Turbowolf, The Marble Factory, 22/04/2015

Tonight in the bare stoney walls of Bristol’s Marble Factory, a homecoming is about to occur. Not just one of family and friends for a band who have seen a few new places, but one of family, friends, fans and fun-filled ferociousness for a band who are ending their biggest UK tour to date. Turbowolf are rolling into town, and it’s going to be one to remember.

Warming up the crowd tonight are the young lads of Hyena, a band bringing freshness to alternative rock in a way that make them ones to watch. Following them are the mighty Dolomite Minor, another big new name in the game whose riffs strike awe into all who hear them. Despite this, it’s not their riffs that stick in the minds and hearts of the crowd tonight. It’s that, and more, of the headliners, Turbowolf. Entering to birdsong and wild raptures of screams and applause, it is evident that the energy is about to be dialed up to a level that doesn't even exist yet!

Vocalist Chris bounds back and forth around the stage, undressing and re-dressing, not knowing what to do with all his excitement. Not that this is a problem though, because in any state, he is a man who always captivates through vision, sound and presence. The beautiful Lianna gets her fair share of spotlight tonight too, shaking her maraca with pure sass, she’s a spectacle and one which only illuminates her awesome fellow musicians: Blake, who thrashes his kit within an inch of it's life, and Andy, who simply oozes coolness with every touch of his guitar. They hurtle through old favourites such as Ancient Snake, crowd-chosen Seven Severed Heads and A Rose For The Crows which sees Chris crowdsurf to the bar, before throwing himself off said bar on top of the crowd once more. It’s songs from the amazing new album Two Hands which are real show stealers tonight however. Singles, Rabbits Foot and Nine Lives receive the massive sing-a-longs they deserve and then there’s American Mirrors and the epic Rich Gift which have the crowd moving about like there’s no tomorrow.

The set is relentless, the crowd are relentless and the band are relentless. This has been some homecoming and it’s one which will be relived internally by all present for a very long time to come.

TURBOWOLF ROUND 2 🐺👊🌈🌌💃😍💖🎉🎤 #turbowolf #marblefactory #bristol #somanynipples #sparklycardi #shootsandscores #melty #solidgold

A photo posted by Alice (@kell_soopreez) on Apr 22, 2015 at 5:40pm PDT

A version of this review will be available in print in the May edition of Quench Magazine.

BLOG BREAK

Lack of activity on this blog between early April and late May is due to final year university exams. A few posts may crop up but regular blogging will resume as of June 1st. Sorry kids!

Beside The Ones We Love by Palm Reader

Two years ago, a young Palm Reader released Bad Weather, an album full of pounding unadulterated noise. It was intense and somewhat overlooked by the critics and at the time that seemed unfair. But now, on the release of their second album, Beside The Ones We Love, it is semi-understandable as to why Bad Weather wasn't showered in praise. In the two years since, it appears that Palm Reader have tailored their sound and worked on it to create music that has gone from being relentlessly noisy to being relentlessly loud and it is this subtle but very clever transition that make the newest album very important.

In the previously released quartet of teaser tracks (I Watch The Fire Chase My Tongue, By The Ground, We're Defined, Sing Out, Survivor and Stacks) it has already been evident that the boys are now making music with some form of melody and structure rather than just a messy web of noise. And it is in these tracks we also see the messages within their music becoming more serious and important. All four of these tracks have been unashamedly praised and the lovely thing about this is that, they're not even the best tracks on the album. Pedant is an incredible wall of thumping aggression and even in the more tender moments of Travelled Paths, the aggression and passion is available in abundance. There's a lot of fast and furious riffs and heavy breakdowns, especially in the likes of Resolution and then there is the relentless album closer Unabridged. Nearing the 8 minute mark, it is a song not to be messed with as it has it all: it cuddles you in and then shakes you up and spins you around before putting you to rest again and it feels epic.

Beside The Ones We Love feels like the future of metal. It is loud and brash but it is full of message and purpose and it is evidence of why Palm Reader are so highly praised as the next big thing. 

8/10

Listen to: Sing Out, Survivor, Pedant

Undertow by Drenge

Castleton brothers, Eoin and Rory Loveless are part of the big two-piece revolution. They've been
making heavy and dirty grunge rock since 2011 and they've already got one album behind them, a self-titled debut which they released in 2013. Off the back of this they were nominated, and won, NME's award for Best New Band in 2014 and now, a year later, they are ready to release their second album, Undertow.

Undertow gets under your skin and into your brain and makes you feel alive. It’s got infectiously grizzly guitars and hard hitting fills scattered throughout its 11 songs and it isn't something you’ll forget. Where their debut saw them frantic and frenzied, Undertow sees them refined but just as urgent and it is that nurture that will catapult them to new highs in the coming year. We Can Do What We Want, lead single from the album, will have you jumping around to its feral rhythm and songs like Favourite Son will get your heart racing and have you spitting “I don’t wanna be fucked, I just wanna be his, I wanna be loved by your favourite son” with as much aggression as Eoin does. In contrast, The Woods and Standing In The Cold calm you down and feel delightfully smooth in their lingering nature.

Drenge are clever and unique boys. Whilst they are overshadowed by the big duos in the game such as Royal Blood, the Loveless brothers infuse fresh melodies and engaging lyrics with a sound that’s reminiscent of the likes of Joy Divison, Kaiser Chiefs and Nirvana.  It’s being enable to embody such vast elements of musical history and make them their own that give Undertow its edge. They've also added a bassist on this album which has perhaps helped them along a bit too. Duo or trio, it doesn't matter: Undertow is pounding, gnarly, gutsy and it’s what is going to make you listen to Drenge on repeat.

7.5/10

Listen to: Favourite Son, We Can Do What We Want

Two Hands by Turbowolf

Turbowolf are a rarity; a band that are unique and incomparable in an era of musical clones. Such attributes were evident on their 2011 self-titled debut album and now, four years later, comes the release of Two Hands. Evolved production, a brand new member and a lot of hard graft makes Two Hands an unmissable album.

What Two Hands does is take the unpolished edge of the psychedelic rock that Turbowolf are about and nurtures it into something beautiful. The likes of Rabbits Foot and Solid Gold, both previously released tracks, sit early in the album and make for a big start, leaving you itching for more. American Mirrors, Good Hand and Twelve Houses, all sound just as big and just as, if not more, gritty and turn that itch into a salivation at just how good this album is becoming. A Radio 1 Hottest Record, Nine Lives, sits mid-album and is a welcome reminder of the accessibility of a band that are quite often boxed away in the alternative section. Okay, Two Hands isn't a U-turn into mainstream territory, despite the likes of the aforementioned, but thank Christ because if it had been, songs like Rich Gift might have been missing. Running for 6 minutes 47 seconds, this song a mini odyssey and it's a spectacular one at that, particularly when accompanied by it's totally trippy video.

It feels like Turbowolf have achieved something great with this album. The riffs are huge, the hooks are catchy and it is an album full of vibrant life. It screams all things great and it's groove and heart translate from record to body as you physically snake around to it's sound. For a band still in their youth, their discography so far is looking wonderfully delicious. Here's to an uprising in the weird and wonderful because Two Hands is just that and it's going to create waves.

8/10
Listen to: Solid Gold, American Mirrors, Rich Gift