Foxon's thoughts - The Mest Edition.

Let me start by being honest. While I had heard a lot about Mest over the years, I had never actually heard any of their music. For this reason, I was designated driver for the evening. My wife, ALOMR’s Jen, put a few of their songs on in the car on the way, and that was my first Mest experience.

We arrived a little later than the guys, just in time to see Kill The Masters, a band we had seen a couple of weeks ago, supporting The Papashangos in the most random of venues. I am putting together a piece on The Papashangos very soon. As for Kill The Masters, they are a noisy trio from Bolton who ‘make no apologies’. It's fast aggressive punk rock, fronted by 2 singers, even with the odd rap thrown in. They do a couple of unexpected covers too, I'll avoid ruining the surprise, go see these guys. The set was closed by an absolute banger “Drugs In The Sun", a comedic anthem about… well, drugs, in the, erm, sun.

Next up we saw Switzerland’s Slimboy. A band who jumped between punk rock, indie and alternative rock. The highlight for me was the emotional “Sorrows”, a song I will certainly be adding to Spotify playlists from now on. The set itself was superb, dare I say band of the night? For me, at least, they were. They have a tight and honed sound, really catchy vocals and they drop into some heart pounding metal riffs.

Prior to Slimboy, the only swiss artists I'd ever heard we're melodic metal, female fronted, Nightwish clones Lunatica, and Tina Turner. So I can proudly say Slimboy are my favourite band from Switzerland. However that is by default, so I'd rather say they are comfortably in the top 5 bands I've seen live this year. Awesome band, check them out!!

Which brings us to our main event.

My second Mest experience of the day, my second Mest experience ever, and a Mest experience that even some of their very dedicated superfans don't get.

I didn't know any of the songs, I wasn't drinking, yet I enjoyed this so much. The atmosphere in The Alma was electric, everybody punching the air, singing along and moshing like crazy. The band played off this electricity too, with beaming smiles from ear to ear, they played what seemed like anthem after anthem. It struck me that this band are a big deal. A much bigger deal than I gave them credit for. The people I spoke to had stories about Mest, one couple at the show met at a Mest gig a number of years ago, my wife had Mest stories from highschool with her friend who she was excitedly sending pictures to all night.

I have been on Google and YouTube since the gig, and got to know and understand the band a bit more. They are a big deal, a much loved band, and a great band at that. I was part of something really special, in our little town. It’s a wild memory I will cherish forever.

Now I have MY Mest story.

More on this event:

Mrs Jen Foxon's post here.
Michael's thoughts Here.
Have a look at what Rick had to say Here.

MEST!

Seeing Mest, for me, was a teenage dream come true. My good friend introduced me to them when we were early teens. Now, that's a good few years ago, yet the feeling I get from music is still the same. Front row at the Alma in Bolton transported me back to that time. A time when punk rock and pop punk really got me, with each and every shouty anthem i listened to, I felt alive, young and free.

I'd never actually seen Mest before but it was everything I expected, everything I wanted.

When we got home sleeping was a feat: ears ringing, belly full of rum, Cadillac replaying over in my head. Alive, young and free!

Punk rock as fuck. 4 bands. 4 really brilliant bands and although the people count didn't dip into 3 figures, the atmosphere more than made up for it.

Mrs Foxon x x x

Mest pics.. #mest #punkrock #alma #bolton #teenagedreams #fun #saturday

A post shared by Jen Foxon (@jenocifero) on Aug 18, 2018 at 2:51pm PDT

More;

Read Mike's thoughts Here.
Have a look at what Rick had to say Here.
Read the Mr Foxon's post Here. 

Mest! Bolton August 2018

When I saw this Event I nearly fell off my chair. Mest, MEST! When it comes to pop-punk Mest sits at the top of our list, and Favourites from the late 90s post-punk with Goldfinger, Millencolin, MxPx, Anti-flag.

20years of good music, but circumstances fought against us with seeing Mest live. Until they announced a tour... with a gig at our hometown - Bolton. 
There was no consideration, I went on and booked 4 tickets immediately. Me, Richard, Chris & Jen.

Hosted by Rawcus Events (check them out!) The venue was the Alma, a small venue with a capacity no more than 150 - although the tickets sales unfortunately didn't sell out, or fortunately for us, as we got to meet and chat with all the bands and particularly Tony Lovato!

 Michael, Tony Lovato, Richard

Zapian were good, decent way to start the day. Shame to miss the earlier bands but it was all about JD and we were mostly there for Mest anyway.

Sitting down listening to Zapiain, the venue was empty with just Me & Richard and the other band's members. Spotting a Millencolin tattoo started a conversation with Arron from Red Winter (Apologies if I get the names wrong, I've stalked the Facebook page for band members names) the guys were friendly and happy to divulge a few stories and tales from previous gigs. All I'm going to say is if they guys have wine on the stage, just don't stand right at the front unless you can duck inadvertent roundhouses!

The Liverpudlians, Red Winter, hit the stage with decent tunes and witty banter, engaging the crowd and really doing the Supports job of warming everyone up. It's no wonder they've had the chance to support some big names (such as Blink-182).
'Garry', the guy at the back in the red shirt, certainly enjoyed it.

I really like Nobody's Hero and the Some Friend you Were.

Bit of @redwinteruk whilst we wait for @theofficialmest

A post shared by A Life Of Music Rocks (@alifeofmusicrocks) on Aug 18, 2018 at 10:52am PDT

The lads were good and sounded much clearer than my video (phone recording next to a speaker was always a bad idea).
I can tell you they are in our vision now and we'll be tracking their gigs.


The day continued with Kill The Masters, fast paced, not too serious, Punk band from Bolton. Chris' run down does more justice so head over and check out his post (Here). We headed over to the bar and heard an acoustic version of Jaded coming from a side room, peeking in we saw Tony & Adrian playing, turns out this was for Meet & Greets so we stepped away (after the song).

Slimboy came one, Swiss pop-punk band, having heard a few songs we were excited for these. They are good, really, really good. Richard and Chris elobrated more so want more info head in that direction! :P

During all of this I Adrian (I later found out the name) came over and said Hi. I fucked up, made a terrible, drunken, shameful mistake if asking if he was a roadie helping out ... (Earth swollow me whole please)... Nope turns out he's a guitarist in Mest. Should have checked out the touring band more!
Anyway turns out Adrian is very friendly guy and lead singer of 'Assuming We Survive' - Turns out these guys are fucking awesome, check them out, similar sound to Fall Out Boy... But heavier and without the Twee lyrics, actually not like Fall Out Boy, AWS are a true pop/punk outfit in buzzing listening to this back catalogue!!

Over to Mest, we had the opportunity to chat to Tony a few times before the set. Needless to say I was buzzing. We stumbled upon Meat 18years ago when Richard mistook What's the Dillio for What's the Dildo - then we found Wasting Time, and Mo Money, a year later UnknownDestination.
We've buzzed for Mest for years and the on/off band has meant we haven't had the chance to see them. Then it happened, in our home town and we were on it.

The guys were amazing, smashing out classics from Cadillac to Jaded to Long Days, Long Nights. We spent the entire time singing, moshing, circling, it was amazing and everything I ever expected.

@anthonylovato @theofficialmest #mest

A post shared by A Life Of Music Rocks (@alifeofmusicrocks) on Aug 18, 2018 at 3:43pm PDT

It only got better from there, after we spent a little more time with Tony, giving him cigs, talking about music and the tour.
He told us about a little boy he met the night before, a 7 year old, he was telling us about him refunding the ticket money for his mum to buy him some toys for Christmas. Really showed a side a him that was more than just a pop-punk legend.

We loved Tony before, now it's on another level.
Hats off to you! You're something else! Class!

I can't really top that, we shook hands with Tony and Adrian and took our leave.

Mx

More on this event;

Have a look at what Rick had to say Here.
Read the honorable Mr Foxon's masterpiece Here.
Mrs Jen Foxon's ode to Mest here

Shaking Hands and Hey Jude

Wow what a night (and afternoon) Saturday was, went to see Mest at a small venue in Bolton with several support acts.

We didn't go with our blogging for ALOMR heads on, (I know I know we should be telling you all everything we do, every minute of every day, but I don't and we won't) however, we saw some great bands so I felt it would be rude not to share my thoughts, no doubt the other three will pull some absolute blinders of analysis when they get round to it, oh yes the four of us were all together for the first time at a gig since the old boys 30th!

I went mainly to listen to Mest (obvs), Slimboy and Red Winter (much more on these guys to come). We got there at 4ish and the first band had already been and gone (my fault i was given the option of getting a taxi or having another JD).

The second band were playing when we entered and were just wrapping up there set, next up were Zapiain, we had listened to a few of there songs before hand and am sure were very good but for some reason its a little hazy this part of the afternoon so I cant really give you much more than that....sorry.

(Red Winter - ALOMR photos)

I know Michael has touched on Red Winter but I liked them that much I am going to touch them again, hopefully not with a roundhouse kick to the face, we had a good chat with the lads before they went on stage, I insisted they needed to change the lyrics in one of their songs, sadly I had the wrong band and not for the first time in my life had cocked up (however another member of the ALOMR team made an even bigger balls up with a different band later on in the day... not sure if I will drop him in it or not yet). 

Once the guys got on stage and sorted out the sounds (Well done to the sound tech at the Alma by the way he did a great job of getting the bands on stage tuned in quickly!) they quickly thrashed through 6 fantastic skater punk hits, they had some good banter with the crowd and each other, they remind me of Blink around the take of your pants and jacket era, maybe a touch heavier but with the same fun and bounce that they had throughout there gigs.We will definitely be going to see these guys again and soon.

Kill the Masters - Yeah (courtesy of Michael)

A new band to us that we hadn't heard before were Kill the Masters, these guys are angry punk, they are coming at a time when it is probably right this particular style to resurface. The group is a three piece outfit with the guitarist and bassist switching instruments and vocals throughout and a solid drummer who holds it all together. 
They have some great songs with my favourite being Drugs, its a catchy song that even the Mums can sing along to even if the subject matter isn't the cleanest and did an Usher cover that sounded awesome. 
The guys are currently doing their first EP and should have it launched by December, keep an eye out for it although am sure we will give it a mention when it hits!

Slimboy, I don't know what to say about these guys, they are brilliant, yes I am a little biased as they picked me out to say thanks for singing along (I am the annoying dude on the crowd who sings along to every song in my monotone voice) and then got me to sing Hey Jude on the microphone with them. 

Their songs Sorrow, Believe in You and Whatever are there best in my mind but give them a listen and tell us which you think. I was told they have just finished touring with the Ataris so I am sure they are destined for big things and I hope to see them again soon leading there own show.

Slimboy - ALOMR photos

I would also like to point out that I did not take any videos or pictures at the show as I was having to much fun watching some great bands and would like to say thanks to Rawcus events for pulling this together, it was unbelievable to see these bands coming to our home town playing the last bastion of rock The Alma.

Finally onto the main event of Mest, wow 18 years I had waited to see them live and they did not disappoint, from start to finish I was wrapped up in a punk plethora that I still have a fuzzy feeling from now. Tony Lovato slams as stood about a foot Infront of me and all that came between us was a stood up pallet, I thought I wouldn't get any closer but the band were awesome and stayed around after the gig shaking hands and chatting to us all (even though all I could do was state in awe at a band I have lived since being 12 years old) the guys are heading to the studio when they get back home and I for one can't wait to hear what they come up with and to obviously follow it up with another tour... Where I hope to see them supported by Red Winter and Kill the Masters!

Riche xxx



MORE POSTS ABOUT THIS EVENT
Michael's Here.
Chris Here.

Jen's Here.

Rawcus Events - Mest, Slimboy, Red Winter & More

We went to see Mest on saturday night, we couldn't decide who was going to write about it. As it turns out, we all wrote about it.

Read my thoughts Here.

Have a look at what Rick had to say Here.

Read the honorable Mr Foxon's literary masterpiece Here. (Check out the amazing picture Chris captured in his posts. Below is the Tony checking it out, he loved it!)

Mrs Jen Foxon's ode to Mest here

RAWKUS Events

The line Up:
Mest
Slimboy 
Kill The Masters
Red Winter
Standing Waves
Zapiain 
TheLast Dregs
Counter Point

Mx

Tony checking out Chris' pic, check it out in his posts.

Another good pic of Tony, this one by Michael.

False Heads - Less Is Better EP

Less Is Better... Unless the subject is new music, in which case less isn't always better... I mean, when it comes to False Heads, more is better! More is exactly what we now have.

A few months ago we caught up with Luke, Jake & Barney in Leeds on their single release Retina - check out the post and videos here. During our chat we spoke about what's next, Luke told us about the several Demos ready to be recorded and spoke of re-recording Retina for an EP version. Since then we waited, eagerly!

Well today the day came...

To start, a big thanks to These Bloody Thieves Records & the Lads for sending over a copy of the CD early. The EP is set for official Digital Release next month (21st September), with the single Yellow premiering on Radio X tonight at 10pm and release date is 24th August.

Once again I've got myself into the CD scenario! I literally only buy CDs to look at, the only player I have is Xbox, opting to stream nowadays. Thankfully my brother saved the day with an old laptop so I can relax, laydown, headphones in and listen uninterrupted.

The EP has 4 bouncing tracks:
Yellow
Retina (EP Version)
Help Yourself
Wrap Up

The overall production is a step up from previous releases. Less Is Better is a much larger sound, a more professional outfit, don't get me wrong we still have that grungy raw sound, it's like Gutter Press but with big fat shiny cherry on top.

If you wanna know more about each track, I've given run down below. If you wanna listen to this unadulterated without any outside interpretation then feel free to skip. EP and Tour details can be found on FalseHeads.com or @falseheads


Yellow 
Keeping in with previous tracks Yellow is False Heads in and out. Starting with a lovely clean Indie rift that'd fit at home amongst a Strokes or Hives track, it smashed into a verse covered in grungy crack. The chorus is heavy in repetitive lyrics from Luke, whilst Barney harmonises smashing away at the drums. It's got catchy lyrics and progressive rifts you can really feel a development on the 'False Heads' sound from earlier EPs.


Retina
When the guys said they were going to redo Retina, I was worried. The single is nice, raw, a good grungy listen. Much of this has been retained, with a closer, bassier sound, in the EP version. It offers more sound, crisper notes, echos and cleaner effects - particularly the outro at 3minutes you can tell the production is just another level.

Help Yourself
Slowing the pace a little - don't be thinking Comfort Consumption slow tho, Help Yourself packs a punch more akin to All Eyes. There's another treat of catch hooks, and a pretty nifty build up which leads into a new sound from the lads, by the way of a progressive electro guitar rift! Very nice - hope to hear more like this, it really works well.

Wrap Up
Coming into this track with more progressive sounds it's followed with some really meaty rifts & a touch of vocal distort. This is the first time I've really focused on Jake's bass - it's really grabbed me, listening to it flow really gets the head going. There's a full 1minute and 30seconds which is lyric free with scales all over, individual parts, harmonised instrumentals - I really get the feeling that this song was constructed with a live performance in mind. You can really visualise Luke scaling the stage and throwing himself off ... finishing with another catchy lyrical build up and an 'Everyone Goes For It'-ending

Countdown to the Tour!

With thanks to Luke, Jake & Barney and Rob at TBTRecords.

Full details of availability and release dates at www.falseheads.com they're on all social media platforms too @falseheads. Where you can find details of their upcoming European tour in September/October. We're going to Manchester and Preston gigs.

These Bloody Thieves Records @TBT_records
Ask nicely they may send a copy out before release dates.




Love Mx

!..!,  🤘

Michaels Mini #8 - Mega Announcements

Wow well 1st August was a good day for new Indie music. We have had some announcements from ALOMR favourites Weekend Debt and False Heads! Needless to say we are absolutely buzzing about it.

Weekend Debt are working on their 2nd EP and about to hit the studio and record it. I know many people are excited to hear that! #wishingmylifeaway

False Heads gave a glimmer of their new single Yellow a few weeks back, but yesterday announced the name and cover art of their next EP: Less Is Better.  Including release date of 24th August for Yellow and 21st September for the digital release of the EP.
False Heads also have a massive EU tour and launch party check out  www.falseheads.com for details.

Chris mentioned yesterday the sneak peak on Able's Army new single Private Eye, check out that Interview here: alifeofmusic.rocks - Able's Army Private Eye
We will drop a link for the track tomorrow.


Not forgetting West Lothian duo Pyro released their latest track Regret or Forget on Saturday. Check it out here. Spotify - Pyro


In other news. 
A couple of hot albums released this past week Skate Punk legends MxPx released Kickstarter funded Self Titled album, and it is fucking mental! We are loving it! Contains everything you expect from the legend that is Mike Harrera and the 25years of MxPx; Fast paced, Heavy, Anthems, Memorable Lyrics (Its Friday Tonight, Tonight!) and the occasional slower paced track! 

Synth Pop Stockportians Blossoms released their 2nd studio album Cool Like You, and UK tour went on sale and sold out very quickly. The Album already has massive hits from their singles 'I Can't Stand It' and 'There's A Reason Why'. Also a fan of the title track 'Cool Like You' which as a very Human League feel to it.

Post punk influencers Interpol released the 2nd track from Marauder, Number 10. It's pretty cool and offers more insights to their sound of this album.

Anyway that's all for now, more over the coming days. Excitement galore.

Mx

Able's Army - Private Eye

These days it's so much easier being a music blogger. We don't have to wait for a CD with a hand written label to arrive in the mail to listen to a new song. We can post our thoughts instantly on the internet after we have heard it. Then we can send our readers a link to the song and they can listen to it right away. It's all so simple.

A couple of months ago we told you about a snazzy band from Huddersfield called Able’s Army. We saw them live, we really enjoyed them, we introduced ourselves. Then when we got home, we could instantly listen to them on Spotify and make friends with them over social media. So simple.

Able's Army have a shiny new song out on friday. It's called Private Eye and we got the chance to have a sneak peek at it. Come back on August 3rd and we will post a link to the song so you can enjoy it yourselves. We think you'll really like it.

The 5 minute jaunt through the mind of a recently broken up man, plays like a song from the other side of the Penines. The Noel Gallagher tones shine through, reminding me of his more chilled Oasis songs, Talk Tonight or Half The World Away. The crooning vocals invoke feelings of John Lennon’s solo work. There is also a catchy guitar solo thrown in for good measure, before the chorus takes a lovely key change.

This is lounge music, with an old school rock ‘n roll backbone, and a solid foundation this exciting young band can really build upon for a very exciting future.

We had a chat with Mike from the band, to learn a little more about the single and get his thoughts on the band.

ALOMR - Welcome back. We are loving the new track, was it as enjoyable putting the song together as it is listening to it, and how long did it take from conception to what we are hearing today?

Mike - Private Eye’s probably one of the oldest songs we have actually. When we were first starting out James and I would meet up, get drunk and write songs. About 90% of what we came up with was terrible and didn’t survive the hangover, but this one stood out a bit and there was something to it. It’s had a couple of variations between then and now but we’re pretty chuffed with the finished product.

What was the inspiration behind the song, lyrically?

It’s hard to pin-point exactly what inspired the lyrics, I’m pretty sure it’s an amalgamation of different sets of lyrics we’d each been working on individually. But I think at its core it’s basically about getting over an ex. Like a very polite and convoluted “Fuck Off!”

The tone of ‘Private Eye’ really suits Able’s Army, it's got a distinctive Northern feel to it, and its very stylish. You are still relative newcomers, how easy was it finding your sound as a band? Is this what you've been aiming for?

We haven’t really aimed for a certain style or genre with any of the songs. We just approach each tune as it comes in sort of isolation from the others and just work to whatever suits that song on that day so if it suits us that’s a bonus, Anything in-between disco and country is fair game for us, which could be a good or a bad thing, I dunno?

It is! Definitely! So, Where does the name, ‘Able's Army’ come from?

I used to write stuff under the name Able Archer and when we put the band together I had big ideas to rip off that whole Hives/Randy Fitzsimmons thing and have Able Archer as a fictional sort of Colonel Tom Parker kind of guy controlling everything from behind the scenes and we’d be his band, ignoring the fact I’d spelt the name Able wrong. In the end it was a bit too elaborate for us to keep up so I sacked it off but by then we’d already had a couple a of gigs so the name stuck.

What's next for you guys? Any live shows or more treats coming from the studio?

Well we’ve got an ep recorded which is currently being mixed by our fifth Beatle, Earl Haig. Not sure on a release date yet but it’ll probably be in the autumn. And we’ll be doing some gigs around the North in support of it, which we’ll be announcing soon. So both!

What are you listening to at the moment? Any favourite artists or local up-and-coming bands we need to know about?

There’s some ace bands about at the moment that you should definitely check out; Palmes, Courtyards, FLING, The Maitlands, The Harriets, Capital Eye are all top drawer.

Lastly, and most importantly. What's your favourite dinosaur?

Well I like that spitty one off Jurassic Park, George says his favourite dinosaur is Keith Richards, and James doesn’t believe in dinosaurs.

We love you guys!