The Attika State – Measures (Alcho Pop records)

From the opening of this full length I was overjoyed to hear a British melodic rock band singing with real accents, as far too many put on an American style, especially for singing, despite not being Americans. The deep layers within the vocals and music create a record which is both relatable and easy to get in to.

The band are very hard to place into one particular musical style; the main thing which is apparent throughout the record is melody, and there is a definite level of skill within the song writing, without sounding like any compromise has been made this band write great pop songs with elements of alternative rock, metal and indie. It is clear that the list of influences to their music is varied and vast creating an individual, deep sound.

Lyrically there is simplicity to the song writing; this is in no way a criticism, as not every song has to be full of layers and complexity. The simplicity makes it very easy to find points to relate to within every song, also the simple lyrics allow the focus to be taken by melody and the general musicianship. The vocals take centre stage for the majority of the album but the angular guitar parts build up to create a rich sound which is backed by driving bass lines and complex drumming. The vocals convey a large range of emotion throughout the record, and as you listen further into each track you can hear everything else subtly changing to create a greater sense of depth.

As a record it takes a few listens to realise quite how good it is, on the first listen I was unsure and felt it to be a bit too close to pop punk in it’s simplicity, however after a few tries there are so many aspects which add depth to the album and have made it a great record. I thoroughly recommend getting hold of a copy of this album as it gets better with every listen.

Rookie/Error Photo Special

Stillbust Photo Special

The Victory Show Photo Special

Rookie/Error EP Launch @ The Frog and Fiddle

The Frog and Fiddle was the setting for yet another launch party last night starring local post-hardcore heroes Rookie/Error who were celebrating the release of their latest EP Back To The Drawing Board.

The Victory Show kicked the night off with an energetic live performance of their twist on modern hardcore music. The sound they create is made individual with the lack of a bassist whose position is filled by a second guitarist creating driving guitars to back the vocals. Vocally TVS balance passionate shouting with occasional singing into a fascinating live style. Overall the band is not yet the finished article but have a great deal of potential and look likely to create something special as they develop their sound. With a live performance as energetic and eye catching as tonight’s this band would struggle not to impress an audience.

After the audience had been well and truly warmed up by The Victory Show, Stillbust took the stage and continued the hardcore theme in their own unique style. As I have come to expect when watching them live every minute of the set was filled with passionate intensity. There were debuts of new songs, which show a progression from the last EP, filling me with anticipation for their next release. The set ended with a challenge from the band, to audience, to see how many people could be touching the guardrail for the climax of their set.

With the audience whipped into a frenzy and filled with anticipation Rookie/Error took the stage and burst into a frantic live set. The band combined tracks from the new EP with some very interesting new material to create a perfectly balanced set. Once more R/E have a completely different take on hardcore inspired music, which combines post-hardcore with a punk edge and creates an individual style. It would be impossible not to respect the passion delivered from members of the band throughout their live set, which makes the set memorable. When you combine the passion and energy of the live performance with front man Jason’s stage presence, and old school front man style of performance, you have a winning combination.

It’s always great to see a band enjoy a live performance and as the set progressed that’s exactly what seemed to be happening. Between songs the band were humble and extremely grateful to the audience for coming down to celebrate their latest release. The show climaxed with the members of all three bands performing the final song in a chaotic style.

The only question I was left with after the show was when is the next Rookie/Error record coming out?

A Beginers Guide To Punk

I totally agree with the popular opinion that punk died in the eighties when bands like The Exploited and GBH took the torch. The death of punk was the birth of every great sub genre that now exists, making punk as diverse as it now is.

Again the history of punk is very important as was the case with the last post about Ska. The start of the punk scene is something that will always be debated were The New York Dolls responsible for the birth or was it the Stooges, MC5, Ramones or even the Velvet Underground. I personally do not like the NY Dolls or MC5 so will be leaving them out and sticking with the other three. The UK scene is far less debated with the Sex Pistols, Clash, Undertones, Buzzcocks, Sham 69 and Stranglers all pioneers of the genre.

As the scene developed further the 80’s style seemed to kill off the genre as it sounded in the 70’s. Bands like the Misfits, Bad Brains, Joy Division, David Bowie and The Velvet Under Ground breathed new life into punk taking it to new levels and creating new genres. These styles were followed up by the birth of the sounds now classified as punk The Decedents opened the doors for NOFX, Rancid, Greenday and Bad religion to create Pop Punk and Skate Punk.

The hardcore scene also evolved into a more melodic style through Hüsker Dü, Satanic Surfers and Strike Anywhere. The melodic hardcore and pop punk scenes also combined to become Emo which in turn has a long list of sub genres.

The current 2nd generation Melodic Hardcore coming out of the ashes of Satanic Surfers in the form of the Enemy Alliance and Indecision Alarm is going further towards the punk sound and slightly away from the melodic style. This Is A Standoff have also developed in style after the break up of The Belvedere taking a step towards Hardcore. The retro sound currently being carried by The Gaslight Anthem and Zatopeks is yet to be given a name but with the success both have achieved it won’t be long before they are fronting a scene of there own

The Punk genre has spilt off into so many sub-genres you could almost connect it to every type of music released after 1976 and most music before will have a connection if you look hard enough. With this in mind the essential bands to offer inspiration have to be:


The Stooges
Velvet Underground
Ramones
Sex Pistols
Stranglers
Clash
Buzzcocks
Missfits
Descendants
Satanic Surfers
NOFX
No Use For A Name
Rancid
Anti-Flag
Belvedere
Captain Everything
Mr Zippy
The Bronx
At The Drive-In
Enemy Alliance
Indecision Alarm
Gogol Bordello
Gaslight Anthem
Zatopeks

A Beginners Guide to ….

These next few posts follow on from last week where I mentioned educating my little sister in good music. I am hoping to nurture her into listening to a varied diet of music with as many genres as possible. As an education each genre will start from the beginning and will pretty much become a musical history lesson. If you think I have missed any artists give me a shout and I will get them on the list.

The only thing to remember is my sister is an eleven year old girl so I need to find tracks that are free of swearing and risqué themes. It is safe to say there will be no beginners guide to gansta rap and I’m not sure she is ready for New York hardcore (or any hardcore for that matter) just yet either.

Keep your eyes peeled for the play lists in the next few days.