Upset, July 2019

** PLUS ** AS IT IS // BOSTON MANOR // UNDEROATH // MANNEQUIN PUSSY // PETROL GIRLS // JOHN FLOREANI + LOADS MORE

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July 2019 upsetmagazine.com

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B ARONESS JAMIE LENMAN WATERPARKS ST PIERRE SNAKE INVASION

Come in, dinosaurs...

Y Y U U N N G G B B L L U U D D ...your time is up.

“ONE OF THE MOST ATTENTION GRABBING ALBUMS OF 2019.”

UPSET 4/5

THE NEW ALBUM OUT NOW CD – LIMITED CLEAR VINYL LP – DIGITAL INCLUDES THRASH METAL CASSETTE & BACK FOOT DINOSAURPILEUP.COM

JULY 2019 Issue 45

HELLO. As you probably already know, we like people that kick up a bit of a fuss; those who go against the grain and win the argument anyway. If we’re looking for a poster boy for a non-conformist route to stardom, we’d not do much better than this month’s cover star.

Yungblud’s rise continues to be stratospheric. Crossing the burning ruins of the long fallen genre divides at will, he’s 110% attitude at all times. It’s working, too. With a huge tour coming up later this year, a Reading & Leeds main stage slot on the books and all manner of absolute bangers in his back pocket, those dinosaurs better watch out - this is their extinction event.

Elsewhere this month, we’re packed with Upset faves. Baroness and Jamie Lenman both return with new albums - we’re talking to both - plus catching up with Waterparks, Boston Manor, As It Is, Mannequin Pussy, Doll Skin, Underoath, John Floreani, Petrol Girls and more. There’s loads to get your teeth into. Enjoy!

S tephen

Editor / @stephenackroyd

Upset Editor Stephen Ackroyd Deputy Editor Victoria Sinden Associate Editor Ali Shutler Scribblers Dan Harrison, Dillon Eastoe, Jamie MacMillan, Martyn Young, Rob Mair, Sam Taylor, Steven Loftin Snappers Frances Beach, Glen Matheny, Patrick Gunning, Sarah Louise Bennett, Tom Pallant P U B L I S H E D F RO M

W E LCO M E TOT H E B U N K E R.CO M U N I T 10, 23 G RA N G E RO A D, H A S T I N G S, T N34 2R L

All material copyright (c). All rights reserved.

RIOT 4 JAMIE LENMAN 8 ST. PIERRE SNAKE INVASION 11 JOHN FLOREANI 12 FANGCLUB 15 UNDEROATH 16 DOLL SKIN FEATURES 18 YUNGBLUD 28 SLAM DUNK 2019 36 BARONESS 40 MANNEQUIN PUSSY REVIEWS 42 JAMIE LENMAN 45 THE LAFONTAINES TEENAGE KICKS 46 PETROL GIRLS

Riot_ EVERYTHING HAPPENING IN ROCK

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THIS MONTH IN ROCK

Four years on from their debut, The St Pierre Snake Invasion have put their all behind follow-up, ‘Caprice Enchanté’. p.8

Fangclub have fought with addiction and depression to produce their visceral second album, ‘Vulture Culture’. p.12

Trophy Eyes frontman John Floreani bares all on his debut solo album, ‘sin’. p.11

UNDER THE INFLUENCE Interview.

Packed full of covers and reinterpretations of music, movies, books, games and cartoons, Jamie Lenman’s new album ‘Shuffle’ might just be his most ambitious project yet. Words: Steven Loftin

M

oustachioed muso Jamie Lenman is one of rock’s wildcards. A self-starting go-getter, over the years he’s hosted his own festival (Lenmania), been a part of a lauded rock band (Reuben), and established himself as a rocking and rolling solo figure with two albums under his belt. So, where to next?

A covers album, of course - but not just any covers album. ‘Shuffle’ is a deep dive into Jamie’s inspirations that also features spoken word and acting, and does away with any preconceived notion of track-listing. This is a record where

Upset 5

Riot_ you’re encouraged to hit the shuffle button, letting loose the madness.

“You can basically draw a very straight line… well, it would be a tangled line because of the way I’ve sequenced the record,” Jamie laughs. “But if I put it all in chronological order, you could draw a line through it, and it would point to me.”

“They’re weird ingredients, but then if you look at the ingredients of most recipes they’re all bizarre! You wouldn’t think - why would I eat a clove of garlic, and why would I eat a raw egg? If you put it all together, it makes a delicious soufflé.”

‘Shuffle’ is a concoction of confusing proportions, but somehow - in amongst the tides of cartoon theme chaos (‘Popeye’), or the straight-laced readings (‘The Pequod Meets The Delight’) - it works.

Connecting all these elements wasn’t an issue for Jamie, but executing them? He needed a push. The catalyst came in the form of ‘You’re The Boss’, a song that features Jamie’s voice acting debut. Converting a piece of film - in this case, 2007’s Always Crashing in the Same Car, a 12-minute short about a power struggle between two men, James (Richard E. Grant) and Bill (Paul McGann) - into an audio track came with new challenges, and it saw Jamie reaching out to writer and director, Duncan Wellaway.

“There’s no precedent for covering a movie,” Jamie explains. “Unless you remake it, but covering it and turning it into an audio drama? There’s no real precedent, so I wrote to the director and said, ‘Would this be alright? I don’t really know how to go about this - what do we do?!’

“He got back at a time when,” Jamie briefly pauses. “A few other people were gently trying to dissuade me from making this record because they thought that it sounded like an absolute

6 Upset

“A FEW PEOPLE WERE TRYING TO DISSUADE ME FROM MAKING THIS RECORD BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT IT SOUNDED LIKE AN ABSOLUTE CAR CRASH” JAMIE LENMAN

car crash idea. Duncan, who I’d never met, got back to me and said, ‘What a fantastic idea! So happy you’re going to do my film, you have my total blessing do whatever you want’.”

A second email from Duncan about casting created a moment that’s going to stick with Jamie for a lifetime.

“He sent me another and said, ‘Have you thought about who’s going play the Bill part?’ I hadn’t because I never thought it would go that far. He said, ‘Why don’t you just get Paul McGann to do it?’ And I said ‘Well… because he’s Paul McGann. Why would he?!’ - and then he put me in touch!

“I emailed Paul McGann which was a surreal experience anyway - and said, ‘Do you want to be on my new record?’ and he said, ‘Yeah, why not, sounds fun!’

“We went up to a studio in London and he was as fantastic as you might imagine. I genuinely think he’s one of our finest actors, and to hear him recreating these lines that I knew so well, from a piece of art that I’ve loved for so many years, directly into my ear - and talking to me! So not even a live performance - I was in it! I was inside my favourite film. It was

incredible.”

Before Duncan Wellaway’s encouragement, whether Jamie should see through the idea of ‘Shuffle’ was a push-pull affair.

“There was a period toward the end of the summer last year where I was collecting my thoughts about the record and preparing to do it,” he explains.

“I had a long conversation with my producer [Space], who, although he was interested in the project, he felt very strongly that it was not the right thing to do at this point in my career.

“I sort of feel like at ‘this’ point in my career - twenty years in - anything goes, but it’s weird because I’ve only been a solo act for five or six of those years. In that sense, I’m still fairly new, and he was thinking that to have two albums of originals under my belt, so far, he was worried that wasn’t enough.

“He was very adamant that what we needed was another album of originals - and I have got lots of ideas for original albums, and lots and lots of songs ready to go - but they take a long time to stew.

“None of the projects I had boiling away were quite cooked enough,” he laughs. “All I really wanted to do was the covers record! I did consider putting it back on the shelf for a bit - but nope, this was the one that was ready and I think you can hear its the record for right now.”

‘Shuffle’ is certainly a record for 2019 - it goes against the grain while sticking close to the roots of everything that’s come before. Jamie knows he’s in a unique position of being fresh, yet with the wisdom of his twenty-past years.

“I’m free to do what I want.

When I say these are all pieces of music, pieces of art, that I adore and make up the sum total of my artistic experience thus far, I think they believe me - and good, because it’s true!”

P Jamie Lenman’s album

‘Shuffle’ is out now.

PIJN AND CONJURER HAVE TEAMED UP FOR A NEW ALBUM, ‘CURSE THESE METAL HANDS’ Due on 16th August via Holy Roar Records, the band features Dan Nightingale and Brady Deeprose from Conjurer, and Joe Clayton, Nick Watmough and Luke Rees from PIJN.

IDKHOW HAVE A WARM-UP SHOW FOR READING & LEEDS The duo will perform at London’s Electric Ballroom on Thursday 22nd August, before heading over to Reading (Friday) and Leeds (Saturday) for a just-confirmed main stage set.

CANCER BATS HAVE ANNOUNCED A NEW RUN OF UK DATES FOR LATER THIS SUMMER The band will follow up their appearance at Slam Dunk Festival last month with a run of dates in their “favourite small towns”. Find the dates on upsetmagazine.com Upset 7 7 UPSETMAGAZINE.COM

Riot_

Interview.

snakes + ladders Four years on from their debut, Bristol faves The St Pierre Snake Invasion have put their all behind DIY follow-up, ‘Caprice Enchanté’.

Words: Jamie MacMillan 8 Upset

S

econd albums proving to be difficult isn’t a cliché without reason. But in the four years that it took St. Pierre Snake Invasion to follow up their stunning debut ‘A Hundred Years And A Day’, the Bristol band have faced a seemingly endless parade of obstacles and problems. And yet, somehow, they have overcome every single one of them.

Broke and relying on favours going into the recording, there quickly followed the major issue of singer Damien Sayell seriously damaging his throat on the first day of recording vocals. Throw in the exit of bassist Dave Larkin to Black Peaks immediately after the completion of ‘Caprice Enchanté’, and you could be forgiven for expecting something that is bogged down in chaos and discord.

Instead, he and his band have delivered something startlingly fresh and bold, a record that takes the band’s beginnings in hardcore as a mere launchpad towards an evolution into something else completely.

The antithesis to its predecessor (described by the frontman as “a smash and grab”), recording ‘Caprice Enchanté’ was always going to be a lengthy process. Chatting over the phone, the Welsh singer picks up the story.

“Basically, we don’t have any backing or funding at all. So our producer Sean [Genockey] sorted

Upset 9

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us out with mates rates, and we got into the studio really cheap.”

Friends since meeting in the band’s early days, Genockey also produced their first album and so it proved a logical step to return to his Rockfield studios.

By now he was a producer in high demand, his time split between St Pierre and the likes of Roger Daltrey and Shame.

“When that’s happening, and he’s being paid for it, I wasn’t in a position to say ‘do you wanna fucking hurry up and finish ours?” laughs Damien today.

Damaged vocal cords also took their toll. “The plan was to have it out by the end of 2017, but it didn’t happen. And the first year that we ran over, I just thought, I’m not sure if I can do this any more.”

From these darkest of thoughts eventually sprang a shard of light, and the inspiration for the title itself. “I just had this change of mentality where I was like, I will die if this album doesn’t come out. There was a subtle change in being more proactive and thinking more positively about it all.”

Themes of finding your place in the world anew run through much of ‘Caprice Enchanté’,

10 Upset

whether it is the deeply personal ‘Things To Do In Denbigh When You’re Dead’ or the “triumphant defeatism” of ‘I Am The Lonely Tourist’.

To no surprise to anybody who follows the band on Twitter, the state of politics also raises its head. Seeking hope and

“I WAS LIKE, I WILL DIE IF THIS ALBUM DOESN’T COME OUT” DAMIEN SAYELL

optimism out of these dark days, talk turns to those who will end up having to sort it all out. “The only good thing about this resurgence of abhorrent right-wing political views is that they are being matched by kids, decent human beings.”

Perhaps surprisingly, one of the first records that springs to mind production-wise is Nirvana’s seminal ‘In Utero’, later revealed to be one of Damien’s favourites, with that same intoxicating mix

of rawness and polished production. Finding that delicate balance took time, but the end results are striking.

“It worked out well, we’ve got that mix, and I don’t think that it sounds like any other hardcore bands or albums.”

Worked out well is not only a neat summation of ‘Caprice Enchanté’, but of Damien’s point of view too as the release date approaches with a sense that he has reached that same balance.

“I’m optimistic about the album.

I really want good things to happen, but I don’t want to get excited about that and end up disappointed. There’s always the possibility that someone will say this is shit, and they preferred us when we sounded like McClusky! But, then I don’t want to be so stern and cynical that I don’t enjoy the good stuff…”

He dissolves into laughter at this never-ending battle, in itself the perfect embodiment of the stunning piece of work that he has, finally and triumphantly, delivered against all the odds.

Third albums are usually easier, right? P The St Pierre Snake

Invasion’s album ‘Caprice Enchanté’ is out 21st June.

Everything you need to know about...

John Floreani’s

debut solo album

‘sin’

Trophy Eyes frontman John Floreani bares all on his debut solo album, ‘sin’. Here’s everything you need to know about the brutally honest release, straight from the man himself.

Sin was recorded in Thailand, at Karma Studios with my dear friend Shane Edwards.

Karma is a luxury resort studio that’s hidden away in a tiny fishing village about two hours south of Bangkok. By the time I had finished ‘sin’, I had been there for nearly three months. I learnt to speak a lot of Thai and spent most of my time with the locals.

Their affinity for life was attractive. They care more for joy and happiness than they do for material wealth.

That period of my life was like therapy for me.

‘sin’ wasn’t a very well prepared album, but we focused more on our natural vibe while creating it. Some days

we would do nothing but sit by the ocean, drink cocktails and talk about life. Sometimes, creativity would strike at 2am, and we would be locked in the studio playing with bells and whistles and infinite soundscapes to capture our feeling sonically.

One of the most personal songs I’ve ever written is on this record. A song

about my brother and our tumultuous friendship.

When I’d finished it, I was ashamed of the things I’d said, but I’d made a promise to myself many years ago that I wouldn’t hide the

truth in my music, so it stayed.

I was sick with a fever for three days during the recording process of ‘sin’.

I could feel myself getting sick, but instead of applying some much-needed selfcare, I started my night at a Thai music festival.

That night was a bit of a blur from there, I suppose.

I woke up in bed a couple of days later, drenched in sweat, with my girlfriend next to me dabbing my forehead with a cold towel.

We celebrated my recovery with a night out.

I’d never felt as free as I did making this record.

It was only me; no band, no direction, no worries - just music. There were a few minds present in the making, but I found that quite easy to adapt to.

These songs didn’t feel like they BELONGED to me; they just felt like cool songs.

I wasn’t afraid of what the public might think, or whether or not they’ll be successful. I remember a fridge magnet of my others from my childhood; it said: “Imagine what we could do if we knew we would never fail.” That didn’t ever make sense to me until I realised I was in Thailand making a record for fun. P

John Floreani’s debut solo album ‘sin’ is out now.

Riot_

Fangclub have fought with addiction and depression to produce their visceral second album, ‘Vulture Culture’.

Words: Steven Loftin

Interview.

Culture Club 12 Upset

I

n the two years since Fangclub released their 2017 self-titled debut, singer Steven King has been through the wringer. Battling with addiction and depression, it all came to a head with an overdose and the harsh feeling of reality - he’s feeling far more optimistic now, however.

“It’s very strange. When I look back, it seems like a different Steven; a different person,” he confesses. “I’m grateful that all that happened. It’s been such an amazing time in the band, right now I have this unstoppable drive for Fangclub. I feel super confident; it’s a good place!”

The album in question, ‘Vulture Culture’, is undoubtedly the result of a dark learning

experience. It’s Steven, along with drummer Dara Coleman and bassist Kevin Keane, reflecting back upon the journey they’ve been on and setting it alight for all to see while exorcising some of those demons.

“All of the songs are quite thematically violent, that’s what I was going for: brutal honesty and inner violence. You’re your own worst enemy, and you attack yourself so much. The things you say in your own mind, you wouldn’t say to your worst enemy.”

The album starts not with a raging banger, but an ember-burning six-minute jam. “That was this nice way of juxtaposing - starting on this huge sentimental goodbye because it’s a huge goodbye song,” Steven explains.

“I wrote it from this note I’d written my girlfriend a year ago,” he says. “When things were quite bad, and that song it goes from sounding quite sombre, and it becomes uplifting and hopeful - it sets up that sentimentality of saying goodbye to the first chapter of Fangclub. And then you smash straight into ‘Vulture Culture’ for the rest of the record.”

Just as Steven says, the titular follow-up track is a true-to-form stomper - no holds barred in digging deep into that part of your brain that just loves a damn good riff. It’s a reminder that Fangclub are a band who have that pure energy - three people, playing instruments, and working through their lives. It’s how Fangclub began, and with such pure beginnings, it’s easy to see how Steven fell into the romance of the industry that’s

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Riot_ given him this chance.

“We entered the whole music scene business very naively,” He admits. “All guns blazing. Just you get in there, you tour your arse off, it’s all party, party, party, but that’s not what life is. Life has a funny way of throwing a crossroads at you or having a dead end here and there, and that almost imploded the band because of our naivety.

“We were too naive, caught up in the magic of the music business.

I started to take certain things, and drink too much, to numb whatever anxieties I was having as well.”

Where does that naivety stem from?

“I guess thinking that your life changes. Like, ‘Oh cool, my old life is over, this new one begins, and I’m going to be a rock star in a band’, when that’s not what

“I WAS COMPLETELY BURNED OUT, THE BAND ALMOST FINISHED” STEVEN KING

happens,” he says with a chuckle.

Even though Fangclub were starting the ride of their lives, back home, things were following a different path. Citing “family imploding and falling apart” at the same time they were signing record deals and lining up tours, Steven finding solace in those toxins was never a part of the plan, but it’s laid out their story to this point.

“I just tried to block out [what was happening],” he explains.

“We went off on tour for like two years, and by the end of it, I was completely burned out. The band almost finished. But actually what ended up happening was I couldn’t stop

writing songs. And my label was pretty cool, they put us in a studio and said see what happens, and ‘Vulture Culture’ happened. I’m pretty fucking grateful that they did that for us.”

With ‘Vulture Culture’ in mind, Steven’s road to recovery found its ignition in the world that had led him there in the first place.

With the support of his label, bandmates, family and other likeminded folk - including frontman of recent Upset cover-stars Dinosaur Pile-Up, Matt Bigland he picked himself up and dusted himself off.

“You need that empathy, that grounded experience. I was getting really worried about the album, and the band, and not knowing what to do so I reached out to Matt. He was so fucking cool with advice. He gave me some really cool words - just telling me what to do and how to keep a level head and to keep straight on.”

It’s this life that Steven’s always dreamed of, which has given him experiences that will stick with him forever, that bleeds throughout ‘Vulture Culture’.

Its inward facing violence and unabashed movement away from straight ‘garage-punk’ (“I could just go off and make another hooky garage-punk album, that’s pretty easy to do”) is cementation of Fangclub ready for round two.

“We wanted to keep it as DIY as possible,” Steven enthuses.

“And to just record with two of our friends producing. Keeping it grounded and hoping you hear the organic evolution of the band instead of a super-produced major label fucking piece of shit.”

P Fangclub’s album ‘Vulture

Culture’ is out 5th July.

CITY AND COLOUR HAS DROPPED HIS FIRST NEW MUSIC IN ALMOST FOUR YEARS ‘Astronaut’ is taken from his upcoming sixth studio album, to be released this autumn via his own Still Records, an imprint of Dine Alone Records.

Ever had to pack for a tour?

You’re gonna be spending weeks in a small, intimate space with several other smelly people and - for hours a day, not a lot to do.

You’re gonna need to be prepared.

That’s why we’ve asked our fave musicians for tips. This month, Underoath frontman Spencer Chamberlain lets us inside his tour suitcase.

FIND OUT WHAT YOUR FAVE BANDS TAKE ON THE ROAD. THIS MONTH...

UNDEROATH REAL FRIENDS HAVE ANNOUNCED A SHORT UK TOUR The band will currently play seven nights in the UK - Bristol, London, Birmingham, Nottingham, Leeds, Glasgow and Manchester this autumn.

BASEMENT HAVE ANNOUNCED A NEW UK TOUR The band will play several headliners this August, with support from Honey Lung and Hockey Dad, in support of their latest album ‘Beside Myself’, which arrived last year via Fueled

By Ramen. Find the dates on upsetmagazine.com now.

15 UPSETMAGAZINE. COM

Skateboard.

This is something I used to take on tour all the time but didn’t wanna risk hurting myself. Now I kinda just cruise, it’s a great way to get around venues or festival grounds and a hell of a lot of fun.

Uber/Yelp. Sounds crazy BUT before we used to be stuck on foot all the time on tour unless you called a cab. Even just finding food was hard or risky depending on where you were (I’ve gotten food poisoning twice). Being in new places, Yelp and Uber are life savers. You can do a few minutes of research and know where to go and with a click of a button get there. Thank you Uber and thank you Yelp for changing the game for us touring artists!

Gym Key. Going to the gym 5-6 times a week on tour for me is CRUCIAL; staying healthy physically and mentally is very important to me. After years of abusing drugs, the gym has been my life source. It’s been a great lifestyle change, and it’s something I can’t live without.

It keeps me in shape for the live show and my brain happier too. Having an Anytime Fitness membership (or any gym offered around the world or country) is a must, this key gets me into any Anytime Fitness in the world!

Lyric Book.

Even though I write most of my starting ideas out on my iPhone, it’s always better to push ink to paper for me. A lot of times I draw a picture beside what I’m writing so when I look back, I know exactly what I was trying to express.

Upset 15

THE BEST NEW BANDS. THE HOTTEST NEW MUSIC.

WANT A NEW BAND CRUSH? CHECK OUT THIS LOT! >>>

COMPANY INK The Trondheim-based duo’s new EP ‘Blah Blah’ is a confident, punky debut packed with attitude and humour. We want to be in their squad.

Doll Skin Incoming.

Make way, Arizonan quartet Doll Skin are coming through.

Nicole, Alex, Meghan and Sydney introduce their band ahead of new album, ‘Love Is Dead And We Killed Her’.

ON VIDEO East London’s On Video are rowdy and ramshackle in the best possible way - check out their first two tracks, ‘Past Tense’ and ‘Ghee’, immediately.

Hey guys, how’s it going?

Hey there! We’re doing pretty okay. Currently sitting at a Target for two hours because one of our tires popped and the car’s about to be worked on so.

Here we are!

‘Love Is Dead And We Killed Her’ is quite an angry name isn’t it, are you guys ok?

I think so. Thanks for asking.

It’s an angry title because it’s an angrier album. We took the love songs out of the equation. There are no tracks relating to being in love on this record. It’s quite liberating, actually.

Was it fun to make? It must be great to perform live.

That’s a loaded question! We experienced every emotion possible while making this record. We had to change our entire usual writing process for this because we realised that, after spending quite a few months brainstorming and coming up with a few ideas, we needed a little extra help. We normally don’t let anyone else assist in the writing portion of our songs, but on this go around, we had the assistance of Will McCoy and Mike Green to guide us. It was a blessing that we learned to accept over time. It’s

okay to get help, even on a new album. We’ve only played one of our new songs live so far, and we’re adding a few to our set for our upcoming tour.

We’re FRIGGIN’ EXCITED.

EGYPTIAN BLUE Brighton’s Egyptian Blue are about to drop their deadpanyet-fierce debut EP, ‘Collateral Damage’, via renowned buzzspotters Yala! Records.

“IT’S AN ANGRY TITLE BECAUSE IT’S AN ANGRIER ALBUM”

Did you have a strong vision for the album when you first began work on it?

the nicest songs. We’ve had some of our ex-significant other’s THINK that one of our tunes were about them, but that’s on them and not us.

How did you end up signing with Hopeless Records?

We definitely did not in the beginning, but once we came up with the vision, it was smooth sailing from there. It took us a while, but it worked out in the end!

Eric Tobin from Hopeless Records reached out to us while we were on last year’s Warped Tour. He made it his mission to get us on the label, and we are forever grateful. It was under wraps for almost a year, and we were super ecstatic to announce it just recently!

What’s your favourite track on it? ‘Don’t Cross My Path’ is probably our fave.

What else are you up to this year? You’re coming to the UK soon, right?

Nicole: ‘No Fear’.

Alex: ‘When They Show Their Teeth’.

Meghan: ‘Don’t Cross My Path’.

Sydney: ‘Don’t Cross My Path’.

What would be the ingredients for the perfect Doll Skin song?

A few animal sounds, wind chimes, a gong, a baby screaming, and a fifteen-minute gap in the middle of the song where there’s no music at all... just the sound of a mouth harp.

Do you ever get friends or family asking you if a song is about them?

We’ve had a few of our moms ask if ‘Daughter’ is about them. It’s not about any of our moms. They are too precious and deserved

We have a lot going on this year! We head out to go on a US tour with New Found Glory, Real Friends, and The Early November in a week. Our album drops on 28th June. Then in September, we’re doing a Europe/UK run with Trash Boat and Capstan!

Have you spent much time over here before? Any fave hangouts?

We looooove the UK! The people are always so friendly, the bands are crazy talented, and the shows are a great time. Fave hang out: Wetherspoons! P

Doll Skin’s album ‘Love Is Dead And We Killed Her’ is out 28th June.

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18 Upset

THE THE THE THE POETRY POETRY POETRY POETRY IS IN THE IS IN THE IS IN THE IS IN THE STREETS STREETS STREETS STREETS Every so often, an artist comes along that refuses to conform to expectations. When Dominic Harrison first emerged on the scene, it was hard to imagine Yungblud would end up as one of the most exciting new voices in rock - yet, by crossing boundaries and blending worlds, that’s exactly where we are.

Words: Ali Shutler.

Photos: Glen Matheny, Tom Pallant.

Upset 19

“Of course I have something to prove,” grins Dominic Harrison.

“I will do until the day I die. It’s what keeps me driven.”

With his Halsey and Travis Barker collab ‘11 Minutes’ currently all over the airwaves, follow-up ‘Parents’ continuing the party, a headline show at London’s Brixton Academy on the cusp of selling out, main stage slots at the likes of Reading & Leeds filling up his summer, and album two well on the way, Yungblud’s world is painted seven shades of excitement right now.

“Everyone’s asking, ‘Is this Yungblud kid going to drop off?’

‘Is this just a hype moment?’

And of course, that’s what it is, but the people asking that, I believe they’ve only skim read the brand.”

Brash, opinionated, and from the working class town of Doncaster in northern England, it’s easy for naysayers to dismiss him as just a loud-mouthed kid out for attention.

“Do you know what I love more?” he asks with a beaming smile. “Proving them wrong.”

If you’ve seen Yungblud live - if you’ve listened to the likes of ‘Loner’, ‘Parents’, ‘Polygraph Eyes’ or ‘Kill Somebody’ - you know this isn’t a passing moment; there’s more to Yungblud than neon socks and a capital-lettered need to be heard. He talks openly about anxiety, mental health and suicidal thoughts; he knows his generation has inherited a world that seems intent on destroying itself as quickly and as brutally as it can. But alongside that, there’s a clenched fist optimism; a defiant, unrelenting belief that change is possible.

20 Upset

“I’m not trying to piss anyone off, I just want to build a community” “I’m not trying to piss anyone off. I’m not trying to be whatever these kids demand, that’s boring to me. That’s not interesting. I just want to build a community that helps people and is real. That’s it. I want to help people ‘cos they helped me.

“All my life, I’ve been searching for a sense of belonging. All my life, I felt like I didn’t belong anywhere. I felt like I had to manipulate myself just to fit in somewhere. But finally, I fit in somewhere in this life, and that’s with my fans. I don’t feel lonely anymore.

“At the end of the day, I’m just building a culture. For me, it isn’t about how many hits I get. It’s about my fans and how many people are in the room. Do I care about being at the top of the charts? Eventually, one day.

“All I’m bothered about is connecting with people. I just want to put out dope, real shit. I want it to get as big as it possibly can get, of course - I want to be the biggest artist in the world but that isn’t the priority. If that is the priority, I believe you’re in it for the wrong reasons. You want fame, go be a fucking TV presenter. There’s nothing wrong with that, but I’m not here to do that. I’m not here for fame; I’m not here for money. I’m just here to tell my story and connect to people. I need to. People need to know how I feel, or I’m going to disintegrate.”

Somewhere, there’s a photo

of baby Dom just six hours old, outside the hospital he was born in, with a The Beatles ukulele across his knee. Eleven years later, he started playing in a garage band.

“I just started writing these diabolical songs but to hear them played back by other musicians, that got me instantly addicted.”

His music “was always very political,” he explains, “but I remember moving down to London at 16, and when I first met management companies they tried to mould me into something that wasn’t political and wasn’t feisty at all. They tried to beat it out of me. They wanted me to flutter my eyelashes and wink at the girls because they thought that’s what would get me on the radio. After a year of that, I’d had enough. Fuck that; I’m gonna do my thing.”

Growing up on My Chemical Romance, Marilyn Manson and Eminem, Dom was never going to be the poster boy for radio friendly.

“They said it as it was. Why beat around the bush? Fuck the bush. Burn the bush. I always tell people how it is, even if it gets me into trouble.”

The turning point was a meeting with A&R Declan Morrell at an open mic night.

“I was playing acoustic songs and jumping off the fucking speakers. He realised there was a disconnect. I told him what music I was into, The Clash, Gaga, Oasis, and he helped me get back to myself.”

But still, “not a single label in the UK wanted to know.

They just didn’t care. Everyone misunderstood me as this bratty kid who was disrespectful to older generations. I’m not that ignorant. I pay attention to the times. I make sure I’m informed, and I make sure I know what the fuck I’m talking about. I love being challenged. I love arguing and I love proving people wrong.

If I’m not getting a record deal, I’ll release it myself.”

Upset 21

Once again that defiant ‘fuck it, I’ll do my own thing’ belief took over, and so he dropped ‘King Charles’ - and people started taking notice.

The ‘Yungblud EP’ was released at the very start of 2018, with his debut album ‘21st Century Liability’ following six months later. It’s been out for less than a year, but already things have changed beyond recognition.

“Ah man, it’s been fucking crazy,” Dom beams. “I didn’t expect much. I just wanted to put out a record that I thought represented me. It was a record about truth in the world where there’s so much bullshit going on.

I can’t believe how it’s connected so strongly internationally. It’s all still a surprise. Right now, we’re playing a sold-out US run across America; it’s crazy.

“My performance and music are about capturing a moment in time and connecting with other people; it isn’t about fucking how much money you can make or how many fucking gold platinum records you’ve got. For me, it’s about connecting with people, and I’m in that fucking magic.

22 Upset

“Not everyone knows how to explain how they’re feeling, but you can feel it when you relate to someone. I can walk on stage and play a show in the mood that I feel, and I don’t have to play a character. When I walk out on stage, me and my fanbase have such a connection, people don’t understand it until they come see a show.”

It’s been chaotic. “Of course, I’ve felt out of control. All the time, are you joking me? That’s the beauty of this beautiful game we play in music, that you can’t be in control, you know?

“At the end of the day, it’s being out of control that helps you act.

If you’re on a tightrope and you slip, your survival instincts kick in. I love living on the edge. I love that sink or swim mentality, it keeps me driven, and it keeps me pushing. It keeps me wanting to strive to do better and be there for my fanbase as they’re there for me.”

The past year has given Dom a better understanding of what Yungblud is.

“Initially I was doing it for me, but the more I’ve met people,

the more I’ve discovered it’s us. Yungblud isn’t me. 50% of Yungblud is them. Yungblud isn’t Dominic Harrison from Doncaster, Yungblud is a community where people can feel safe and be themselves. I want Yungblud to represent freedom and to represent unity and to represent safety and solidarity and forward thinking and intelligence. Not intelligence of me, but intelligence of my generation.”

“Obviously things are a lot busier now,” he continues. “I’ve seen a lot of the world, and I think I’ve become a lot more emotional.

I’ve had to very quickly learn how to deal with the ups and downs that come with this. I’ve always suffered from anxiety and mental health problems, I sing about it a lot in my music, but I never thought it could get this intense.

“It’s the juxtaposition of emotions: on stage, I have the best fans in the world. I love them all so fucking much, and so dearly that I feel completely safe, I feel completely happy and excited and exhilarated. But then I wake up the next morning, and I feel

“Why beat around the bush? Fuck the bush. Burn the bush” Upset 23

horrendous. There’s a knot in my stomach, and I don’t understand why. It’s weird; it’s almost like my head can’t figure out which way to land. But it’s good. It’s all positive because I write about it. It fuels my writing. I’ve got so much to say; I just haven’t had enough time to say it yet.”

That urgency is why, less than a year after the release of his debut, Yungblud is already deep into the next chapter.

“I just want to give my fans more music. That first record, I don’t even see it as my debut album; it was more of a mixtape.

‘Alright, I’m Yungblud, nice to meet ya!’

“But this next album, I put a lot of thought into it, and I poured my fucking heart out. The new music is more emotional and it’s is based on the people I’ve met.

That first album was angry. I was young, and I was fucking angry as fuck, but this new album isn’t

24 Upset

“I always tell people how it is, even if it gets me into trouble” about anger. It’s about reflection and spreading love and positivity.

“Everything is inspired by real stories. Everything’s inspired by what I know. It’s always got to come from a real place.”

Every song Yungblud creates is asked two simple questions: ‘Is it real?’ and ‘Could anybody else sing it?’ If it comes from a real place and nobody else could sing it, then it’s ready to go.

“I think that’s why, even though everything is a mix of genres, my songs are distinctly Yungblud. My fans know that it’s going to be a curveball every time but its always still so me.”

Take ‘Parents’: Yungblud had his first proper taste of crossover with ‘Eleven Minutes’, and then followed it up with his most

outrageous song yet.

“I wanted to write a song that’s about protecting your individuality. It’s not me saying to young people ‘fuck your parents’.

I’m not that ignorant. It’s saying if people don’t allow you to be who you truly are, then fuck ‘em. It’s a tribute to, if you want to wear a dress as a boy, if you want to shave your head as a girl, if you want to do anything you want, you can.

“The song is about people who are going to influence you and tell you what to do, but they may not always be right. The only person that knows what’s best for you is you. That’s what that song is about, but I wanted to make the lyrics as outrageous as possible because I want people to say, ‘Fuck, he said what?’

“My favourite line in the song is: ‘My daddy put a gun to my head, said if you kiss a boy I’m going to shoot you dead, so I tied him up with Gaffer tape, locked him in a shed and then went out to the garden and fucked my best friend’. It’s outrageous, but it’s liberal.

“Liberal people, we’re so scared to be outrageous, but I want to break that mould. I want to say, ‘Fuck you, you narcissistic backward wanker’ to the people that are holding our future back.

“I dabble in different styles, but the glue that holds everything together is the message, and what I’m saying to young people.

They are so informed, and we see a future that we want to be a part of. We see a world we want to obtain, but it’s held back by people who don’t understand us or aren’t quite ready for the world to go to that place yet. And that’s what I need to write about in my music. I need people who don’t understand, to understand.

And the way we do that is by conversation and speaking out.”

That struggle to be heard, “it gets frustrating, but that’s part of the battle. There’s always gonna be push backs; it’s just science. If you push against something, it’s gonna push back. You’ve just gotta push harder and break through it.

It’s fucking hard, and it’s tiring.

“My anxiety gets so low sometimes, and people ask me, ‘Why do you keep pushing, why do you keep going?’”

It’s because Yungblud isn’t just fighting for himself. Every time he walks onstage or meets a fan who’s been affected by his music, he’s reminded that he’s not in this by himself. His music still wants to change the world but rather than shouting into the void, picking fights with The Man or raging against the machine, he’s using it to shape a community who believe in better.

“All it’s about now is connecting with people and making them feel less alone.

I know it sounds profound as

fuck, but that’s it. I don’t care how many numbers I have next to my name or about record sales; I care about how many people I walk out to at night. I wanna play stadiums, man.”

Yungblud’s DMs are full of fans talking to him about their highs, their lows and what they’re going through.

“I’m inspired every day because of the people I meet,” he smiles. “I had a message from one fan who’s decided to leave her college and go to art school because my music made her feel like she could. That’s incredible to me.”

However, Yungblud isn’t the one making that difference.

“When someone says my music or I saved them - no, I fucking didn’t. I didn’t save you.

You saved yourself. All I did was potentially provide a crossroads or a fork in the road, that made you observant and made you go, ‘Oh, do I actually want this?’ It’s them; it ain’t me. I’m just telling my story and trying to connect with them.

“Without sounding arrogant, what I’m doing is important to me, and it’s important to a lot of people. It’s important to talk about shit in music. Everyone’s asking what genre is up next, is it gonna be a grunge revival, is it gonna be a Britpop revival?

Of course it’s fucking not. It’s a revival of authenticity. You look at artists like Billie Eilish, look at artists like myself, look at fucking Peep. We’re talking about real shit. People didn’t understand it at first.

“Peep, no one wanted to know, Billie, no one wanted to know, but all it is is connecting to young people. It’s always been the same.

People will always be initially turned off by something that isn’t familiar because as human beings, we’ve been tricked too many times, whether that be by a shitty ex-partner or a friend that’s fucked you over or a TV show. We’re always cynical and reluctant to trust. However, once we do and figure out, oh my god this is the real deal, we will follow it to the fucking death.”

It’s why Yungblud shows are full of kids who sing every word like it means the world. It’s why his music inspires tattoos, art and debate. “At the end of the day, I’m just getting started. I’m not 2% of where I want to be yet; I have not reached 1% of the people I want to reach yet. But my fans, they are my family. If I didn’t have them, I’d die. Seriously, I was contemplating suicide. I was contemplating everything before I started this. I had no direction.

I believed that I didn’t belong on this planet. Yungblud is a matter

Upset 25

“Yungblud is a matter

of life or death for me” 26 Upset

of life or death for me. That’s why I work so hard. It’s why I push so hard. That’s why we tour so much because, without this, I’d die.”

“I just want to empower people.

I don’t want to tell them what to think, because I ain’t got the answers,” promises Dom. “I haven’t got the answers; I’m just saying what I think and what I might potentially know.”

Fearlessly open and to hell with perfection, it’s an outlook that encourages people to believe in their own minds. “It’s amazing the mutual respect we have for each other. We’re a fucking community,” he champions.

There’s a trust, and it means that Yungblud can go anywhere next.

“I always wanted to be an artist with creative freedom. I want to be able to go anywhere I want. I know it sounds crazy, but I wanna pioneer shit. I want to go to places people haven’t been yet. That’s what’s exciting to me. As long as the music means something and has my attitude, then let’s just go.

Let’s go places.”

The future awaits.

“There’s another album coming; I’m just finishing it up.

This album is more emotional.

This album is about them; it’s about the people I’ve met, the fans and the stories I’ve heard. It’s less about me. Even ‘Parents’, if you listen to the lyrics, it’s about other people. I can’t talk about me for another album, fuck that. No one wants to hear about that.

“I can’t wait! I’m so excited.

It’s so emotional, and it’s so fucking good,” he declares.

“I think,” he quickly adds, a singular moment of uncertainty.

He knows what this record is going to mean to people. “I’m so excited for everyone to hear it. I’m releasing so much music in the next couple of months. There are collaborations coming.”

And as for the songs on the album, “they’re outrageous,” he says. “There’s one song that’s like if Tyler, The Creator and Nine Inch Nails had a threesome with me, that’s the baby that would

come out. There’s another that’s a homage to David Bowie, and there’s a song that challenges religion. There’s everything.

You’re spilling all my secrets, but there’s so much coming. I knew this album was going to be about the kids and their stories. I’ve travelled the world. I’ve met so many people. We’re all thinking the same shit, no matter where we’re from. I’ve found that out first hand.”

Yungblud never thought it would happen, but he’s found a place to belong through his music and being around the people that it speaks to, and he’s not done yet.

“Now I want to invite more

people in to hear about the people I’ve met. It’s about creating a culture and inviting people into my world. Welcome to Yungblud’s world. Here you can be safe. Here, you can be who you are. No matter what you want to be, you are safe here. It’s fucking rock and roll, man. It’s our community of lonely people. I write this music because if I’m alone and you’re alone, then we’re alone together, and that makes us less lonely, right? This is our space, we’re growing so quickly, and no one can fucking stop us.” P Yungblud is playing

Reading & Leeds from 23rd-25th August and touring the UK from 19th November.

Upset 27

Festivals 2019.

Slam The Review.

Words: Ali Shutler, Steven Loftin.

Photos: Sarah Louise Bennett, Frances Beach

Slam Dunk is one of the most reliable highlights of festival season, a hotbed for both established faves like All Time Low and Waterparks and buzzy newcomers like Pagan and Hot Milk. Here’s what went down at Slam Dunk South 2019.

28 Upset

h.

Dunk All Time Low

Taking their spot at the top of the Slam Dunk bill, All Time Low know exactly what they’re doing. Coming on to The Beach Boys’ classic ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’, they provide escapism from the world at large.

“We’re here to Spice up your life,” vocalist Alex Gaskarth remarks as they take fire at the apparently awful sound at yesterday’s Spice Girls gig.

The Baltimore band’s charm and energy mean that even ten years later, the songs they bust out from third album ‘Nothing Personal’ - including a few deeper cuts - sound as fresh as they were a decade ago. Awsten Waterparks comes out for ‘Break Your Little Heart’, before the band treat the Slam Dunk South crowd to new track, ‘Getaway Green’.

As the set barrels onwards and the sun disappears, All Time Low round off the night with a fan stage-invasion during the urgent call of ‘Time-Bomb’, and the encore of ‘Lost In Stereo’ and staple ‘Dear Maria, Count Me In’ encompass what Slam Dunk is all about: nothing matters but having a good time.

Upset 29

Slam Dunk 2019

Hot Milk

The hype is real: there’s a vitality Hot Milk bring to the Key Club stage that feels both fresh and new. They have an urgency about them that cascades through their rich melodies, infectiously sweeping up the onlooking crowd. As the newcomers power through their rapidly blossoming collection of banger-laden tracks, the one thing that becomes massively

apparent is that they’re having a blast: an idea that is soon reflected back at them by every onlooker swept up in it.

Pagan

Pagan are terrifying. They take to the stage like it’s all they’ve ever known. They spit blood - though it’s probably red wine - and they make their very heavy, very gnarled, very confrontational music feel like a riotous party. The band are absolute stars, owning the spotlight and giving 2018’s ‘Black Wash’ even more crimson excitement. ‘Death

Waterparks

It feels like only yesterday Waterparks released their third album ‘Entertainment’, but today at Slam Dunk, the next chapter for the trio is in full swing.

Dotted about the Hatfield site are green posters with a classic Awsten Knight monologue introducing new song ‘Turbulent’, a track that arrived just three days prior - and one that fans are already screaming back. It would seem the Waterparks takeover is once again in full effect, and between the three of them, the band have enough energy and charisma to win over even the most stringent, hardened punks in the crowd.

WATERPARKS A SHORT Q+A WITH

“If I don’t think it’s a fucking 10/10 badass song, it’s not going to be heard” How was yesterday for you, with the live debut of ‘Turbulent’ no less?

Awsten: Amazing! Everyone knew the words! It was just like, ‘Oh shit; I can do more of this - I’m sticking my hand out with a ‘mic’ right now’.

Today it’ll have been out for a little over three days, and it’s already streaming way better than anything. It’s like our hardest release so far. It’s crazy; we’re also on a legitimate label now. Oops, haha.

How is it being on Hopeless Records?

Awsten: We feel ‘cared’ for. Nurtured. They let us give away a bunch of shirts that they paid for.

That’s awesome. They like everything, and they’re just like, ‘Make it bigger!’ and I was like ‘Okay! Let’s do that!’ and it’s going well.

The last few years have been quite a ride?

Awsten: It’s tight as fuck, dude! I love it. Any time a song is made, if I don’t think it’s a fucking 10/10 badass song, amazing, it’s not going to be heard by people. So I’m always hoping that it’s a great song, and I’m always like, I wish more people could hear it when it comes out, but with this, I’m like, ‘Yeah, let’s go!’

How has life changed for you since ‘Entertainment’?

Awsten: Geoff made babies!

He pushed it out of his penis; it walked. In Mexico. That was like a week ago!

Geoff: Yeah, a week ago, she took her first steps.

Awsten: I moved to California.

I got my first car, my first new car.

Otto: Yeah, we all got cars!

Are these ‘signed to a new label and flexing’ cars?

Awsten: These are. ‘The tour is going well’ car!

Otto: Make it known that these are very necessary cars.

Awsten: Fuck it, dude, let’s flex!

So speaking of the new era, what’s happening?

Awsten: We’ve already got the plan. We know when we’re breaking up. We knew in 2015, late 2015, that green hair was going to be a thing. We’ve got the patterns, we’ve got it all set, everything’s a prophecy.

At the end, we sacrifice Geoff.

And then I become Geoff.

Geoff: He’s taking my energy, and I just sit here and do nothing.

So the end of ‘Entertainment’ saw a new level of aggression from Waterparks, and ‘Turbulent’ carries that on. Especially with ‘that’ line.

Awsten: I’m not a bitter boy.

It actually started with ‘I don’t love you’, and I was like, that’s corny. Then I was like, ‘I’d un-bang you if I could’.

Then I was like, that’s too junior high. Then I was like, ‘I’d un-pork you’.

[Everyone groans] Awsten: So, un-fuck is tight.

One thing I tried to do with lyrics this time is I’ve wanted to try and word whatever it is that I’m feeling in the most creative way possible. It’s like in the most colourful, animated way. In a way that hasn’t been said yet, but at a certain point, it was like, since people weren’t fully grasping all the time what I was saying, in a way I was accidentally hiding behind metaphors. So this time I just wanted to be, ‘I would unfuck you if could’. I couldn’t do a Genius video on this song! ‘Well, you had a guy who writes songs and lyrics about you, and you fucked it up’. I think there’s a lot of us in there. ’You had your very own Awsten Knight’. You know what I’m saying, hi, that was me acknowledging ya’ll.

And the name for the album..?

Awsten: I know it.

Are you gonna tell us?

Awsten: No.

Is it a ‘this year’ thing?

Awsten: It is a ‘this year’ thing. I’d shit my pants in the label offices just to upset them if they didn’t want to put it out this year. P

Upset 31

Slam Dunk 2019

BOSTON MANOR A SHORT Q+A WITH

“If ‘Welcome To The Neighbourhood’ was the fire, then this next album is the smoke and rubble”

Boston Manor On something of a victory lap since the release of last year’s ‘Welcome To The Neighbourhood’, Boston Manor take their early-afternoon slot on Slam Dunk’s main stage and turn it into a celebration. With singer Henry Cox clad in a white balaclava, homaging their soon-to-be iconic emblem, it’s all systems go as they orchestrate a festival classic: a larger-than-life circle pit.

32 Upset

Hi Henry, How are you doing?

I’m good, man!

You’re on day two of two, how’s that feeling?

We are lucky enough to have done two other Slam Dunk’s in the past; I believe it was our UK festival debut about five years ago when we first did it when we’re just a DIY band. They’ve always been great to us, so we were stoked for this year, and it hasn’t disappointed. I’m proud of the festival for how much it’s grown; this is like the real fucking deal: a big ass, British outlaw festival.

And you’re main-staging it!

We went from the Introducing stage, to… I think it was the Key Club stage? And then we obviously got to the Monster Energy main stage this year, and the crowd was amazing.

How is your progression feeling, especially from DIY to this?

We’ve never been a hype band, we’re slow and steady, but the benefit of that, and the thing that I’m most thankful for is our amazing fans. Today, I could point you out five people on the front row that I saw in pubs when we were a DIY band and they keep coming back. I know a bunch of them by name, and we’re lucky we have such an incredible fanbase, but the cool thing about that is… and this is a bit of a brag, but I’m quite confidently saying we are the hardest working band, at least in the UK, at our level.

I know a bunch of my friends’ bands and DIY bands that literally don’t go home. They don’t have a fixed residence!

And how has the journey been since ‘Welcome To The Neighbourhood’?

We just wrapped up our second US tour on that cycle.

We’ve done one UK tour; it’s been incredible, honestly.

Props to the UK, the reaction to the new stuff was very immediate. We just came back on this last tour, and the reactions were insane. It was more so for the new stuff than the old stuff, which as an artist, is what you want really, your latest stuff being received well. We took a big risk on that album, and we were blessed with fans that trusted us.

What’s the future for Boston Manor looking like?

We’ve been talking about that a lot recently. We’re always writing; there are songs that have been written for the next record - whenever that comes out. We’ve found ourselves in a strange position where the last record was so focused, and we still have a lot of things that we want to say.

The way I feel that things are now is if ‘Welcome To The Neighbourhood’ was the fire, then this next album is the smoke and rubble.

There are a lot more things we’re talking about and expressing, and I don’t want to say it’s not as focused, but there’s more to it. It’s a mixed bag of emotions, and I’m finding it hard to anticipate those questions of how would you define this record. It’s difficult to come up with that headline, you know?

It was very easy to put that in text and in a box, but if you really liked the last record, and even the first record, you’re gonna like the new album - whenever it comes out. I’m finding it hard myself because we’re all changing, and my emotions and views on certain things have changed. I’ve got a lot more things to say in different areas. I don’t want to be a band that’s known for one thing. P

Before Disco’ always felt bright, a crushing blend of defiance and goodtime abandon, but today it’s larger than life.

Urgent and unstoppable, their weighted attack is unbelievably agile as Pagan twist, stomp and dance through a set that makes fans of everyone able to bear witness - and those who missed it will be hearing about it for years to come.

Grandson

Grandson comes armed with a “peaceful but forceful message” and a back catalogue of absolute bangers. Diving straight into the looming threat of ‘Stigmata’, all the frustration that fuels his music explodes in a strobe-lit cacophony of excitement, belief and urgency.

It happens time and time again, through the hurt of ‘6:00’, across the wailing rage of ‘Best Friends’ and into the cinematic destruction of ‘Stick Up’. It should be exhausting, but the energy never wavers. By the time the one-two close of ‘Apologize’ and ‘Blood//Water’ come out swinging, Grandson has the tent in the palm of his hand. It’s both a powerful protest and a welcome

Upset 33

Slam Dunk 2019

Busted?!!

It’s Busted, at Slam Dunk. What?

But really, their skipping, youthful pop-punk makes a lot of sense here. The tent is over-flowing, and from the moment they jump into ‘Air Hostess’, the energy shifts up a gear. Sparked by nostalgia but carried forward by a timeless affection, Busted’s set is forwardfacing and enjoyable. A host of fan-favourites get a boisterous airing, ‘What I Go To School For’, ‘3am’, ‘Year 3000’ and ‘Crashed The Wedding’ and even the newer material feels at home here. It’s 2019 and Busted are still finding new places to take their music, but they’re welcome back anytime.

escape. We’ve seen the future, and it’s Grandson-shaped.

Tigers Jaw

Blissful emo tunings are the order of the day from Tigers Jaw. Evoking every ounce of emotion from their smattering of songs old and new, the chemistry between vocalists Ben Walsh and Brianna Collins ignites on stage, emphasising just how far they’ve come since the rest of the band dissipated back in 2013. With the majority of the set focused on 2017’s ‘Spin’, it’s clear that Tigers Jaw have their sights set on the future.

Employed To Serve

On the Key Club stage, Employed To Serve are threatening to explode. Not only have they just released their lauded second album ‘Eternal Forward Motion’, but their live show has found itself a new foot-hold.

An onslaught of jams, there’s no moment of waning; it’s full steam ahead with barely breathing room for niceties Employed To Serve are here to burn the place down. Crowd

34 Upset

surfers spill over each other; it’s frantic, it’s brutal, and most of all, it shows the future of metal is looking brighter than ever.

Lights

There’s something fitting about Lights taking to the stage while the heavens open outside of the Key Club stage; the beats that slowly take over the darkness inside soon sweep away any dampened spirits. Enchanting the crowd with a run through her steadily-increasing back catalogue, ‘Savage’ in particular brings out a snarling bite, proving Lights is as adaptable to emotion as she is energy.

The Menzingers

Offering up rousing tunes that keep good feelings flowing, The Menzingers are a special kind of band able to unite a crowd into a ‘fists in the air’ army. Busting straight out of the gate with ‘Tellin’ Lies’, every moment is a sing-along, with the crowd befitting the scene of a friendly, neighbourhood local.

AS IT IS A SHORT Q+A WITH

“We’re here just doing whatever the fuck we want”

How was yesterday?

It was great! Feeling a little sore today, could’ve done with a little more sleep, but you know, it’s still gonna be fun.

How does it feel to be playing a festival you grew up with?

We’ve been coming to this festival since before this was even a band, watching our favourite bands play on the same stages. We almost got to play in 2013-2014 and then 2015 we played for the very first time opening one of those stages that last year we headlined. Now, this is our first year on the main stage so yeah, we really have grown up with this festival.

How’s ‘The Great Depression’ era going?

It was a huge ninety-degree turn in terms of direction, stylistic aesthetic, and now it feels so natural. We’ve done image and genre changes before, and this

is certainly the most drastic, but with the makeup and the hair and suits, this actually feels more comfortable than anything else. It’s really hitting, really resonating - it’s been fun.

And you’ve made it into this whole world with new EPs.

It’s been cool, so many bands get pigeonholed as you can’t sound too different, but you can’t sound too similar, to your last record, and we’re here just doing whatever the fuck we want.

Does that feel freeing?

It really does. When we experimented on our second record ‘Okay.’, there were poppy elements and darker elements, and people tended

to just accept everything and go ‘This is great, and also that’s great’. It’s the same with ‘The Great Depression’, we just ran with it and embraced a style that you couldn’t say was As It Is until this record. It’s fun to play outside your comfort zone.

So we’ve had the ‘Denial’ and ‘Anger’ EPs, we’re going through the stages of grief?

We have four on the record, depression just encompassed everything, so we’ve got ‘Denial’, ‘Anger’, ‘Bargaining’ and ‘Acceptance’; those two are still to come. P

As It Is In the midst of their ‘Great Depression’ era, things have never sounded so promising from As It Is. A band for whom Slam Dunk is a home from home, this afternoon the Brighton-based bunch are firing all cylinders.

Frontman Patty Walters pulls out an acoustic guitar for a stripped-back rendition of ‘Denial’, before smashing it on stage with all the gusto of someone with nothing to lose. There’s no doubt from today’s outing that As It Is could climb their way to the very top of the billing.

Upset 35

Interview.

GOING FO

36 Upset

OR GOLD With ‘Gold & Grey’, Baroness have dug deep to deliver an album that’s both assertive and adventurous. “We raise the stakes every time,” explains frontman John Baizley.

Words: Steven Loftin.

Upset 37

“I wish somebody else had written this record because I would’ve liked to hear this without me having to do it.”

artwork to date) and sound, John has found the real key ingredient to Baroness lies in their willingness not to play it safe.

“I’ll preface by saying I’d be more fearful if I weren’t to release a record that’s less grand than this,” he muses. “But every time we’ve released a record, we always have a little bit of that nervousness - butterfly in the It’s a simple statement that’s stomach - a little pinch of fear as fiery as it is fully-loaded, but because frankly, what we’re if anyone can get away with it, trying to do with this band, with Baroness frontman John Baizley Baroness, we’re trying to push can. The band have never done forward.” things by halves, and on their On this outing the band fifth outing ‘Gold & Grey’, they are setting their sights on the look back at the road they’ve paved across their veritable colour horizon - it’s always looking back at them, urging them forward. palette of a discography, and “Sometimes, that means we go decided to turn things both up, in directions that I’m aware our and down. audience has never heard us go,” “We raise the stakes every John says matter-of-factly. time we do an album, and in They’re seeking meaning in spite of what we’ve done in the silence. ‘Gold & Grey’ begins with past we try to kick our creative a hurried fury on ‘Front Toward goalposts further down the field Enemy’, where every time,” Baroness feel he explains most at home, of this new but once you hit effort, made ‘Tourniquet’, with the help serenity takes of bassist hold.

Nick Jost, “The lyrical drummer content - the Sebastian conceptual Thomson and JOHN BAIZLEY content - is new recruit, if anything guitarist Gina maybe more honest and more Gleason. exposed than some of our past “It can be nerve-wracking records,” John explains. “They because we’re trying to release all felt fairly intimate and original material, and the more personal and deep.” original it gets, the less confident Digging deeper with each we are in the reception of the album must have its limitations, album. With this one, we were because there’s only so much to so surprisingly pleased with give, right? the stuff that we were capable “I’ve always had a rule with of achieving both in terms of our albums lyrically speaking, songwriting, lyrics, and vision that I’m only going to address for the record. No matter what, the things that happen as we’re it’s been an incredible process for writing it. So every story, or us so far, and in some ways, we’re every thought, or reflection that I just at the beginning of it.” included on this album had come Someone who’s decidedly up in a moment that’s existed stringent in his motive and since we finished [2015’s] ‘Purple’. execution, leading Baroness to “Our concern was, as four this point through the merging of art (he’s designed all the band’s relatively intelligent individuals,

“THE IDEA IS WE WRITE THE MUSIC WE’RE NOT HEARING”

38 Upset

that it keeps our attention. If we’ve played on all these songs and written them, then by that musical transit of property that should extend to our audience; that’s what I’ve doubled down on across the course of the past fifteen-seventeen years of playing in retrospect.”

It’s over these years that one of the more integral ethos’ to Baroness’s survival has begun to take shape.

“At some point, you have to write music in a somewhat selfish way. I think in Baroness, we’ve embraced that, and I mean it this way; no matter what we do, if we wrote a song in a style that nobody’s ever heard us do, our conviction and our interest level and our desire is to create music.

The idea is we write the music we’re not hearing.”

Which brings us back to that opening statement of John’s -

that he’d have liked to hear the record without having to make it himself: Baroness are unafraid to light a fuse and blow expectations apart, leaving a smoking wreck in their wake.

“It’s just simply that, none of this was unnatural,” he clarifies.

“I want to make a diverse album.

I don’t want the record to be a collection of ten songs that all kickass and go straight for the same thing. What we want to

do is write an album in which every song was a different thing entirely, but to piece it together in such a way where you don’t get a whole picture of what we’re doing until you listen to each one of those tracks. “[It might be] at the expense of maybe wearing people out,” he chuckles. “Because it is long” - 17 tracks in total, clocking in at over an hour - “with intense and chaotic moments against the soft, tender ones. I would think as musicians if we were trying to relay something of the human experience it would be remiss if we left some of that stuff off the table.”

For John, these journeys are an integral part of his personal understanding, even if he doesn’t want to lay all his cards out on the table.

“As I’ve gotten older, it’s just become more commonplace. I have an easier time and a more confident time expressing some fairly difficult concepts through our music in a way where I don’t feel like I’m giving too much of myself away, but I’m also able to deal with subject matter that I can’t otherwise. Music has always been a very great place for me to express myself.”

The totality of all these aspects leaves Baroness in their most robust standing to date.

“My goal is that we have a central point, a core sound,” John states. “We’ve done X, Y, and Z we shouldn’t be linear and move toward specific goals, we should radiate from a central point, and use whatever we want, whenever want, just as long as that excites us.

“As long as that drives us forward, motivates us and inspires us. It should allow us to become better musicians, and really at the end of the day, it allows us to grow as people and as bandmates and as friends, and as artists, through the medium of this music.” P Baroness’s album

‘Gold & Grey’ is out now.

Upset 39

Pussy power Interview.

Philadelphia favourites Mannequin Pussy are experts in portraying the highs and lows of love, heartbreak and moving on with noisy, super-relatable punk.

Guitarist Marisa Dabice tells us about their third record, ‘Patience’.

Hey Marisa, how’s it going?

Eh, it’s going alright, American politics are infecting my head right now. I have a hard time separating what happens in the news from how I’m

personally doing. Trying to work on that though...

So, the press release for ‘Patience’ describes it as your “most personal” album to date, is that because of the subject matters covered, or the way you’ve broached them? How do you rate these things?

Haha, that’s such a classic thing for a press release to say. Every album we’ve ever made has been personal! I’ve never been the kind of lyricist to pick words at random out of a magazine and string them together (although that is a

good tactic for when you’re feeling stuck). Once ‘Patience’ was done, and I started listening back to the mixes, I had a few moments of just sheer panic. I was listening back to what I said and started asking myself: oh fuck, do I really want to admit all this so publicly? I hadn’t experienced that before with an album.

That moment where you wonder if maybe you should self-censor, asking yourself if you’re actually ready to talk about these things with an audience, is a crucial one.

I think it’s still going to be

a struggle with a few of the themes on the record, but I’m trying to shed the shame of some of these experiences.

Has being three albums deep, or just growing older, impacted the topics you want to write or sing about?

Love is my ultimate muse. I love every part of a relationship - from those beginning weeks of lust to falling in love and then to when it’s nothing more than a pile of ashes, and you’re stumbling around heartbroken wondering if you’ll ever feel happy again. For a long time, my coping mechanism in life was denial; if I could just blackout traumatic experiences, then I wouldn’t have to suffer through them. While that may be nice in theory, the fact is that it doesn’t work forever.

Eventually, you’re going to have to come face to face with your biggest traumas and figure out how to accept that they’ve happened and survive. This is the first record that I started to explore certain experiences that I had previously ignored, I think it made for a few very difficult days in the studio, but ultimately I’m proud that I decided to confront it.

Which musicians do you personally connect with in a similar way to how you’d like fans to connect with your band?

I love Michelle Zauner [Japanese Breakfast] so much.

She’s not only a great friend to me, but she’s also a musician and peer that I’m so inspired by. When I listen to her albums and the words she’s singing I experience that sensation where you’re like “how did this person get in my head and put into words what I’ve been struggling to say for so long???” She writes about grief and sex and desolation in such beautiful ways. And she shreds on guitar!!

Did you have a strong vision for this album when you first started writing it?

Yes. By the time we were in the studio to record I already had mock-ups of what the album cover should look like, and two storyboards for the music videos I wanted to make (‘Drunk II’ which is already made and I’m so proud of and then another one for High Horse which I hope to make eventually). This is actually the first record we’ve made that I feel like is cohesive. Our albums past have felt more like collections of finished songs, but to me, Patience is the first album that takes these different themes and sounds and really explores them. I’ve already started writing up LP4 and have a mock-up for the album cover, haha. I see each album as an opportunity to build a little world.

How was it recording with Will Yip? He seems like a good bloke to have in the studio.

Will is the fucking best. Since I’m always striving to out-do myself, I thrive on constructive criticism, and I’ve never met anyone who can hand that out as poetically as Will Yip. He knows how to zero in on parts of the song that you can’t hear anymore, how to pick you up when you feel like you can’t possibly do another take... he just knows what to say to get the best out of you. I feel incredibly lucky that we met and he wanted to work with us - I don’t think we could have made this record the way we had envisioned it without him.

How did you end up with bongos on ‘In Love Again’?

Did you experiment with many different instruments in the studio, or were they brought in especially for that track?

Ok at first I was heavy antibongo, I was like, wtf y’all this does not need it!!! But the more

time we spent on the outro to ‘In Love Again’ I realized that I should just shut up and trust Kaleen, who is a master of drums and percussion. We were trying to do something we’d never done before, and she took that opportunity to create a “percussion odyssey”, and I love the way it turned out.

How do you approach curating the tracklistings for your records? It feels like you guys are pretty restrained; there are way too many 15+ track albums that go on and on and on thanks to streaming.

The sequence of an album is one of the most important parts of a record. Everything needs to have its place and have a flow to an album. I think we’re restrained because I’m not very prolific. I write a song maybe every few months and honestly, we spent so much time on tour the last two years that writing became very difficult. It was more like, ok we have 14 songs that we can record, let’s record them all and see if anything should be cut. And usually, there is some outlier song that just fit... even if I love a song, but it’s not really serving the album then I have no problem giving it the axe.

What else do you guys have coming up over summer, are you touring lots? Do you have a holiday booked?

We have a praci-cation planned.

We’re going away together as a band for a week to learn the rest of the record. Right now we know how to play about half of the songs on Patience, so since we have a tour coming up in August, it’s time to learn the other half. I also have a fair amount of demos I want to start working on as a band. It’s never too soon to start dreaming up the next record. P

Mannequin Pussy’s album ‘Patience’ is out 21st June.

Upset 41

Rated_ THE OFFICIAL VERDICT ON EVERYTHING

JAMIE LENMAN SHUFFLE e eeee

J

amie Lenman has earned the right to do whatever the fuck he wants. To call it a ‘career’ would be to break the spell somewhat, but a life spent on the front line should afford some self-indulgence now and again.

Not that Lenman’s third solo album is in any way as simple as a flight of introspective fancy. ‘Shuffle’ is instead something unique and personal, yet not so obtuse it excludes the rest of us. Yes, it’s ‘sort of’ a covers record, but at the same time its anything but. Cast aside those

42 Upset

TV talent show competition winners belting out their balladificated versions of songs you used to love but now can no longer stomach. There’s no danger of that here. New version, reinterpretations and inspirations of things which have influenced or been held dear, this is anything but a lazy record cashing in on the hard work of others.

More inventive than even the best covers albums, the wells Lenman draws on are varied and, at times, fascinating. Though there are versions of songs you know, some of the brightest moments come from way out of left field.

At one point, he even belts out his own take on the theme from retro cartoon classic ‘Popeye’ and - against all the odds - pulls it off with credit still in the bank. There are music inspired by a chapter from his favourite book, or a scene from his favourite short film. There’s moments

snatched from video games, scores and countless other flickering gems, too. ‘Shuffle’ isn’t like any other record you’ve heard.

All of which creates a platform for some truly brilliant bangers. Lenman’s version of Adamski’s ‘Killer’ is brooding, claustrophobic and staggeringly good, while his take on ‘Hey Jude’ takes Paul McCartney’s wheel-itout, never-ending clap-along refrain and turns it into something both joyous and sinister.

In an era of carefully curated self-expression, ‘Shuffle’ is an album that draws us into Jamie Lenman’s world in a more personal way than mere words and pictures ever could. An audio autobiography, it’s devilishly smart, wonderfully intimate and fascinatingly unique.

Covers album? Yeah, sure, but it’s also so much more.

Stephen Ackroyd

BAD BOOKS III e eee

Formed as a plaything between songwriters Kevin Devine and Andy Hull while on tour ten years ago, Bad Books quickly released two albums of fuzzy indie rock that saw the duo let their hair down from their sometimes heavy day jobs.

Combining the best of Manchester Orchestra’s muscular machine with Devine’s wit and melodic flourishes, the first two Bad Books are peppered with bona fide jams that brim with carefree abandon.

Over seven years since ‘Bad Books II’ comes instalment ‘III’. It’s an altogether different affair, shaped

by Hull’s soundtrack work and Devine having done the power-pop thing on his last two records: a collection of pared back acoustics with occasional warbles of keys and atmospheric guitar from Hull’s bloodrider Robert McDowell. While not as immediate or fun as their first crusade, it reflects where both songwriters are at.

You probably won’t be sticking this one on at parties, and placed next to the first two Bad Books LPs it’s an odd fit. However, as part of Devine and Hull’s catalogue of songwriting spanning countless project, it’s a worthy addition to the canon. P Dillon Eastoe

BARONESS GOLD & GREY e eee

The thunderous might of Baroness is seemingly unstoppable. Never a breezed-out affair, their fifth album ‘Gold & Grey’ is another piecedtogether journey that utilises the quiet as much as it does the loud.

This is Baroness at their most daring, with six-second ambient segues given their own separate space on the track listing; no moment is throwaway, and

everything pulls together to create a seventeen-track beast.

More sullen moments bring with them an over-arching sense of dread, diving deep into an emotional chasm. There’s that hefty regality throughout: from the urgent, sludgy-riff opener of ‘Front Toward Enemy’, all the way through to airy closer ‘Pale Sun’, the overwhelming feeling of sheer might firmly screams that this is a band not to be fucked with.

‘Gold & Grey’ cements that Baroness are a band unafraid to swim out to the deep, sharkinfested waters of change. P

Steven Loftin

DOLL SKIN

LOVE IS DEAD AND WE KILLED HER eeee Doll Skin aren’t here to make up the numbers; they’re not interested in quietly hugging the wall and letting events pass them by. With their Hopeless Records debut, they’re out to deliver a message. ‘Love Is Dead And We Killed Her’ is an unapologetically vocal statement - a list of names taken, serving

the status quo with notice at every step. Opener ‘Don’t Cross My Path’ growls with intent that refuses to quit: nor should it.

Righteous fury burns the brightest. P Stephen Ackroyd

FANGCLUB VULTURE CULTURE e e ee

Kicking off your album with a six-minute long slow burner isn’t something you’ll find in the Big Rock Textbook, and yet Fangclub do it without fear. Like a creepy lullaby before the night terrors begin, ‘Last Time’ is more than just evidence of a band writing their own rules. By the time it ignites, its refrain is locked firmly in the mind. So much so that the siren stomp of title-track ‘Vulture Culture’ feels like a glam wonderland.

From there, they twist and strut in equal measure, from the grungy rise of ‘Viva Violent’ to the rampant thrash of ‘Kingdumb’.

Like magpies picking out the shiniest pieces, sometimes that glint is passing rather than permanent, but regardless, it’s a record that’s easy to treasure. P

Dan Harrison

Upset 43

Rated_ Frank Baum’s novel. While there’s a lot going on, ‘Cosmic Thrill Seekers’ captures the drama perfectly, and, when combined with the equally stellar recent efforts by best buds Mom Jeans, Graduating Life and Retirement Party, serves as the vanguard for an exciting new generation of indiepunk acts. P Rob Mair

THE BOTTOM LINE NO VACATION eeee

MANNEQUIN PUSSY PATIENCE eeee

From the opening blast of its title-track, ‘Patience’ is the sound of a band moving somewhere fast. That’s a pretty good marker for Mannequin Pussy in 2019. Though this is their third album, it’s their first for label Epitaph, and comes with the kind of taught urgency mixed with subtle, underlying confidence that makes it captivating company. ‘Drunk II’ combines both strands with ease, while ‘Clams’ is 39 seconds of raw, untamed fury. When the dial comes right down for ‘High Horse’, it’s no less effective - emotion conferred through different paths to equally potent effect. ‘Patience’, so they say, is most certainly a virtue. P

Stephen Ackroyd

PLAGUE VENDOR

BY NIGHT eee e

You can practically hear the chains rattling and snapping as Plague Vendor thrash about unhinged and wild-

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eyed on their second full-length album, ‘By Night’. The hollering of frontman Brandon Blaine is borderline feral; blues-tinged and soaked in attitude and spit, the songs here at times sound like a warped dystopian Cage The Elephant. With hidden depth beneath wailing, hounding guitars and focused rhythms, ‘By Night’ has a fighting bite, and sees Plague Vendor putting their best foot forward. P Steven Loftin

PRINCE DADDY & THE HYENA COSMIC THRILL SEEKERS eeee

While the title ‘Cosmic Thrill Seekers’ might elicit visions of acid-trippin’ psych-rockers on a quest for the meaning of life, the truth is much more grounded. A reflection of vocalist Kory Gregory’s cyclical mental health and OCD, it is instead a grungy, indie-rock soap-opera that is split into three parts. Bizarrely, it also riffs off The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, with each act – the Heart, the Brain, and the Roar – symbolic of Dorothy’s three companions in L

Pop-punk never dies. Really, you try to finish it off.

But that permanence isn’t without explanation, something The Bottom Line showcase with ease.

From the salt and sugar-soaked tones of opener ‘Reasons’, those traditions are in safe hands. Fitting snugly into that juxtaposition of sun-kissed, carefree rebellion and angst-ridden lyrics, ‘No Vacation’ is an album tethered to the realities of being in a band. Turns out it’s not all glitz and glamour, but when delivered like this, maybe it will be soon. P Dan Harrison

TITUS ANDRONICUS AN OBELISK eeee

‘An Obelisk’ finds Titus Andronicus at their most direct as they rattle through a brisk 40 minutes of punk thrills, guitar solos and the sort of soaring chorus’ that make you puff your chest out in defiance. Songs like ‘(I Blame) Society’ dispense with anything as frivolous as an intro and instead blast in with the recognisable snotty vocals of Patrick Stickles, while elsewhere ‘Within The Gravitron’ beefs things up before culminating with the solo-riffic closer ‘Tumult Around The World’. A record without an inch of fat, it’s a gloriously rousing collection. P Martyn Young

A SHORT Q+A WITH

THE LAFONTAINES Drummer Jamie Keenan lifts the lid on the band’s latest offering.

Hey Jamie, how’s it going?

Awrite, it’s goin’ dead good.

The sun’s out, and I’ve been telling anyone that’s cared to ask how amazing I’m feeling at the minute. Life is fuckin’ great.

You guys have been touring a lot this year, how were your shows with Deaf Havana and Mike Shinoda?

Every gig’s been a success for us so far this year. They were some big gigs to play, and it was great to be out in front of a whole new audience, most of who hadn’t heard of us before.

Any behind the scenes gossip?

I caught him a few times doing this, and he was always really embarrassed. Mike Shinoda kisses the mirror before he plays, when he thinks he’s got a wee minute to himself. He’s a lovely man to be fair.

Had you already finished the new album when you went out on the road, or were you still tinkering?

There was still a few wee bits

THE LAFONTAINES JUNIOR eee

In all the various twists and subgenres that scatter the landscape, Scottish rap-rock probably isn’t the first that jolts into focus, and yet with their third album The LaFontaines remain firmly ‘on to something’. From the anthemic chorus of ‘Alpha’ to the throbbing tension of ‘All In’, they’ve enough edge to cut through the noise. P Dan

Harrison

and bobbies to be done, but then we realised we had more time and went in and recorded another new track which’s turned out to be one of the best!

Did you start the record with a set vision for what you wanted it to be?

The mission

statement was for it to sonically kick your ears in and put you to bed with a sweet kiss on the forehead. Or something like that.

In what ways is it a step up from your first two?

It’s a big step up in terms of songwriting. We’re always finding our feet, but the shoes are beginning to fit now. Working with Tam, our producer, we’ve been allowed to try different things that were too bold for us previously, or so we were told.

Aside from your own, what’s been your favourite album of 2019 so far?

Anderson Paak’s ‘Ventura’. We toured with him a few years back, and the guy can’t seem to do anything wrong. Can’t wait for the Black Keys’ new album as well. Idlewild, Fidlar and Circa Waves are three other notable mentions with new releases. P

The LaFontaines’ album ‘Junior’ is out now.

Upset 45

EVERYONE HAS THOSE FORMATIVE BANDS AND TRACKS THAT FIRST GOT THEM INTO MUSIC AND HELPED SHAPE THEIR VERY BEING. THIS MONTH, REN ALDRIDGE FROM PETROL GIRLS TAKES US THROUGH SOME THE SONGS THAT MEANT THE MOST TO HER DURING HER TEENAGE YEARS. WITH... REN ALDRIDGE, PETROL GIRLS DESTINY’S CHILD Survivor

We directly quote lyrics from this song in our track of the same name! I loved Destiny’s Child growing up - still do. I was so stoked that Beyonce did a little Destiny’s Child medley when I saw her at Glastonbury a few years ago.

AVRIL LAVIGNE Complicated

‘Complicated’ was the first Avril song I heard when I was about 11, and I remember thinking she was just the coolest. I wanted to be as cool as Avril! We played a house show a couple of years ago that was Avril themed, so we dressed up as Avril and her ex-boyfriends.

Liepa actually makes a pretty convincing Avril from her later blonde phase. Zock was the guy from Nickleback (Zock used to love Nickleback when he was a teenager, by the way, don’t tell anyone…), Joe was the guy from Sum 41, and I was Sk8r Boy - my baggy trousers kept falling down during the show.

THE SKINTS Murderer

I think this was on that very first Skints EP? Or on the first record at least. I remember seeing them down the Croft in Bristol for the first time when I was about 16 and just being totally blown away.

They’re all such great musicians.

Excited for their new record.

FOO FIGHTERS All My Life

I think this is the only song that’s ever made my mum speed while driving! One of her colleagues

46 Upset

made me a mix CD of different rock bands, and this song was on it. My whole family ended up getting really into the Foos, and we all went to see them in London for my 15th birthday!

SYSTEM OF A DOWN Aerials

I was big into metal as a teenager - the first band I played in was a metal band. System Of A Down were probably my all time favourite. I love how they’re so theatrical but at the same time so much more political than most metal bands.

PAPA ROACH Last Resort

This remains my karaoke song of choice, and I am not ashamed.

ANTI FLAG Turncoat

Anti Flag were one of the first political punk bands I got into.

I remember my dad driving a carload of us up to Birmingham to go and see them. I think

14-year-old me would lose her shit to know we’re playing Anti-Fest in a couple of weeks time! ​

LINKIN PARK Crawling

I really vividly remember seeing the video for this round at my cousin’s house when I was about ten! I think it really freaked me out at first, but I got mega into them.

Bizarrely, me and my friend ended up eating breakfast with Mike Shinoda and his crew in the artists’ tent at Leeds Fest last year. I’d run out of money, so I was preoccupied with trying to blag as much food to take away from backstage as possible, and I didn’t recognise him! Then we saw his set later and realised! He did a really touching tribute to Chester - it was super emotional.

It’s great that the music industry is starting to take mental health so much more seriously. P

Petrol Girls’ album ‘Cut & Stitch’ is out now.

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