Initially, it seems that Creeper have the odds well and truly stacked against them. There are barely a thousand people inside this gigantic arena for their 7.00 PM start and the seating set-up is reminiscent of those cringe-worthy times at school that your mates' band played assembly. Additionally, a wholly unscientific mid-set survey, conducted by the band, shows that the vast majority of people present don't have a Scooby who they are. However, Creeper have two secret weapons.
Read MoreWe rock up to the Star & Garter on a Wednesday with loads of anticipation for the night of deathcore ahead. This is yet again another great lineup secured by Tapestry Promotions for Manchester, and I can’t sing their praises high loudly enough for the work they put in and quality they bring to the scene in the North West. Onto the bands…Portrayal of Ruinn are opening proceedings fresh from their Metal 2 the Masses win, which in the process secured them a slot at Bloodstock.
Read MoreSometimes you’re at a gig and it just feels that little bit more special, that it’s a night you’ll tell the kids about and could be one of those watershed “I was there” moments. Tonight feels like one of those times. All three bands end up performing phenomenal sets, and in particular for headliners LANDMVRKS you feel that this should be the start of something massive.
Read MoreIt used to be that an appearance by black metal legends Mayhem was a rare phenomenon, however, in recent years they have become less sporadic and more generous in their live appearances. Consequentially there has begun to be less of a feeling of “oh my god it's Mayhem!” and more of “Didn’t we see them last week?”. Saying all that, it is still third time lucky for this particular show. Originally scheduled for March 2020, it was pushed back into 2021 and then into this year. This trail of postpones means that there is a veritable air of expectation, even if the album they were meant to be promoting (“Daemon”) has long slipped from our collective consciousness.
Read MoreTonight, the AO arena has become one vast Karaoke booth. With no material to promote, all three acts unashamedly head down the “greatest hits” path. This is a case of raiders of the back catalogue, and even the most fair-weather planet rock listener finds at least one track in each set they miraculously know all the words to. Europe are first out the traps and whilst they are all now in their late fifties, they have the playful air of five teenagers playing rock n’ roll for the sheer love of the music.
Read MoreIn these days of media driven celebrity drivel- where everyone wants to be famous for 5 minutes for exposing their breasts, telling some seedy kiss and tell ‘story’ or dancing like a twat and sharing it for some unknown pointless reason on Tik Tok in the vague hope that someone will give them ‘likes’ and comment and praise them into thinking they are talented, real talent often goes amiss and shockingly overlooked. As does the term legend. Again, too often loosely thrown about, bestowed by corrupt media on any such non entity they deem deserved of that title.
Read MoreAnother day another rock gig, but also a new venue to explore. I liked it. It’s easy to get to, plenty of parking, staff were lovely, the room is small but has seating for us old codgers and the sound was spot-on. Even the lights, which looked ominously purple at first, turned out to be not so bad and I think Ryan managed to do both bands justice with the photos.
Read MoreTonight’s main support should have been Empyre, but unfortunately they have been hit by the dreaded ‘rona (get well soon guys) so local band Cry For Mercy were drafted in to open the show instead. They are a 3-piece outfit from Wrexham, and they open with just a guitar and vocals, which I quite like. Unfortunately though this is due to a technical issue rather than by design, and once someone works out how to plug the bass in the sound gets a lot better! The style is bluesy, but in a commercial and catchy way, and it’s OK. My first thought on hearing them is that they sound a bit like Thunder.
Read MoreMetal 2 the masses, Bloodstock’s gift to small dingy venues the length and breadth of this fair isle (and beyond). In many ways, it represents what we at ROCKFLESH towers are all about, celebrating the rich and diverse talent that exists in our vibrant metal underground. This is Liverpool’s heat 3, Deified has cancelled due to illness but it as still pulled an eager crowd, happy to spend their Friday night watching bands and throwing beer at each other (more about that later).
Read MoreIt’s an early Sunday evening start for a very heavy night at Rebellion, and New Jersey progressive metalcore crew Sentinels are first up. They prowl the dark stage in sinister fashion with a mysterious electronic backing-track before exploding into an exciting, high energy set. The best way to describe them is a tech-metal Malevolence, but they cover way more bases than that suggests.
Read MoreRosen Bridge are up first in The Bread Shed tonight having made the short trip from North Wales. They immediately crank out their crunching tech-metal akin to Northlane, InVisions and Architects. They’re not as slick and smooth live as on their recordings, but still offer an interesting and entertaining performance. The harsh vocals bite and slam into the front row, but the cleans seem troubled by the dry house sound tonight.
Read MorePower Metal, that most maligned and ridiculed of Metal many sub-genres. Tonight, is a heavyweight tussle between two of its premiere league exponents. In the red corner, Helloween who conceived the whole bloody genre back in the eighties and in the blue corner, HammerFall who have kept the flame burning (and held the hammer aloft) since the mid-nineties. If you like your metal bloated, bombastic and free of irony then this is a marriage made in Valhalla, if not I would bugger off and watch the football.
Read MoreEvery now and then I get a ROCKFLESH assignment that turns out to be on a level so beyond exciting that my cold dead shattered heart suddenly bursts into a joyful rhythm of what I imagine sounds like Industrial drums. I reckon my heart beats sound like Nine Inch Nails. And tonight my heart is beating for the Gothfather of Electro himself…. Gary Numan.
A few years ago me and our Gregg were sat having a pre Thy Art Is Murder pint in Grand Central in Manchester. It was our first time working together and we started chatting about who we were into. We both settled on one name.
Read MoreAhhh. Kyuss. The great could have been of modern metal. There was a point where they were set to inherit the earth. However, line up jiggery-pokery and record label indifference led to their dissolution in 1995. Josh Homme and Nick Oliveri would go on to form the far more successful, far more commercial, and simply just not as good Queens of The Stone Age. However, Kyuss left a legacy. A legacy that would grow and grow in prestige and scale to the point where their influence now far outweighs anything they achieved in their short time of actually being active.
Read MoreIt’s time for ROCKFLESH to hit another arena, and this time myself and Ryan (complete with escort to and from the photopit) have the pleasure of scooting across to Leeds for a May Bank Holiday Monday treat! Armed with my 2 pints cup of cider I make my way into the standing area for openers Malevolence. I’ve noticed loads of their tees in the crowd, so it’s no surprise then that there’s a great buzz about the place, and a soon to be vicious pit opens up before the band have even made it on stage.
Read MoreDue to guest list shenanigans, we only get down to the Club Academy (or cellar as it was known in my day) for the second half of Tortured Demon’s set. Annoying, but on the bright side we still get to see three tracks. Putting aside their youth, the most captivating thing about Tortured Demon is that they perfectly capture the raw turbulent energy that thrash was initially all about. They may be rough around the edges, and they may in places feel unrefined, but none of that matters because what they have at their heart is a chaotic connectivity that makes them a delicious live proposition.
Read More“You’re not on the list. There is no list. Oh you might be on the list. Wait here” is never a good start to the night, but a bit of negotiating and flashing of screen shots later, we’re in on this pleasant spring evening.
First up tonight is Melodic Alt Punk Welsh rockers Fly- 52. A reasonably new project riding the waves of the recent pop punk revival, Fly-52 play like a band who have been at it for years, as opposed to forming in 2021. Whilst crediting the likes of Blink 182, New Found Glory, and Sum41 as their influences, it’s an entirely different band I pick out whilst listening.
Read MoreFirst things first… it’s busy! And not just that, I am unprepared for how “normal” the majority of the crowd look. Momentarily forgetting how spoilt I have been recently with all the metal gigs and more eclectic musicianship. My weirdo beacon is shining brightly as I head to the front to check out the support band. Last time I was in Academy 1 it was to see Skindred, so this all feels very different.
Read MoreTonight kicks off with Before The Storm, a local-ish band from Wrexham who play radio-friendly rock that crosses a number of genres. I didn’t catch any song titles but the band were competent and the music was OK. Personally I wasn’t keen on the vocals, the singer has a flat, nasally style that is like nails on blackboard to me. Don’t get me wrong, he can sing, he has both power and range, just not to my personal taste.
Read MoreIt’s a sleepy Wednesday night, but Oldham punk band The Big I Am are determined to kick the night off with a bang. Despite the small early crowd they excitedly bound through their old -school punk rock. To me they're reminiscent of Janus Stark, with some gruff singing and mix of surf-rock style vocal lines and twangy overdriven guitars.
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