Divine Youth - Please Pour Away Those Petrol Eyes (Single Review)

Divine Youth are a 3-piece alternative rock band from my hometown of Stoke-On-Trent, and they released their debut single called 'Please Pour Away Those Petrol Eyes' on the 25th of March 2016. The trio consists of; Dan Sheldon on lead guitar & vocals, Michael Sheldon on the bass & vocals and Liam Kaye on the drums. Divine Youth have shared early gigs with; Drew McConnell (Babyshambles) and Billy Lunn (Subways). Divine Youth have also shared gigs with new and upcoming bands like; Kagoule and Racing Glaciers for example. All of these experiences that the band have had has allowed them to develop a larger following around the West Midlands, and these experiences have also helped to expand their fan base. Moving forward... With their rhythmic drums, rapturous guitar riffs and ardent vocals - this is a band you need to watch out for!

The intro consists of a simultaneous clash of the bass, guitar and drums - shortly to be followed by the distinctive gritty, ardent vocals from Sheldon. Within this track there are three main verses, and they are all sung more than once, which makes this song incredibly catchy. 

"Stop! 'Cus this ain't a new idea. Concrete Jesus, you're so cheap. Stop! 'Cus this ain't a new revolution. Ray of sunlight, I keep all in line."

However I must say that my favourite line is the one that also closes off the track, which I personally thought was a nice finishing touch - and it goes like this...

"Cus I'll paint you black and blue, but I still choose you. You got me to come back in, got nothing - what I had, what I played for."

 I especially like this line because being "black and blue" often refers to being beaten up, however he is 'painting' her which tell me that he sees her as a piece of artwork and he'd even sacrifice his own self-image, as potentially being a wife beater just to stay with her, because he thinks that she is this glorious masterpiece. He could never leave her because he has nothing; nothing to lose, but nothing to gain either. 

In conclusion this song is incredibly intelligent and an enigma in many ways; the song has various meanings, and most people will view it differently. This gives Divine Youth an edge on many bands, because they go deeper than just the surface level when it comes to their lyrics - and whoever has written this song out of the band is a brilliant lyricist, if I don't say so myself. Lead singer, Sheldon also has a very distinctive voice which is harboured with emotion and a sense of pain in many different ways. The guitars, and drums were also very good as Divine Youth stand out because they are very alternative rock, rather than indie which makes their songs sound that little bit more edgy and different, as well as having a very catchy rhythm and lyrics. Very impressed, it has been a pleasure reviewing your debut single Divine Youth - so thank you. I wish you all success on your future endeavours as a band, and I look forward to hearing more from you.

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ALMA @ The Underground - Stoke (Gig Review)

ALMA are a five-piece alternative rock band from Stoke-On-Trent. The five-piece consists of; lead vocalist, Jack Frasier Kennedy, Ross Litherland on lead guitar, Kieran Breese on guitar & backing vocals, Sam McCambridge on the bass, and Ian Simmonds on the drums. The band confidently entered the stage of The Underground on the 15th of April 2016 with their very distinctive individual style, only to be welcomed on to the stage by an incredibly energised and full crowd.

The ALMA set list consisted of eight songs; four of which were their own, and the remaining four were songs that they had covered from well-known artists within the indie/alternative rock music industry such as; Bloc Party, Arctic Monkeys and SLAVES. ALMA's opening track was an instrumental called - 'Get Me Out'. This instrumental really got the crowd going; it was opened by Litherland on lead guitar, followed by the exhilarating drums, Breese on the other guitar and then McCambridge on the bass shortly joined in. The instrumental was feisty and punchy then the lead singer; Frasier Kennedy got himself into his alter-ego by working himself up, off the energy of the crowd.

Their second song was a cover of Bloc Party's well-known track - 'Helicopter'. Drum sticks were getting thrown into the air, Breeze and Frasier Kennedy got into the swing of things immediately and it was a good cover; however the bassist seemed a bit too concentrated, so I was eager to see if he would perhaps loosen up further into the set list as he seemed a bit tense throughout the first two tracks. Also, there wasn't much connection on stage with the other members of the band, however on the other hand there is no doubt that this cover definitely got the crowd proper pumped up. Then this cover was followed by one of their own songs called - 'Antidote'. Frasier Kennedy introduced the song, I thought that this track had a very heavy and strong beat to it; due to the hard-hitting drums and heavy guitars. The track sounded heavily influenced by the likes of Jamie T and SLAVES. Lead singer and Breese began to show the audience an onstage-connection, which was good to see.

Their fourth track was another one of their own songs, and it is called - 'Devils Advocate'. Immediately this track was very heavy due to a simultaneous clash of instruments, and as a result - the crowd became very boisterous. A part of this song what I really like is when all of the instruments halt to a stop for the lead singer to sing the chorus line of;

"Devils Advocate!"

The crowd were going wild! Also all of the band members were now warmed up and feeling a lot more comfortable on stage. The frontman and lead guitarist, were both beginning to connect with the audience by going down to their level on the front line; whilst they were performing on the stage.

Their next performance was a cover of SLAVES - 'The Hunter'. Now, the boys are in luck because if you have read my review on SLAVES - 'Are You Satisfied?' - you will know my opinion on this band. However, you will also know that this is one of the very few songs that I actually like off their album! Breese was assisting the lead vocals for this track, and the crowd was getting wilder, the drummer was pulling subconscious angry facial expressions due to being so devoted to this performance, McCambridge on the bass loosened up a lot more and the lead guitarist was still actively connecting with the audience.

'You keep it! We don't want it!'

'Taken For A Fool' was their next track that was written by ALMA and that has a guitar intro and very powerful, repetitive drums also took their toll. For their last song of the evening (so you think) the lead singer starts to replicate Alex Turners dad-styled dancing when he was at The Strokes with Miles Kane. This only means one thing! Their next song is going to be an Arctic Monkeys cover! Frasier Kennedy begins to sing 'Do Me A Favour' with Alex's slight twang that he has when he sings. This was a good song choice as the majority of the audience knew the words and could sing along, however it would have been better if ALMA had added their own twist to it... It remained a quality cover though - regardless. Did you think that, that was the end of their set list? Nope! They closed off their set with an extra song which was, yet again - another SLAVES cover, and the cover was - 'Where's Your Car Debbie?' Kieran heavily assisted the vocals again on this cover, which added to the intensity of the instruments and the song itself. 

"Where's your car Debbie? Debbie, where's your car?!"

In conclusion the Riff Factory presents gig was brilliant and I was amazed with the variety of all of the differenciated bands; and ALMA played very well, but I think that they all need to start taking tips off eachother on how to calm the nerves throughout their first couple of songs. Their own songs were very creative and had a very contagious beat to them; however when they covered a song they'd lose that sense of individuality that they have created within their own songs, as their covers tended to be immaculate replicas of the original song and it would be better if I could have seen ALMA's individuality being brought into a song that wasn't their own. Moving on; every single musician is extremely talented and having nerves is a perfectly normal thing, but they all need to start believing in themselves a lot more and believe in their capability and future as a band. The last thing I have to say is - the band need to be spending more time off-stage with eachother because they don't connect enough with eachother on-stage. Regardless of that, they still managed to put on a great show, they got the crowd going wild for the next act to follow them on stage - Arcadia. Every song on their set list was introduced to the audience before they even began performing and I liked this because that way the band are also influencing the crowds music taste by telling them what track they're performing. All in all, it was a very good performance for a young band who haven't been together for a remarkable length of time and I hope that they will take what I have said on board! Good luck with all of your future endeavours lads, and I wish all the best of success for you and your band!

The Statements - Makin' A Statement (Album Review)

The Statements are a 5-piece alternative rock band from Manchester. The Mancunian 5-piece consists of; lead singer, Frank Bride, Ian Douglas on lead guitar, Matthew Nation on rhythm guitar, Richard Mosoph on bass and Sean Kinahan on the drums. The Statements are now signed by Flicknife Records after their debut album 'We Stand Divided' made a good impression on the label. From there on, the band have supported such acts as; American Phenomenon, Adam Bomb Experience  and the one and only - Inspiral Carpets! The 12-track album was released on the 26th of October 2015, but the real question is - what is their statement? Well let's see and try to find out...

The opening track is called 'You'll Never Take Me Alive' and you're welcomed by groovy guitar riffs and then the track is shortly accompanied by Kinahan on the drums then followed by Bride's distinctive northern rock voice. This track exploits the talents of each musician in equal measures; as they all get a time to shine - whether it's a solo, or whether they dominate a particular part of the track. The following song is called 'Bad Cilla'. This track has a very countrified western-themed intro on the guitar, however it is shortly accompanied by the gritty vocals and rhythmic drums. The next one is more of a softer song and it is called 'In My Head'. I would definitely say that this is one of the more catchy tracks off the album with its repetetive lines in the chorus;

"It's in my head, it's in my head, it's in my head."

All three of these tracks sound heavily influenced by alternative 90's garage-rock grunge bands like; Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins and Foo Fighters for example. The following song is a very slow and emotional ballad which appears to be about dealing with the death of someone very close by drinking away your sorrows due to being lost without them. This beautiful track about the repercussions of a person who is suffering the loss of a loved one is called - 'Lost'. 

"I miss you every day, but I love you always."

The Statements fifth track is called 'Time Will Tell' and this song sounds quite inspired by 90's britpop band - Oasis. This is perhaps one of my favourite tracks so far; with its soft intro on the guitar that gradually increases its beat in order to be up to pace with the upbeat drummer, Kinahan.

 "But only time will tell if all is well - you & me."

The ensuing number is called 'In Your Own Way'. The intro sounds quite inspired by The Kooks due to the ring of the guitars, however soon as Bride sings with his powerful northern rock voice, the bands influence soon delves back into Oasis again; like the previous song. The seventh number really shows you how eclectic the band are; this rock n roll track goes full throttle with the heavy guitars and punchy drums. This RnR track has a very catchy chorus and the sarcastic title of 'They Say' - and it goes a bit like this...

"It's nice to meet you, now get out of my way. May it be tomorrow, or be another day - yeah!"

The eighth track is called 'Feelin' and as you may have already guessed it is about being able to feel something and having that mutual connection with someone. This song has a nice slow melody during the intro on the guitars and it is yet again another admirable ballad with a catchy chorus.

"When I get that feelin' yeah, when I'm deep inside"

'Hurricane' is their ninth track and it has a very slow intro that gradually builds to become a good and stable rock song with hints of Oasis inspiration again.

"But I'll always be, just what you want me to be."

The tenth track is called 'Government' - it has an upbeat instrumental and it is about the corruption of the government and how the working class are just wasting away, and throwing away their precious time in order to just survive. The second to last song is called 'Don't Sing To Me' it has a very grunge intro which soon picks up; mainly dominated by the drums. Yet again, this is another track that embraces the talents of each musician within the band as you can distinctively hear each and every one of them. The final track to close off the album is called - 'Sleeping With The Enemy' and something about this song title sounds incredibly sinister and I don't quite know why... A very rock n roll track! Sounds like a song that would close off a film or a series about a biker gang!

In conclusion, without a shadow of a doubt - this band are capable of many things; with their eclectic range of songs and talented musicians there isn't much more that they really need in this album... My favourites would have to be the three slow songs ;  'In My Head' , 'Feelin' and 'Lost'. However their more rock styled tracks also took to my fancy such as 'Time Will Tell' and their closing track 'Sleeping With The Enemy'. Even though there are various influences that took their toll throughout the album, Foo Fighters are the one band that The Statemets distinctively reminded me of. If you would like to listen to this album you can stream it on Spotify or you can buy it on iTunes. I wish you all the best of luck during your future endeavours lads, it has been a pleasure reviewing your album.