DiSvsMatt has written the following articles:
Hungover from the night before I slowly bring myself to open my eyes. The midday sun is piercing through the curtains. I can hear chattering birds through my open window; distant trains, the odd car, roadworks and general activity I’d rather I wasn’t hearing. I stumble my way downstairs, collect the post, stumble my wa»
Pennywise are one of those bands kindling a flame that seems to be getting brighter and brighter as the years roll on. As undeniable heroes of the melodic punk scene their fully-charged ball-busting approach, coupled with a positive socio-political message that belies many of the Californian scene’s fake-punkers, ha»
Their second full length, ‘A Comprehensive Guide to Modern Rebellion’ (1996) demonstrated an awesome blend of up-beat pop-punkery and foot-stomping hardcore grooves. But, four albums later, the excitement behind Good Riddance seems to be waning, each release ostensibly shedding once-inspiring layers of ve»
What? Am I reading this right? Can you believe Give Up The Ghost actually think they have elements of Joy Division, Pulp and My Bloody Valentine in their sound? I mean, c’mon! This is hardcore punk rock not post-indie experimentation. What is it with hardcore bands listing these kinds of act»
Imagine, if you will, that you’re lying back against a cool wooden bench overlooking California’s Huntington Beach pier; the dirt-red sun is reflecting over a shimmering ocean allowing sparks of light to rebound off your friends’ sunglasses as they gather round after a day’s surfing to enjoy the last evening of summer.»
Not exactly the most obvious place to start a short pre-Reading warm-up tour, there were rumours flying about among the 30-somethings loitering in the adjacent bar that Electric Six chose to play Shrewsbury, West Midlands, because they were actually from Shrewsbury, West Virginia; something perpetuated by»
Not quite sure what ‘Schubumkehr’ means. I think ‘Schum’ means ‘push’ in German, but I can only guess what ‘Bumkehr’ means. Whatever. This compilation has been put together by Austria’s Rise or Rust label as a statement for peace in the ongoing Iraqi crisis, bringing together a cross-section of bands from»
As pop-punk has become more and more pre-occupied with its image in recent years - with clothing and merchandise ashamedly taking precedence over riotously catchy punk rockin’ tunes - it’s easy to forget the time when melodic punk was still underground; when fanzines were the only reading material you bought and when t»
Following swiftly behind last year’s towering noise-core masterpiece ‘The Beyond’, this is a welcome re-issue of Cult of Luna’s self-titled debut, originally released through Rage of Achilles in 2001 and limited to just 2,000 copies. Driven through a unified desire to capture the raw, innermost hum»
No doubt about it, there is something just so undeniably seductive about a girl talking re-e-e-ally slo-o-o-wly with a deep, softly spoken hush that vocalist Karin knows about only too well. As one half of ethereal gothic 2-piece Collide she really pricks up the hair on places I didn’t even know I had, her capti»
While browsing through an old copy of Maximum Rock & Roll recently I noticed The Briefs receiving a glowing review for one of their many 7” singles. While this didn’t necessarily mean they were actually good, it meant acceptance from the most elite of punk fanzines and ostensibly a band upholding s»
With nu-metal now thankfully shrivelling into a hole of self-deprecation and emo whimpering in its own ironic cliché, the UK seems ready to unleash a sound as compelling in its style as it is resolutely uncompromised in its attack. And with acts such as Aconite Thrill, Funeral For A Friend and Sikth risin»
For many people, punk rock is always at its purest when in its infancy; when passion outshines proficiency and the notion of groupies and clothing sponsorship is still a far-flung and unrealistic wet dream. In fact, there are many who prefer Green Day’s ‘Smoothed Out Slappy Hours’ collection of their earl»
‘I Wouldn’t Piss In Your Ear If Your Brain Was On Fire’
‘Wake Up, You’re Dead’
‘You’re A Bullshit Salesman With A Mouthful of Samples’
Seems as Death By Stereo release their third full length album the chances of a chart-topping love-ballad are as far away as they've ever been for Sout»
No offence to any of my Brummie / West Midlands friends here, but there must seriously be something in the Brummie water that makes it such a depressingly dull and soul-destroying place to be. One had only to watch the recent ‘Confessions of a Car Salesman’ documentary - comparing car-sales techniques between La»
[one of these better-late-than-never reviews] Boy am I in the mood for this album! Like a firecracker under your mate's bar-stool, this eight-tracker explodes with a reckless, beer-fuelled rock'n'roll party attitude that is as relentless in its attack as it is righteously chaotic. Positively o»
When Londoners Sunfactor were making a name for themselves a couple of years ago, supporting the likes of At The Drive-In and Rival Schools, making a fleeting visit to one of Deep Elm’s big-selling ‘Emo Diaries’ compilations and broadly generating an buzz throughout the underground ak»
Anyone who’s managed to catch a glimpse of Southern California’s Strung Out will know they are without doubt one of the tightest hard-hitting metallic punk bands around, not to mention the sharpest dressed since investing in slick Strung Out shirts and ties for recent tours. And any true fan will enthuse that th»
Karl Buechner, frontman with legendary vegan straightedge powerhouse Earth Crisis isn’t supposed to be doing this. He’s going against the conventions of just about every band in existence: Band release debut album, critics say they have noticeable potential; band release sophomore album to critical acclaim; thir»
Despite enjoying a current residency in the Revelation Records stable Louisville’s Elliott don’t exactly nestle comfortably amongst the label’s roster of predominantly hardcore acts. In fact, lined up against the likes of Curl Up And Die and Shai Hulud they probably seem like the musical equivalent»
The Verge, a small venue in Kentish Town and a short walk from Camden, North London is a buzz of excitement. The draw which has pulled 100 or so kids to its dimly lit environs is jumping playfully about the stage, microphone in hand, humouring the crowd while some form of pre-recorded synth-pop music is providing the b»
Not content with fronting one of Sweden's finest pop-rock exports Fireside, vocalist Kristofer Ǻström has since 1998 been working on this, his solo project, and not surprisingly become one of Sweden’s most respected solo artists in the process. This 6-track EP attempts to let the rest of the world in»
The Red Chord should have a serious health warning. The words that keep repeating themselves in my head as I attempt to fight my way through this album is ‘complete and utter devastating violence’ for as soon as opener ‘That Certain Special Ugly’ flies out at you like a tornado of nails, all jarring riffa»
Charger
Labrat
Mistress
Pale Horse
Occupational Hazard
The Murder Of Rosa Luxemburg
Just look at that bill. No, no – LOOK AT IT! How awesome is this line-up?? This gig was originally going to be at Birmingham’s tiny Flapper & Firkin pub but I think when you have bands as loud»
I wasn’t at all prepared for what faced me tonight. Of course, the buzz preceding this tour, featuring two of hardcore metal’s most invigorating and challenging acts has been near to deafening in certain circles so the excitement working it’s way up amongst the intrigued currently cluttering up the tiny bar corner in t»
‘Emo-core’ seems to be flavour of the month right now, what with the likes of Finch, Thrice, The Used and countless others basking, Scrooge McDuck-style, in a sea of press cuttings and fan letters showering nothing but praise & acclaim upon their angsty fusion of metal, pop and punk. Not tha»
Just like the A-Team, Pistol Grip come from the Los Angeles underground. Unlike the A-Team, Pistol Grip are a raucous street punk act brandishing a style as in debt to Brit-punks The Business and The Clash as it is the brash hardcore of New York’s Warzone. While it’s easy to lie back po-face»
Geeky. Annoying. Immature. Just a few of the words used to describe Atom & His Package since its inception in 1995. It’s not for everyone, you see. Music this daft, playful and harmless tends to appeal to those who tend not to take life too seriously but are still ready to point a satirical finger at things that»
Attention: all those punk bands out there who haven’t quite found that elusive catchy tune, please refer to this 7-track EP from Hitechjet, because this is absolutely incredible. Powerful, driving and bubbling with stirring kick-ass melodies it just fills me with so much excitement listening to it, and maybe an »
You can’t quite put your finger on it but there’s something about Deminer’s sprawling mid-paced punk that doesn’t quite hit the mark. It’s urgent and packs a punch, but with a drum beat that refuses to change tempo, or indeed its beat (even if skinsman Billy used to drum for acclaimed underground act Haymarke»
