Catfish and the Bottlemen @ The Institute - Birmingham

As soon as I got into the gig, me and my friend soon discovered that our ticket lead us to unreserved seating, right at the top of the venue. Considering we presumed that we were going to be standing, we were very annoyed as you could probably imagine. However, I managed to get us into the floor below so we weren't right at the top.

Furthermore, Catfish and the Bottlemen were supported by Little Comets who created a positive atmospheric crowd, making everyone roaring to watch Catfish and the Bottlemen.

'Pacifier' was a smashing performance live, the whole crowd was singing along and McCann's vocals could be heard from a mile off. Every single individual who was at the gig knew every word to every song; creating a booming atmosphere and I loved every minute of it.

The guitar and drums remain outstanding throughout every single songs performance, they were just unreal. 

'Business' had the crowd going insane too, every single person at that gig knew every word. I just couldn't believe how outstanding each performance was and how the crowds energy remained so strong from the beginning right to the end of the set list.

'Hourglass' is a personal favourite of mine and it was performed perfectly, again receiving a great reaction from the crowd; with everyone singing along like their life depended on it.

Fortunately, I recorded nearly every single song on my snapchat story so I can recollect what the gig was like - even if people did get rather annoyed with me. But you could just hear the echo from the crowd, once McCann projected the lyrics - I've never been to a gig like it.

My favourite performance of the night was 'Homesick' as the person who accompanied me at the gig was my best friend, and well it's sort of our song due to an inside joke. The whole crowd was cheering along and towards the end people were even clapping to the beat!

You could not go wrong for £12.50 a ticket! Even though there were touts outside the venue selling the tickets for £50 - I would've payed that much to see them, if I didn't already have a ticket. To top it all off, once the gig was finished I managed to buy a Catfish and the Bottlemen tour t-shirt with all of the dates and venues on the back and their signature 'The Balcony' album cover on the front - for just a fiver!

The 28th of March 2015 was easily one of the best nights of my life. I would more than recommend to see them live, and listen to them if you haven't already. They have definitely lived up to my expectations and beyond! I cannot wait to hear rumours about a second album being released! They are going to be the next big thing, it is inevitable. 

10/10

Moral Panics

Moral Panics are a four-piece alternative rock band from the West Midlands. They are going to release their new single called 'Mammoths' this Monday on the 30th of March on a music video so watch out for it!

The song introduces itself straight away with vocals, which is different from many other bands as many introductions usually enter with a guitar solo. However the song is then followed by the guitars, which is then accompanied by the drums. The instrumental after the first verse forms a solid and strong platform for Johnson to carry out his strong vocals - you can tell straight away that this song is going to receive many positive responses; due to the solid formation of the song. Evidently the members have worked, and concentrated very hard on this single.

With Daniel Johnson and Andy Gannon both on vocals and guitar, you can tell the distinction between both of their voices and they accompany each other very well together. Jazz Smith does a phenomenal job on the drums as it allows the piece to have their alternative edge. 

The band sound slightly influenced by Bring Me The Horizon, however if that is not the look they are going for I suggest that you don't make the vocals so harsh and the guitars so upbeat. On the other hand you both have an incredible vocal range, so I think that you are both more than capable of making your voices sound more gentle and smooth if that's not the look that you're going for.

Either way, I personally really like the song and you can hear the indignation throughout every single member of the bands performance and their passion really does show from start to finish of this single. Moral Panics come across as a very strong band, they also have a good image as well; keep up the quality work lads!

Their next gig will be on the 11th of April for £5 a ticket where they will be Headlining at the Underground.

Catfish & the Bottlemen - The Balcony (Album Review)

Catfish and the Bottlemen are a four-piece Welsh indie rock band that formed in Llandudno, North Wales. They have recently expanded their fan-base since the release of their first album on the 19^th of June in 2014 called ‘The Balcony’. From the start right through to the end of the album I don’t think that there is one song that I can fault. There is not one single song that I think lets the band down in any way, shape, or form. 

The song that opens up this phenomenal album is named ‘Homesick’; the guitar is simple at the start and then the drums start to kick in; once the drums kick in that increases the speed and volume of the guitar; however the drums tend to overpower the guitar at the beginning. McCann has harsh vocals throughout but you can feel the indignation in his voice and the tension build up as it comes to the second chorus 

“I said I’m only looking out for you, she said it’s obvious that’s a lie - but I only ever put out for you, you know it’s obvious you don’t try.” 

This tells me how McCann obviously only wants this one girl and is doing everything and anything in his power to try and keep her, but she incontestably has somebody else on her mind as she is not concerned whether McCann stays or leaves her.

'Cocoon' is the most notorious song off the album and I assume that is due to the change of mood throughout the song. The drums and guitar introduce the song simultaneously then McCann soon introduces himself. This song is a lot softer once the instrumental has finished and McCann starts to sing; as this song is mainly about the more positive side of love, reminiscing the good times. I think McCann is trying to tell someone to stand their own grounds as he says...

“fuck it if they talk, fuck it if they try and get to us - cause I’d rather go blind than let you down."

  I like it how towards the end of the song the drums and guitar have their own instrumental time and then McCann comes back in again with a soft approach and gradually gets harsher again. However he's not just telling her to stand her grounds he's asking her to understand how he would rather do anything (go blind) than leave her on her own and he just wants her to recognize that.

I’d say that ‘26’ is the most inconspicuous song on the whole album, and perhaps the underdog? This enters with sharp drums and guitar. The guitar tones down when McCann joins in with the vocals; however the drums remain strong. This song keeps you on your feet the whole time as it does not calm down, or mellow at any point. I think this is due to the constant pace of the drums throughout the song. However the guitar nicely finishes off the song. 

'Sidewinder' is another underrated and unrecognized song off the album. The guitar slowly opens the song before the drums kick in, then you get that strong, and notorious catfish beat that gives the band their distinctive edge. The start is different to all of the other songs because McCann doesn't start to sing until 45 seconds in. When the vocals do start, they come straight in with McCann’s sharp voice with the line -

 “Give me some madness I can get off on.” 

This song really does just mainly focus just on the drums and guitar with just two choruses and two verses. People don't realise that this song has a strong meaning to it as McCann says;

“Whoever you're mixing your drinks with is dying to, go to town on you.” 

Which evidently shows that a girl who McCann obviously cares about is being used to get drunk and then later goes on to be sexually assaulted/used?

The vocals remain exceptional through-out every single song and the drums and guitars performance constantly remains outstanding from start to finish in every single song too. McCann has a very distinctive voice and each member of the band has a distinctive sound to themselves. The guitar is very sharp and strong; likewise so are the drums. I think that Catfish and the Bottlemen have a serious chance of being ‘the next big thing’ especially since their 2015 tour is nearly all sold out across America and England. Catfish and the Bottlemen are a very underrated band, and I’m glad that their fan-base is widely expanding all over the world. They deserve every single little bit of appreciation and admiration that they receive!

There will hopefully be a gig review uploaded on the 29^th of March as I am attending their gig on Saturday the 28^th of March in Birmingham. So let’s see if their performance live matches my attitude towards their album – I have high expectations lads! I would definitely recommend that you give them a listen if you haven't already!

10/10

Release

Release are a new and upcoming alternative band, the 5-piece from Stoke-On-Trent have recently just released their first ever EP on soundcloud after only forming in November 2014. The band have already had a few gigs locally, and always manage to receive a positive reaction from the crowd.

'Bloody Monday', being their most recent uploaded song enters with a nice soft guitar for the introduction, and then the drums start to kick in formatting a solid and strong instrumental for the song. The lead singer Caleb Allport, has a very husky, harsh and distinctive style voice. I like this song as it varies throughout and doesn't stay at a constant pace, and keeps you on your toes. The song is very catchy and the lyrics have been very well thought-out and it is a song describing a typical teenagers motive towards the week.

'Spelling Out DOOM' also introduces the song with a guitar instrumental, but the drums and vocals enter simultaneously later on. This song comes across as very passionate as you can hear the anger and passion in Allport's voice. This song is a lot more punk/hard-rock than Bloody Monday, but you can also hear the backing vocals a lot stronger within this performance. The guitarists are very talented within this band as you tend to focus on them the most through out all of the songs.

'Whatever Will Be, Won't Be" has a very harsh introduction with the guitar and drums entering simultaneously on the instrumental, leading to a very powerful and strong opening to the song.
The lyrics of ...-

"A drunken stumble after too many ales"

...Work very well with the backing vocals later on as it creates the atmosphere as to what it is like when you're intoxicated and you've had a bit too much to drink and you almost hear everything twice; as the backing vocals echo a bit.

Overall, I think you lads are doing really well for yourselves! Keep going at it!
Their next gig will be at The Underground supporting Moral Panics on the 11th of April, presumably £5.00 a ticket. Their soundcloud is- soundcloud.com/releasestoke

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - Chasing Yesterday (Deluxe Album Review)

So at the moment everyone is talking about Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Bird's new album, but I honestly did not rate it that much at the beginning. The whole album appears to be very constant at first. However after giving the album a proper listen; I've started to favor it a lot more
.

'Ballad of the Mighty Eye' being the most well known song of the album is not at all as great as everyone is making out, the guitar is commendable and the vocals are really strong from start to finish but, it is a very constant song and does not change much throughout. The lyrics which stood out the most to me were;

“I’d give you the world if you take my hand, but you left me alone in the sinking sand.”

This tells me that you could give somebody everything but no matter how much you give somebody; they will never be content with how much love you give them nor capable of giving you back half as much as you give them; they are completely oblivious to what is going on around them - someone would give them the world and they can’t even give them a hand out of a dissolving substance which could consequently lead to their death.

The guitar on 'The Right Stuff' is phenomenal and outshines the drums and the vocals, which has a positive effect on the song as it does not just focus on the vocals of Gallagher. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds is a band, it is not just a front-man and a few instruments in the background; perhaps that’s why people praise and admire this band so much? Or perhaps their fans are just hoping that they will become a re-incarnation of oasis?

Moving on; 'In The Heat Of The Moment (Toy Drum Mix)' has a great sound to the song and a very indie feel to the song. The drums are very powerful and the guitar also presents a very strong performance during the song from start to finish. The guitarist is by far the strongest member of the band; the saxophone throughout the songs also creates a 1960’s jazz vibe too which is different.

My favorite song on the album is 'The Girl With X-Ray Eyes'  as personally I think that it is a very underrated song off the album as the lyrics are very well thought-out. Gallagher says:

 “So she took me by the hand and followed through the sand.”

Which then leads on to him saying at the end of the verse

“When the deed is done, in the morning she was gone.” 

Was this the first half of 'Ballad of the Mighty Eye'?

'In The Heat Of The Moment' is more of a rock song compared to the other songs with the heavy guitar and sharp drums, this song also has very catchy lyrics.

In conclusion; I did not think much of the album when I first played it and thought that all of the songs on the album  were very similar and very constant but when I gave the album a second chance I started to realize what a good, and quality album that it is. However I didn't particularly fall in love with it at first listen... Which led to my first opinion on the band and album as a whole being deemed as very overrated.

Gallagher wants his band to be another Oasis, but everyone knows that, that will never happen. Nonetheless I think that the album is getting all of the appreciation and support that it deserves.

8/10