Album Review: New Lungs by Burnt Tapes

It’s been three years since I attempted to do an album review but if there is one band that will get me to sit down behind my laptop and do one it’s my friends Burnt Tapes. On August the 8th they will release their long awaited second album, the follow up to 2019’s incredible Never Better (one of my all time favourite albums). The new album is titled New Lungs and being released once again by Lockjaw Records (UK) and Wiretap Records (USA), as well as a tape from Nasty Cut Records (Denmark). Tapes on tape – it’s about time, right?

I feel like I need to address the fact that this review might come across as incredibly biased. These guys have been friends of mine for a long time now, they started out as Burnt Tapes around the same time as I started doing CPRW and we’ve reviewed every EP and album they’ve released, along with countless live shows. I’ve never made it a secret how highly I think of Phil, Pan, Jordan and Tone not just as musicians but as people, so yeah this will probably come across as a really biased review. I’m saying nice things about my friends’ new album, but rest assured that every word I type in this review I really mean and I’m not just buttering up my mates. I’ve had New Lungs on repeat in a dark room where I usually sleep for a couple of months now and I’m excited to share my views on it with you. Let’s take a deep breath and jump right in.

New Lungs begins with the song Crisis Actor. The song starts with a familiar Burnt Tapes tone that has me thinking of Lost In Transit, the final track from Never Better. It almost feels like a continuation or at least a call back, something the band are known for doing. I love this. Crisis Actor eases you into the album with Pan’s vocals over that welcoming riff. Before long the whole band comes in. This song sets the tone for the whole album with its big, emotional build. We then launch into a stretch of the four singles the band released in the run up to the album. Up first is MOTHERSGUILT. The very first line features a common Burnt Tapes trope – grinding teeth. I immediately got a kick out of this. The song explores the theme of feeling like you’re not meeting other people’s expectations of you and using the guilt that gives you as fuel to keep on going. I feel like that’s something that most of us has gone through at times, making the song hugely relatable. The chorus will no doubt earn some big sing-alongs and feel cathartic for many. 

Little Sister was originally released way back in 2023 and gave us a glimpse as to what was coming from the band. Phil takes over lead vocals for this deep and emotional song about a particularly hard and dark time with his mental health that he went through. He tells a story about the journey of reaching a low point and reaching out for help before things get even lower. This is a mid-tempo track with a catchy chorus. The stand out moment on the track however is the guest vocal appearance from Hannah Hermione Greenwood from Creeper on the bridge. This really adds to the emotion of the song. As of yet, Hannah hasn’t joined the band to do this live – maybe at the album launch at the Black Heart in Camden on the 19th of September? That would be cool. Next is the brilliantly titled You Only YOLO Once. This is one of the higher tempo tracks on New Lungs and really showcases the band’s trademark sad boy pop punk moniker. Sonically it’s an upbeat, almost summery-sounding song but when you dig down into Pan’s lyrics you discover a song about his own mental health struggles. The line “every now and then, it hits me like a bullet train” is one I imagine a lot of people listening will find extremely relatable. I know I certainly do. Of course there is another broken teeth reference in the song, because of course there is. I’ve heard that they’re trying to get a dentist sponsorship.

The album’s title track, New Lungs is the fourth and final single from the album. Continuing the more poppy version of their sound, New Lungs once again talks about mental health. The song actually starts out feeling quite hopeful as Pan sings “new lungs set to breathe new seasons, held breath and an unsure sweaty brow, I’m better now, I’m better.” This mood soon changes though as Pan sings about having a toxic relationship with either another person or their own brain and that person/brain and being brought down once again, not knowing who you are anymore. This song features another great chorus and some big hooks that will really pull a live crowd in. Shelf Life Of The Party is another fantastic song title. Phil is back on lead vocal duties and the energy remains. On my first listen to New Lungs this is one of the songs that really stood out to me. It’s about getting older and feeling burnt out, lost, like you’re finished and you’re not the person you used to be. Phil’s vocals bring an intensity to the song that I love and I really hope it becomes a regular in their live set going forward. 

Track seven is titled Office On Repeat. On my first listen of New Lungs, my first thought was that this was the album closer as it has a huge, epic ending. There’s still three more bangers to come though and trust me, the closer is an incredible ending for the album. Office On Repeat starts out as a mid-tempo pop punk song talking about the end of a relationship. As we reach the final third of the song, the tempo and melody changes and we get a big emo ending that will get a big reaction from a live crowd. There’s a few moments on this album that do make me think that this has been specifically written with a live crowd reaction in mind and I’m a big fan of when bands do that. The pace is brought right back up on Future Strangers. Have you ever come to a point in your life where it feels like something has hit a road block, you don’t know what comes next and you begin to question everything? That’s what this song is about. I enjoyed the sliver of hope that track gives you as Pan sings “it’ll all make sense in time.” It’s a simple and powerful lyric that works so well in the song.

The penultimate song is named OnlyFriends. The song starts slowly, similar in style to the classic Things Get Weird. Pan sings softly as the song gradually builds up to its big finale. This slow start really adds to the emotion of the song and really pulls you in. There’s no slow start and then bang, you’re in, OnlyFriends builds and builds and takes you with it. When that big moment does finally come in and it hits you, you feel ready to be hit. Fantastic songwriting. There is also a moment in the song when the band becomes the big stadium rock band they deserve to be when they implement a crowd participation clapping section. The tenth and final song is So Long, Sundays. This might be the most ambitious piece of songwriting that Burnt Tapes have ever attempted and of course they pulled it off. A perfect choice to bring the album to an end. This song is about going through all the hard times that happen in your life and eventually finding your way out of the other side. New Lungs is an album that has plenty of down moments, so having this moment of hope at the end is really refreshing. It serves as a great reminder that no matter how hard things can get, sometimes it will get better and it’s always great to be reminded of that. There’s a moment at the end of the song that I won’t spoil for you but it’s something that I never, ever expected to hear on a Burnt Tapes album. I guess they’ve been hanging out at the New Cross Inn for too long now. 

It’s been six years since the Burnt Tapes released Never Better and you can really hear the progression the band have made as a band on New Lungs. You can hear a change in their sound but everything you ever loved about the band remains. Daly George from The Ranch once again did a phenomenal job with the production on the album, he did a fantastic job bring all of these songs to life. New Lungs has been my most anticipated album of the year since the band released Never Better and it did not disappoint. I’m not even that sad that the reworked version of Go Drunk didn’t make the cut, as each song brings something different but it all flows nicely together. It’s an album that can be listened to as an album or as singles. I do feel like each one of these songs could’ve been used as a single. As I said at the start of this, Burnt Tapes are my friends and this could come across as biased, but I truly believe that this is a fantastic album. I would say that if you loved Never Better then this might be a bit of a grower but you’ll soon come to love it just as much, if not more. Well done friends, loving your work.

Burnt Tapes play an album release show with Modern Shakes and Making Friends at the Black Heart in Camden on Friday the 19th of September. You should come to the party. Get your ticket here.

Album Review: Our Hell Is Right Here by Drones (by Robyn Pierce)

Drones is one of the many awesome bands I’ve discovered through Manchester Punk Festival, and I was an early fan of theirs in 2018 when their first album Exiled came out. Their debut release already showed an intense, high-energy band, with amazing musicianship and a sharp socio-political focus, and it was easily one of my favourite albums of that year. So, I was really happy when they announced that they’d be releasing their next album on Lockjaw Records in February, and the album title of Our Hell Is Right Here seemed to suggest that Drones may once again be calling out social injustice and exploring difficult issues. The band has been through some tough times and had to overcome the additional challenge of recording during a pandemic, which perhaps makes this album a little more special. After getting into it, it’s clear the second album still has all of the lashing energy of the first but also includes more personal topics and a gritty but hopeful energy.

The album bursts open with ‘Please Vacate the Planet’, hitting you right away with pounding drums and ripping guitars. These are soon joined by Lois McDougall’s powerful vocals, which all work together to give Drones the big and layered sound I’ve come to love. It’s a lot like Rise Against, particularly their older faster-tempo songs, although Lois’s unique voice really sets them apart. The first track is quickly followed by the aggressive self-love of ‘Live and Let Live’ and the title track ‘Our Hell Is Right Here’, both backed by big hooks and a driving beat. In the first, Lois sings about having the courage to be yourself and not striving for external validation, while the latter delves more heavily into shared pain and betrayal. ‘Manipulate’ completes this high-tempo start to the album, including some gorgeous background “woahs”, before slowing things down with a call to ‘Listen’. ‘Listen’ is a short acoustic song with some beautiful synth embellishments, reassuring those who may be struggling with mental illness or who “feel like dying” that they’re not alone and that someone is willing to listen.

‘Learn’ is the longest song on the album at just over four and a half minutes, building up some staccato guitar chords into a soaring chorus, with some added technical flourishes here and there. It’s a song that really showcases the band’s prowess as musicians and as songwriters. Next up is ‘Josephine’, which was released as a lead single together with a trippy animated music video featuring a dangerous space mission, alien strippers, and overindulgence. It’s driven by a fantastic central riff and a catchy chorus, strategically slowing down in parts just to build right back up to a glorious rip-roaring ending. Coming into the second half of the album, ‘Lost in translation’ is a blistering two-minute track about emotional vulnerability and how “you’ve got to learn how to share if you want to live”. ‘Epitaph’ is a solemn mid-pace song about the terrible things the mind whispers in our darkest moments, while ‘Colourblind’ leans a little more into hardcore and ‘Grey Matters’ delivers more fist-pumping goodness. ‘Void’ has a killer breakdown that I would just love to hear live, and the whole album wraps up with the rousing call to action of ‘Warning Signs’.

Our Hell Is Right Here is an excellent second album from Drones, with gloriously big guitar riffs, incredible vocals, and raging melodies. While the songs differ to those on their first album in turning their attention inward to more personal matters, it’s a welcome reminder that we owe just as much to ourselves as we do to others. This is an album that celebrates resilience, grit, as well as vulnerability, and delivers high-energy hooks from start to finish.

Stream and download Our Hell Is Right Here on Bandcamp here.

Like Drones on Facebook here.

This review was written by Robyn Pierce.

Album Review: Grower by Burnt Tapes

It’s no secret what a big fan of Burnt Tapes I am. I’ve been fortunate to be able to follow their career since they released their first demo/EP Wasted History in 2014 and have seen the incredible progression up until last year’s stunning debut album, Never Better. Never a band to stand still for long, Phil, Pan, Tone and Jordan have been back in the studio, The Ranch, with their frequent collaborator Daly George to record a new EP named Grower. Instead of releasing Grower on CD or vinyl, the band decided to do something a little different. Grower has been released with a beech tree. The reason for this was to be more environmentally conscious. Guitarist Phil explained “We wanted to do something a little different, more sustainable and planet-friendly. Something you can plant and nurture, and watch grow. Don’t get me wrong, we love a good band T-shirt! But we need more green spaces in order to tackle the climate emergency, and hopefully, we can raise more awareness about this through this initiative. And most of all provide you with some wholesome family fun”. I’m sure you already know that I loved this EP as I have loved everything the Tapes have released.

Grower begins with Dynasty, Die With Me. Continuing with the sound that the band made their own on Never Better with warm guitar tones an fantastic gruff sounding vocals, Dynasty, Die With Me could have easily found itself at home on the album. As ever Phil and Pan share vocal duties and to open the EP Phil gets his chance to shine. It’s a powerful and emotional vocal from Phil, who’s vocals get better with each and every release. He’s always had a great gruff style but on recent releases he seems to have learnt how to add more melody to his singing. Up next it’s Getitgotitgood. The track begins with a short introduction that builds towards Pan’s vocals. Pan’s vocals give the song such an infectious energy that have you wanting to sing along immediately. The song’s highlight is without a doubt the chorus, which may be one of my favourites the band has written to date. Pan definitely has a fantastic skill for writing some huge hooks. This is one that I’m really looking forward to seeing live when such things are allowed to happen again.

The third song, Greek Wood, was released earlier this year when the band asked friends to film themselves in the bath for a special video. Check it out here and look out for some familiar faces. I loved the opening guitar riff, it’s the sort that lets you know immediately what the next song is. It had me wondering if it was a little nod to their great friends in Triple Sundae who have a similar alarm like riff for their song Fabricated. This is another song that I can’t wait to see live as I can imagine the crowd going absolutely nuts for it. The song is about a sad break up. Phil pours his heart out singing about thinking about an ex and wondering if there are feeling left between them. The final track on Grower is an acoustic version of Yuzi, the lead single from Never Better. This is the first acoustic version the band have ever released and I loved it. This whole summer was about acoustic live streams so it seemed very fitting to include this. I’m very impressed with how Pan managed to retain the energy from the original on this stripped back version. If you don’t know the original then I strongly advise you to go and check it out.

It’s a Burnt Tapes release so it’s obviously brilliant. Go and buy it from Lockjaw Records and, if you have the space to grow a small beech tree, buy one of those as well.

Stream and download Grower on Bandcamp here.

Like Burnt Tapes of Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Top Tens: Frank from Much The Same's Top Ten Comics

Hi, I’m Frank and I play bass in Much The Same and I am also a lover of comics and cartoons. Comics and cartoons have always been my mental Xanax. (If you have ever met me, you know I’m a high strung dude.) Though they’re a bunch of books with pictures, there are some really great artists and stories out there. Here’s ten that I really enjoy in no particular order.

Batman: Hush
Whenever someone tells me they want to get into comics, this is the first one I lend them. First, because I fucking love Batman. Second, this comic has EVERYONE. Heroes. Villains. You also get a great mystery that introduces a new villain and one of the best Batman vs. Superman fights out there. Also, Jim Lee is probably my favorite artist when it comes to drawing superheroes.

Thor: God Of Thunder
The first Thor book I read. Puts the god of thunder against The God Butcher, who is essentially a brutal god serial killer. This one, if you make it to the second book, really makes you think. You get some time travel/flashbacks in this one and get to see a badass sky fight between a young arrogant Thor and The God Butcher. I’m really hoping this one makes it to the MCU, but I doubt it. That fight would look great on a big screen.

Ultimate Spider-Man vol 4 Legacy (issues 22–27)
Marvel kicked off the Ultimate series to introduce fans to old heroes from the beginning. You can never really go wrong reading one of these and anything by Brian Bendis is usually safe to be solid. Before this issue, Peter Parker is still finding his footing (and getting the shit kicked out of him) as Spider-Man. In this issue, I think he really steps into the role. There's a great battle with the Green Goblin and you see the badass Peter is becoming.

Locke And Key
I’m just going to say read the whole series. It’s IT meets Strangers Things meets whimsical adventures of children… but sometimes the kids may get their eyes ripped out. Magic keys and monsters, beautiful art – it has it all. I also recommend reading any novel by Joe Hill.

Green Lantern: Omnibus by Geoff Johns
I impulsively paid $100 dollars for this after a drunken trip to the comic shop. It’s the size of Moby Dick and worth it. My favorite part of it is the Sinestro Corps War where we are given the inception of Yellow Lanterns, their back stories, and a pretty epic space battle. If you’re looking to get into Green Lantern, you’ll be an expert by the end. I also love that anyone who’s brave can be a Lantern. My niece thought Green Lantern was a guy and it was cool to see her pumped that a girl could be one as well. Man, woman, alien, gay, anyone without fear can join the Corp.

Civil War
The MCU version was great and the source material is right on par. Enough stuff was left out of the movie that this read will be new to you if you only saw the film. Same basic premise of Captain America squad vs. Iron Man squad. We also get an adult Spider-Man whose story arc in this is my favorite, and adult Spider-Man knows how to beat some ass.

DC Identity Crisis
Someone is killing members of the Justice League’s families in some pretty brutal ways. Question is who? This is a great mystery and it has everyone from the JLA. Amazing battle as well with Deathstroke single handedly taking on members of the JLA.

Mark Waid’s Daredevil vol 5 (issues 22–27)
Known as the man without fear, here we find Daredevil afraid. His best friend is dying of cancer and all his loved ones are being targeted. A battle with the villain Ikari leaves him beaten and terrified. I recommend all of Waid’s Daredevil. Daredevil is a character who has been lower than low and struggles with depression. Waid tried to reinvent him as a man trying to beat that and putting on a happy face. Something we can all relate to sometimes.

Deadpool: Secret Invasion
Deadpool vs. The Skrulls. I peed myself laughing out loud with this one. Deadpool is smart, funny, and ruthless. Wait till you get to the part where they clone the Skrulls from Deadpool’s DNA.

Batman: Death In The Family
I was obsessed with Robin as a kid and this one features the death of the second more violent Robin, Jason Todd. This comic showed me that comics weren’t just books where heroes sweep in and save the day. It was bloody, violent, and tragic. The panels of The Joker beating Robin, a child, with a crowbar over and over and over and over and over again… are haunting. Probably shouldn’t have read this as a kid. However, highly recommend this now and this event led to great characters and stories down the line.

Like Much The Same on Facebook here.

Much The Same recently releases a remixed and remastered version of their classic album Quitters Never Win on Lockjaw Records. Buy it here.

Top Tens: Jake from Sunliner's Top Ten Stephen King Books

Hi! I’m Jake from SUNLINER. We just released our new EP ‘Structure/Average At Best’ on Lockjaw Records and Paper + Plastick Records. I have read far too many Stephen King books, here are my top 10 – enjoy!

1. 11/22/63

This was my ‘Desert Island’ book and one of the few books I’ve read more than once – SK’s time travel, political romp is one of my favourite books ever. In this he does what he does best and entwines ‘small town’ America with a big overarching plot AND lands the ending. The attention to detail of late 60s, early 70s America is incredible and, honestly, I could’ve even just stayed reading about Jake (the character, not me) being a teacher in the small town ‘Jodie’ for 700 pages. I read it just after my parents got me the first 8 Bob Dylan albums in mono for Christmas, and read the entire book listening to them – the perfect soundtrack to a perfect book, I’d recommend it!

2. The Shining

This is a really close second as it was the book that got me back into reading again. I got it in the first few months of my first year of Uni when I was having a really shit time and needed some escapism, I sat in my room for 2 days reading and making cups of tea when it got too scary and I needed a break. It kick started my love of reading again and, in turn, my love of Stephen King. If you’ve only ever watched the film, I really, really recommend reading the book as the film misses some of the book’s best scenes and the character development of Jack Torrance, who the film and Jack Nicholson make crazy from the get-go.

3. Misery

The weird thing about ‘Misery’ is that when you start reading you really don’t care about the book the in-story is writing, and by the end of it you’re just as interested in ‘Misery’s Return’ as the story itself. It’s intense and claustrophobic and genuinely great, more of a ‘thriller’ than a lot of his work and I think I’ve just convinced myself to reread it.

4. IT

IT is an everything book. It’s a horror, a comedy, a thriller and a coming of age book all in one. The character development throughout is incredible and, as much as I actually quite liked the recent adaptation, the films will just never be able to recreate that as well as a 1000+ page book can. It’s so much more than just a book about a clown.

5. The Stand

I took The Stand everywhere with me for months. I think it went on about 3 tours with me, went to my jobs, on holiday, to visit friends, it was just in my bag for ages. My copy is absolutely knackered. I’ve always been a slow reader and this is a maaaassive book that spans a whole bunch of time and a whole host of characters and stories. It’s a post-apocalyptic epic tale of good vs evil and isn’t shy of killing off your favourite characters.

6. Joyland

This is a short book published by ‘Hard Case Crime’ (opposed to his usual Scribner). I love this book. It’s a coming of age style story set in the early 70s of an early 20s student working at theme park during the summer break. It has some classic King supernatural ideas, but is far more about the story and the characters. Like Jake in 11/22/63, I could’ve just read about Devin’s summer there day by day. It’s the sorta of book that makes you feel like you’ve lost a friend once you finished it.

7. Under The Dome

Under The Dome got made into a dreadful TV show. Don’t be put off by how shit that was, the book is an awesome mix of Breaking Bad craziness and Gilmore Girls small town politics and goings on. The ending is a bit of cop out, but it’s totally worth the read for the journey. You’ll be invested in the town, trust me!

8. Pet Semetary

Another SK book with an awful adaptation. I put off reading this for ages because I thought it sounds stupid. Well, I was wrong. Probably one of SK’s scariest/most disturbing books, it has an eerie feel to the whole thing, I recommend reading at night or when it’s pissing down and grey outside for the best experience.

9. The Outsider

One of the most recent books in this list, I think two thirds of this book is some of the most effective and best things SK has ever written. The final third is still good but is far more regular King fare and therefore feels a bit King-by-numbers. Still great though, you’ll be hooked.

10. Revival

Revival is just loads of fun – a proper airport or holiday book, with classic Frankenstein-esque overtones. It’s cheesy and you can tell King had a bunch of fun writing this. And, well, I enjoyed reading it.

I chose to leave out short stories for this but a shout out to – Rita Haworth and The Shawshank Redemption, An Apt Pupil and The Body!

Album Review: Here Lies Ordinary by Laughing In The Face Of (by Omar Ramlugon)

Birmingham’s Laughing In The Face Of have been hacking away in the punk game since 2002, with prior LPs Technically, It’s Not Our Fault and The Lubrication Of Social Anxiety being released in 2008 and 2011 respectively. Aside from a natty line in Zappa-esque song titles, the foursome also know their way around pin-sharp shred-tinged punk in the vein of A Wilhelm Scream and it’s very much the order of the day on their most recent release Here Lies Ordinary.

Opener ‘The Regression Session’ followed by ‘Projectile Dysfunction’ are best viewed as two parts of a whole, as they seem to blend directly into one another with little breath in between. Not that it’s a bad thing, as the former gently fades into view before piling in with hyperactive riffs, while the second track even throws in a Tool-esque stomp in between the speed-of-light thrashing.

Lyrically, the band zeroes in on the pain of the human condition and the struggle inherent in finding one’s purpose in life, set at odds with the often unappealing nature of corporate work. ‘Bullshit With A Smile’ is particularly cutting in this regard, which lends the hooky, melodic guitars even more power and focus. While ‘Running With Coffee’, for its part, incorporates some killer hammer-on/pull-off sections in amongst the snarky tone of the song.

There’s a sense of irrepressible energy throughout the LP and, while the songs largely have a fairly similar sound, it gives the album a distinct sonic landscape. Furthermore, in amongst the often mournful lyrics are flashes of humour; the It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia sample at the end of ‘Modus Operandi’ is particularly well placed. The musicianship displayed is consistently excellent, with an absolutely watertight and dazzling rhythm section that is more than a match for the fretboard pyrotechnics on display, as well as an ear for harmony and an often disarmingly sweet vocal delivery in amongst the gang shouts. At times the riffing rivals heavy metal in its low end muscle, but without any of that genre’s at times portentous and po-faced tendencies.

This is a rager of an album with good hearted sentiments at the core of it all, perhaps best exemplified by the line in ‘From The Ground Up’ – “(Be real and) try not to fuck eachother up / That’s it, goodbye!” If you’re a fan of any of the bands mentioned in this review, like anything resembling punk or, perhaps just fancy being made to realise you’re actually rubbish at guitar as in my case, then pick this up. More please.

Stream and download Here Lies Ordinary here.

Like Laughing In The Face Of here.

This review was written by Omar Ramlugon.