NOFX
Although we don't listen to NOFX as much as we used to, this band was definitely one of our favorites and a gateway to the kind of music we play and listen to today.
It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia
Humor from this TV show is of the chaotic and absurd variety, which we decided to implement into ours. We especially like how they speak all at once, which we also try to do as much as we can.
Pasi
We all agree that Pasi are our favorite Croatian punk band. Brilliant lyrics accompanied by great melody hooks. They took the 90s Fat Wreck mould and added so many great details that it resulted in a brand new sound. Actually, it's much more than that, just have a listen.
Jeff Rosenstock
When it comes to Jeff it's not only about his awesome music projects like BTMI, Antarctigo Vespucci, his solo career etc., but also his approach to the scene and his DIY principles. Definitely a huge inspiration, both as a musician and a person.
The Beatles
What is there to say about this one? I think everyone in the band agrees that The Beatles are the most complete and well-rounded pop rock group that ever was. All of us listened to them a lot since we were kids and they made a heavy influence on our music taste as well with sound and ideas for our band. Also, a cover of "Nowhere Man" was one of the first songs Trophy Jump ever played.
Tony Hawk Pro Skater soundtracks
When we were young teenagers, this cool game shaped our music tastes and is the reason we discovered most of the bands we listened to back in the day. Songs from NOFX, Bad Religion, Millencolin, AFI, Rise Against etc. entered our heads while we were fanatically playing the game, and they never left.
Pup
Pup came in as a breath of fresh air. Discovering their music (after years of recycling bands of similar sound), gave us the push we needed to start experimenting more with our sound. Their music opened up the door to this whole new amazing punk scene we were completely not aware of.
Weezer
This band taught us how poppy you can sound and how awesome your melodies can be while still retaining a punk sound and vibe. We hear Weezer ideas in a lot of bands from the last 20 years. We
are not an exception.
Monkey Island
One of our favorite video game series ever. It most certainly shaped our aesthetics and humor. It has awesome soundtracks too.
JeboTon
Last but not least, we have to mention our beloved JeboTon. It's a collective of bands of various genres that we started many years ago with the purpose of mutual promotion and musical co-operation. We are super lucky and privileged to be a part of this awesome group of people where every individual is an influence and inspiration in their own way.
Like Trophy Jump here and listen to their music here.
It’d been a while since everyone’s favourite mask-wearing, crime-committing pop punk band Masked Intruder were in town. They played with Me First And The Gimme Gimmes back in February 2017 but I hadn’t seen them headline in the UK since 2015! Since then, they’ve released their third album, titled III, earlier this year along with a 6-track EP in 2016. Basically, seeing Masked Intruder live again was well overdue. The London night of the 2019 European tour was, of course, at the New Cross Inn and featured Spoilers, Eat Defeat and The Famous Class too. Not even the fact that it was a Tuesday was going to stop this gig from being great.
The Famous Class are a London-based pop punk band who we’ve seen several times at the New Cross Inn over the past couple of years. It’s safe to say, however, that this was the biggest audience I’d, personally, seen them play to as the New Cross Inn was already pretty busy by 7.30pm. The Famous Class put a lot of energy into their performance from the outset, jumping around the stage enthusiastically as only a pop punk band can. They’ve been working on some new material and played their latest single, Juliet, as well as a fun cover of Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley. A fun start to the night for sure.
It probably goes without saying that we love Eat Defeat here at CPRW – their 2018 album I Think We’ll Be OK was pretty much our overall album of the year last year. Luckily, for myself and Colin, they play in London fairly often, despite being from up North, as the New Cross Inn is basically their home from home venue. The Inn was getting increasingly busier as the four-piece opened their set with Smile – which instantly had me smiling. Eat Defeat play fast, loud and passionately positive pop punk that is just such a joy to watch live. In between songs, they don’t take themselves too seriously with updates on the Burnley [football] score as well as mentioning how Spoilers kicked them off the main merch area (next to Masked Intruder) – it’s all good humoured fun. Their setlist included older tracks The North Remembers, dedicated to southerners Spoilers, and Don’t Look Back as well as plenty of favourites from I Think We’ll Be OK. Guitarist Rich broke a string during their penultimate song but managed to swiftly fix it, with the help of a member of The Famous Class, in time for Not Today, Old Friend – ‘I think we’ll be okaaaaay.’ I felt pretty okay after their set anyway!
Next up were Spoilers, another New Cross Inn and CPRW favourite. In fact, vocalist and guitarist Dan actually referred to his band as being ‘the New Cross Inn house band’. We’d popped outside for some air after Eat Defeat and found the room was pretty packed when we headed back inside for the Kent foursome. Squeezing our way towards the front of the room, we settled a few rows back as the band burst into their energetic, cheeky chappy punk rock. Like Eat Defeat, Spoilers released a new album last year – which also got a lot of airtime at CPRW HQ – called Roundabouts. Their setlist included a fair few songs from the album, such as the hugely-singalongable Same Again, Shortcuts – which is not to be confused with the Eat Defeat song of the same name – and the album’s title track, Roundabouts. There were plenty of existing Spoilers fans in the house, singing along merrily, and new fans were no doubt won over with older tune Punks Don’t Die as it’s hard to hear it and not sing along. Another top performance from Spoilers.
At last, it was time for Masked Intruder. If you’ve been to the New Cross Inn before (and if you haven’t, why ever not?) then you’ll know that there isn’t really a backstage area. Because of this, I wasn’t sure where exactly the band would appear from. Rather inventively they entered from the back of the room with Officer Bradford marching the four criminals through the crowd and on to the stage. This ensured that excitement levels in the New Cross Inn were peaked before the band had even started playing. For this tour, Masked Intruder consisted of Blue on guitar and vocals, Green on guitar, Red on drums and, in place of Yellow, Purple on bass. We soon learnt that Yellow is in jail so Intruder Purple had stepped in – and, spoiler alert, she did an awesome job.
Masked Intruder kicked off their set off with the conveniently titled I’m Free (At Last) from the latest album, while Officer Bradford watched on ominously from the side of the stage. The crowd was perhaps a little tame as this was a newer track but the next two songs, How Do I Get To You and The Most Beautiful Girl, certainly did the trick. It felt like the whole room was singing every single word back at Blue, a mosh pit had opened up and I was instantly reminded just how much fun Masked Intruder songs are live. Before too long it was time for Officer Bradford to run around the stage and get into the crowd, alongside songs such as Crime Spree and I Fought The Law. I imagine everyone reading this knows about Officer Bradford and his antics but, if you don’t, he’s basically the fifth member of the band who doesn’t actually play any instruments. He’s a police officer who chases Masked Intruder around, trying (unsuccessfully) to stop them from committing crimes. He also loves crowdsurfing, dancing and hugging audience members – we experienced the latter first hand. At one point, he picked up a young boy in his own intruder mask, who was watching with his dad at the side of the stage, and proceeded to carry him on stage and then into the crowd. (We later learnt that the boy’s name was Dexter, he was 8 years old and MI was his third gig. What a hero!)
The whole Masked Intruder set felt like a greatest hits showcase because they just have so many hits – Saturday Night Alone, 25 To Life, Why Don’t You Love Me In Real Life, etc. I particularly enjoyed when Green left his guitar behind and danced with a girl in the audience, spinning her around, while the rest of the band played Hey Girl. The idea was that people wouldn’t mosh around them although a couple of lads couldn’t help themselves – Blue referred to them as being ‘16 year old boys with too much testosterone’. Ha! The highlight of the whole set came when Blue announced that they wanted to invite a special guest onto the stage to sing Heart Shaped Guitar with them – none other than New Cross Inn regular, member of the Be Sharp crew and friend of CPRW, Bee. I don’t doubt that it was nerve-wracking to get up on that stage in front of such large crowd but oh my gosh did Bee smash it – complete with a stage dive at the end. After over an hour of pure pop punk bliss, Masked Intruder came to the end of their set. Following an old school double-whammy of Crazy and Stick ’Em Up, the band finished things off perfectly with I’ll Be Back Again Someday and I Don’t Wanna Say Goodbye To You Tonight. It’s like they wrote these songs to be set closer material!
Masked Intruder are so much more than a gimmicky pop punk band, they are such talented musicians – some of those guitar solos verge on hair metal – and songwriters. Their performance is polished without seeming completely staged and it’s all just ridiculously amounts of fun as well! I was slightly dreading a Tuesday night gig (having not been to one for ages nor dealt with a Wednesday at work with 4–5 hours sleep) but it was oh so worth it.
This gig review was written by Emma Prew.
Rubbish photography also by Emma.
The proficiency in which Red Scare Industries release top quality albums by new bands is just ridiculous. Toby Jeg has a really good ear for incredible up and coming bands. One of the latest in a long line of great bands on the Red Scare roster are Philadelphia via Seattle indie pop punk three piece Ramona. The band, which consists of guitarist and vocalist Diego Merano, bassist and vocalist Abby Vickderman, and drummer Shannon Ledbetter released a new album in June named Deals, Deals, Deals!
The opening track is named Jet Fuel Can't Melt Steel Hearts. It begins with a pounding drum beat and some whirly guitar before things get switched up for some short and punchy vocal delivery from Abby Vickderman. The way in which Abby's vocals are delivered add a whole bunch of energy to the song, setting the stall out for the entire album. Jet Fuel Can't Melt Steel Hearts is about returning to an old relationship again and again, knowing that it never works out and how you always make the same mistakes. Not Your Token was a standout song on my first listen of Deals, Deals, Deals! It's the first time on the album where Ramona really show off their biggest strength, Diego Merano and Abby sharing vocals duties on the same song. Diego's raspier vocal compliments Abby's perfectly and creates a great dynamic. It's a track where Ramona sing about being minorities in a predominantly white male scene and how they shouldn't be judged by that. They’re aiming to teach people that no matter what your background might be, you should be judged on your ability and nothing else.
The third track, Hater's Ball Parade, is a sad song about breaking up with your partner and dealing with your feelings afterwards. The chorus really grabbed my attention quickly as Diego and Abby sing "I hate you the way I hate myself too." Despite the sadness of the song, musically it actually feels pretty chipper. This is probably due to the high tempo that the song is played at and it's so catchy you'll be unable to stop yourself singing along. Shit, We Broke Up sees Abby take the lead again with this song about coming to the end of a relationship and thinking back to the good times you had together. I'm not a huge fan of break up songs but Shit, We Broke Up really paints the picture of this scenario perfectly. Abby does a spectacular job in articulating the things everyone goes through and the thoughts that they have during these difficult times. I'm sure so many listeners will relate and find the song extremely cathartic.
Hard Sulks is another where Diego and Abby share vocals. I love how they trade off lines, making the song feel like a conversation between the two of them. This add so much energy to the track and really got me pumped up. I wanted to have a great big dance while the song was playing but I can't dance and type at the same time so had to refrain. Hard Sulks is about not wanting to get into a relationship because you think it's all going to end terribly. The sixth song, the brilliantly titled Is This Emo?, starts out slowly with just Abby's vocals and some atmospheric guitar. It's not long before the band come in and the tempo increases. Lyrically Abby again paints this wonderful picture of a break up. It seems as if they have had a pretty terrible time of relationships in the past. I hope things are better now. As the song progresses, it builds and builds and soon we get some wonderful harmonies. I do love a harmony and the ones that Diego provides at the end of the song are some of my favourites I've heard this year.
Are We Having Fun Yet? sees Ramona tackle the subject of living with anxiety and not wanting people to see the real you incase they don't like it. I really enjoyed the way in which the song begins, just welcoming you to get involved and sing along. The chugging guitar alongside what's almost a spoken word style of singing gradually build the song up to its chorus. Throughout Diego's outstanding work in this intro, Abby supplies some great harmonies to really give another layer to the track. Song number eight is titled Panama By Van Halen. Teasing that the track would be a slow starter before quickly switching to some fast paced pop punk was a great way to begin things. Diego seems to have a bit more venom in his vocals here which adds some urgency to things. The track is one of the catchiest on Deals, Deals, Deals! which is really saying something as every single song so far has found a nice place to live in my head.
The penultimate song on the album is named Getting There. I hope this place here in the tracklisting on purpose as we're reaching the end of the album. This is the only track on Deals, Deals, Deals! that goes over three minutes in length and Abby really shines with some super emotional vocals. It's a really retrospective song where Abby looks at how they were in the past compared to the present day. Things get more positive during the chorus as the line "I'm not quite better but I'm getting there, I'm not quite better yet" is repeated over and over again. I imagine that this is really special live. The final song on the album is Mambo 69. Ensuring that Deals, Deals, Deals finishes with a flurry, it starts out really fast with Diego and Abby again trading lines and just sounding the best. As the song progresses the pace of the song is slowed, allowing for a big sing-along to finish things up. Mambo 69 is about remembering the things that you love no matter how dark things can get sometimes. It's a super positive way to end a fantastic album.
Deals, Deals, Deals! is a definite album of the year contender for me. I've listened to it over and over whilst reviewing and I keep finding new little bits that I just love. Ramona are going to become a big name in the punk scene in the years to come. Red Scare have unearthed yet another gem.
Lamplighters are a band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who first played a show together back in 2013. Since then they've been lucky enough to play shows with touring acts such as The Menzingers, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Tsunami Bomb, Pears and The Copyrights. The band have released three EPs – Lamplighters in 2016, Years Gone by in 2018 and now Sips in July of 2019. Sips is a four track EP of energetic punk rock featuring raspy and gruff vocals. Completely my can of coke!
The first track on Sips is named One More Time. It starts out with a nice bass line and then some drums before we get a cry of "let's go!" and the guitars join the action. When the vocals come in, they're a bit harsh and raspy sounding – I love them. We're only a few lines in before Lamplighters add some backing harmonies – they seem to really know what I want in my punk music. The song is about growing older, dealing with adult life and wishing to have one more go at being a young person. I loved how Lamplighters made use of all three of their vocalists on the track and I'm hoping that's a theme throughout the EP. The second track is the title track, Sips. This song continues the theme of missing the old days and wanting to return to them. It's played at a fast pace that gives it a sense of urgency and plenty of energy. This makes it fly by, perhaps a bit too quickly for my liking. I want more! The harmonies are again just wonderful, giving you the sense of being involved in the song. I can imagine there's plenty of people listening who will relate with the track's message as well.
Goodbye For Now has an interesting stop start vocal delivery in its introduction. I liked the variety after the breathless start of the opening two songs on the EP. The whole song actually feels as if Lamplighters have focussed on the song being more of a mid-tempo, melodic track rather than another fast one. Happily the harmonies remain, kind of reminding me a little bit of Bad Religion's "oozin-ahs" with how they back up the lead singer. Straying away from the previous topic of missing the past, Goodbye For Now is about exactly what you might expect from the track's title – saying goodbye to someone and looking forward to the next time you see them. The final track is named Shuuu Tiger. Lamplighters really pick the pace back up on this one. Opening with some chugging guitars and a blisteringly delivered opening verse, you quickly get pumped up at the start of the song. After a short but catchy chorus we're greeted with this insane guitar solo, that really came out of nowhere, before we reach my favourite part of the song. The second verse, delivered quickly and packed with some punchy lines really captivated me. I'm going to make it my mission to learn the words to that section before the end of the summer – it's really quite special. What a superb way to finish the EP.
Sips is a fantastic EP by Lamplighters. There's something here for fans of gruff punk bands such as Red City Radio and for street punk fans like Street Dogs. I love the raspy vocals and the rawer sounding production. It gives the EP a bit more life rather than being over produced and sounding too clean.
I was very surprised a few weeks ago when I had a message from Norwegian pop punks Goldenboy. I was aware of the band back in the early 2000s, when I was going through a big pop punk phase, thanks to their album Right Kind Of Wrong but had no idea they were still going. It turns out the band have recently released a brand new EP titled Adult Disorientated Rock.
The five track EP starts with Old And Boring. As soon as the first verse hit memories of Goldenboy came flashing back to. It's definitely more in line with the MTV style of pop punk than Ramonescore but the songs are so well written it's difficult not to enjoy this. The song is an ode to the life of Goldenboy and all the friends they've made and experiences they've had throughout the band’s existence. The standout moment in the song is, without any doubt, the chorus. When the melody picks up pace and the group vocals and harmonies come in – this is Goldenboy at their best. Faded Photographs is about looking back at the past and seeing a different person to the one you are today. It's a reasonably up-tempo song that quickly gets stuck in your head. Goldenboy do a great job in taking you on some highs and lows musically, blasting through the first half of the song before slowing things down and then building back up with more ace harmonies.
The third track on Adult Disorientated Rock is titled The Letter. The track begins with a slightly cheesy and cliché alarm clock buzzer before jumping into a verse about being woken up. Fifteen years ago I would have gotten quite the kick out of this but not so much now. Thankfully the rest of the song is great fast-paced pop punk. The penultimate song, Good Boy, is more of a mid-tempo track. Beginning with some soft female vocals before lead singer Torkel comes in. It's a sadder feeling song about getting older but still dealing with the demons you faced in your youth. Despite the slower pace, the song remains as catchy as ever. Last up is the four minute long Phonebox 84. The track does that lovely thing of having a slower verse but really exploding into life on the chorus. This helps add a lot of emphasis on the choruses as well as just making this final song feel huge in general. To add to the size of the sound, a violin is added to the ending of the song – obviously making you think of Yellowcard. It's a big way to end an impressive EP.
It's nice to hear Goldenboy music again. This was a nice walk back down memory lane for me. I rarely ever listen to this type of pop punk anymore but it's great to hear that there are still bands putting out high quality releases in the genre.
The third and final day of Level Up 2019 was upon us and our hearts were as full as our legs were achy. We were excited for another day of fun with so many friends but my body was telling me I'm getting too old for this stuff. The night before, Emma and I were invited to the New Cross House across the road from the Inn for a Sunday roast which we quickly accepted. It was large, delicious and left me feeling very full and ready for the day.
(Note: Colin's parts are in regular text and Emma's parts are in italic.)
Up first were The Lovespuds. Assuming many people had run out of steam from the weekend's earlier activities, there wasn't the biggest of crowds for the London act but those folk who did arrive at New Cross Inn early were very enthusiastic. I last saw The Lovespuds back in February and, at the time, they didn't have a brass section with them. On this occasion however, they were at their full strength and really treated us to a show. Providing something a bit different to the rest of the day’s line up, The Lovespuds added a bit of theatre and cabaret to their set and quickly got people in the room moving. They finished with a cover of Rolling On The River by Tom Harder which was accompanied by some great dance moves from New Cross regulars and dancing superstars Frosty and Sleeman.
First to play downstairs on the Sunday was Jonny Cloke, a familiar face at the New Cross Inn and former member of Brighton band River Jumpers. Playing a set mostly consisting of cover songs, I was instantly hooked in with the Lawrence Arms and Iron Chic tracks but, this being a ska festival, it was the ska songs that received the biggest reaction from the rest of the crowd. The ska songs in question were Drinking For Eleven by Mad Caddies and The Science Of Selling Yourself Short by Less Than Jake. The tracks were not only skilfully played and sung by Jonny but also featured a make-shift horn section in the form of the voices of those gathered in the room. It was just one of those lovely moments that leaves a great big smile on your face.
Heading back upstairs, it was time for everyone’s favourite ‘bin-loving, state-hating ska kids’ – Bristol’s Boom Boom Racoon. Having seen the trio a few times now, I know how much fun their live show is and their Level Up Festival 2019 appearance was no different. If you’re unfamiliar with the band, they play upbeat and fun ska-folk punk tunes with topics that seemingly range from lotus biscuits to Lisa Simpson but they’re actually more socio-political and thought-provoking than those subjects would suggest. Highlights of the set included when trumpet player Rosie was crowd surfed whilst playing her instrument, because she’d watched a video of someone else doing so on the way to New Cross, and a guest appearance from Tommy (of BaldHead And The Dreads and C-Rage) who played the cajón for a number of tracks. That and everyone singing and dancing to Boom Boom Racoon – to the tune of the Vengaboys classic, obviously!
Second on the acoustic stage in the basement was London acoustic punk rocker What Did You Expect?. Unfortunately he was feeling a little under the weather but that didn't stop him delivering a powerful performance of angry acoustic music. The songs were packed with plenty of social and political content that was certain to get you thinking and they were sung with such intent that you really believed every word. I was also impressed with the amount of energy put into the performance. Not one to stand still, he played his acoustic guitar with the same power than I imagine he might strum an electric in a full band environment.
Bristol's The Larryfish Experiment were of the bands I was most looking forward to seeing on the Sunday of Level Up Festival. The set started with bassist Chris Durbin jumping off the stage and charging around the floor. From there we were treated to half an hour of fast paced ska punk that got everyone dancing and smiling. Clearly they are a generous bunch as throughout their set they constantly chucked free T-shirts into the crowd, which I saw many people wearing throughout the rest of the day. Obviously not a band who take themselves too seriously, decked out in colourful shirts, face paint and a poncho, they had plenty of songs about skanking, having fun and professional wrestling that the crowd adored. They gave a special shout out to fellow Bristol dweller Fishlock before Chris [the bassist] jumped off stage, through him over his shoulder ran round the floor all whilst somehow continuing to play bass. Seeing The Larryfish Experiment was quite the spectacle and one I hope to repeat sometime soon.
When Just Say Nay (who are sometimes an 11-piece) were announced as being one of the ‘acoustic’ acts of Level Up this year, we assumed that they would play as maybe a 4-or-5-piece… Of course they didn’t! Stocks Bar is small and warm even when there isn’t a band playing down there so a 9-piece semi-acoustic Just Say Nay plus a lot of eager ska punk fans rammed in there was quite frankly ridiculous – ridiculously fun though! Despite the relatively confined space, there was dancing a’plenty and tracks such as Jiggy Bean, Mr Plank Goes To Town, Bouncer and Low Blow received some eager singalongs. And we also got to hear a handful of new songs from the band’s much anticipated debut album which vocalist Jak says is coming October – it sounds like it will be well worth the wait. And at one point during the set, trombone player Mikey made a religious-style speech in which he referred to Paul Smith as being the patron saint of ska. Brilliant! This set was definitely one of the overall highlights of Level Up 2019 – and you can see it for yourself below:
With spirits running high after Just Say Nay’s triumphant set, the folk in basement flooded back upstairs to join those already eagerly awaiting the next band – Lead Shot Hazard. Fellow regulars at the New Cross Inn, Lead Shot Hazard have been hard at work on their debut album and promised to play a selection of songs from it. Fire To Find Our Friends will be released this month on Bad Granola Records and if the live versions are anything to go by then it’s definitely worth checking out! The six-piece had the the room bouncing throughout their set, despite the fact that a lot of the songs were brand new. Throwing in a cover towards the end was a sure fire way to keep energy levels up and ensure that the crowd would sing along. My Friends Over You by New Found Glory given a ska spin went down a treat with the Level Up attendees. Oh and the band handed out free Level Up exclusive Lead Shot Hazard t-shirts at the end of their set which was kind of them. Punks are lovely.
Finishing up on the acoustic stage was a special set from C-Rage. Having been a solo acoustic act for years, this year Craig has teamed up with James and Tommy from BaldHead & The Dreads and New Cross regulars Rosie and Bee to make some of Craig's setlist full band and, I assume, also working on some new material. A nicely sized crowd of people made their way down to the basement after Lead Shot Hazard's fantastic set. Opening the set solo with the songs Best Thing and Punk-O-Rama eased the crowd in before the rest of the band joined him. As nobody had heard them full band previously, there was a lot of speculation about how well this would go and I thought it went really well. Hearing songs such as Fenchurch St., Soundcheck and Wherever You May Be fleshed out with bass, extra guitar, percussion (cajón) and viola was really good and showed off Craig's skill as a songwriter well. I look forward to the next C-Rage full band show, where perhaps they'll have a "proper" band name?
I must admit that Bogus Gasman are a band that we knew next to nothing about before Level Up. I did however know that a lot of other people were excited to see the band as, based in Lewisham, they are somewhat local legends. The band have been around in one form or other for over 20 years but they recently added two new horn players to their ensemble – Katy on trumpet and Dave on trombone, who also happen to be in Just Say Nay! Blending traditional ska punk with hardcore and oi music, Bogus Gasman offered something a little different to what we’d heard all weekend. To be honest, it was the horn melodies that I enjoyed the most and they had me dancing but I did also enjoy yelling ‘oi, oi, oi!’ back at frontman Liam Gasman.
The penultimate band of the day, and the entire festival, were a band who were actually playing their first UK gig. Born from the ashes of UK skacore legends Beat The Red Light are Redeemon. Playing that wonderful thrashy, death metal, ska punk, Redeemon quickly set about trying to turn New Cross into rubble. I think it was the first song where lead singer and trombone player Pook and one of their two guitarists launched themselves into the crowd. Beat The Red Light were well known for their frenzied and chaotic shows and Redeemon were no different. The Level Up crowd were really getting into this change of pace to anything else we'd been treated to this weekend. The mosh was harder, the skanking faster, some huge human pyramids were erected and there was a Macarena. Basically this set was ridiculous – ridiculous fun! I would assume that Redeemon won't have the busiest of tour schedules but when they're in town it's obvious that they will be a must see act!
It was now time for the final band of Level Up Festival 2019, the one and only King Prawn. Returning to Level Up Festival after headlining the first year in 2017, it's always fantastic to see King Prawn live. I obviously wasn't the only one who thought so as a big crowd gathered around the front of the stage ready to sing back every word at the band. Sadly, as this was the last day of the festival, my memory of exactly what songs they played is very hazy and pretty much non-existent. I do know they played a good mixture classics (of which they have many) and a host of new songs from their recently released The Fabulous New Sounds Of album, including the appropriately titled Level Up Festival. At this point there can't have been many people standing still despite plenty of legs feeling like they've aged considerably over the weekend. King Prawn are one of those special bands that have a fantastic way of connecting with an audience despite not really moving around too much on stage. Armed with such a fantastic collection of songs though, the Level Up crowd lap up everything that is happening on the stage. Determined to squeeze every last drop out of the festival, the crowd seem wilder than ever before with bodies just knocking off each other in the pit. It was a joyous time and there were smiles and hugs a plenty filling the New Cross Inn. Sadly we had to leave before the end of King Prawn's set to catch our train but we left safe in the knowledge that the party was poppin'!
Level Up Festival gets better every single year. The ska punk community that descends on the New Cross Inn each July is an absolute joy to be around. It's just magical seeing so many familiar faces every year – reacquainting with some, talking to others for the first time. The New Cross Inn just fills up with so many lovely like-minded people and every year you leave with the lovely feeling of the fuzzies when you know you've been a part of something truly special. This festival wouldn't happen without the promoting brilliance of Paul and Mike from Be Sharp Promotions, Chris from Fishlock Promotions and Jason from El Topo Bookings. I know personally that this year was one of the hardest Level Up Festivals to book for a number of reasons. But the fact that things went so smoothly and for my money it was potentially the best one yet is a testament to the hard work that these wonderful gentlemen put in. We can't thank them enough for doing this. If you're a fan of ska punk music and you still haven't made it to Level Up Festival, you really need to sort that out in 2020. There isn't a better ska punk festival in the UK. Incredible bands and even better people. There aren't many better ways to spend a weekend in an Inn on a July weekend. See you next year!
Here's the aftermovie from the weekend filmed by the hardest working person of the entire weekend, Ell from Elliot Bobin Videography. Check it out, if you were there relive the memories, if you weren't see what you missed out on and get excited for Level Up 2020.
This gig review was written by Colin Clark and Emma Prew.
Rubbish photos also by Emma. Just Say Nay video by Just Say Nay. Aftermovie by Ell Bobin.
Ok, so most of these are in no particular order as it’s hard to decide which influenced me more or less as different things had more impact at different times. So here goes:
10. My Mum
Yeah, bit of a weird one to start with but there are a certain bunch of artists that I love that kind of fall into this sort of “category”. My mum is a real music lover and growing up she would play a lot of music, loud. She had a huge CD collection that, as I got older, I would find myself borrowing from more and more. So, when I was a kid, I’d hate it but looking back it was great. She’d always be playing a lot of Thin Lizzy, Elton John, Meat Loaf, Squeeze and, her favourite, Robbie Williams. All of which I listen to regularly now and will sing my heart out to if I’m driving on my own. I remember being a kid, sat in the back of the car with my brothers and playing air guitar to Boys Are Back In Town, Mum doing the ironing with Captain Fantastic blasting out the stereo and Meat Loaf’s Bat Out Of Hell is one of our go to “Driving home from a gig 100 miles away at 2am” albums. Back to back belters. Yeah, mum’s pretty damn cool. (Yes, I did just put on an Elton John album to listen to while I write this.)
9. My mates
Again another outside of the box one but, when you’re a teenager, your friends are the biggest influence and I happened to have some very musical friends. I always liked music and was told by music teachers early that I had an ear for it but I wasn’t really interested in playing it. I was too busy skateboarding or painting up Warhammer stuff (yeah, I was that kid). My mum offered to pay for music lessons for any instrument I wanted and I turned it down. Fast forward a year or so and I’d recently discovered rock music that wasn’t what mum listened to (because that was cool at 13) and more so pop punk. What really kicked it off for me was seeing a few of my best friends, Chris & Jay Aldridge and Josh Kelly, play a gig at school – performing a bunch of Green Day and Blink 182 songs. It had never crossed my mind before that I could be in a band and do this sort of thing, so the next day I begged my mum for a guitar and lessons. Christmas came around and under the tree was an acoustic guitar from Argos and within a month I’d started a band with my mate John (Saving Sebastian). Fast forward another couple of years and I’d just discovered third wave ska and, at that time, a brilliant local ska punk band called Dr 8 Ball were doing the rounds – I’d go to every show I could. And that pretty much set me down my musical path.
8. Goldfinger
Ok, back into that regular box. Specific artists that influenced me. Goldfinger are one of my all time favourite bands, I’ve got the lyrics for Superman tattooed on my arm. Yeah, bit of a fan. My friend Sandy had downloaded a couple of songs from LimeWire and I was sitting round his and he put on Spokesman and that was it – I was hooked. I went and bought the album Open Your Eyes straight away and pretty much played that album on repeat for about a month. Pretty soon I knew every word to every song on every album and been to a couple of shows. John Feldman's energy always just blew me away. Seeing them at the New Cross Inn last year and then from the side of the stage at Slam Dunk a couple of days later was so so flipping good!
7. Green Day
If anyone in a punk band that started within the last 25 years tells you they weren’t influenced by Green Day, they are straight up lying. I was 4 when Dookie was released and by the time I heard it it was already over a decade old. Absolute masters of their craft, they might not be the first band to do it but, for me, they were the first to perfect the blend of punk rock and pop. I always wanted to be like Billie Joe and it’s fairly obvious when I play live.
6. Reel Big Fish
Like most of these bands, I can remember exactly the first time I heard Reel Big Fish. My friend Michael had a compilation CD that had Scott’s A Dork on it and he loved it. He played it to me and I thought it was naff! But then he got hold of the album Why Do They Rock So Hard and my attitude changed entirely. Pop rock songs with weird choppy guitars and amazing horn melodies. So this is ska. I was absolutely hooked and ever since I’ve been an absolute sucker for a well written horn line. Not many do it better than Reel Big Fish.
5. Less Than Jake
Pretty soon after hearing RBF and delving into the ska punk genre, obviously the next band that’s going to come up are Less Than Jake. These guys go hand in hand with Reel Big Fish in how they taught me how to write pop songs with great hooks and melodies but they brought in the speed! I could listen to Hello Rockview for the rest of my life and nothing else and be happy.
4 The Clash
So, by the time I was 15 I’d become obsessed with punk and ska music and was digging deeper and deeper into its history. I picked up a copy of their first album from a place in Camden, took it home and blasted it loud constantly. Along with the amazing songwriting, a lot of the attraction to The Clash for me was that it was an old band that my parents didn’t like much. That’s not to say they disliked them, but they preferred the later, less in your face stuff. Sadly, The Clash are one of those bands I wish I'd been able to see live.
3. Aerosmith
Curveball. Aerosmith are absolutely one of the greatest bands to ever live. I will sing my heart out to all the ballads. Again, another band that I discovered that my parents didn’t listen to much. I had a double disc greatest hits album growing up and would love trying to play along to all the classics. I’d love to try some ska punk Aerosmith covers one day.
2. Allister
The best Drive-Thru band in my opinion. I accidentally downloaded Somewhere On Fullerton whilst looking for something else and then proceeded to download everything else they had released by that point. I used to have a bit of a self imposed rule on downloading music. I’d always download a couple of songs and, if I liked it, I’d go and buy the album. But with Allister I broke that rule, leaving the computer on over night to download everything because back then downloading a song took about an hour. They sucked me right in and were the first band that I’d listen to every detail in the song, rather than just the song overall. Allister do the best vocal layers. Amazing harmonies.
1. Good Charlotte
Yup. That band that everyone loves to hate. This band changed my life. So, I was 12, I liked pop music – catchy stuff that was on the radio. I would listen to stuff like Nelly or Justin Timberlake (still do, being into punk doesn’t mean pop artists aren’t good) the only album I owned was The Eminem Show (great album) and I was awkward and didn’t quite feel like I fit in anywhere. So, one Friday evening I’m sat at my table, painting up some Warhammer stuff with Top Of The Pops on the telly. I wasn’t really paying attention until the opening drums for Lifestyles Of The Rich & Famous started. I look up at the screen to see these guys in suits with spikey hair and low slung guitars jumping around the place. And the chorus was catchy as hell! And that’s what started my love of music. I bought The Young And The Hopeless album straight away from a Virgin Megastore in town and sat reading the lyrics from the sleeve while I listened. I’d listen when I was happy and wanted to jump around or when I was angry or sad. It didn't matter – this album was my go to for a long time. After listening to every band that was thanked on the sleeve, I had a good amount of music in my life and found myself fitting in more with my friends who’d already discovered this sort of thing. This was also the first album where I returned the favour to my mum with discovering music. She heard it and loved it too and went and bought her own copy as I wouldn’t lend mine to her. I took her to see GC for her birthday recently and we had a great time. Meeting them last year at Slam Dunk and having a chat with them outside their bus was a bizzare experience and one I won’t ever forget. I owe a lot to this band and their songs have influenced me more than anything.
