Issuu

CONTENTS A PRI L 2017

upsetmagazine.com

EDITOR’S NOTE

Editor: Stephen Ackroyd (stephen@upsetmagazine.com) Deputy Editor: Victoria Sinden (viki@upsetmagazine.com) Assistant Editor: Ali Shutler (ali@upsetmagazine.com) Contributors: Andrew Benge, Chris Cope, Chris Taylor, Danny Randon, Jake Richardson, Jasleen Dhindsa, Jessica Goodman, Kristy Diaz, Phil Smithies, Steven Loftin All material copyright (c). All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, in whole or in part, without the express written permission of The Bunker Publishing Ltd. The opinions of the contributors do not necessarily bear a relation to those of Upset or its staff and we disclaim liability for those impressions. Distributed nationally. P U B L I S H E D F RO M

THE BUNKER W E LCO M E TOT H E B U N K E R.CO M

IN THIS ISSUE... RIOT!

4 M ASTO D O N 8 A RCA N E RO OTS 10 RO C K DJ : WAT E RPA RKS VS SW M RS 12 M A L LO RY K N OX

ABOUT TO BREAK

14 B E L L EV U E DAYS 15 B ROA D BAY 16 D E L PA XTO N

FEATURES

18 D I ET C I G

26 28 32 42

B L E AC H E D PW R BT T M C RE E P E R P U L L E D A PA RT BY H O RS ES

RATED

46 C RE E P E R 47 F RE EZ E T H E AT L A N T I C 48 J U L I E N BA K E R 49 T R AC KS O F T H E MONTH 50 MODERN BASEBALL 52 TAKING BACK SUNDAY

These are troubled times. As the rights of those who need them most seem to get repealed by the day, it’s easy to feel like we’re going backwards as a society. Stateside an administration that appears barely capable of functioning comes down hardest on those that need support the most, while in the UK we’re driven towards a seemingly increasingly hardline outcome to a referendum where the younger generation was dictated to by one who has already taken so much. It’s at times like these we need voices to stand out and speak loud. This month, we’re highlighting just some of the most important. Bands who, as they see a world that still had so far to go challenged, are willing to put their foot down and fight. Stand with them.

RIOT ING IN ROCK E V E RY T H I N G H A P P E N

SAND

MASTODON’S NEW ALBUM TELLS THE STORY OF A MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH IN THE DESERT; FILLED WITH CINEMATIC STORYTELLING AND EMOTIVE THEMES, IT’S A NARRATIVE CLOSE TO THE BAND’S HEARTS.

WORDS: STEVEN LOFTIN. PHOTOS: JIMMY HUBBARD.

e bring an emotional darkness for people. If they want to be in that safe place, they can be.” Finding time before rehearsal for his set on The Late Show with Seth Meyers, Mastodon drummer and co-vocalist extraordinaire Brann Dailor delves deep into the psyche of the band and their fans. Mastodon’s latest studio release, ‘Emperor of Sand’ is once again a conceptualised epic tale that uses storytelling to resonate - though getting to this point is a surprisingly relaxed process, he explains. “We’re never quite sure what it’s going to sound like, there are never any predetermined notions when it comes to

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anything Mastodon, and that’s what makes us organic.” ‘Emperor of Sand’ is a project fuelled by the band’s personal lives, and as the recording sessions progressed, their tales were used to flesh out the album’s narrative. “Over a few months, we put together a basic outline of what the story should be and then tried to tie it all into what everybody was experiencing - life, cancer. Bill [Kelliher guitar]’s mother was going through brain cancer, and it seemed to work metaphorically, but it had to be a representation.” Exposing such tender parts of your life isn’t easy. “It takes a little bit of extra work, but for me, it pays off emotionally. I just want to feel like I gave it everything I have and that I took all the

measures to make sure that it’s special and honest and truthful and interesting. Well, interesting to me at least - but I’m not that skilled of a writer.” It’s a statement loaded with modesty; if you’ve ever found yourself reading the lyrics to a Mastodon song, you’ll know they’re not run-of-the-mill. “I don’t consider myself a writer or anything,” Brann laughs. “I do my best with the lyrics and try to make them the least amount of embarrassing possible. I try to get them so my wife can read them without singing, and have me and her not laugh.” “It was a difficult period to go through,” he muses, “but what do you do? Do you side step it, knowing the emotions coming out of the album musically are steeped in all the personal things that

RIOT ROCK

A W S T E N F R O M WA T E R P A R K S

VS VS VS

COLE FROM SWMRS

TWO BAND MEMBERS. F I V E C AT E G O R I E S . ONE WINNER.

veryone thinks they could be a superstar DJ. Everyone. Even your nan reckons she’s in with a chance of having it large behind the wheels of steel. But not everyone has what it takes. We’re putting some of your favourite bands to the test. We’ve given two musicians five categories. They pick a song for each, we decide who wins each round, and who takes home the trophy overall. There can only be one victor. This month, Awsten from Waterparks takes on Cole from SWMRS. Let battle commence... ROUND ONE T H E S O N G Y O U ’ D P L AY I F T H E P L A N E T W A S I N VA D E D BY A L I E N S A N D YO U H A D TO CONVINCE THEM THE H U M A N R A C E WA S W O R T H S AV I N G .

Cole: ‘Tom Sawyer’ by Rush. If Geddy isn’t the closest thing to alien communication we’re fucked. Awsten: ‘Wildest Dreams’ by Taylor Swift. Because i wouldn’t kill anyone who could make those sounds. W I N N E R While communication with an alien race is a good idea, you’d have to be mad to mess with Swifty. Awsten, 1-0. ROUND TWO T H E S O N G Y O U ’ D P L AY AT A WEDDING FULL OF G ROWN UPS.

Cole: ‘Sinner’s Swing!’ by Van Halen. Nothing puts adults more in heat like a little Eddie and Alex. Awsten: Probably some Mozart idk. Because we’re at a wedding and surrounded by grown ups and I’m not a 13-year-old punk, shitboy, ~*~sNoWfLaKeE~*~ that craves being looked at weird for attention so I can feel like I’m on the outside and different from everyone else and blah blah blahhhh, I just wanna eat cake and be nice. W I N N E R You can’t put bloody Mozart in a DJ set. You can put Van Halen in - though it is a wedding, so they’d be expecting ‘Jump’. Still, 1-1. Cole’s round. ROUND THERE T H E S O N G Y O U ’ D P L AY TO G E T R E A DY F O R G O I N G O U T.

Cole: ‘Party Rock Anthem’ by LMFAO. Helps me get my chastity belt on nice and tight. Awsten: ‘I’m Just A Girl’ by No Doubt. Hype. W I N N E R It’s actually statistically impossible to beat No Doubt. Can’t be done. 2-1 to Awsten. ROUND FOUR

T H E S O N G Y O U ’ D P L AY I F T H E W O R L D WA S A BOUT TO E N D.

Cole: ‘It’s the End of the World as we Know It’ by R.E.M. Cliché, but who wouldn’t want to listen to R.E.M while the devil takes you in whatever way he wants. Awsten: ‘This Town’ by Niall Horan. BECAUSE IT’S SO SWEET AND NICE SOUNDING I’D BE OKAY DYING TO IT. W I N N E R On one hand, R.E.M. are the default, obvious winner here. But then you read Awsten’s reasoning, and you think - yeah, okay, maybe I would want to slip away listening to Nine Inch Niall. Obviously Cole takes this round to make it 2-2, but y’know. Niall is dreamy. ROUND FIVE T H E S O N G Y O U ’ D P L AY AT A SUMMER BBQ

Cole: ‘Sweet Home Alabama’. Kid Rock version of course. Awsten: ‘Coldest Winter’ by Kanye West. In case Kanye West shows up to my barbecue and happens to be WAY into irony. W I N N E R Nope. Nope. No Kid Rock. That’s not happening ‘round here. No way, no how. He may be suggesting playing a track called ‘Coldest Winter’ at the height of summer, but - almost by default - we’ve got to give it to Awsten. AND THE WINNER IS... AW S T E N F R O M WAT E R PA R K S W I N S 3 - 2 . ‘ C O N G R AT S ’ !

CAS E ST U DY

FRANK FRANK CARTER CARTER

EVER WONDERED

W H AT E S S E N T I A L S Y O U R F AV O U R I T E B A N D S A L W AY S T A K E O N TOU R? W E L L, N OW YO U CA N K N OW !

PVRIS PVRIS PVRIS ARE BACK! THEIR NEW ALBUM IS COMING, AND THEY’RE HEADING BACK TO THE UK FOR A COUPLE OF

SHOWS THIS MAY.

+ Bose Headphones. + Red diary. + Pro arte prolene paint brushes. + Bert Krak tattoo machine + Rose of Mercy pin

badges + Pelikan 4001 black ink. + Layrite super hold + Ralph Lauren Glasses. + Polaroid of my girls. + Halves + Flash Sketchbook

he road to PVRIS’ second full-length looks to be well and truly underway. Increased teasing is one thing, but a run of European live shows and festivals proves there’s more than just a bit of hype to one of the most anticipated records of 2017.

The band announced first one, then two shows for London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire this May, alongside a run of shows around Europe in Paris [Well, obv Ed], Amsterdam and Berlin. They’ve also booked in to play this summer’s Lowlands festival, with more shows expected to follow. Eagle-eyed spotters may notice Lowlands takes place a week before Reading & Leeds... P

PVRIS ARE SET T O P L AY . . .

MAY 04 LONDON, SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE 05 LONDON, SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE 08 PARIS, TRABENO 10 AMSTERDAM, MELKWEG 11 BERLIN, COLUMBIA THEATRE

T H FIG FOR THE WORLD IS A SCARY PLACE AT THE BEST OF TIMES, BUT OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS IT’S GOT A WHOLE LOAD MORE FUCKED UP. AS NEWLY EMBOLDENED VOICES TRY AND TAKE AWAY THE RIGHTS OF ALREADY OPPRESSED GROUPS, THE VOICES OF THOSE WILLING TO STAND UP AND BE COUNTED ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER. WITH THEIR DEBUT ALBUM, DIET CIG HAVE NO INTENTION OF STAYING QUIET, AND THEY’RE NOT THE ONLY ONES. WORDS: ALI SHUTLER.

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YOUR

RIGH TS

“

aving fun and dancing is such a good way to say ‘fuck you’ to a system that just wants you to feel oppressed and alone,” explains Alex Luciano. A lot has changed for Diet Cig over the past couple of years but their desire for a good time has never wavered. Debut album ‘Swear I’m Good At This’ is purpose-built to inspire wacky dance moves, beaming smiles and wall-to-wall excitement. But it’s bigger than that. “The fun is a way to subvert what is expected of anyone right now. The government and the patriarchy, they want us to be afraid. All these oppressors, all they want is everyone to be afraid of them, to put their head down and to not do anything. I think that it’s really important just not to do that. They want you not to have fun; they want you to feel like shit. It’s like, no, we stand together. We’re having fun, and we’re saying ‘fuck you’ to your idea of oppressing us. It is the biggest middle finger you can give to anyone trying to put you down, to just have fun. They can’t take that, or our sense of community while doing it, away from us.” Three years ago to the day, Alex and Noah Bowman met at a house party. Alex wanted to borrow a lighter, Noah was playing drums with another band. A bottle of wine exchanged hands mid-set, and they’ve been best friends ever since. A handful of songs - 2015’s ‘Over Easy’ EP and the ‘Sleep Talk/ Dinner Date’ single - were recorded on a whim and released with zero expectations. The world had other ideas. Diet Cig is the first time Alex has played in a band. Her wide-eyed enthusiasm was contagious and Noah, a seasoned-pro by comparison, got a new lease of life. It felt like they were doing it because they wanted to, not because it’s all they knew how to do. That wanton excitement, it draws people in. “Alex was 18 when we started this band, I was 21, and over these past two years, I feel like we’ve learnt a lot more than we would have learnt if we weren’t in this band. We’ve gotten

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to experience more things than we ever expected. It’s shaped who we are, and it’s opened up our eyes to what’s going on outside of who we are.” Eyes open and aware, Diet Cig didn’t question the journey. Instead, they realised: “Fuck, we like doing this. We have this platform to say what needs to be said and we have people who want to hear it, listen.” Political or personal, “When someone comes up to us and says, ‘Oh my God, you get me’ it’s like, ‘No, you get me’. You can bond over the fact you’ve gone through the same shit. Feeling your feelings and telling people about it is such a radical act and I just hope we can encourage other people not to stay quiet. I just want everyone to know we’re feeling the same shit they’re feeling, and I want to scream that from the top of the building,” starts Alex. “Although, I guess putting a record out is the equivalent of that. “ Intimate, unafraid and without a sugar-coating, Diet Cig’s debut is as honest as they come. From the perils of dating someone with her own name, through slut-shaming, selfdoubt, sexism and shitty boyfriends to simply not feeling alone, ‘Swear I’m Good At This’ covers it all. There’s a joyous sense of self one moment, a frustrated “fuck off” the next. It’s proud and powerful, but the band never hide from their fears. Written and recorded during a tense and confusing twelve months, it sees the band reacting to the world that surrounds them. It sees them determined to make it a little better. “2016 was the most fun, incredible year ever, even though it was the worst year ever for everyone. We’re super lucky to have been playing all those shows,” reasons Alex. Their music is powerful because it’s personal. It’s personal because they know they’re not the only ones with these stories. “We had so much fun, learnt so much and it was incredibly uplifting to meet all these people who were coming to our shows, standing in solidarity together and to just be a part of something bigger than ourselves for a little bit.” During their time on the road, the pair realised their music meant something to people beyond something to simply dance to. There were shows were Diet Cig were the support band, miles away from home, yet Alex didn’t even need to sing. The crowd knew the words. They had her back.

“It’s always going to feel crazy that people want to listen to our music. After we had done this record, though, it felt like we maybe knew what we were doing a little bit and it all made sense. It’s still so overwhelmingly cool that we get to do this,” grins Alex. With songs written in the studio, ‘Swear I’m Good At This’ didn’t come together until the very end. “It was the best feeling ever. We realised we work well under pressure and oh my God, we made something, and it’s cohesive and beautiful and from our souls and hearts. It was like our whole soul got poured into it then regurgitated back into our bodies, mama penguin style.” For Alex and Noah, music has always reminded them of family connections and sanctuary. Noah grew up in and around his dad’s studio, his earliest musical memory singing a version of The Cartoonz ‘Witch Doctor’ from the Rugrats Movie with his twin brother (who the band recorded ‘Swear’ with). Alex learnt guitar from a guy her step-dad knew, but those lessons quickly transformed into the two families hanging out and having fun. The friendship between them all is still going strong, and the idea of music as a tool for bringing people together grows from there. The pair had to take a step back to get closer on ‘Swear I’m Good At This’ though. “We had a lot of people waiting on this record, and as we took longer and longer to write, more and more people were asking ‘Where’s your record?’ ‘It’s coming, I swear’.” At one point, they just had to say, “Fuck it, we’re just going to write this for us.” That breakthrough came via ‘Barf Day’. “We wrote that song so randomly, and it just rocks. We weren’t thinking about whether it was a Diet Cig song or an Alex and Noah song, we just wrote it. That’s when we got over the hump of thinking, ‘Are we good enough?’ ‘Can we do this?’ We just did it, and that felt really good. Once we let go of any expectations we had of ourselves, it came together quickly.” Messages aplenty, ‘Swear I’m Good At This’ comes packed with fuck-off fables, solidarity and community. It’s got a voice and, for the most part, it wants to be heard. “The thing is, I knew I had something to say,” explains Alex. “It’s just the whole articulation of it. How do I say it so that everyone will get what I’m saying? I realised I just had to be honest and I had to

FIGHT FOR YOU R RIG HTS!

“W E

HAVE

VOIC E

WE E S U

IT.” 21

PW R BT T M A R E A BA N D U N A F R A I D TO U S E T H E I R P L AT F O R M , W H I C H B E G S T H E QUESTION - “WHY ISN’T E V E RYO N E ? ”

WO R DS : J E SS I CA G O O D M A N

“

’m curious about bands who can exist in a world with all these conversations happening about safety and inclusion, and not want to get with the programme,” Liv Bruce challenges. Preaching self-confidence along contagious punk refrains, PWR BTTM are breaking through the mould of rock music stereotypes with a glitter-spangled attitude and a resolute sense of optimism. Ensuring the music they create occupies a space that’s safe for everyone is something that’s always come naturally to the queer punk duo. Performing in discount shop dresses, with faces adorned by makeup and glitter, switching roles between guitar and drums mid-set, this has never been a band to adhere to any sense of expectation. Using their voice to be positively rebellious though the simple act of self-expression, the duo promote empowerment and inclusivity for anyone who wants to hear it. “It’s important because it’s what we believe in. It’s as simple as that,” Ben Hopkins expresses. “It’s using our privilege of this voice to speak about things that we feel very strongly about, and also to stand up for people who don’t have the same voice.” Swearing that they will “never pass any opportunity to tell a group of people who have come to hear our music about how we feel about the state of the world,” PWR BTTM wear their hearts on their sleeves – and invite everyone who encounters them to do the

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same. Presenting a united confidence against adversity is evident in everything the duo do, from their energy they embody to the lyrics they write. “There are men in every town who live to bring you down,” Ben cries on the band’s latest single, before rallying “my advice is to look incredible as you make their lives regrettable by being your damn self.” “There are so many things in life – especially right now, in this contemporary political climate – that make you stop in your tracks and dwell on how terrible things are,” Ben deliberates. “I wanted to write a song that would remind me to keep on going, regardless of how terrible the actions of others.” The feeling that the world’s becoming an increasingly darker place is becoming harder and harder to shake, but PWR BTTM are adamant in presenting hope, wherever they find themselves. “We got to see Diet Cig the other night – they give us a tonne of hope,” Liv enthuses. “They had food poisoning, and they still gave such an incredible show. Talk about carrying on in the face of adversity.” Whether it’s through checking in with their audience between songs, or requesting venues provide accessible gender neutral bathrooms at their shows, much like their peers, PWR BTTM make every effort to ensure their music embodies a safe space for any who wants to access it. “It’s a huge honour to be a band doing that,” Liv enthuses. “But it’s a huge honour that there are people who even want to show up to see the show

that we’re playing, and then use the gender neutral bathrooms,” they laugh. In America, in the wake of the recent rescinding of the right for transgender students to use the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity, the safe space that bands like PWR BTTM offer at their shows has become even more valued. “If you can’t access the restrooms in public spaces, you can’t really exist in public,” Liv states. “It’s starting with schools, but that’s not necessarily where the people in power want to end this conversation.”

Making sure your voice is heard hasn’t felt this imperative for generations. “We all need to be working right now to fight back,” Liv resolves, continuing to express that “we also need to be working to take care of ourselves and make sure that we don’t burn out.” “History swings to the left and the right,” Ben mulls. “We’re feeling a very hard swing to the right, but that means it’s just going to go further to the left once we keep fighting for it.” It’s a conviction that PWR BTTM have the upmost faith in. “I’ve never seen

FIGHT FOR YOU R RIG HTS!

Continuing to do what they’ve always done best – offer validation and acceptance through their own

self-expression – PWR BTTM’s mission is simple. “Have you ever seen the movie Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure?” Liv queries. “I don’t remember specifically where this comes up in the movie, but I remember that one of the takeaways from it is that people should be excellent to each other,” they depict. “I just want people to be excellent to each other.” Faced with an increasingly more heinous world, it’s a sentiment that everyone can get behind. Party on, PWR BTTM.

PWR BTTM

people be so politically engaged and stand up for disenfranchised folk as I think we’ve seen in the past two months,” Ben marvels. “Keep your ears open as to how you can help protect people who are vulnerable in ways that you are not,” Liv urges, “and also as to how you can show up for people who are being threatened in a way that you might not be.”

“WE ALL NEED TO BE WORKING RIGHT NOW TO FIGHT BACK.”

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WE’VE BEEN WAITING. IT’S FINALLY HERE. CREEPER HAVE ARRIVED. EVERYTHING IS ABOUT TO CHANGE.

FLAME ETE RN A L

WORDS: ALI SHUTLER. PHOTOS: PHIL SMITHIES.

“W

e appear to be the answer to a question that we never knew had been asked,” opens Will Gould. “We seem to fill a void in people’s lives, which is incredible. It’s an indescribable feeling that we never imagined or planned for. But at the same time that comes with a responsibility to keep being ruthless with our art.” Almost everything has changed for Creeper since their self-titled EP was released back in the summer of 2014. Two things have remained constant, though. The idea. And the excited disbelief that anyone cares about it. “Deserved isn’t what I’d say, but we’re more accustomed to what’s happening,” continues Will. “One of the greatest things about this past year is that we’ve become more confident in our ideas. That’s one of the things the record is a really important display of. We’re a lot more confident; I don’t think we could have made this record two years ago.” “This is a story,” promises Will, as he prepares to go off on a tangent. “This is not important, but it gets there in the end.” It’s something he does a lot. It turns out the original idea behind Disneyland Paris was that you bring your family along and see the characters from your favourite films, you watch the stories acted out on rides, and you can witness bits of fantasy in the real world. That isn’t what people wanted, though. “People who go to Disneyland Paris don’t want to watch these stories take place; they want to make their own memories.” Things changed, and now your memories are paramount. “I applied some of that logic to our music,” explains Will. “We’re trying to involve the listener and make their experience more important than whatever I interpret it as. “With Creeper, we are always trying to interact. The idea with the record is that each person will take away something slightly different. We’ve talked about immersion and escape throughout the majority of our career. Is that right, do we have a career?” he asks, looking at keyboardist Hannah Greenwood and guitarist Ian Miles before shrugging it off and continuing.

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“Transformation is a really big theme through the band in general.” From The Callous Heart jackets to the constant dress-up and ownership of self in their music, Creeper celebrate shape-shifting. “It’s about wanting to escape and be something else. It’s becoming something more than you are.” Even with the band, “it’s trying to dress our hometown up as more than it is. It’s dressing ourselves up as more than we are to try and make us something bigger and more exciting. It’s not just about being bored; it’s about being uncomfortable in your skin, being uncomfortable with your situation.” That frustration with the world you find yourself in is threaded throughout the band’s debut album ‘Eternity, In Your Arms’ but it’s a constant struggle with hope. The belief that you can escape is always present. It stirs up memories, fairy dust and happy thoughts so you can fly yourself out the window. “When I was a kid I liked the records that would take me another place. People seem to think everything we do is different and strange but I don’t think it is. I just think these are ideas people haven’t seen for a long time. Maybe it’s a little bit of what the world needs, and that’s what we try to do. ‘Eternity, In Your Arms’ is whatever you’ve listened to the record and taken from it. It could mean something different to what it meant to me. If I started telling you what it meant to me, it might ruin it. Sometimes it’s ridiculously over the top and dramatic and silly, and sometimes it’s a little bit scary, but either way, maybe we’re just a reaction to what is going on.” Creeper have always pushed at what they’ve been allowed to get away with. Every chapter in their story has been a little more, and their debut album is no different. Finding new ground at every end of the spectrum, it’s extreme but never jarring. And as for escape, what better way to offer that than construct a narrative to get lost in? There’s a story to follow, a mystery to solve and characters to offer reflections. Of course, it’s never forced. Participation is there if you want it. “The story itself is kinda unimportant in some ways.” Instead, says Will, “it’s how that story makes you feel.

When we first started merging Peter Pan with Creeper, it wasn’t about the characters so much; it was how I attached myself to them.” One of the aims of their debut was that it worked as a simple collection of great songs. If you just want to listen passively, “That’s fine, you’re not going to struggle to do that. I’ve seen people struggle with concept records in the past because if it’s pure concept, you can’t attach yourself to it.” “I used to dislike concept records because they were so linear,” admits Ian. “I always avoided them. This is so punk,” he continues, tongue firmly in cheek, “but I don’t want to be told what to think, y’know? I want it to be ambiguous. I want to apply my own meaning to it.” “And that’s what we’re trying to do here. If you want to go down the rabbit hole, you can, but you have to choose where you fit in with that story and how you attach yourself to that. On the surface, though, we put these songs on the radio, and people don’t know any different. They’re songs. When you take them apart, they can serve a purpose on their own which is strange because they weren’t built like that.” They were built with a very specific purpose, though. This isn’t just a bunch of songs following a loose theme. Every moment is scripted; the flow of the record, mapped out and the impact has been years in the making. “We figure out how we want the peaks and trough, the dynamics and where we want a fast song, a slow song, and how they all interlink.” Fantastical and fearless, there’s still a very human element to Creeper. From vocal cracks on the record to the fact their music revolves around loss, love and regret, at no point do the band detach from reality’s bite. Flipping between poetic metaphor and honest admission, this record is real life through a filter. Creeper aren’t just offering an escape. They’re living one. Ian and Will have used music to escape real world commitments since they were teenagers and touring is like some weird, make believe world. Putting on their The Callous Heart jackets transforms Will, Hannah, Ian, drummer Dan Bratton, bassist Sean Scott and guitarist Oli Burdett into something else. “A good deal of what Creeper is doing

“TH I S

I S

W H AT I WAS

D O. ”

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FlASH S D A L -

R LEE VINCENT W H E N D RU M M E L E F T T H E BA N D, N’T U N E X P E C T E D LY BY H O RS E S D I D P U L L E D A PA R T H E Y W E R E G O I N G T O K N O W W H AT T L LY I T ’ S A L L C O M E D O - T H A N K F UR N E W A L B U M ‘ T H E TO G ET H E R FO 17 LO O KS S ET TO B E H A Z E ’ , A N D 2 0 B E S T Y E A R S Y E T. ONE OF THEIR A GOODMAN. WORDS: JESSIC

RATED CREEPER

ETERNITY, IN YOUR ARMS

Roadrunner

eeeee ternity, In Your Arms’ is an album about belief, whichever way you paint it. The record is also exactly what you were expecting it to be. And after everything, that’s no easy accomplishment. Wracked with heartbreak, terrified of loss and angry to the point of tears, the eleven tracks tell a story. But it’s not the one of James Scythe and The Callous Heart. From the West End opening of ‘Black Rain’, through the charged intensity of ‘Suzanne’ and ‘Hiding With Boys’ until the straight-to-camera admission of ‘I Choose To Live’, Creeper’s debut album is a struggle in making sense of the real world. The nostalgia provides an escape to when you were in control. Growing up was never part of the deal. Being young means anything is possible, and Creeper want that magic back. It doesn’t matter if it’s the vindictive nursery flow of “It’s breaking me to see you happy, I just want the worst for you” on ‘Winona Forever’ or the empowered pushback of ‘Crickets’, the record has loved and lost but refuses to submit. Death might be a constant presence, but defeat is never 46 upsetmagazine.com

an option. ‘I Choose To Live’ sees the band articulating and celebrating the shoulder the rest of the album provides in glorious confidence as the band realise every ounce of potential they’ve ever hinted at. Every movement is vital and while the album dances with the ridiculous, the silly and the flamboyant, it all makes horribly perfect sense. Constantly questioning what or who to believe in, ‘Eternity, In Your Arms’ is an album of faith and trust. They might not have the answers, but Creeper make it abundantly clear that whatever happens, this album is something to believe in. And always will be. Ali Shutler

FREEZE THE ATLANTIC

THE PEOPLE ARE REVOLTING

Alcopop! Records

eee

Freeze The Atlantic have an awful lot of rock history flowing in their veins and while they’ve never retread any steps, ‘The People Are Revolting’ does take that love for noise centre stage. Robust, weighty and with the confidence to get weird, the band’s third album sees them swap big choruses for bigger choruses. It’s not reinventing the wheel but with turns this good, why would you want to? Ali Shutler

ROYAL THUNDER

WICK

Spinefarm Records

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A massive dose of hooks, monstrous sounds and howling vocals - the third full-length from Royal Thunder has it all. It takes a while for ‘WICK’ to find its footing, but it does so with ‘We Slipped’, featuring a massive, instantly memorable chorus. The focal point is Mlny Parsonz’s voice, howling and pushing above everything else. While not pushing boundaries explicitly, with ‘WICK’ Royal Thunder are a breath of fresh air. Steven Loftin

PULLED APART BY HORSES

THE HAZE

Caroline International

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Pulled Apart By Horses’ ‘The Haze’ sees the band in anything but. Yeah, it’s the murkiest, most other-worldly they’ve ventured, but after a period of question marks, their fourth chapter comes with a renewed sense of purpose. It’s still boisterous and barmy but there’s a smirking grin to the wig-outs, the boundless riffs and the weird yet wonderful rabbit holes the band tumble down. Pulled Apart By Horses have rediscovered their sense of adventure. Ali Shutler

A SHORT Q&A WITH...

FREEZE FREEZE THE THE ATLANTIC ATLANTIC F R E E Z E T H E AT L A N T I C A R E B A C K W I T H T H E I R T H I R D A L B U M - I T ’ S T H E I R M O S T H O N E S T Y E T, E X P L A I N S VO CA L I S T L I V P U E N T E .

Hi Liv, what have you guys been up to since the end of your second album? You’ve had a line-up change since then, haven’t you? Well not a line-up change as such, more of a revolving door moment. Our original bass player Jon has returned like the prodigal son. How’s life been treating you otherwise? Life is good, we’re all getting married and having kids at the moment, which is rather nice. Writing and recording an album as well as a bit of touring in the midst of all that feel like quite an achievement. When did you begin working on ‘The People Are Revolting’ , and what was your starting point? This has been a long process. We wanted to take our time with the writing. Things started to come together about a year ago when we all decided to get our arses in gear and get to a body of work we were all very proud of. How did you find recording in South Devon? It was a pretty quick process, wasn’t it? We recorded drums and guitars at Middle Farm Studios with Peter Miles on our last album so it was a familiar setting. We tracked the whole album in a week so yeah pretty quick process by anyone’s standard. But it was deliberate. There’s social commentary running through the album - are you worried

about the ‘state of the world’? This album definitely has a lot more social commentaries on current affairs than previous projects. Songs such as ‘Altogether Not Together’ for example, touches on the refugee crisis, ‘Gunnar Hansen’ points the finger at the military and PTSD, while ‘The People Are Revolting’ takes a dig at our forefathers and the huge backward steps Britain and the world seem to have taken in the last few months. All of these things are very worrying and we felt compelled to address them. What do you think we can do to make it better? Some things unfortunately we can’t do much about, that ship has sailed. As cliché as it may sound, all we can do is educate the next generation to learn from this and never replicate the division the world is going through right now. What are you most proud of with ‘The People Are Revolting’? We’re especially proud of how raw and honest this record sounds. We gave everything we had, worked very long hours and got the job done in a week, which I think surprised us all a bit. This album is a testament to hard work and determination. We all have day jobs and most of us have families to support. None of us really have the time to fit any of this in our lives. But we make time for it because we love it, simple as that. And we hope this honesty comes across on the album when people hear it. P