook, white high-tops and ripped jeans included, Skeletonwitch dared to

Tuesday 17 July 2018

LIVE: Touché Amoré / Gender Roles @ Rescue Rooms, Nottingham

Festival season is officially upon us, and so is the slew of side-shows and one-offs the international bands use to make their trips to our shores more worthwhile. Tonight, before they journey down south for their performance at 2000 Trees Festival, Los Angeles post-hardcore sweethearts Touché Amoré stop off

Wednesday 11 July 2018

Bury Tomorrow – Black Flame

Bury Tomorrow have been ever present on the UK metalcore scene since 2006, and throughout their career have always been on the cusp of something quite special. 2016’s “Earthbound” was an incredible piece of work, but it seemed like that they had always failed to gain traction and propel

Tuesday 10 July 2018

Real Friends – ‘Composure’

Pop punk regularly gets a bad rap from alternative music purists, mostly because it’s often aimed at a younger audience and therefore seen as a lesser medium. Every so often, though, a band releases a record of such undeniably high quality that the gatekeepers have no choice but to

Monday 09 July 2018

Century Thirteen – ‘Century Thirteen’

In making their self-titled LP Glaswegian punks Century Thirteen went against their previous conventional wisdom and enlisted the help of a producer. The decision to move away from self-recording was said to have been taken to provide an extra sense of freedom in both arrangements and performance.

LIVE: Modern Life Is War / Svalbard / Swain / Who Cares? @ Brudenell Social Club, Leeds

Trust Modern Life Is War, one of the darkest, moodiest bands in hardcore, to arrive in the UK smack-bang in the middle of a seemingly endless heatwave. The beer garden at the front of the Brudenell is positively packed out with moshers in sunglasses enjoying an ice-cold beer. Unfortunately

Asylums – ‘Alien Human Emotions’

It’s generally acknowledged that music and society are closely intertwined. From Lou Reed and Warhol’s Factory to Dead Kennedy’s ‘Holiday In Cambodia’, they reflect the landscape around them. Given the somewhat tumultuous state the world is in, both politically and societally, perhaps this is what drove London four-piece Asylums

Friday 06 July 2018

The Devin Townsend Project – ‘Ocean Machine – Live At The Ancient Roman Theatre’

Since the completion of the initial four album DTP series in 2011, Devin Townsend fans have grown somewhat accustomed to being treated to ‘one off’ performances; the four ‘By a Thread’ shows were followed by ‘Retinal Circus’ a year later in 2012, with Ziltoid Live at the Royal Albert

LIVE: Thrice, Brutus @ The Electric Ballroom

Chances are your favourite band’s favourite band is Thrice. One of the most revered bands in the alternative scene, and near the top of the list of the most underrated bands in the world, Thrice made a stop in Camden Town on Download Weekend to treat their diehard fans to an unstoppable show. Opening proceedings are Brutus,

Wednesday 04 July 2018

MAYPINE – ‘Bend/Break’

Let’s get straight down to business – because that’s exactly what Brighton alt-rockers MAYPINE do on new EP ‘Bend/Break’. Prepare yourself in advance, because you won’t be given a second to breathe once you hit play on this one. First track and lead single ‘Give’ kicks straight in with thudding