04/05/2012

Empire, Leeds.

The first band on tonight were fantastic to listen to due to them being different to a lot of bands that are around at the minute, reminiscent of early Bled, Alexisonfire and From Autumn To Ashes, (unfortunately we never found out their name so if anyway can help us out then that’d be awesome!) The drummer produced a really experimental set and used the rim of his snare brilliantly. The thing that we feel is really lacking from this bands though is a bassist as it would have been great to hear a technical bass line to match the arpeggiated guitars.

The second band on tonight were Second Chapter, they took to the stage with a seriously predictable choice of cover- Your Demise. The vocalist’s energy was one of the only things that really stood out about this band, he put on a brilliant performance and got the crowd moving. We feel that the backing vocals need a bit of work as they were a little out of time and it’d be great to hear a little more imagination when it comes to the actual songs.

The Colour Line were the third band to play tonight due to a little line-up change. Tonight the guys more than made up for vocalist Sam having a broken foot; thrashing about and putting on a magnificent show. It’s the second time we’ve seen Sam with the band and he’s just got better, producing a dirty, raw, Norma Jean style set. Unfortunately, something always goes wrong for these guys when they play in Leeds, this time bassist Ben snapped the head of his bass clean in two. Luckily, this was at the end so their set wasn’t affected. The sound tech really didn’t do the band justice tonight either so it was hard to distinguish between the technical guitars.

Hardships definitely show kids what hardcore was and should be still. The drummer delivers a solid and powerful performance, setting the pace for the rest of the band. One of the guitarists is clearly an old-school metalhead and that  comes across strongly in songs which is definitely no bad thing. Their vocalist Damian gave a fantastic performance, pacing the length of the stage and delivering strong, harsh and well-timed vocals.

Anchored By Avarice were the reason we were all at Empire tonight due to it being their E.P. launch. They put on a fantastically energetic show and technically they’re a very good band, however, we feel that due to this, they could be a lot more creative with timings etc as opposed to just going along with what seems to be the trend at the minute. We just thought ABA fell short compared to the supporting bands.

Royal Park Cellars, Leeds.

08/04/2012

DSDNT’s frontman put on a ridiculously energetic stage performance, well… more of a floor performance, darting in and out of members of the crowd and still managed to give an incredibly powerful vocal performance as well. We really love how a lot of their songs just seem to finish just as the audience are getting into the them and then just start up again with their odd breed of hardcore. These guys are just pure disfunctional noise, but it works so well.

Glasgow based HUSH pelted the audience with heavy bass lines and dischordant guitar, combine this with powerful, disjointed drum parts and you have yourselves a winner. Their vocalist not only has completely different vocals to a lot of hardcore bands around at the moment, but they fit perfectly with the guitar riffs, they’re powerful and combined with the floor/ceiling performance, this really was a performance to remember.

You couldn’t even tell that German prog/metal-heads Earthship were missing a guitarist tonight, they delivered powerful riff and seriously intriguing bass lines. The timings used in the songs gave a really interesting edge to this band, keeping the audience listening intently so they knew when to tap their feet. The vocalist delivered guttural roars that filled the dark, grotty little Cellar with echoes that seemed to appear from behind you.

The sheer amount of pedals that Coilgun’s guitarist, Jona had before him was impressive alone, but what was more impressive was that he delivered the most diverse set from a guitarist that we’ve ever heard. These guys could easily be an instrumental two piece because of how interesting the songs are but the addition of a vocalist makes this band completely outstanding. The drummer’s set-up made him deliver every hit and kick with a massive amount of power which cut through the guitar and vocals to really accentuate the different sections in the songs.

This is easily the best gig we’ve seen in Leeds for a very long time and you truly missed out if you couldn’t make it.

The Library, Leeds.

05/04/2012

Our first band tonight were Buffalo Bones, a sweaty three-piece all the way from Leeds. The drummer’s great use of floor toms give the songs a really fun edge but the fills are quite simple which gives way to the seriously catchy bass lines. The vocals are dirty and a bit rough so they really stand out, especially with the odd scream which gives the band an added extra something. Their use of timings keep the songs lively and interesting and the audience eager. Buffalo Bones are so easy to listen to and would appeal to fans of any genre; their songs will get stuck in your head for hours and they’re brilliant to listen to if you’re getting ready for an incredibly heavy night out.

Black Moth were the second band to play tonight and the really noticeable thing about them is that they have such chemistry as a band. Their doom influences clearly shine through with their guitar and bass. Harriet’s vocals are dark to match this and they smoulder with sex appeal, parts are almost reminiscent of BeYourOwnPet. Drummer Dom keeps the band going with his energetic and flawless set. The guitarists play old school Sabbath style riffs which really make Harriet’s vocals the focal point of Black Moth.