After having been fairly disappointed by the last single from goth-punk’s Alkaline Trio, I was preparing myself for the worst with this next one. (The worst from them being that it was nothing special).
This was actually a nice surprise. ‘The Torture Doctor’ is still Alkaline Trio in their purest form, the macabre themes, the simplistic, catchy hooks. This is the band really pushing forwards though, the vocals becoming almost sinister, the melodies creeping into something much deeper. Its not what I was expecting, its much, much better.
Well after the storming ‘Shadow Moses’ video was released a few weeks ago, I’ve been eagerly awaiting more from Bring Me The Horizon‘s new album ‘Sempiternal’, out April 1. Just to show that the last single wasn’t a fluke, they’ve now released the equally chilling ‘Sleepwalking’.
The video is shot in the snow again, raising the question: did they shoot them all on one snowy day? Anyway, its pretty eerie and features the standard ghostly looking girl wandering about while the band perform to disinterested locals in a community centre-esque bar. Oh, and there’s some random shots of barbie dolls.
Track is awesome though.
You can pre-order Sempiternal from the band’s store here.
When I’m looking for music to post about on here, I always try to find something with personal relevance. It could be that I’ve had a really good experience seeing the band live, or have a specific memory associated with them. In this case though, its that I can completely relate to the content.
Escape The Fate‘s new video ‘Ungrateful’ focuses on the cycle of bullying, from school, to home, to workplaces and how it impacts on the lives of those who experience it. (I warn you now, the graphics are pretty shocking).
I was unfortunate enough to experience bullying in school first-hand. It wasn’t pleasant (obviously). In fact, its had a huge effect on the rest of my life so far. It took years for me to get back the person that I was before it started. And I had it lightly compared to some others.
I watched friends slowly becoming shadows of the happy, confident people they once were. There are people I grew up with, that I was close friends with, that simply dropped out of school and effectively disappeared. Sometimes I search Facebook for them, in the hope that I’ll see them smiling, living their lives somewhere else. But they never turn up.
I don’t solely blame the people who took things out on me. As a friend told me once ‘round here, bullying is pretty much generic‘. It seems like a flippant statement for something which ruins lives, but its true. The people in my school year who were bullies were picked on by kids in the year above. They were picked on by kids in the year above them. It went on and on.
I wish there was a simple solution to it, but what needs to change the most is people’s attitudes. It’s not right for this to happen, but it does. So why is no-one talking about it..?
Anyway, here’s the music video for you:
So I have a bit of a thing for Scottish accents. It’s not weird, I promise. I’m half Scottish and there’s just something really homely about them. Anyway, it was this love that made me such a huge fan of Frightened Rabbit in the first place. They played at a venue I was working at and though I couldn’t make the gig, I decided to look them up (based on the name, because I also love rabbits).
As another random fact, I’ve been listening to this band since ‘The Midnight Organ Fight’ came out in 2008, but hadn’t actually seen the bands videos up until now. I’d never imagined the singer having a beard. *ahem*
This video for ‘Backyard Skulls’ basically reminds me of every school disco I went to. No-one dancing. Everyone sitting awkwardly on the sidelines. I’m still trying to guess which person I’d be in this. The song is beautifully despairing, like many of the bands song. It’s quite upbeat for them to be honest. Some of their tracks can reduce me to tears in less than 30 seconds. That’s a real feat right there.
If you like this, go check out every (yes, every) video on their Youtube. Do it now. You know you’ve got nothing better to do.
Frightened Rabbit’s fourth album, ‘Pedestrian Verse’ is out now.
I first fell in love with The King Blues at the Demolition Ball at the old Astoria venue (my favourite venue in the whole world, sadly). The had all the passion, all the angst to appeal to my teenage self, but always a cheerful tune to go along with it. Who hasn’t sung along to ‘Boulder’ at some point, when they’re feeling down?
Jonny “Itch” Fox was the one to break the news of the band’s split last April, but as one band finished, a new musical endeavour has sprung up. Itch’s solo single ‘Manifesto Pt. 1: How to Fucking Rule at Life’,was released last November and is available to download for free from itchsmixes.com.
Here’s his new video for ‘Diplomat’, directed by NYSU.
So I don’t really listen to a lot of heavy metal, let’s be honest. I do, however, try to listen to everything that gets sent to my inbox (time constraints allowing). So when I got sent this, I switched the speakers on high and gave it a whirl. Its, suprisingly, really good. And this is coming from someone who normally turns the song off if it gets to the chorus and there’s still no actual singing.
Enough about me, Collapse are a heavy metal 5-piece hailing from London town. They’ve clearly done their time touring the mini-venue circuit (because no-one gets that good without doing it) and have picked up some good press in Metal Hammer lately.
Their debut album ‘Arms and the Covenant’ is due out April 1. Get your ear drums ready and rock out with the below:
For anyone who can’t wait for the new Fearless Vampire Killers album (I know I can’t..), here’s a nice teaser for you! The band have just released a new video for the first single off their upcoming second album ‘Exposition: The Five Before The Flames’, a prequel to their debut.
‘Diamond Dust & Crimson Reign’ is more ballady than we’re used to with these guys, but that’s not to say it doesn’t have the same kick-ass chords that we love the band for. Plus the video seems to be following on the plot from their originals, which I absolutely LOVE. Just would like to know a bit more of the storyline..
Clever stop-motion? Check. Vinyl porn? Check. Adrenalin fuelled rock-goodness? Check. Must be the new video from Leeds rockers Hawk Eyes then..
There’s something Reuben-ish about the new single ‘You Deserve A Medal’. It might be the shortness of the track (only 1:56, gosh!), but either way its not a bad thing. Tearing through in the blink of an eye, this is one that you’ll want to put on a repeat a few times to really appreciate. Either way, you’ll be humming this to yourself all day..
The band’s new album ‘Ideas’ is out now. Catch them on a very brief tour of the UK (read: only Birmingham / Sheffield / Leeds) next month.
Just as I was wishing for more sleazy, female fronted rock’n’roll, I came across the awesome Deap Vally.
The duo (Lindsey Troy and Julie Edwards) bizarely met at a needlework class in Silver Lake, California and have been making blues-tinged rock ever since. Its hard to write about an all-woman band without crying ‘feminism’, but I don’t think its misplaced with tracks like ‘Make My Own Money’ and cited influences being Thelma and Louise.
Behind the oozing rock’n’roll though, there’s real talent. Listen to songs like ‘I Put a Spell on You’ and you can hear the raw emotion behind the lyrics, combined with some pretty decent guitar playing. Think Jack White with more sex appeal (debatable).
I’ll be honest, this one gets massive props from me just for the vague (and possibly unintentional) Crow film reference. See the flames? Bleed From Within clearly have some good movie collections..
Anyway, this is the title track from the Scottish metallers new album, due out on March 25. Even better news is the fact that you can download the single for free now, from the Century Media website. Oh, and did I mention the band are on tour with Heart of a Coward (groove metal, apparently) this April?
The Rock Chic 