Punk News Reviews

Unsung Heroes – 9 unsigned bands impress the crowds Undercover at The Holroyd!

By Ruth Rae
Undercover Heroes - Torpedoes main

Guildford was the place to be to check out some great new bands!

Continuing their quest to champion less well-known bands, the excellent Undercover Festival & Events put on a splendid afternoon and evening of live music from unsigned bands at Suburbs at The Holroyd, Guildford on Saturday 31st May. 

The Punktuation team of Ruth Rae and Jim Creith had their cameras ready to capture each band; read their reviews of this fantastc event below:

Ruth’s report

The Landings
The Landings - photo by Ruth Rae
Starting the afternoon were Aldershot, Hampshire four piece Post-Punk / New Wave / Indie band The Landings. They have released three albums, 2015’s ‘The Landings‘, 2017’s ‘Seconds‘ and in 2024 ‘Dritte‘. Comprising John Edwards – synths & vocals, Dan Cornell – guitar & backing vocals, Jamie Borland – bass & backing vocals and Stuart Thorp – drums, their sound was swirling and melodic, with more than a hint of Joy Division and The Jesus and Mary Chain. The Greg Norton-moustached Jamie kicked out some slick riffs on his bass!
The Dandelion Chain - Mike & Lucy - photo by Ruth Rae

Next, we welcomed a younger band; Portsmouth based The Dandelion Chain. A post-Goth / Indie / Alternative group formed in 2023, they are currently recording an EP, following several online single releases. The band are: Mike Page – guitar & vocals, Lucy Burden-Smith – guitar, synths & backing vocals, Carlos Aguilar– bass, cello, backing vocals & effects and Matthew – drums & samples. Again, a Joy Division influence was very apparent, but this band is more upbeat. Mike gave insanely good guitar and vocal performances, finishing the set out in the middle of the crowd, contorting around his guitar as the audience danced around him!

Torpedoes Ben and Ray
Torpedoes - Ben Prior and Ray Fagan - photo by Ruth Rae

Another Portsmouth band, Torpedoes, brought their dark rock sound to the stage. Led by Ray (Razor) Fagan (lead vocals, guitar), along with Ben Prior (guitar, vocals), Martin Cook (drums) and Steve Burrell (bass) they soon had the crowd bouncing along. Powerful drumming underpinned a set filled with swirling guitars and weighty bass, topped with sublime vocal harmonies from the two guitarists. Torpedoes released their fourth album ‘Heaven’s Light Our Guide‘ last year, to much acclaim, and it was wonderful to hear songs from it live!

Lit Like Vegas
Lit Like Vegas - James Sanger-Brown - photo by Ruth Rae
Fourth band to take to the stage were Lit Like Vegas, a ‘Metalcore/Pop-Punk’ crossover, from the local area of Guildford. Frontman James Sanger-Brown on lead vocals, accompanied by Tom Sierra-Pile on guitar & vocals, Karl Nottdrodt on guitar, Josh Bates on bass and Jack Ross on drums, percussion & vocals are a group of friends who share a passion for music. They have just released their self-titled album, and were eager to showcase its songs to us. James engaged very well with the crowd, backed by the excellent musicianship of his three bandmates:

Jim’s report

The Boo-Tikis by Jim C
The Boo-Tikis - photo by Jim Creith

Next up were The Boo Tikis, more often than not a three-piece although today it’s just Lyse on stand up drums and vocals and DC on guitar and vocals. As with the White Stripes, Slaves/Softplay, Royal Blood and Voodoo Radio, the song quality is such that you don’t really miss the ‘absent’ instruments, and get swept along by the ‘rockabilly surf’ tunes. A band inspired by the past but stepping into the future…

Sabotage - photo by Jim Creith
The name Sabotage brings up the image of Black Sabbath and early metal, but this 6-piece Brighton-based band actually play Nu-metal influenced rap metal and mash-ups of tunes you recognise, but can’t quite name. All in all a pleasant surprise at this ‘punk’ all-dayer. Andy Nicolson – guitar, Lukas Jericho – vocals/rapping, Craig Steen – drums, Oscar Cuthbert – keyboards, Kris Hazard – guitar, and Mark Portnoi – bass captured everyone’s attention!
 
Shotgun Marmalade by Jim C
Shotgun Marmalade - photo by Jim Creith
Next band – Shotgun Marmalade is a three-piece from the West Midlands who could put a smile on the face of all but the most cynical, and get them dancing down the front, with their infectious pop/punk/ska tunes! They even played a request for Jen of Undercover, a cover version of ‘Blackleg Miner‘, a traditional folk tune made popular by Steeleye Span in the early ’70’s. With Sid River on guitar & vocals, Ryan Peters on bass and Rob Simmons on drums & vocals – what a great band!
Angerland by Jim C
Angerland - Jon Stone - photo by Jim Creith

Angerland – a big name for a big band who make a BIG noise!!! Sonically, these guys are the missing link between early Back Sabbath, Mudhoney, mid-’80’s Black Flag and Killing Joke. Words like ‘muscular, heavy and aggressive’ are often used to describe this politically-charged industrial metal punk juggernaut but I’d add one more, ‘necessary’ as this band shows that it is okay to stray into darker areas and still have a message. One of Punktuation’s ‘Five Bands to Watch in 2025‘, look out for Jon Stone on vocals, Andy ‘Kermit’ Keir on bass, Ian Fisher on guitar, Rex Bygate on keyboards and Cristian Prigoană on drums playing near you!

MC16 - Tom Carson - photo by Jim Creith
Why MC16 aren’t as popular as Sleaford Mods is beyond me, as they plough a similar furrow with real talent – and proper tunes! Their debut album ‘Machine Code‘ was released in February – check out Punktuation’s review. The band; drummer Jared Duffy, bassist Andy Quinn and guitarist Tom Carson are from Wolverhampton, and believe that music should challenge, confront, question and entertain – and that’s just what they did today! A band that believes in highlighting social and political injustice wherever they see it is as relevant today as it was when Dylan was writing some of his best social commentary in the ’60’s and of course when the more a-political of the punks like The Dead  Kennedys, Crass and Conflict to name just three were educating us all about a broken system. Tom, Andy and Jared mean what they say and more people should listen..

A special mention should be made of Alex, the Holroyd’s sound engineer who did an amazing job, despite having such a diverse set of bands to deal with – it would have been a long day for him and yet the sound quality never dipped once! To paraphase an old football adage, he was easily the ‘man of the gig’, in my opinion!

Need more Punk In Your Life?
Share This Story!