So, there has been a Still Bust/Thekidisfirworks tour going on. Did any of you notice that? Two British band invading our beautiful continent? Anyone? A sense of danger? A sense of proximate death, luring with every kilometer/mile they drove through Europe?
No, I didn't either, these guys are super nice and play super good music. Nothing to worry about.
I saw them two nights in a row. Let me rephrase that, I had the pleasure to see them two nights in a row. I had the privilege, I had the honor, I had the boner to see them two nights in a row. Yes.
First night was Rockcafé show in Leuven, organised by Kickass Records. Initially worried about the lack of promotion and lack of people who would show up, it ended up pretty alright.
Thekidisfireworks` played first. I guess their space bar broke down when they created the name. Or they forget how to write multi-word phrases. Or they just thought it looked cool. Anyway, the name doesn't matter.
They fucked up the intro and laughed it away. No biggie. Apparently that happened a lot. Everything else, in general, was pretty really good. Definitely not flawless, but it was a delight to watch and hear them play. They have a very distinct sound that reminded me of Dangers, The Bronx and A Wilhelm Scream perhaps. There were the crazy guitar riffs, the rhythmic assaults, the singalong parts, the "stop-playing-and-shout-a-catchy-phrase" parts and it all was really cool. And the award for best songtitle of the past few years goes to Unicorn On The Cob. That made me laugh harder than it should have. Nice one.
Then it was up to Still Bust (or is it Stillbust? I don't know) to set the room on fire. Or whatevz. They did good. They did real good. Solid show, mostly, if not exclusively, songs from their new record A Few Things We Might Agree On (A Few Thing We Might Not), which also contains a contender for the songtitle award with If You Don't Like Video games (You Might have Other Interests). Rad show.
It was mainly English blokes going nuts to a Welsh band and then the other way around, but I, and the other attendants, did thoroughly enjoy their music. Very neat. Very "cool". Very "punx". Very ""hard""core"".
The Decline also played, who are this Australian skatepunk band that are apparently pretty cool. They were pretty damn cool. Welp. Can't really remember properly. Sorry, Australians! It's good to know you still exist!
I may have danced a tad? I think the British dudes did the typical UK pyramid thingy. It was a fun show, my memory just fails to recover what music they played and what was going on.
I might need to update faster in the future, so I don't have those problems all too much.
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Anyway, the next show was the next day, a day called Tuesday, for those who still use that whole "week"-system.
Mechelen, Panique D'o. Panique for short.
After a nice pre-show hangout and the acquisition of a full crate of beer, Thekidisfireworks fired their works off once again. In the same way as Monday, they fucked up the intro and then just went full force into it. Fun show, it was their last of the tour as well so extra fun? Maybe. I bought a shirt, like I had promised the day before. It has a dog on it. It's real cool. Great dudes.
After their show I did a rather embarrassing/awesome (I can't decide) MC Karel live show. It was the first time I actually performed a set, with just a guitar, and it was super cool. I also fucked up the intro, in honor of TKIF. The rest was alright, except for the regular fuck-up, but that's all part of the act. "Good intentions, bad results."
Also, since I was a performing act Rikkerd hooked me up with a crate of beer from the venue. A whole crate. Holy fuck. Beers for everyone!
Still Bust killed it once again. I think everyone decided this was really good and a last chance to party for now so things got a bit crazy, which was super much fun. Proof that you don't need a big crowd to have a big party. You just need a couple nutcases that like to fuck shit up to good music.
Whoo! Check out those bands and all, they're real cool!
16-05-2013
15-05-2013
It's all about perspective.
Sunday moshday. That's a common concept, right. Last Sunday the concept became all too clear for me. Perspective Records/Bookings/Whatever had set up a second edition of the grand Perspective Fest. The wheater was pretty lousy but the music was cool. Too cool for school.
First band was Reminders but I missed them because I was not cool enough for school. Domien apparently brought his mom for Mother's Day but I missed her as well. Apparently Reminders is a good band. Goob band.
18 Miles was up next. After a great startout-hangout with lots of familiar faces I went inside to check 'em out. The singer was not feeling very well apparently and his voice wasn't up to scratch, but they played a neat set and I like the band. Hardcore for hardcore kids.
Let me tell you something about hardcore. If there's no punk in the hardcore, I'm probably not gonna like it all too much. I've noticed that. I need a touch of punx in my hardcorez. I need that vibe, the fierceness, I need the riffs.
Ashes played next. It had been a while since I've seen them but they are still the coolest guys around and their band is still pretty amazing. They played some new songs, of which I remember Cursed being absolutely crushingly cool. Great set. I was gonna mosh but I didn't cause I'm not cool enough I think. I did put my hand in the air and sang words/sounds and banged my head and stuff.
Redemption Denied. They're the Belgian representatives on the so-called True Spirit tour volume 1. Really cool for them, and they proobably deserve it. They're a real cool band, they had a good groove, cool breakdowns as far as breakdowns go and it was all pretty cool. But god damn, some of their fans were quite the arsehole. All is fair in love and mosh, but this was ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, I like to 'bust out' once in a while too, but I don't go swinging my arms and pushing everyone who just wants to enjoy the show to the back of the venue. Whatever, I could rant about ignorant mosh all I want, it's not gonna make a difference. People all have fun in their own way. Just, try to not have fun at the expense of others?
Band was good by the way, I really enjoyed it.
A Strength Within were up next. One of their very few shows this year. I've seen better shows by them, but okay. Great band, decent show. The new songs sounded promising and they have their hearts in the right places. Leuven hardcore and all that jazzle.
Suddenly, everyone one got collectively hungry or tired and stayed out while Homer was playing. What the fuck dudes. "Support all bands", "keep the scene alive" until there's some band that doesn't fit within the strict margins of chugging hardcore? Makes perfect sense. Maybe I'm overreacting. There were some people interested, and Homer played a great set. They celebrate 15 years of existence this year. Yeah!
I can't really tell you anything specific about World Eater, Risk It or Strength Approach because I am not familiar with either of those bands and they all kind of sounded like regular hardcore. Also my mind was in a further state of intoxication so there's that.
That reminds me, Ferm & Fameus was catering the festival and they make delicious food. All vegan, all yummy. Check 'em out. I spend quite a few euros on their burgers. No regrets. Food rules.
I do remember No Turning Back. Sorta. A staple of the European hardcore scene, finally back in Leuven. I don't give too much of a shit about this band but I can sure appreciate them. Music-wise, pretty standard hardcore. That's not a bad thing. I don't expect innovation from bands like No Turning Back. I expect sincere and heavy stuff. They have some outspoken messages (which Domien didn't fully agree with, by the way, haha) and they put on a solid show. No more, no less.
Show was done on time. I had a lot of fun. Friends. Food. Fartcore.
First band was Reminders but I missed them because I was not cool enough for school. Domien apparently brought his mom for Mother's Day but I missed her as well. Apparently Reminders is a good band. Goob band.
18 Miles was up next. After a great startout-hangout with lots of familiar faces I went inside to check 'em out. The singer was not feeling very well apparently and his voice wasn't up to scratch, but they played a neat set and I like the band. Hardcore for hardcore kids.
Let me tell you something about hardcore. If there's no punk in the hardcore, I'm probably not gonna like it all too much. I've noticed that. I need a touch of punx in my hardcorez. I need that vibe, the fierceness, I need the riffs.
Ashes played next. It had been a while since I've seen them but they are still the coolest guys around and their band is still pretty amazing. They played some new songs, of which I remember Cursed being absolutely crushingly cool. Great set. I was gonna mosh but I didn't cause I'm not cool enough I think. I did put my hand in the air and sang words/sounds and banged my head and stuff.
Redemption Denied. They're the Belgian representatives on the so-called True Spirit tour volume 1. Really cool for them, and they proobably deserve it. They're a real cool band, they had a good groove, cool breakdowns as far as breakdowns go and it was all pretty cool. But god damn, some of their fans were quite the arsehole. All is fair in love and mosh, but this was ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, I like to 'bust out' once in a while too, but I don't go swinging my arms and pushing everyone who just wants to enjoy the show to the back of the venue. Whatever, I could rant about ignorant mosh all I want, it's not gonna make a difference. People all have fun in their own way. Just, try to not have fun at the expense of others?
Band was good by the way, I really enjoyed it.
A Strength Within were up next. One of their very few shows this year. I've seen better shows by them, but okay. Great band, decent show. The new songs sounded promising and they have their hearts in the right places. Leuven hardcore and all that jazzle.
Suddenly, everyone one got collectively hungry or tired and stayed out while Homer was playing. What the fuck dudes. "Support all bands", "keep the scene alive" until there's some band that doesn't fit within the strict margins of chugging hardcore? Makes perfect sense. Maybe I'm overreacting. There were some people interested, and Homer played a great set. They celebrate 15 years of existence this year. Yeah!
I can't really tell you anything specific about World Eater, Risk It or Strength Approach because I am not familiar with either of those bands and they all kind of sounded like regular hardcore. Also my mind was in a further state of intoxication so there's that.
That reminds me, Ferm & Fameus was catering the festival and they make delicious food. All vegan, all yummy. Check 'em out. I spend quite a few euros on their burgers. No regrets. Food rules.
I do remember No Turning Back. Sorta. A staple of the European hardcore scene, finally back in Leuven. I don't give too much of a shit about this band but I can sure appreciate them. Music-wise, pretty standard hardcore. That's not a bad thing. I don't expect innovation from bands like No Turning Back. I expect sincere and heavy stuff. They have some outspoken messages (which Domien didn't fully agree with, by the way, haha) and they put on a solid show. No more, no less.
Show was done on time. I had a lot of fun. Friends. Food. Fartcore.
13-05-2013
Cereal
Gotta stop postponing things. I should be working on a thesis, and I am, but it's not going super smooth. I get distracted easily. By punk rock, often.
Last Wednesday was a grand day for Belgian punk rock. The notorious emo outfit Cornflames reunited for second time (after last year's pre-Groezrock show) I think and it was cool.
I missed The Goodluck Party. That was a bummer cause I kinda wanted to see them, but ok.
I did see Off The Charts. Good show. What more can I say? New songs are off the hook. Or should I say, they're off the charts? ba dum tsh
I didn't see Traffico because of pizza time.
Cornflames rules. They played a solid set that didn't bore one moment. You know how some bands stretch out reunion things and play too long? Well, Cornflames didn't. And they were really good. The hits passed, some other songs. To be honest, I'm not so familiar with the œuvre except for the occasional spinning of The Farewell Drive. Stellar live band, though. Really enjoyed the set, and from the looks of what was going on in front, lots of people greatly enjoyed it. Atmosphere was top notch, band was great, beers were good.
Reunions are pretty played out at the moment I don't think anyone knows who's a band or not anymore, but one-off shows like this are always fun, whatever the premises. Cornflames play Funtime Fest too, which I think is kinda funny. And cool.
Next day was a holiday so there was a super valid excuse to get drunk, which I, and many with me, kindly took.
Last Wednesday was a grand day for Belgian punk rock. The notorious emo outfit Cornflames reunited for second time (after last year's pre-Groezrock show) I think and it was cool.
I missed The Goodluck Party. That was a bummer cause I kinda wanted to see them, but ok.
I did see Off The Charts. Good show. What more can I say? New songs are off the hook. Or should I say, they're off the charts? ba dum tsh
I didn't see Traffico because of pizza time.
Cornflames rules. They played a solid set that didn't bore one moment. You know how some bands stretch out reunion things and play too long? Well, Cornflames didn't. And they were really good. The hits passed, some other songs. To be honest, I'm not so familiar with the œuvre except for the occasional spinning of The Farewell Drive. Stellar live band, though. Really enjoyed the set, and from the looks of what was going on in front, lots of people greatly enjoyed it. Atmosphere was top notch, band was great, beers were good.
Reunions are pretty played out at the moment I don't think anyone knows who's a band or not anymore, but one-off shows like this are always fun, whatever the premises. Cornflames play Funtime Fest too, which I think is kinda funny. And cool.
Next day was a holiday so there was a super valid excuse to get drunk, which I, and many with me, kindly took.
07-05-2013
Hug wolf
Remember Apologies, I Have None? That one band that have played here countless times the past year? Yeah, they played again last Sunday. In Beveren. I don't think anyone lives in Beveren. Ghost town.
So, I coincidentally met up with Laura at the station, both buying tickets for the bus to Beveren. Motherfucking Beveren.
Someone had puked in the bus on the last ride, so we had a bit of a setback while the cleaning team of the NMBS came and cleaned the vomit. Thanks!
We had a pretty smooth ride from then on. We got to Beveren pretty quick and no one puked! Success. We took som wrong turns to the venue but ultimately found it and that was great.
The venue, Togenblik, was pretty cool. Great terras, cool stage and just all-round a cool place to do shows.
Lots of friends and the last pieces of sunshine on a Sunday resulted in a nice hangout before the show and partly during the first band. The first band was Forgotten Sailors, who reminded me of the Dutch band The Road Home, which means: young dudes playing an Ataris/Gaslight Anthem hybrid style of punk rock. Cool, but not enough to hold my attention and keep me from having stupid conversations with the punx.
I drank quite a few beers and got really affectionate for some reason. I hugged everyone during the night and everyone was really nice. I just hope I didn't bother people cause it might've been a bit over the top. Sorry.
I love punk and punx more than almost anything else. God forbid if I ever do get a girlfriend. She's gonna have some competition. Primarily male, smelly, ugly and obnoxious competition.
Anyway, Silver & Gold played a set and they ruled. This was the first time I've seen them as a three-piece and it works out fine, man. Solid band, solid songs, solid Undertones cover. I'm really excited for their full length.
Apologies, I Have None played the place apart. Great atmosphere, lots of people dancing and singing along. I almost lost my glasses but decided to put away safe, I almost lost my right earplug but decided to put them away. Lots of people in the air and stuff. Anyway, good set by the British band. I accidentally dropped the guitar player after I tried to lift him up. Major sorry man. Every show I've seen by these fellas has been great and every show is more and more fun. But let's say you make some new songs now, will ya? I'm not tired of the other stuff but I'm really curious what's up next for this band.
Also I decided to go to the Fest this year. It was a spontaneous decision that I was never really sure about cause it would be such a hassle, but it just made sense that I would go to the Fest. So now I've bought tickets and I'm siked as fuck.
Weekend Dads, Dillinger Four, Crusades, Lipstick Homicide, Hold Tight!, Mixtapes, The Fake Boys, The Exquisites, The Draft reunion, The Dopamines, and many more.
Another great thing about Sunday night drinking.
So, I coincidentally met up with Laura at the station, both buying tickets for the bus to Beveren. Motherfucking Beveren.
Someone had puked in the bus on the last ride, so we had a bit of a setback while the cleaning team of the NMBS came and cleaned the vomit. Thanks!
We had a pretty smooth ride from then on. We got to Beveren pretty quick and no one puked! Success. We took som wrong turns to the venue but ultimately found it and that was great.
The venue, Togenblik, was pretty cool. Great terras, cool stage and just all-round a cool place to do shows.
Lots of friends and the last pieces of sunshine on a Sunday resulted in a nice hangout before the show and partly during the first band. The first band was Forgotten Sailors, who reminded me of the Dutch band The Road Home, which means: young dudes playing an Ataris/Gaslight Anthem hybrid style of punk rock. Cool, but not enough to hold my attention and keep me from having stupid conversations with the punx.
I drank quite a few beers and got really affectionate for some reason. I hugged everyone during the night and everyone was really nice. I just hope I didn't bother people cause it might've been a bit over the top. Sorry.
I love punk and punx more than almost anything else. God forbid if I ever do get a girlfriend. She's gonna have some competition. Primarily male, smelly, ugly and obnoxious competition.
Anyway, Silver & Gold played a set and they ruled. This was the first time I've seen them as a three-piece and it works out fine, man. Solid band, solid songs, solid Undertones cover. I'm really excited for their full length.
Apologies, I Have None played the place apart. Great atmosphere, lots of people dancing and singing along. I almost lost my glasses but decided to put away safe, I almost lost my right earplug but decided to put them away. Lots of people in the air and stuff. Anyway, good set by the British band. I accidentally dropped the guitar player after I tried to lift him up. Major sorry man. Every show I've seen by these fellas has been great and every show is more and more fun. But let's say you make some new songs now, will ya? I'm not tired of the other stuff but I'm really curious what's up next for this band.
Also I decided to go to the Fest this year. It was a spontaneous decision that I was never really sure about cause it would be such a hassle, but it just made sense that I would go to the Fest. So now I've bought tickets and I'm siked as fuck.
Weekend Dads, Dillinger Four, Crusades, Lipstick Homicide, Hold Tight!, Mixtapes, The Fake Boys, The Exquisites, The Draft reunion, The Dopamines, and many more.
Another great thing about Sunday night drinking.
26-04-2013
I bought a record once...
I've been listening to this next record all week. Fuck it's good. Let's find out how I got it.
The Unlovables - Heartsickle (Crafty Records, 2007)
A1. Leave Me Alone
A2. Let You Go
A3. Samantha
A4. Let's Not Fight
A5. Disaster
A6. Everything's Overrated
B1. Dance Party For 2 (Your Room, 3 AM)
B2. What You Want/What You Got
B3. No Way
B4. Never Saw It Coming
B5. Have You Ever
B6. Sweet Sweet Boy
B7. Crazy Tonight
This is the second full-length by New Jersey's The Unlovables, a band that basically still exists but haven't put out anything since 2007. Their first album, Crush Boyfriend Heartbreak, is one of the best pop punk records ever. Heartsickle is actually equally good, though maybe overlooked sometimes? I don't know. I fucking love it.
This record is on blue vinyl, which is cool. I got it through the Stardumb Records webstore a few years back, back in 2009. I got it together with a whole bulk of cool records, mostly pop punk classics and soon-to-be classics (Queers, Weasel, Ergs, Leftovers, Apers, Manges, ...). I remember spinning this a lot when I got it. And it's definitely grown on me through time. Solid record.
This records is not so different from Crush Boyfriend Heartbreak either. Thematically, it's about crushes (Dance Party For 2 (Your Room, 3 AM) or Never Saw It Coming), boyfriends (Let's Not Fight or Sweet Sweet Boy) and heartbreaks (Let You Go), but the whole thing is rather on the negative side, at least when Hallie sings about boys. The most positive song is Samantha, about her friend Samantha (I guess). Musically, poppy punk with a couple of chords, a whole lot of melody and the best harmonies you'll hear in a while.
It's cheesy but I like cheesy.
A1. Leave Me Alone
A2. Let You Go
A3. Samantha
A4. Let's Not Fight
A5. Disaster
A6. Everything's Overrated
B1. Dance Party For 2 (Your Room, 3 AM)
B2. What You Want/What You Got
B3. No Way
B4. Never Saw It Coming
B5. Have You Ever
B6. Sweet Sweet Boy
B7. Crazy Tonight
This is the second full-length by New Jersey's The Unlovables, a band that basically still exists but haven't put out anything since 2007. Their first album, Crush Boyfriend Heartbreak, is one of the best pop punk records ever. Heartsickle is actually equally good, though maybe overlooked sometimes? I don't know. I fucking love it.
This record is on blue vinyl, which is cool. I got it through the Stardumb Records webstore a few years back, back in 2009. I got it together with a whole bulk of cool records, mostly pop punk classics and soon-to-be classics (Queers, Weasel, Ergs, Leftovers, Apers, Manges, ...). I remember spinning this a lot when I got it. And it's definitely grown on me through time. Solid record.
This records is not so different from Crush Boyfriend Heartbreak either. Thematically, it's about crushes (Dance Party For 2 (Your Room, 3 AM) or Never Saw It Coming), boyfriends (Let's Not Fight or Sweet Sweet Boy) and heartbreaks (Let You Go), but the whole thing is rather on the negative side, at least when Hallie sings about boys. The most positive song is Samantha, about her friend Samantha (I guess). Musically, poppy punk with a couple of chords, a whole lot of melody and the best harmonies you'll hear in a while.
It's cheesy but I like cheesy.
23-04-2013
Utreg
Sometimes I take swift decisions.
On Sunday local and international hero Jare asked around on Facebook for company to drive to Utrecht to see some bands play. I agreed to go, as 1) it's a punk rock show and I had nothing better to do (well, maybe study) and 2) I would see the lovely PJ Bond again, and as I won't go to Groezrock, this was my opportunity.
We missed Harsh Realms, a cool punkrockband from Breda/Roosendaal, because de Jare thought Utrecht van Tilburg. No worries, I'm pretty sure we'll see them another time. Great band!
PJ Bond was up next and he played an amazing set with his friend Marko Casso on the electric guitar. 2 radical musicians, fucking love PJ and his songs. Nicest dude as well.
Then, Versus The World. We decided to go eat Indonesian food, een brrodje Ramdung or something like that. Spicy stewed meat in a sandwich, with runner beans. Good food. I saw the last 2 measures of Versus The World's set. Sorry.
Astpai killed it. I was getting a klopke from the afternoon-beer-drinking so I started drinking coffee and that resulted in 5 coffees and the opposite of a klopke. Good shit. Astpai ruled, great band, I'm not convinced by everything they played but most of it was good and they play with so much heart and passion for the genre/scene, and they work so hard it's really admirable.
Smoke Or Fire was great. They do their own thing. I mean, I could probably draw a lot of comparisons but in the end they have a proper Smoke Or Fire sound. Great set, the dude mooning the band and showing his star was probably the funniest thing I've seen all week, holy shit. Dude was pretty weird, I couldn't tell if he was a real fan, a common fan being somewhat ridiculous or just a 15-year old kid fucked up on drugs who got lost and ended up at a punk rock show. Cool, though.
Great band, older stuff seemed to please me better, though.
On Sunday local and international hero Jare asked around on Facebook for company to drive to Utrecht to see some bands play. I agreed to go, as 1) it's a punk rock show and I had nothing better to do (well, maybe study) and 2) I would see the lovely PJ Bond again, and as I won't go to Groezrock, this was my opportunity.
We missed Harsh Realms, a cool punkrockband from Breda/Roosendaal, because de Jare thought Utrecht van Tilburg. No worries, I'm pretty sure we'll see them another time. Great band!
PJ Bond was up next and he played an amazing set with his friend Marko Casso on the electric guitar. 2 radical musicians, fucking love PJ and his songs. Nicest dude as well.
Then, Versus The World. We decided to go eat Indonesian food, een brrodje Ramdung or something like that. Spicy stewed meat in a sandwich, with runner beans. Good food. I saw the last 2 measures of Versus The World's set. Sorry.
Astpai killed it. I was getting a klopke from the afternoon-beer-drinking so I started drinking coffee and that resulted in 5 coffees and the opposite of a klopke. Good shit. Astpai ruled, great band, I'm not convinced by everything they played but most of it was good and they play with so much heart and passion for the genre/scene, and they work so hard it's really admirable.
Smoke Or Fire was great. They do their own thing. I mean, I could probably draw a lot of comparisons but in the end they have a proper Smoke Or Fire sound. Great set, the dude mooning the band and showing his star was probably the funniest thing I've seen all week, holy shit. Dude was pretty weird, I couldn't tell if he was a real fan, a common fan being somewhat ridiculous or just a 15-year old kid fucked up on drugs who got lost and ended up at a punk rock show. Cool, though.
Great band, older stuff seemed to please me better, though.
20-04-2013
PISSFLAPS AND DICKFOAM
I just wanna take an opportunity to thank Petit, Rikkerd, Pie and Adriaan AKA Outline for taking me along on their recent UK tour.
I'll probably write a sort of tour report in the next zine, but I just wanna get it out there already.
The trip was fucking amazing. I got to see my favourite current Belgian hardcore band play 5 times in a row, I discovered a shit ton of UK hardcore bands, met some amazingly nice people, had a ton of good laughs, and generally had one of the best times of my life. Fuck I love those guys.
I miss Ari saying dirty/funny stuff in his British accent, I miss Pie's rants on everything that makes him mad, I miss Rikkerd's crazy ideas and his love for Monkey Forrest, and I miss upping the punx to a whole new dimension with Petit.
The only regret I have is that I didn't eat a pulled pork sandwich. Everything else was top notch. Jolly good times.
Anyway, here's some pictures to prove it:
I'll probably write a sort of tour report in the next zine, but I just wanna get it out there already.
The trip was fucking amazing. I got to see my favourite current Belgian hardcore band play 5 times in a row, I discovered a shit ton of UK hardcore bands, met some amazingly nice people, had a ton of good laughs, and generally had one of the best times of my life. Fuck I love those guys.
I miss Ari saying dirty/funny stuff in his British accent, I miss Pie's rants on everything that makes him mad, I miss Rikkerd's crazy ideas and his love for Monkey Forrest, and I miss upping the punx to a whole new dimension with Petit.
The only regret I have is that I didn't eat a pulled pork sandwich. Everything else was top notch. Jolly good times.
Anyway, here's some pictures to prove it:
19-04-2013
Morning Ed Wood
I just got back from an amazing trip to the UK, but before that happened, the UK came to me.
Ed Wood was on tour in the continent last week and I got to see them a couple of times. Let's recapitulate fast.
Sunday in Roosendaal. Pigteeth was pretty cool, Bite Down fucking kills, Tarantino was cool, Cracks In The Wall was Cool and Ed Wood was rad. Played a Ceremony cover, and Thomas, my buddy, was wearing a Ceremont shirt so he co-sang Kersed. Good times. i think I moshed. Their own songs are really cool as well, solid band, great songs, good show. So, yeah, I reviewed their split with Monolithian before and now that I've seen 'em I like 'em even more.
I began to like 'em so much I went to the show in Antwerp as well. The show was with Cheap Drugs and the Fuck Ups, who both played pretty solid sets. Ed Wood played in between. Same shit, different night. Great, great band.
And so I went on the show in Leuven, because why the fuck not? Rockcafé show with The Redundancy Department, who play music I did not like, and Balances, who were a ton of fun. I moshed, lifted the singer in my shoulders and dropped him (sorry!), lifted the guitarist and didn't drop him, joined the (British-inspired) human pyramid and just enjoyed the show. I was a tad drunk, so that makes things more fun mostly.
The Wood shredded again, played a rad show, de Vjee even filmed a part of it.
Ed Wood was supposed to stay at Vjee's house I think but he had to get up early so he suggested I put them up for the night. So I did. So after a couple beers more we headed to Casa Karel/This Ain't Noise HQ/my dorm room and busted some more cheap beers, good tunes and fun hangs. There a video of that as well, hahaha. Fucking awesome dudes, be sure to check 'em out at http://edwarddwoodjr.bandcamp.com/.
It's a bit tight fitting 6 people into a student's dorm room, but it worked. The only shitty thing is that they were breaking down the house next door and they started making noise at 7 am. Fuck. Hangover punx.
So yeah, good band, good fellas, really hope to see them again. <3>
Ed Wood was on tour in the continent last week and I got to see them a couple of times. Let's recapitulate fast.
Sunday in Roosendaal. Pigteeth was pretty cool, Bite Down fucking kills, Tarantino was cool, Cracks In The Wall was Cool and Ed Wood was rad. Played a Ceremony cover, and Thomas, my buddy, was wearing a Ceremont shirt so he co-sang Kersed. Good times. i think I moshed. Their own songs are really cool as well, solid band, great songs, good show. So, yeah, I reviewed their split with Monolithian before and now that I've seen 'em I like 'em even more.
I began to like 'em so much I went to the show in Antwerp as well. The show was with Cheap Drugs and the Fuck Ups, who both played pretty solid sets. Ed Wood played in between. Same shit, different night. Great, great band.
And so I went on the show in Leuven, because why the fuck not? Rockcafé show with The Redundancy Department, who play music I did not like, and Balances, who were a ton of fun. I moshed, lifted the singer in my shoulders and dropped him (sorry!), lifted the guitarist and didn't drop him, joined the (British-inspired) human pyramid and just enjoyed the show. I was a tad drunk, so that makes things more fun mostly.
The Wood shredded again, played a rad show, de Vjee even filmed a part of it.
Ed Wood was supposed to stay at Vjee's house I think but he had to get up early so he suggested I put them up for the night. So I did. So after a couple beers more we headed to Casa Karel/This Ain't Noise HQ/my dorm room and busted some more cheap beers, good tunes and fun hangs. There a video of that as well, hahaha. Fucking awesome dudes, be sure to check 'em out at http://edwarddwoodjr.bandcamp.com/.
It's a bit tight fitting 6 people into a student's dorm room, but it worked. The only shitty thing is that they were breaking down the house next door and they started making noise at 7 am. Fuck. Hangover punx.
So yeah, good band, good fellas, really hope to see them again. <3>
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| (mentally add Damo in that picture) |
07-04-2013
I bought three records once...
Last year I started a series of blog posts about records I bought. Because I'm an idiot I only did 4 posts, you can barely call that a series. But today I wanna pick it up again, with three records that have been on my to-do-list since I wrote the first 'I bought a record once' post. Here it is.
This time I wanna talk about three 7"s that I picked up sometime early in my hardcore/punk career.
Nuns Go Riot - Damaged Guts 7" (Seasons Records, 2008)
A1. New Born Rage
A2. Frontline
B1. Numb Fight
B2. The Beating Sound
Black Haven - The Cleansing Storm 7" (Holy Shit! Records, 2007)
A1. The Cleansing Storm
A2. My Haven
A3. Thoras
B1. Hel
B2. Gloom
B3. Growing In Grace
Ritual - Wolves 7" (Blacktop Recors/Drastic Action Records, 2006)
A1. The Dead In Disguise
A2. Stone And Glass
B1. If There's A Hell, We're All Going Down
B2 . Wolves
These records are 3 of the very first 7" records I bought, at one of my first shows. The show was July 31st of 2008, and the line-up was Nuns Go Riot, Teenage Lust, Daggers, Black Haven and Ritual. Pretty cool show, huh? It was the Den Eglantier, that was the first time I fell in love with that venue. I've been there countless times since then.
Anyway, the records. The Nuns Go Riot Damaged Guts 7" was out recently so it was cool I was able to pick that up. I still love it. I only saw them play two times I think, the second time being at the Groezrock small stage. Pretty weird, actually, haha. They played a kind of angry hardcore/punk among the lines of Lifetime or Comeback Kid. Really cool, I actually haven't heard this in a long time (say, a couple of years) but it sounds great! Too bad they disbanded with only a 7" (and a (split?) demo tape?) on their repertoire. Great band, great record, and it reminds me of 5 years ago, when I was a punk kid with no punk friends, checking out a show that was up my lane, going there on my own, being blown away by the music and the attitude and thinking "well, yeah, this is cool.".
Black Haven played the same show, as mentioned. I guess I knew who they were, I guess maybe through Lieven, who was my hardcore mentor back then, and he came from that area of Belgium. The Cleansing Storm was their first 7" EP, and it slays. It's not as distinguishing as their full length. It fits right in with a couple of other West-Flemish bands. Kinda metallic hardcore vibe. Their follow-up 7', Lazarus, and the full length Harmbringer take it all to a whole different level, but this 7" sounds pretty safe. It's really good, yes, but it's a safe bet. The artwork is absolutely stunning, the entire feel of the band is dark and carries a negative atmosphere, and I totally dig that.The bass tone is fucking filthy. Love it.
Then, the last 7" I bought at that particular show, was Ritual's Wolves EP. Ritual was a German band, they recently split up after 2 more full length albums and one EP. That show was my first encounter with them, although I probably had heard of them somehow. I remember they amazed me by only having one guitar player, and still sounding loud as hell. The show was alright, but they really did leave an impression on me. They played hardcore with certain melody, which I thought was awesome. Oh, and of course the band introduced me to the popular German hardcore trend of not having sleeves or rolling up your sleeves or simply wearing shirts that look kinda odd.
For the record, Teenage Lust ruled as well that night and I reckon Daggers did too. Here's a show review I did for my old (personal) blog, it's in Dutch but I guess no one outside of Belgium would care anyway. I'm not sure if anyone inside of Belgium would care to read this. It's pretty bad, almost embarrassing:
This time I wanna talk about three 7"s that I picked up sometime early in my hardcore/punk career.
A1. New Born Rage
A2. Frontline
B1. Numb Fight
B2. The Beating Sound
Black Haven - The Cleansing Storm 7" (Holy Shit! Records, 2007)
A1. The Cleansing Storm
A2. My Haven
A3. Thoras
B1. Hel
B2. Gloom
B3. Growing In Grace
Ritual - Wolves 7" (Blacktop Recors/Drastic Action Records, 2006)
A1. The Dead In Disguise
A2. Stone And Glass
B1. If There's A Hell, We're All Going Down
B2 . Wolves
These records are 3 of the very first 7" records I bought, at one of my first shows. The show was July 31st of 2008, and the line-up was Nuns Go Riot, Teenage Lust, Daggers, Black Haven and Ritual. Pretty cool show, huh? It was the Den Eglantier, that was the first time I fell in love with that venue. I've been there countless times since then.
Anyway, the records. The Nuns Go Riot Damaged Guts 7" was out recently so it was cool I was able to pick that up. I still love it. I only saw them play two times I think, the second time being at the Groezrock small stage. Pretty weird, actually, haha. They played a kind of angry hardcore/punk among the lines of Lifetime or Comeback Kid. Really cool, I actually haven't heard this in a long time (say, a couple of years) but it sounds great! Too bad they disbanded with only a 7" (and a (split?) demo tape?) on their repertoire. Great band, great record, and it reminds me of 5 years ago, when I was a punk kid with no punk friends, checking out a show that was up my lane, going there on my own, being blown away by the music and the attitude and thinking "well, yeah, this is cool.".
Black Haven played the same show, as mentioned. I guess I knew who they were, I guess maybe through Lieven, who was my hardcore mentor back then, and he came from that area of Belgium. The Cleansing Storm was their first 7" EP, and it slays. It's not as distinguishing as their full length. It fits right in with a couple of other West-Flemish bands. Kinda metallic hardcore vibe. Their follow-up 7', Lazarus, and the full length Harmbringer take it all to a whole different level, but this 7" sounds pretty safe. It's really good, yes, but it's a safe bet. The artwork is absolutely stunning, the entire feel of the band is dark and carries a negative atmosphere, and I totally dig that.The bass tone is fucking filthy. Love it.
Then, the last 7" I bought at that particular show, was Ritual's Wolves EP. Ritual was a German band, they recently split up after 2 more full length albums and one EP. That show was my first encounter with them, although I probably had heard of them somehow. I remember they amazed me by only having one guitar player, and still sounding loud as hell. The show was alright, but they really did leave an impression on me. They played hardcore with certain melody, which I thought was awesome. Oh, and of course the band introduced me to the popular German hardcore trend of not having sleeves or rolling up your sleeves or simply wearing shirts that look kinda odd.
For the record, Teenage Lust ruled as well that night and I reckon Daggers did too. Here's a show review I did for my old (personal) blog, it's in Dutch but I guess no one outside of Belgium would care anyway. I'm not sure if anyone inside of Belgium would care to read this. It's pretty bad, almost embarrassing:
31/07/2008: show at Den Eglantier
Nuns Go Riot, supercoole set, seveninchke gekocht. Grave band.
Teenage Lust, ook een enorm coole band, keek ik wel naar uit, maar hadden niks van merch bij. Grave zanger, bassist en drummer ook wel! De gitaristen waren op’t einde van de set nog ‘ruzie’ aan ‘t maken of den ene nu vals speelde of niet en al. Achja. Wil ik zeker nog eens zien, en 'k ben benieuwd naar de 'Fuck'-release. Zanger zat vroeger in In Arm's Reach, ook heel cool!
Daggers: ook cool, maar iets minder.
Black Haven: heel hard, heel ruig en heel cool. Zotte basslijntjes, ik heb daar echt naar zitten staren, naar dien bassist, zo cool. Rrraw, bass. Seveninchke gekocht.
Ritual: verwachtte ik veel van, en de verwachtingen zijn ingelost. Ne keer nen hardcoreband met maar 1 gitaar, maar steevast keihard! En den drummer had een At The Drive-In shirt aan! Zot! Het minste volk in de zaal van alle bands, denk ik. Maar wel het meeste sfeer, hoewel er sowieso over ‘t algemeen niet veel sfeer was, behalve een beetje headnodding en af en toe ene die zot begon te doen. Achja. Cool. Seveninchke gekocht.
01-04-2013
skramz?
Fuck I hate the word skramz. I don't understand it, I think it looks ridiculous, it sounds ridiculous and what does it even mean?
Apparently it's a musical genre, and I like a lot of bands that are labeled skramz. But fuck me, I hate the word.
That being said, June Paik apparently is a skramz band. Why not, huh?
I had never heard of them either, but convinced by the good people at Mendville Shows I went to check 'em out, last Friday at Den Eglantier in Berchem.
I had to eat pizza first so I missed Depths (new band who were apprently pretty good, melodic hardcore kinda stuff) and Atlas (who I remember not being into last time I saw them, but that was a year ago so what do I know?).
Ik did manage to see King Terror. They played a good set. Extreme stuff. Angry hardcore, the same riff a few times, doesn't matter. King Terror is more about the message and the intent than musicality or originality. Cool band, sometimes it gets a bit annoying but sometimes it's really interesting how they combine their music/ethics/ideals and all that.
June Paik played a short set. Like, 5 songs, I guess. Okay, their songs are pretty long, but I still expected some more. To be honest, I was kinda bored at the beginning. I didn't get it. It was the opposite of King Terror. Long songs, weird chord patterns, crazy song structures, wacked out drumming, contrast cynamics, all that. As they played some more I got into it some more but they didn't fully convince me, though. Very talented, skilled and passionate, but seemingly didn't transfer that passion all the way to me. A fair amount of peepz seemed into it though, so I guess they were doing stuff right.
Well, anyway, it was worth the trip, I bought a split 7" with Battle Of Wolf 359 and decently enjoyed the show.
Friday nights rule.
Apparently it's a musical genre, and I like a lot of bands that are labeled skramz. But fuck me, I hate the word.
That being said, June Paik apparently is a skramz band. Why not, huh?
I had never heard of them either, but convinced by the good people at Mendville Shows I went to check 'em out, last Friday at Den Eglantier in Berchem.
I had to eat pizza first so I missed Depths (new band who were apprently pretty good, melodic hardcore kinda stuff) and Atlas (who I remember not being into last time I saw them, but that was a year ago so what do I know?).
Ik did manage to see King Terror. They played a good set. Extreme stuff. Angry hardcore, the same riff a few times, doesn't matter. King Terror is more about the message and the intent than musicality or originality. Cool band, sometimes it gets a bit annoying but sometimes it's really interesting how they combine their music/ethics/ideals and all that.
June Paik played a short set. Like, 5 songs, I guess. Okay, their songs are pretty long, but I still expected some more. To be honest, I was kinda bored at the beginning. I didn't get it. It was the opposite of King Terror. Long songs, weird chord patterns, crazy song structures, wacked out drumming, contrast cynamics, all that. As they played some more I got into it some more but they didn't fully convince me, though. Very talented, skilled and passionate, but seemingly didn't transfer that passion all the way to me. A fair amount of peepz seemed into it though, so I guess they were doing stuff right.
Well, anyway, it was worth the trip, I bought a split 7" with Battle Of Wolf 359 and decently enjoyed the show.
Friday nights rule.
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