BITCHIN' BREW EPISODE #005 WITH CONNOR P LAWS (FAILURE BY DESIGN RECORDS) - OUT NOW!

HERE WE ARE YET AGAIN MY FRIENDS, with another episode of BITCHIN' BREW that I've been dying to unleash upon the world for some time now.

And what a Bitchin' Brew it is. Episode #005 of the award-winning* podcast features none other than CONNOR P LAWS, co-founder and self-professed 'top lad' of UK independent label FAILURE BY DESIGN RECORDS.

It was a delight to sit down with Connor a little while back to chat about the founding and history of Failure By Design over a cup of Twinings gingerbread green tea (thanks to Kate Coulson at Above The Waves Promotions for hooking me up). As you'll learn as you listen to this episode, Connor has a very keen intellect when it comes to running a label, developing a brand and finding its place within the industry.

It would be almost derogatory to call Failure By Design a 'punk' label, because even in their infancy, they've worked with a smorgasbord of brilliantly diverse artists; from ACID TONGUE and GUN SHY to BOSTON MANOR and WEATHERSTATE, it's nigh impossible to pin FBD down when it comes to genre.

There'll be much more from me about Failure By Design's back catalogue with a brand new feature starting on this very blog later this week. Introducing... A NUMBNUTS' GUIDE TO [INSERT ELLIPSIS FOLLOWED BY SUBJECT'S NAME HERE] - I'll be looking at some of the key moments in FBD's history as well as breaking down their roster of artists past and present, compiling a playlist of the Top 10 FBD tracks.

In the meantime, you can enjoy Bitchin' Brew #005 on iTUNES and (due to popular demand) ACAST, or by streaming below via SOUNDCLOUD...

 

Click on FBD's mask-wearing mascot (affectionately known as Frank) below to go to the label's website, where you can find everything you need from music to merch.

As ever, cheers for listening. If you like what you hear, subscribe and tell all your friends. Your contributions to this podcast, no matter how small, are vital and I love you all for it.

* Bitchin' Brew has never actually won any awards, but if you leave a nice comment on iTunes, it might not be out of the question. Maybe.

Danny

BITCHIN' BREW EPISODE #004 WITH MILK TEETH - OUT NOW!

THE DOPEST PODCAST GANG YOU'LL EVER HEAR. CLOCKWISE FROM FRONT: ME, BECKY BLOMFIELD (VOCALS/BASS), BILLY HUTTON (VOCALS/GUITAR), CHRIS WEBB (GUITAR), OLI HOLBROOK (DRUMS), AND NICK SUCHAK (ANABASIS MEDIA/PHOTOGRAPHER EXTRAORDINAIRE)

FINALLY. After having to take a (thankfully brief) hiatus to focus on finishing my journalism diploma, I'm stoked beyond words to be returning to Randon's Reviews, and to my podcast, BITCHIN' BREW. The 5 months I spent on my journalism diploma were undoubtedly fulfilling, and through learning so much about journalism in a broader sense I have already bagged myself a full time reporting job (which I start tomorrow), but I can't lie when I say that it was intense, mentally testing and, at times, just downright excruciating. The worst part of it was the fact that I recorded episodes #004 and #005 of Bitchin Brew all the way back in May and I couldn't find the time between revision sessions and shorthand practice (READ: I still hate shorthand) to get them out into the world. But enough 'woe is me' chat for now, let's get stuck back in...

Bitchin' Brew Episode #005 is with MILK TEETH, who are undoubtedly one of the UK's best bands of the last few years, and a group of people I love and respect dearly. Like with me, 2016 has been a year of transformation and progression for the band: from refining their sound to embrace poppier roots (while still sounding noisy and punk as fuck) on their phenomenal debut album, Vile Child, to the integration of new guitarist/vocalist Billy Hutton after founding member Josh Bannister's exit from the band. Bitchin' Brew #005 also features special guest NICK SUCHAK, Milk Teeth's touring photographer and the (gorgeous) face behind ANABASIS MEDIA. Just look at how many chocolate chips are in his Maryland cookie...

As a 'Yankophile' who longs to explore a lot of the Land of the Free and the Home of the Trump, I also encouraged loads of talk about Milk Teeth's first US tour earlier this year with Sorority Noise, Turnover and Citizen. From there you can expect chat about blind dogs, chugging 2-litre bottles of wine for breakfast, hanging out with Mark Hoppus, bumping into 2 Chainz at SXSW, crippling addictions to Chipotle and grape soda, and the lost hardcore mashup EP...

BITCHIN' BREW EPISODE #004 IS NOW AVAILABLE TO STREAM AND DOWNLOAD FOR FREE. CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE ON ITUNES OR LISTEN VIA SOUNDCLOUD BELOW:

Thank Jeebus you won't be waiting so long for Bitchin' Brew #006, which features CONNOR P LAWS, co-founder of FAILURE BY DESIGN RECORDS, one of my favourite UK labels out there at the moment.

Big up.

Danny

RECORDS OF THE WEEK: APRIL - JUNE 2016

I know I said I'd be gone for a little while, but posts like this take 5 minutes and I feel like I need this to stop myself from jamming a biro into my temple while revising for my Public Affairs exam.

If you like Randon's Reviews (or even just tolerate it), you should really LIKE THE RR FACEBOOK PAGE, because I often post stuff on there that doesn't air on here... until now, of course. Every Sunday I reveal my RECORDS OF THE WEEK, and seeing as I did a playlist for the ROTWs spanning January to March, I've gone and done the same for April to July so you can get a taste of all the rad shit that has soundtrack this transitional period of time for Randon's Reviews, and my life in general.

It's even more of a clusterfuck than the last one, but in that regard there's a bit of something for everyone in there, and it's really just testament to the incredible half-year it's been for new music. Just incredible. 

Any records/podcasts/stuff not represented in the Spotify playlist for whatever reason are marked with an *, and there'll be alternative links to hear them - I especially recommend the GOING OFF TRACK podcast if you like the conversational tangents I go off on with my guests on BITCHIN' BREW. Meanwhile, MUNCIE GIRLS have also done a really fucking awesome cover of Iron Maiden's 'THE WICKER MAN' too (I'm sure that if you ask them really nicely, they'll play it at a show sometime - don't quote me on that).

Without further ado, here's a week-by-week breakdown of April to July's Records Of The Week:

WEEK 10 (03/04/16): WARHORNS - WARHORNS (EP); BOB MOULD - PATCH THE SKY; SEAWAY - COLOUR BLIND; RORY INDIANA - RULING CLASS CROOKS

WEEK 11 (10/04/16): WEEZER - WEEZER (THE WHITE ALBUM); BLACK PEAKS - STATUES; FAITH NO MORE - SOL INVICTUS; THE NEW TUSK - SLOOM

WEEK 12 (17/04/16): DEFTONES - GORE; MOOSE BLOOD - I'LL KEEP YOU IN MIND, FROM TIME TO TIME; SYSTEM OF A DOWN - TOXICITY; GOING OFF TRACK PODCAST *

WEEK 13 (24/04/16): CAN'T SWIM - CAN'T SWIM (EP); THE WINTER PASSING - A DIFFERENT SPACE OF MIND; NECK DEEP - LIFE'S NOT OUT TO GET YOU; PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION - PURPLE RAIN *

WEEK 15 (08/05/16) * : ROB ZOMBIE - THE ELECTRIC WARLOCK ACID WITCH SATANIC ORGY CELEBRATION DISPENSER; THE SMASHING PUMPKINS - MELLON COLLIE & THE INFINITE SADNESS; GUILT - EVERBLUE / LOW SCENE (SINGLE); ASH - 1977

* APPARENTLY I MISSED A WEEK BECAUSE I'M A DICK LIKE THAT

WEEK 16 (15/05/16): NOTHING - TIRED OF TOMORROW; SAD BLOOD - LEGION OF GLOOM (EP); THE DRUMS - THE DRUMS; ACID TONGUE - I DIED DREAMING (EP)

WEEK 17 (22/05/16): MODERN BASEBALL - HOLY GHOST; LONELY THE BRAVE - THINGS WILL MATTER; THE MENZINGERS - RENTED WORLD; ANGEL DU$T - A.D.

WEEKS 18 + 19 (29/05/16 + 05/06/16): THRICE - TO BE EVERYWHERE IS TO BE NOWHERE; ARCHITECTS - ALL OUR GODS HAVE ABANDONED US; SHE CRAZY - SURFING U.A.E. (SINGLE); PUP - THE DREAM IS OVER; EVERY TIME I DIE - THE BIG DIRTY; RIVAL SONS - HOLLOW BONES; SEAFOAL - LUCID LIVING (EP); RAIN - SOLIS (SINGLE); NEW FOUND GLORY - CATALYST

WEEK 20 (12/06/16): CANE HILL - SMILE; LETLIVE. - IF I'M THE DEVIL; BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB - A DIFFERENT KIND OF FIX; VARIOUS ARTISTS - MAIDEN HEAVEN VOLUME 2: AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE TO IRON MAIDEN (AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVE IN KERRANG!) *

WEEK 21 (19/06/16): GOJIRA - MAGMA; THE HOTELIER - GOODNESS; OCEANS OF SLUMBER - WINTER; SWEDISH DEATH CANDY - LIQUORICE (EP)

WEEK 22 (26/06/16): MARTHA - BLISTERS IN THE PIT OF MY HEART; GREYWIND - CAR SPIN (SINGLE); WEATHERSTATE - DUMBSTRUCK (EP); GALLOWS - GREY BRITAIN

Like what you see? Check out the playlist below, and SUBSCRIBE TO RANDON'S REVIEWS ON SPOTIFY for more kick-ass sequences of noise.

Soon...

Danny

BITCHIN' BREW EPISODE #002: KENNY & SMITH FROM MUSKETS - OUT NOW!

WOW. FUCKING WOW.

Honestly folks, the response to BITCHIN' BREW since I launched it last month has actually rendered me speechless. Thank you to anyone and everyone who took the time to check it out, and an even bigger thank you to those who blasted it out to the friends across t'internet. Without your support from the off, I don't think I'd be here right now giving you this soppy-ass spiel, and when I'm recording podcasts poolside from my mansion in Saint-Tropez, I won't forget you.

I was very lucky to be able to record Bitchin' Brew Episode #002 almost immediately after recording the pilot episode with Lande Hekt from Muncie Girls. They were sharing the bill at The Boileroom in Guildford that night with one of my other favourite new bands on the UK punk scene: Brighton's very own MUSKETS.

Before the gig, I sat down in The Boileroom's lush little beer garden for a brew with DAN 'KENNY' McKENNA (guitarist/vocalist) and DAN 'SMITH' SMITH (bassist), and we chatted about everything from their involvement in the DIY punk scene to Star Wars.

BITCHIN' BREW EPISODE #002 IS NOW AVAILABLE TO STREAM AND DOWNLOAD FOR FREE. CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE ON iTUNES OR SCROLL BELOW TO STREAM & SUBSCRIBE VIA SOUNDCLOUD:

As you may have noticed if you've liked the Randon's Reviews Facebook page, Bitchin' Brew Episode #003 is already in the bag, and I had a great time recording it with... well, you'll just have to tune in to the podcast to find out more about that.

Once again, thanks for checking out Bitchin' Brew - if that's the response after the pilot, I can't wait to see how this project develops once I've got a few episodes under my belt...

Danny

EP REVIEW: SAD BLOOD - 'LEGION OF GLOOM'

I don't know how many times I can say this on Randon's Reviews (or anywhere where I can chat bollocks, for that matter): it is such an exciting time to be in the UK punk scene right now. Whether they're pop-punk-y or grunge-y or alt-rock-y, the multitude of exciting up-and-coming bands stretches far beyond being strictly 'punk' in style or tone.

I would comfortably put SAD BLOOD in the same bracket as some of the spikier-sounding bands of their scene, thanks to their affinity for small DIY tours and house shows, and the fact that they can make a music video simply out of getting drunk and dicking around with puppets (see below for more on that).

Following on from the brief and brilliant debut Ultimate Worrier, the London trio's second EP LEGION OF GLOOM offers another five bursts of bright and breezy power-pop with spells of #relatable emo wistfulness.

You could say that melancholic lyricism is in this band's blood (boom boom). The band have previously spoken to Upset about how Legion Of Gloom soundtracks the process of "trying to create something positive out of something negative", and out of that comes lyrics are honest and humorously self-deprecating (precisely as the band's two EP titles suggest).

As you may have predicted after his sterling job not only on Ultimate Worrier, but also in manning the desk for Milk Teeth, Creeper, Press to MECO, Weatherstate and pretty much any other cool new UK band you can think of, producer Neil Kennedy has done what he does best yet again in preserving the squeaky-clean clarity that hits Sad Blood's anthems home... (Note to self: I really must get him on Bitchin' Brew just so we can chat about how brilliant all of these bands are....)

Legion Of Gloom may be two tracks longer than its predecessor, but oddly little less rhythmic and melodic variation than before. Nevertheless, 'Heavy Petting Zoo' clocks in at just 1:48 and is up there with the best (if fleeting) moments of new British music in 2016. Sad Blood are brimming with potential as a longer body of work surely looms over the coming months.

Throwing you as much jovial charm as it does miffed-out mellowness, Legion Of Gloom is pleasant, inoffensive and, as with most British punk EPs of late, over way too quickly, but infectious enough to loop a few times over. Whether you see them as happy songs for sad people, or sad songs for happy people, be sure to queue this up next to The Hotelier and that certified banger that is the new Moose Blood track for your emo picnic playlists.

TOP TRACKS: 'HEAVY PETTING ZOO'; 'FORMERLY CREATIVE'

RR RATING:

7 / 10

LEGION OF GLOOM IS OUT NOW. STREAM IT ON SOUNDCLOUD BELOW:

Happy people, sad people, drunk people, all people: until next time, peace out.

Danny

WHITE-HOT NOISE: GET YOUR EARS AND HEARTS AROUND CATHARTIC LONDON PUNKS GUILT

Sometimes I feel a little bad that while I'm coming up with so many cool ideas for the blog, I rarely have the time to bring them to fruition. I figured the other day that I don't need to write an essay with every post - much like when you share something on Facebook or Twitter, I kind of want to 'let the music do the talking', for want of a less wanky phrase, and even if I'm not premiering the track on this blog, use the 'White-Hot Noise' handle to share my favourite new sounds.

Here's something I thought I'd share today after it dropped via Noisey yesterday: GUILT are a hot-off-the-press punk band (I'm going all in on the cheesy phrases with this one, aren't I?) from London, and their debut track 'EVERBLUE' is a massive, swaggering, sprawling, shoegazey slice of devastatingly emotional post-hardcore.

Fuelled by a backlog of bad luck and low points in life, this five-piece bristle with punk spite and (as is the case with all of the great noises coming from the punk-shoegaze crossover scene at the moment) agonising catharsis. Then, when you put them in a studio with Neil Kennedy, the guy behind most of the greatest underground UK releases of the last couple of years, you get something extremely promising.

You can stream 'Everblue' on the band's Soundcloud page now, but what you really want to do is click HERE to buy the track - it's just £1, it comes with a wicked B-side and all proceeds are going to the mental health charity CALM - a strong cause to help men step back from the cliff-edge of suicide.

FFO: TITLE FIGHT; GRADER; THRICE'S SLOWER JAMS

Other cool things are coming soon, pinky swear.

Danny

INTRODUCING: 'BITCHIN' BREW' - A RANDON'S REVIEWS PODCAST

Hi gang,

I know I've been a little bit quiet on here lately but I can assure you that it's not been for nothing. After what I can only explain as the most amazing four months this blog has ever seen, today marks a very special day both for me and for Randon's Reviews: My first podcast, BITCHIN' BREW, is finally here!

The whole idea of starting a podcast was a strange and unknown concept to me a few months ago, even as an experienced radio host, but discovering the medium 2015 was a real shitter, and towards the end of the year I found myself tailing off from the music industry - not with intention, I just found myself having to shelve all of my commitments and work a crappy full-time job to save up for my diploma. 

Eventually I found myself writing for Upset magazine which is hands down one of the best publications I've ever written for, but I also found myself completely immersed in podcasts such as That's Not Metal (if you're like I was a few months ago and completely unfamiliar with the realm of podcasts, that is as good an entry point as you're gonna get). The tangents and rants about music more acerbic and exciting than I ever thought podcasts could be, and I found myself getting more stoked about the new episode than I would a new album. 

Eventually I gravitated towards other podcasts like Scroobius Pip's Distraction Pieces, Daniel P Carter's Someone Who Isn't Me and, more recently, Going Off Track, all of which nail something which I have set out to achieve with this latest venture...



Speaking of which, back to the point of this post: Without even releasing a second of Bitchin' Brew into the public domain, it feels like one of the best things I've ever done not only on Randon's Reviews, but of all my time as a writer and general music fanatic. Now the pilot is here for you all to listen to, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't terrified. That said, it's been a real labour of love preparing this project over the last few weeks.

I'll let the actual podcast do most of the talking, but with Bitchin' Brew I'm setting out to capture conversation with musicians and key players on all levels of the music industry as we sit down over a cup of tea and a plate of biscuits. There will be some 'shop talk' around latest and greatest work of my guests, but I'm more interested in going off on tangents and chatting about common areas of interest (musical or not), a variety of less-talked-about topics, and perhaps even the tea and biscuits we'll be enjoying at the time of recording!

I was especially stoked to be starting Bitchin' Brew after I was able to book my first guest: LANDE HEKT, singer/bassist of one of my favourite bands around at the moment, MUNCIE GIRLS. Over the course of the pilot episode, we chat about the band's sensational debut album, From Caplan To Belsize, and their position within the UK 'DIY' punk scene, as well as the relationship between punk rock and politics, rock autobiographies and awesome parents. We also chowed down on some HobNobs and drank fruity tea, which was lovely.

HOW YOU CAN LISTEN TO BITCHIN' BREW:

1: iTUNES

Go onto the 'Podcasts' app of your Apple device and search for 'Bitchin' Brew' - unsurprisingly enough, it's the only result that comes up. Hit 'subscribe' and you'll receive every episode as and when they are uploaded. You can either stream it via the cloud, or download it in a flash to listen to on the bus, in a Costa, on a skanky public toilet, at your favourite dogging site etc.

Alternatively, if you're on a stone-age device such as a laptop or computer, you can click HERE to subscribe.

2: SOUNDCLOUD

Go to SOUNDCLOUD.COM/RRBITCHINBREW to stream/download the podcasts also as and when they are uploaded!

Setting up this podcast has been a real labour of love lately, so please help me out by listening, subscribing, sharing it with your friends, and getting it 'out there'. I've already got Episode #002 recorded (listen to Episode #001 to find out who it's with), but in the meantime, enjoy sitting in on my chat with Lande.

I think it's time for a well deserved brew.

Danny

EP REVIEW: WARHORNS - 'WARHORNS'

When you grow up in a white, middle-class West Sussex town that's been a Tory safe zone since the dark ages like I did, you invest a lot of time and love in the local rock scene, especially those who pen their own original material. With no disrespect to the many awesome cover bands who frequent the pub circuit in Horsham (my old man plays in several of them), it was the events like countless gigs at Horsham Youth Centre, the Rudgwick Music Festival and the originals heats of Horsham's Battle Of The Bands that really piqued everyone's interest.

There are so many bands and artists of past and present who I just can't resist giving a shout-out to on this blog: Press to MECO, Blue Stragglers, fruitcake, Tied To The Mast, Sonic Deluxe, Simon Mole, Lee Martin, Killing Vegas, Phrase Mob, The Jack Mac Experience, Heroes Vs Villains (honestly, me and my friends literally worshipped that band when they were together)... Wasn't ever keen on X-Sys though - don't bother looking them up, there's barely a trace of them online anymore, but they made Deathstars look and sound like fucking Deicide.

In my adolescent days on the Horsham scene, there was one band by the name of Tell Wolves Tales, who were rightfully on the cusp of massive things before they sadly faded into obscurity. Since then, the trio have relocated, recuperated and reinvented themselves as WARHORNS. Now they're deep within the more publicly burgeoning Devonshire scene, where bands like Black Foxxes and Muncie Girls (*cough* album of 2016 so far *cough*) are splintering the woodwork, it's time for these mischievous rock n' rollers to fuel the fire in their bellies again.

With that hearty chunk of context (also known as 'me wazzing off about how awesome my local scene was growing up') out of the way, what of Warhorns' debut EP? Plymouth sure is a far cry from the Palm Desert, but these three tracks have 'Desert Sessions' written all over them. Whether it's the intense hooks of Queens Of The Stone Age, or the hazy stoner groove of Kyuss, Warhorns' framework has clearly been built from a healthy diet of Rancho De La Luna's output (watch the California episode of Sonic Highways for more on this). 

Also laying down a scruffy Northwestern drone reminiscent of the bands that would eventually be instrumental in the grunge scene, 'I Am The Sun' veers a little bit too close to that ever-present pickle of nostalgia-for-nostalgia's-sake. Luckily, the trio claw it back with those funky-as-fuckery verses; a mere wiggling of the hips when measured up against the sheer psychedelic sexiness of 'Piece Of Mind'.

There's no sign of sibling rivalry between the brotherhood of bassist Matty Clements and drummer Jym Clements as they hold down some sturdy, swaggering rhythms throughout, but 'Goodbye Karma' is Jak Paxton's time to shine. There is star quality worth keeping an eye on with Warhorns' frontman, who nestles between Josh Homme and Royal Blood's Mike Kerr.

There's some musical creases yet to be ironed out before their desert-driven rock takes full intoxicating effect, but for the most part, Warhorns' self-titled introduction is cool, confident and far from cautious.

TOP TRACKS: 'PIECE OF MIND'; 'GOODBYE KARMA'

RR RATING:

7 / 10

WARHORNS' SELF-TITLED EP IS OUT NOW. STREAM THE EP ON SPOTIFY BELOW:



THERE'S A LITTLE CHEEKY BONUS HERE AS WELL. THE BAND RECENTLY DID A WICKED SESSION FOR BBC INTRODUCING IN DEVON, WHICH YOU CAN CHECK OUT BY CLICKING HERE (IT STARTS AT 01:20:50)

Danny

RECORDS OF THE WEEK: JANUARY - MARCH 2016

If you have liked the Randon's Reviews Facebook page, you're not a dick you may have noticed that I publish a small group of albums/EPs/singles on there at the end of each week judged on what has soundtracked the preceding six days. Whether they are new/upcoming releases, old favourites or albums that I may only just be discovering, they are my RECORDS OF THE WEEK. Now that we are pretty much a quarter of a way through 2016 (where the flying shit did the time go?), I thought I'd put together a quick mega-playlist featuring one track from each of the records featured*.

* Not including Scroobius Pip's Distraction Pieces Podcast, and the fucking atrocity that is Reckless Love's InVader, which I featured rather aptly as a joke.

If you haven't quite got the memo at this point, my taste in tunes can be eclectic at the best of times: there's <sometimes> a bit of linearity (the transition from Muncie Girls to Muskets to Into It. Over It. kinda works, doesn't it?), but it can also be one hell of a headfuck. Case in point? Cane Hill into Savages into Municipal Waste (is gonna fuck you up) into Arcade Fire. What is even up with that, brain?

I'm not really counting this particular playlist as an edition of The RR Playlist as I've already spoken at length about some of the music featured in Records Of The Week - you can click on some of the titles in the captions below to see their individual reviews.

Scroll to the bottom of this post for the playlist via the Randon's Reviews Spotify page (hint hint), but first, here's an 'ICYMI' of my Records Of The Week from January to March 2016:

Week 1 (31/01/16): Milk Teeth - Vile Child;
Hindsights - Cold Walls / Cloudy Eyes;
Basement - Promise Everything;
Beach Slang - The Things We Do To
Find People Who Feel Like Us

Week 2 (07/02/16): The Black Queen - Fever Daydream;
Bury Tomorrow - Earthbound;
Five Miles North Of Nowhere - Less Talk,
More Action EP;
The Get Up Kids - Something To Write Home About

Week 3 (14/02/16): Rain - Symphony Pains EP;
Title Fight - Hyperview;
Diet Cig - Over Easy EP;
Creeper - The Stranger EP

Week 4 (21/02/16): Cane Hill - Cane Hill EP;
Savages - Adore Life;
Municipal Waste - The Art Of Partying;
Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

Week 5 (28/02/16): Pretend Happy - Tired Eyes;
Grader - Wholly EP;
PVRIS - White Noise;
Distraction Pieces Podcast with Scroobius Pip*

* OBVIOUSLY THIS ISN'T FEATURED ON THE PLAYLIST, BUT I
ENCOURAGE YOU TO SUBSCRIBE ON iTUNES, IT'S THE SHIT.

Week 6 (06/03/16): Muncie Girls - From Caplan To Belsize;
Muskets - Spin EP;
Into It. Over It. - Proper;
Los Campesinos! - Hold On Now, Youngster...

Week 7 (13/03/16): Cheap Meat - The Parts
That Show EP;
Sorority Noise - It Kindly Stopped
For Me EP (released April 8th on Topshelf Records);
Architects - A Match Made In Heaven (new album,
All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us, is out May 27th
on Epitaph Records);
Max Raptor - Max Raptor (released April 22nd on Hassle Records)

Week 8 (20/03/16): Glassjaw - Worship And Tribute;
John Coffey - A House For Thee EP;
Turnover - Humblest Pleasures EP;
Reckless Love - InVader *

* JUST NO. JUST FUCKING NO. I COULDN'T EVEN MUSTER UP
ENOUGH ENERGY LAST WEEK TO WRITE ABOUT HOW FUCKING
DIABOLICAL THIS RECORD IS. AVOID IT LIKE THE FUCKING PLAGUE.

Week 9 (27/03/16): Iggy Pop - Post Pop Depression;
The Dirty Nil - Higher Power;
Brian Fallon - Painkillers;
Heck - Instructions

YOU CAN NOW STREAM THE MEGA-PLAYLIST OF 'RECORDS OF THE WEEK' FROM JANUARY TO MARCH BELOW VIA SPOTIFY:

Don't forget: like the Randon's Reviews page on Facebook (honestly, every single 'like' is appreciated beyond words) to see the Records Of The Week as they come in. I'll do another playlist like this when summer arrives, at which point you probably won't be sat at your laptops wishing Storm Katie would get to fuck already.

Ho hum, hang in there folks: the shit part is nearly over.

Danny

GIG REVIEW: HECK / RAKETKANON @ THE JOINERS, SOUTHAMPTON

Photo by Captain Metal Photography

FUCK EVERYTHING THAT YOU THINK YOU KNOW ABOUT BABY GODZILLA HECK.

Trust me, I was in that camp once. That first time I saw four men swinging their barely-intact guitars around like over-enthusiastic Belarusian olympic hammer-throwers, screaming blue murder into their microphones and hanging off pretty much anything that could hold their weight; whether it was the many staircases at Bristol's o2 Academy (where I first saw them opening for The Wildhearts back in 2013), or the several oblivious audience members that bothered turning up early for their set.

Photo by Captain Metal 
Photography

From the moment the words 'Baby Godzilla' popped up on the bill for the Kerrang! Tour in 2014, they were on the cusp of being forever doomed as that band where people go 'ooh, they're nutters, shame they haven't got any songs!'. It could have been one of the most transient fads before people got too hung up on the fact that they were barely delivering the ballsy punk n' roll anthems that they seriously have the potential to push to their red-raw limits.

Well, you know what? HECK (formally Baby Godzilla) have those anthems now. They've probably had them stashed away all along (I'd argue that 'Powerboat Disaster' remains one of their biggest and best tracks) but nobody's given them the time of day apart from wazzing off about how mental they are live. They've been through the ringer with being derided as a farce, and they've come out the other end with a handful of fucking furious, riff-heavy bangers. I can't help but doff my metaphorical cap to HECK for dealing with it in the way that they have.

Before you even read this review, go and listen to their debut album, INSTRUCTIONS, and I dare you to say after listening to it that they don't have songs, especially after the three-part 16-minute epic at the end of the record, 'I: See The Old Lady Decently / II: Buried Although / III: Amongst Those Left Are You' *and breathe*...

A really good photo of RAKETKANON by yours truly
(Definitely not taken on an iPhone)

If you think that HECK's insurance providers have a bit of a field day dealing with their responsibilities, try being the band that opens for them. Luckily, RAKETKANON face the challenge with enough batshit enthusiasm to make HECK look like a fucking skiffle band.

What's even more respectable about these Belgian nutcases and their display of grimy, pulsing noise is the fact that they do it without perhaps their most crucial member: lead singer Pieter-Paul Devos is allegedly fighting illness during their set (although guitarist Jef Verbeeck tries to pin his absence on "not being able to snort cocaine on stage in the UK"), but HECK guitarist Jonny Hall is on hand to fill the void. 

Not that there is actually much of a void to be filled, what with keyboardist Lode Vlaeminck headbutting his keyboard and drummer Pieter de Wilde spending more time in the middle of the crowd than behind his kit. Somehow, they still manage to harness those chaotic energies into churning out often-industrial, always-intense art-rock.

Photo by Captain Metal Photography

You think you may know the score with a HECK show, but you'd be an idiot to disregard just how unpredictable this band can be. Sure, they'll be dangling from the rafters and death-staring audience members with a slight pathological intensity (this does happen on numerous occasions tonight), but the order in which they'll be pulling these mad tricks out of the bag seems a mystery to the band themselves.

Just because HECK have started to finally channel some energy into crafting massive hooks and stomping rock n' roll choruses on Instructions, they're far from losing that momentum that thrives in dingy atmospheres like the one at The Joiners. The room may be half-full, but that might be for the best considering the amount of space cleared by the loose cannon of a frontman that is Matt Reynolds. With the same anarchic chemistry of Omar and Cedric from At The Drive-In, or Sid and Clown from Slipknot, Reynolds and Hall quite literally bounce off the walls... and the stage... and the amps... and the crowd. 

Photo by Captain
Metal Photography

Even in amongst the discordance and pandemonium of this feedback-drenched evening, the technical brilliance of HECK's rhythm section is never down-played. Paul Shelley hammers the shit of his bass, gurning like a bulldog chewing a wasp in the process (a hard-as-fuck bulldog at that), while drummer Tom Marsh reaches his enraged peak by nearly punching a hole in his toms. If it weren't for the choppy time signatures that they miraculously uphold, tracks like 'Good As Dead' and 'A Great Idea Bastardised' wouldn't be nearly as chaotic or captivating.

By the time 'Powerboat Disaster' swaggers in, Reynolds has surrendered his mic almost entirely to the crowd who are (myself included) more than willing to join in for the hearty yo-ho-ing that carries on long after the song crashes to a halt. It's glorious moments like this where you're actually grateful that HECK didn't stick around in the Academy-sized venues, in the same way you'd rather see Trash Talk at The Fighting Cocks in Kingston, or letlive. at The Old Blue Last in London. 

Where's the fun in not fearing for your life anyway? One misstep at this show and I could've ended up being strangled with a mic lead, or had a guitar head slammed into my temple, or being flattened by a flying monitor.

Would I have it any other way at a HECK show? 

HECK NO.

Photos by Captain Metal Photography

Big thanks to Captain Metal Photography for letting me use some of his shots. You can check out more of his stuff over on his Facebook page. You can also check out some wicked footage from the show below, courtesy of the kid who stuck his GoPro on one of the amps. You can probably see me at some point trying to lob a mic stand at someone.

Yo-ho, yo-ho...

Danny