

Ah, spring is in the air, and we’ve been bathed in sunshine all week, so what better way to celebrate than to cram ourselves into murky Camden pub/goth haunt/institution The Dev for an evening of of metal-tinged crust/hardcore thrills? Oh, and did we mention that it’s free entry?Continue Reading

Tonight, the New Cross Inn plays host to straight-edge hardcore as it oughta be. In the wrong hands, the movement has too often been used as a tool to (sometimes literally) beat non-believers, but no-one’s getting dirty looks for enjoying a beer or two tonight. Rather, this evening’s bands embody the idea that hardcore gigs can be so much more than just a way for folks to Continue Reading

Craving some punk/garage/rock n' roll thrills? You've come to the right place! It’s been three months since we last caught up with Shake Some Acton, and they’ve clearly hit the ground running after the Christmas break. Five quality punk and rock n’ roll bands - Family Of Strangers, The Phobics, Glitter Kick, Deaf Devils and Menace - for only a tenner? At one of east Continue Reading

Isn’t rock n’ roll supposed to be a young person’s game? Then how come so many of the old guard are doing such a great job of breathing new life into the genre? A case in point: Sheffield rockers Black Spiders, who are about to unleash a beast of a fifth album in ‘Cvrses’, and who only seem to have become ever leaner, meaner and hungrier since forming back in 2008.Continue Reading

There’s one glaring omission on ‘Here To Destroy’; namely that, unlike a Split Dogs gig, it comes without vocalist Harry Atkins’ utterly magnetic stage presence. Seriously, of all punk rock vocalists currently doing the rounds, they take the crown - for somehow managing to keep up such gloriously frenzied, bug-eyed, confrontational performances night after night. Suffice Continue Reading

The cheerily-titled ‘Death & The Miser’ is the third album from Fight Back Mountain, and if lyricist/guitarist Anjelica Aquilino’s musings on the state of life in the Midwest are to be believed, then it remains true that troubled times can inspire great art. There’s plenty of soul-searching on display here; a sense of faded glory in the here and now, plus uncertainty Continue Reading

It’s curious that Europeans are doing such a fine job keeping the late 90s/early 00s Californian skate-punk sound alive. It wasn’t long ago that we reviewed German quartet Noopinion’s excellent sixth record, which boasts more than a few nods to the likes of Good Riddance and Strung Out, and now here are Rebuke with ‘Things One Shouldn’t Have To Say’, continuing in a Continue Reading

First, full disclosure: I’m a big fan of the Hellacopters, not least because the Swedish quintet’s excellent 2002 record ‘By The Grace Of God’ helped to get me through some difficult times back in the day. Still, I promise I’ll do my best to be objective about ‘Overdriver’ - the band’s ninth record, and their second since reuniting back in 2016. Continue Reading

None of tonight’s bands are particularly pushing the hardcore envelope, but it’s hard to complain when they all serve up a rapid succession of raw, unfiltered street-core bangers, and it’s heartening to see that headliners Madball can still pull a decent-sized crowd after nearly four decades together.Continue Reading

The New Cross Inn may not be sold out tonight, but there is a friendly, community feel amongst the folks who’ve turned out for an evening of quality punk rock. In an ideal world, Spoilers would have become much more widely known and appreciated in their 10 years together (to date), but as things are, they’re undoubtedly and rightfully treasured by those in the know. Continue Reading