Kicking off our first interview, I get to meet up with Anti-Vigilante down in Wolverton. For those who don’t know, A-V have been going for a few years, becoming one of the more well-known of the younger local punk bands known for some really energetic stage antics with the band jumping around with the energy of a Duracel Rabbit. Arriving at the scene, the guys are just finishing off a portion of chips, then it’s off to get a drink and off to the “Secret Garden” for a chat with how the guys are doing these days.
After covering festivals, birthday gigs, the Blitz and other larger projects we finally get time to review the normal goings on in the scene. Symbo unveiled news on an album they were recording so the Sno! Bar was a good gig to check out and see what I could find out. Also playing are Vision Fall, who Beatdown have been recommending. It’s not exactly as busy as it can be upon arrival, but bearing in mind it’s only two bands playing as it is I’m expecting a fairly easy, laid back night.
This blog is deliberately later than usual, revolving around a particular gig I’ve just been to, in Aldershot of all places. Why? Well, it’s a fair story, which is what I’ll be going on about. We all see bands that make us wake up and really enjoy their set, though I see quite a few bands, there are just three I can think of on top of my head, Midasuno, The Johnstones and The Pluto. The latter is what intrigued me recently, I vowed to see them once more but never got around to it and the band seemed to stop playing…
It’s hard to believe it, but Beatdown has been going for pretty much about a year now. I remember Oz telling me about the lineup earlier in the year and I was already looking forward to it. Fandangle headline the show, a band I haven’t seen for about five years. With the Canadian troupe of The Johnstones supporting them on the current tour, plus support from the Beatdown regulars like Anti-Vigilante, Shaping The End and Near The Knuckle opening the show too, it’s already looking like one hell of a night.
Well, here we are! The last leg of the very last Blitz has come to town, each of the bands has practised their arses off, there are twelve judges waiting to make a critique on their sets and a pretty decent turnout from fans. It’s been quite a journey for this one, at first I thought it was too much of a mix, but that variety has spawned a good showcase so far. Granted, not all the bands were excellent in the heats, but we’ve finally come up to the cream of the crop. So, here we go into the last of these nights.
During this year’s Band Blitz, there were a few bands who made quite the impression despite not making it though their heats, Tombstone Bullets come directly under that category, taking part in one of the best heats and put on a pretty good show to finish it off. Recently the guys have also recorded a new Ep for themselves, named “Broken Rhyme”, to show off some of their newer material, produced by Andé D’Mello. But how will it stand against their live performances?
Gah, another later than usual blog, though the Blitz review was taking up quite some time. Anyway, onto the actual damn content. This one’s devoted to something a found while giving my room a bit of a clearout. The second time I went to APT they released a fanzine, this was named “Forbidden Beat”. However the coverage was far wider than what me or Warren cover, it actually transcended music and even went onto politics and such. Unfortunately the ‘zine has only one issue released in 2007.
A classical album? Being reviewed here on AMPjam.net? Of course it is, it’s the works of local musician Nick Smeaton (you may remember him screaming his lungs out in a certain local skacore band) who not only delivers some of the scenes harsher vocals but also dabbles in the piano. Well, I “say” dabble but given the live performances I’ve seen, plus listening to the recordings, it’s certain that Nick knows a lot more about the keys than most and has a surprising, softer side to his musical approach.
Going out to an indie night? Call yourself indie? How many indie bands do you think there are in the city alone? Or do you even know what “indie” is? This blog goes out to one of the biggest misconceptions in music and one of the most infuriating “labels” I’ve ever heard. You may have the hair, you may have the shirt and you may have the unreasonably tight jeans and scraggy look, but do you really know? I’d gather you don’t have a clue at all, but the name is thrown around oh-so-much.
Continuing our dive back into the normal gigs, Annotazioni are back at the Crauford once again with a lineup I can’t really resist despite the weather. An Our Man In The Bronze Age gig can’t really be missed and Men Of Unitus, a band I haven’t seen for a year, are right up my alley too. A couple of younger names also appear on the night with Incendia and Heart Of A Coward taking up the earlier slots. Stepping into the hall, it’s time to see how the Anno guys are doing.
