Reviews and Recommendations: punk

Now i'm not gonna lie....I love The Maccabees. I always have. So if this is a little biased, i do apologise.
In the past year, I've seen them tens of times, literally. Living in Brighton until recently had provided me with the opportunity of following their progress since the release of... [more]

Event Date: October 10, 2009
Event Venue: 02 Academy, Leeds/Elbow Room, Leeds

   Now i'm not gonna lie....I love The Maccabees. I always have. So if this is a little biased, i do apologise.
In the past year, I've seen them tens of times, literally. Living in Brighton until recently had provided me with the opportunity of following their progress since the release of "Wall Of Arms", and so tonight as their tour drew to a close, I was saddened to think of the months they would now disappear for, much like they did after "Colour It In".
  It's not just the music, even though it is faultless. After following them round for the best part of a year, it's no longer much of a surprise to them that I'm at a Brighton/London gig, so as I bound over to Felix before the support band starts he greets me like a long lost friend and asks "What are you doing in Leeds?" The Maccabees are the sweetest boys you will ever meet. The charming shyness, the eagerness to please, the genuine love, attention and care they show fans. Likelihood is if you've met them, they'll remember you.
   Post Felix chat and support band it's time for them to take to the stage, opening with "No Kind Words" states their dominance on the stage, and they proceed to charge through a collection of favourites.."X-Ray", "Can You Give It" and the resurrection of the much loved "Latchmere".
   Orlando calls a halt to proceedings towards the end of "Precious Time", a scuffle breaks out in the standing area and from the stage Orlando shouts "OI! What Are you doing?" I don't care who started it, you're not at school"...and then proceeds to finish the song.
   Die hard fans are treated to B sides such as "Accordion Song" which alows Felix to take centre stage and then onto his little brother Hugo for a heart-warming "Hearts That Strangle".
   I know the drill, once you hear the brass section of "Love You Better" start up, you know it's the end of the set. I find myself thinking I just wish it was the start again, I'm tired and my throat hurts but I'd give anything to go back an hour.
   So that's the end.......no. There's the after party, where the White brothers take to the DJ decks. Beastie Boys, Outkast, MJ....they get more perfect by the minute.
   And so that's it. The Maccabees tour. The Maccabees second album. They blow kisses as they leave, as we drunkenly tell them this is our last encounter for a while. But when they come back...with a third album...make sure you go see them. Please. Because if anyone appreciates it, it's them. So boys...just don't leave it too long! [less]

The post-punk pulse of Midland mavericks The Nightingales was at the forefront of the 80's, Radio One schedule of the late great DJ, John Peel. The Nightingales leader, Rob Lloyd has returned to post millennium action with new incarnations of his cult band, and a show at the Buffalo Bar,... [more]

Event Date: October 4, 2009
Event Venue: Buffalo Bar, Cardiff



The post-punk pulse of Midland mavericks The Nightingales was at the forefront of the 80's, Radio One schedule of the late great DJ, John Peel. The Nightingales leader, Rob Lloyd has returned to post millennium action with new incarnations of his cult band, and a show at the Buffalo Bar, Cardiff was a monumental rock 'n' roll triumph.

Take the nuances of Captain Beefheart, throw in some Link Wray plus a portion of The Fall and then add the unique Lloyd lyrical loaded lustre-and, the raw power of a cult act becomes a tad clearer. However, there is much more to this dynamic force!

The fiery four that make up the current line up do not rest on any previous achievements, for this is not a nostalgia trip! This is very much 2009!

A punk confrontation and post-punk discordance are joined by rockabilly rhythms, palatable pop and a unique stage presence that even makes the odd drum solo acceptable. Lloyd enters the arena of the punter and anti-serenades anyone who comes in to his view, and to add to this manic mingling the humour is aplenty as ad-libs dovetail with the fruits of a colossal, aural arsenal.

The songs interweave, head off in to new pastures and the element of surprise combines with the off kilter behaviour of a truly, original front man. Newer material is joined by a rollercoaster ride of past glory-and, just when you think that a cover of The Troggs 60's hit 'I can't control Myself' is off the cuff the lads then throw in a soaring version of the Status Quo smash 'Paper Plane'!

The Nightingales playing was tighter than a duck's rear end soldered together with krypton and these guys offer 110% energy-and, then they push on to a new level of drive! This was a fine gig from a combo who you are well advised to witness because to sample this motor music Midas is an imperative experience! [less]

Linkin Park create a great festival atmosphere, because everyone's heard the songs hundreds of times and it's like one big karaoke sesh. Thoughout the Sonisphere performance Linkin Park keep to a high standard musically, with creative introductions and varied playlist with the new and old. The downside to the performance... [more]

Event Date: August 1, 2009
Event Venue: Sonisphere Festival 2009

Linkin Park create a great festival atmosphere, because everyone's heard the songs hundreds of times and it's like one big karaoke sesh. Thoughout the Sonisphere performance Linkin Park keep to a high standard musically, with creative introductions and varied playlist with the new and old. The downside to the performance was Chester's side project (Dead By Sunrise) which destroy our passion and vibe during the Linkin Park set coursing a dangerous tension between the crowd and the band. Linkin Park eventually came back and brought back the live performance energy with their song "New Divide". I would recommend seeing Linkin Park, but don't expect just a Linkin Park performance when it comes to the festivals. [less]

an amazing line-up and an amazing stage. alien ant farm and buckcherry were the openers and although i was dissappointed with alien antfarms performance- especially the frontmans personal display....- buckcherry more than made up for it.
BUCKCHERRY drew a small crwod as nt too well known a band however anyone... [more]

Event Date: August 1, 2009
Event Venue: Knebworth Park

an amazing line-up and an amazing stage. alien ant farm and buckcherry were the openers and although i was dissappointed with alien antfarms performance- especially the frontmans personal display....- buckcherry more than made up for it.
BUCKCHERRY drew a small crwod as nt too well known a band however anyone who skipped this performance really missed out, buckcherry are worth a watch  watch.. if u get the chance dnt miss out,, they got the crowd goin even though nt many had slept atall in the past 3 days, and sounded amazing.

LAMB OF GOD excelled,, hardcore fans were not dissappointed, i hadnt herd their songs before but by the end i was singing with the best of em and wondering why the hell i hadnt herd it before:)

special guests MACHINEHEAD made up for the fact that they dropped out as one of the main bands because of limp bizkit- to play a smaller spot AFTER them as special guests- by giving an amazing live performance,, killer sound,, and a drop dead f*in awsome crowd

LINKIN PARK,,, one of the best live performances i have seen! they sound amazing live,,, as good off of a disk as on one, which is rare to find,, their new song songs amazing and their old stuff still works wonders with a large crowd... 1000's singing in time with spirit to songs they love is always enough to give u a buzz.
they played some songs to introduce DEAD BY SUNRISE-their new band- which i was a little dissappointed in however still being pumped up from 'faint' i was more than happy with the performance.
especially since those in the crowd who stuck around through dead by sunrise were rewarded with 'new divide'

COHEED AND CAMBRIA... well i personally am a huge fan of coheed,, however i was very dissappointed. after waiting in the pouring rain and sitting through a 'guitar hero' performance on stage as the introduction, we were all told that coheed would not be playing their slot due to being held up on  a ferry,,,FACT- a little known japanese group filled in and were imediately bottled by most of the crowd. they were not the best replacement.
coheed did play facts original spot later that evening on a smaller stage for a smaller slot- not big enough for these giants to get the crowd going let alone show what they really can do. [less]

Folks...... If you want a night of partying then check out Bad Manners. I've folowed this band for years and unlike other 80's bands, this band gets better every time they play!!! The ska beat and uptempo party sounds ensures that the whole audience ends up dancing, culminating in the... [more]

Folks...... If you want a night of partying then check out Bad Manners. I've folowed this band for years and unlike other 80's bands, this band gets better every time they play!!! The ska beat and uptempo party sounds ensures that the whole audience ends up dancing, culminating in the CAN CAN!!!!
You really don't know what you're missing !!! [less]