How To Write YA Fiction with Samantha Shannon, Melinda Salisbury and Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Photo credit to @medievaljenga

On Wednesday 19th of April, I took a road trip to Oxford and visited Blackwell's book store for the first time. I only discovered that this event was happening the morning it took place - I recommend wasting all of your time on social media for this reason - so I dropped everything and managed to make it. I couldn't turn down the opportunity to meet these three inspirational (and very lovely!) ladies.

The discussion between the three ladies and moderator Peter Meinertzhagen - founder of the Oxford Writing Circle - went on for well over an hour. Instead of recapping everything that was said, I'm going to choose my ten favourite things that happened at this event (including some inspirational advice for aspiring authors).

10. Name dropping galore
Peter introduced all three of the authors at the beginning of the night, sharing that they'd all participated in Oxford Writing Circle events in the past, and when they started discussing other talks they'd done they quickly came to realise that they'd all been on panels with Alwyn Hamilton, almost gushing over how much they enjoyed working with her.
Later on, discussing literary writing in YA, Melinda claimed that Laini Taylor is the "master", proving that there's "room for beauty in YA" (also recommending 'The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender' by Leslye Walton).
There's more than enough love to go around when it comes to YA!

9. Don't tell Samantha Shannon that YA is "too gloomy"
Peter referenced an article in which someone referred to young adult literature as "too gloomy", and Samantha was very passionate in her disregard for that mindset.
"Books are dark because the outlook is bleak," she began. "I'm scared a lot of the time, and I'm not a teenager." She shared the fact that she's often "overwhelmed with darkness" and awfulness when she encounters the news and understands that young people feel the same, which is why they need to be able to read realistic books. "Dark things are happening. There's nothing dark in young adult fiction that hasn't happened in real life".

8. Sarah J. Maas is changing the YA game
When asked what makes YA, there was a bit of a debate. Shannon said it was harder for her to know, because 'The Bone Season' is actually marketed as adult more frequently than YA (because Paige, the protagonist, is 19) so she's "not asked to tone down" her writing often.
Kiran shared a story about 'The Island at the End of Everything' - her recently released second novel - in which she was "asked to tone down some of the more overt nastiness" because of the age of her readers. She laughed as she admitted that her editor told her that the end of the novel "left [her] with a profound sense of hopelessness".
But while they couldn't definitively state what made YA, all three authors agreed that the use of sex in YA is changing rapidly.
Shannon referenced Sarah J. Maas, saying that she's "pushing boundaries of what can and can't come into it" with her sexually charged scenes in 'A Court of Mist and Fury'. Melinda agreed, but also nodded her head towards fanfiction, claiming it's "changed the rules. Teens want to read about sex scenes, not fade to black, but sex they're actually having," and the popularity of fanfiction that features those scenes shows there's a demand for sex in books for teenagers.

7. YA is more plot driven that adult fiction
The debate about how young adult and adult fiction differ continued later in the night.
Samantha told us how the editor who worked on 'The Bone Season' and 'The Mime Order' was on maternity leave during 'The Song Rising', so she worked with Melinda Salisbury's editor instead. Her aim was to "slim it down and make sure it's focused", which led to a book that's so fast-paced it's exhausting: a direct contrast in her experiences with the adult and young adult editing procedures.
Melinda agreed, stating that young adult is more plot driven because "life as a teen is more plot driven" so "more happens in less pages [at a] slightly faster pace" because the teenage years are a "very definitive fast lane for a short length of time".

6. Every author's "first book is the book [they] needed."
When Peter mentioned that statistically, 80% of YA is acquired by people aged 25 and over, Melinda was quick to respond. She shared that the only YA she had when she was growing up were books written by R.L. Stine, and the Babysitter's Club, which is one of the reasons she can't get enough of it as an adult.
Kiran agreed, saying that her favourite novel as a teenager was Gabriel Garcia Marquez's 'One Hundred Years of Solitude' because there wasn't really any fiction aimed at teenagers (apart from Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials). To this, Melinda shared that 'The Sin Eater's Daughter' is "the book [she] desperately needed as a teenager", stating that "every first book is the book you needed".

5. YA fantasy is vastly under-appreciated
Melinda quipped that "as a YA genre writer, I might as well be dead sometimes". She celebrated 'The Hate U Give' and 'Asking For It', both contemporary YA novels that have broken into the mainstream with a huge impact, but Kiran agreed that for YA to be thought of as necessary it "must be issue driven".
"YA fantasy is doing so many important things and not getting noticed," Samantha added. "If they were adult fiction, they'd be heralded as 'the next big thing'".

4. Melinda. Salisbury.
Don't get me wrong, I love Kiran and Shannon too. But Melinda Salisbury is absolutely hilarious, and she stole the show at this event. I've wanted to meet her for so long (mostly because of Steph from A Little But A Lot, who is her biggest fan) and I was blown away by how down to earth she is: I was shaking with nerves before approaching her, but she quickly put me at ease and I didn't feel like an idiot even though we were talking for quite a while!
Mel came out with a lot of brilliant quotes throughout the night, but my personal favourite was when she admitted that if she didn't write YA she'd be writing "raunchy, Mills and Boon nana stuff". Well, someone's got to do it!

For the last question of the night, Peter asked all three authors if they could offer one piece of advice for writing YA, so their responses have to make up the top three:

3. Kiran Millwood Hargrave: "Write the book that you need to write. Leave the marketing to someone else."
Having shared that she started writing 'The Girl of Ink and Stars' with no idea who she was writing it for, it really doesn't matter if you don't have a target audience in mind as soon as you pick up your pen or start typing.

2. Samantha Shannon: "Don't be afraid to experiment. Write weird stuff. It's important that we keep breaking boundaries."
'The Bone Season' sounds like it's impossible to compare to any other book out there, so it's important to think outside the box when you're writing.

1. Melinda Salisbury: "Finish your book. Just finish it! You can't be a writer if you can't finish a book."
Melinda was almost shouting as she cajoled the aspiring authors in the room, and she's not someone you want to disappoint! She also shared a second piece of advice, saying "Don't compare your first draft to a published book," admitting, "I would be nothing without my editorial team". Roughly finishing your story is much better than completely polishing just a chapter or two.

I'd like to say a big thank you to Melinda, Kiran, Shannon and Peter for having such an insightful and thought-provoking discussion, and to Blackwell's for being so welcoming. I'm definitely going to keep an eye out for more events there in the future.

Mallory Knox - Oxford O2 Academy, 04/04/17

Fatherson's atmospheric brand of festival-ready rock was the perfect start to the night. The Scottish rock trio have been taking the world by storm since the release of last year's 'Open Book', and what's not to like about their catchy yet chilled out songs?
Vocalist Ross Leighton seemed humbled by the amount of people in the audience, repeatedly thanking everyone for getting down to the venue early and giving them a chance. But they were fighting a losing battle at times, struggling to be heard over disrespectful chattering scattered throughout the crowd.
The band were playing their hearts out, putting on an impassioned performance the likes of which you rarely see from an opening band. Ross' vocal is haunting, the emotion he pours into every lyric inducing goosebumps at multiple points throughout their set. 'I Like Not Knowing' was a particular highlight: the split "oh no" vocal echoing, grabbing the attention of every person in the room and finally shutting the crowd up.
There's something special about Fatherson. If they keep putting this much energy and effort into their performances, it won't be long until they're standing on their own two feet and headlining shows across the country. It's going to be exciting to see where this trio goes next, because it looks like the only way is up. 

Setlist:

Open Book

Hometown

Forest 

Mine For Me

Always

I Like Not Knowing

Lost Little Boys

Lonely the Brave have been a band for almost ten years. That should mean it's high time they started headlining venues of this size rather than being relegated to support act constantly, but they seem to be struggling to stand out from the crowd.
The songs from their second album - last year's 'Things Will Matter' - feel like a huge step backwards when performed in a live environment. They're draining. The set flounders under the oppressive weight of new material which should be reinvigorating the crowd, not sending them to sleep.
David Jakes' vocal deepens the introspective atmosphere: his mumbling vocal make their lyrics completely indecipherable.
The three tracks from 'The Day's War' that remain in the setlist could have won the band new fans. They have a universal appeal which is missing from the newer songs. 'Backroads' and 'The Green, the Blue' are both particularly effective, closing the set by leaving the crowd wondering what might have been. Sadly, what we got was a bland and completely forgettable set.
When people look back on the Wired tour, they're not going to be thinking about Lonely the Bore.

Setlist:

Black Mire

Dust and Bones

Deserter

Radar

Jaws of Hell

Backroads

The Green, the Blue

The last time Mallory Knox headlined the Oxford O2 Academy they were supported by frnkiero andthe cellabration. Thanks to the famous name supporting them the show quickly sold out, but it meant a large portion of the crowd were disinterested in the headliners.
Thankfully, things were different this time around.
Every person in the room was there for Mallory, and though the crowd was smaller (the low amount of tickets sold caused the venue to shut the seating area at the back of the room) they were actively involved during almost every song in the set. Vocalist Mikey Chapman said it best himself at the end of 'Dying To Survive': "You guys are fucking in the mood for a Tuesday!".
Having only released new album 'Wired' last month, the Cambridge quintet used this opportunity to showcase as much of their new material as possible. The fifteen song set included seven of their brand new tracks, and judging by the crowd's reaction the album has been received astonishingly well. It would be impossible to guess just how recently the album hit the shelves based on the energetic singalongs accompanying every song.
From the moment the opening strains of 'Giving It Up' echoed through the venue the crowd were in constant movement, pushing towards the stage before exploding in a frenzy of movement as they moshed and dance throughout the entire hour and a quarter stage time. Old favourites 'Ghost in the Mirror', 'Beggars' and 'Wake Up' were particular highlights: pints were thrown in the air as more people flooded to the front of the room, desperate to get in on the action, throwing caution to the wind as they threw their bodies into the mass of movement.
The only song in the entire set that didn't get a mosh pit was the melancholy 'Falling In Love'. Cleverly placed in the middle of the set, it allowed people to sneak back to the bar and refuel before 'Lucky Me' kicked things back into high gear - the crouch down, jump up move that Mikey encouraged involving nearly every person in the venue.
Choosing to play new song 'Saviour' to close the main bulk of the set was a risky move, but one that paid off. Mikey introduced the song by sharing that he was "struggling with the words [...] quite a lot, because it's quite important to [him]", calling out Theresa May and Donald Trump before saying "one day, our collective generation is going to have to pick up all of the pieces that they're smashing down right now" to rapturous applause and a cheer from a crowd who are similarly disenfranchised with the current state of the world. Mallory Knox are becoming political, and it'll be interesting to see whether this attitude persists.
Closing with 'Better Off Without You' was another powerful choice, but it's impossible to say that the UK rock scene would be better off without Mallory Knox. With each album they release they push themselves further, taking a lot of risks which always pay off. They're going to be headlining much bigger venues by the end of this album cycle.

Setlist:

Giving It Up

Ghost in the Mirror

Wired

Dying To Survive

Getaway

California

Beggars

Falling In Love

Lucky Me

When Are We Waking  Up?

Wake Up

Shout at the Moon

Saviour

-

Lighthouse

Better Off Without You

Better Than Never - The Bullingdon, Oxford, 03/12/16

One State Drive were my highlight of the evening. 

From the second 'Nothing Left' started, I was hooked. They're exactly the kind of band I've been looking for, but too often all the bands in the 'easycore' genre sound identical. Luckily One State Drive have a certain something that makes them stand out, and while I can't put my finger on what it was it certainly intrigued me.

I'd chosen one word to describe them after their first few songs: cheesy. Just listen to the lyrics of 'Got It Down', with its "the back of your head has never looked so good" refrain - there's no other word to describe it! So when vocalist Addy Walker mentioned that their recently released EP was called 'It Ain't Cheesy Being Easycore', I was delighted. This band knows exactly who they are. They aren't trying to fool anybody, and they certainly aren't taking themselves too seriously.

Their cover of 'Fat Lip' was a bit of a train wreck, but I mean that in the best, most enjoyable kind of way. It felt more like a karaoke session at the end of the night than a song in the set of the opening band, but it was the perfect way to warm the crowd up: no one was standing still from the moment that iconic riff started. 

The band worked hard to hold the crowd's attention through their closer, 'Keeping Score', and Addy managed to get a lot of people jumping with him towards the end of the song. Compared to the audience's non-reaction to the start of their set, the end was an absolute triumph.

I wish they'd been playing later in the night, because they're so good that they deserved to be higher up the bill. I'm going to keep a very close eye on these guys and hopefully I'll be able to catch them at a few of their hometown shows in 2017. 

Setlist:

Nothing Left

Got It Down

Crowds

It Ain't Cheesy Being Easycore

Cut The Deadweight

Fat Lip cover

Keeping Score

On The Last To Leave's Facebook page they describe themselves as a 'young 5 piece pop punk band from Oxfordshire', and 'young' isn't an understatement. I don't know exactly how old the members are, but I was shocked when vocalist Matty Harris shared that they'd been performing their cover of All Time Low's 'Weightless' for two years: they definitely didn't look old enough to have been in a band for that long already!
The Last To Leave's music is lyrically immature. I enjoyed their set enough to buy their EP, and I think they're already very talented musicians, but their lyrical content needs some serious work. 'The Story' has the chorus "This is how the story ends/This is how we'll start again/This is how the story ends", while 'Reflections' reads more like a suicide note than a break up song with the worrying - and melodramatic - line "You make me want to fall asleep forever".
Ironically, the most developed song was the childish and overly repetitive - yet insanely catchy - 'Never Going Home'. It sounds like it's going to be an instant hit. If you compare it to the pop-punk songs that get radio attention it's up there with the best of them, its "never ever ever, never ever ever going home!" chant looping around your head until you want to scream it back at the top of your lungs (while tearing your hair out from sheer frustration at how simplistically genius it is).
They've already got the stage banter going on - one particularly memorable moment happening while they were trying to convince people to buy their EP and bassist and backing vocalist Sam Jones quipped "One pound will buy me a Pot Noodle. That'll feed me for three weeks!". Onstage charisma and confidence are normally the last thing that a band find, but The Last To Leave have bucket loads of it already: they'll only get better with age.

Setlist:

The Story

Weightless cover

Burning Up

Reflections

Holding On

Never Going Home

I'm still not sure how I feel about Coast To Coast.
Despite the fact that all of the bands had the same amount of time on stage, I felt restless and struggled to concentrate during their set. There's something about Keiran Hyland's vocal that bothers me, in the same way that I struggle to fall in love with Moose Blood, Real Friends and Knuckle Puck. It's nothing against Coast To Coast - in fact, it probably makes them better that they're among such esteemed company! They just aren't the band for me.
They played two brand new songs in their set, 'Ajax' and 'Geranium'. They both fitted well in the set, but I'm not sure if that's because they sounded so similar to the songs they'd already released: they have a style and don't seem too willing to diverge from that. The only exception to the rule is 'Bunkbeds', which was slower and had a more melancholy feel to it, something which I would normally describe as a positive but which just made the set feel even longer.
I'm going to give Coast To Coast's recorded music a try, to see if it's a problem that they suffer with live and not on their official releases, but I'm not holding my breath.

Setlist:

Intro

August

Cornerstone

Bunkbeds

Ajax

Geranium

Bloom

This was a bittersweet night for Better Than Never. It was the release show for their new EP, 'Head Under Water' - a release which has already been getting the band attention from sites including Punktastic and Rock Sound - but it was also their final show with now ex-lead guitarist Max Peniket, who has been with the band since 2014. One door closing and another opening wide for a band who've been working hard for almost four years now.
'Head Under Water' is Better Than Never's second EP this year, following February's 'Homemade Hero'. It's a more polished offering, the past year of touring - including a notable support slot for Courage My Love and a lengthy co-headline tour with Coast To Coast - having done great things to improve the confidence of a band who are rapidly gaining attention in the underground UK pop-punk scene.
The first thing I noticed when the band took to the stage was the surprise addition of a female member, who the band introduced as vocalist and guitarist Will Keating's sister Maisie. She's been filling in for the band since the departure of their previous drummer, and though she's only 15 but she held her own amongst the boys. If she can play like this now she's going to become a force to be reckoned with if she continues playing in the years to come. I've got a feeling the boys are going to struggle to find a replacement who could keep up with her - as they themselves said on stage, "she's sick as fuck!".
The new EP was streamed online for the week prior to this show, but if I hadn't known better I would have assumed it had been out for months. Older songs and established fan favourites 'Slowly Slipping Under' (the first song the band ever wrote) and 'Panama' (the song that really lets Will's vocal shine) both received great reactions because they're already so well loved, a huge amount of people chanting the words back and throwing themselves towards the stage to get closer to the action, but it wasn't until the new songs were played that the night really began.
Vocalist James Harris introduced 'Forty Eight' as "one of the heavier songs [they'd] ever done", and the screaming laced throughout the song meant it wasn't surprising at all when the audience erupted into a moshpit, the biggest I'd ever seen at a show of this size.
The inclusion of a cover of Fall Out Boy's 'Sugar, We're Going Down' drove the crowd further into a frenzy, and even the people stood towards the back of the room couldn't stop themselves from singing along to every word. It also meant that the reaction to 'Learning To Swim' was even better than it otherwise would have been: the cover put everyone on a high that they didn't come down from until long after the set had finished.
When the band finished five minutes early the crowd chanted for one more song, and James joked that it was "physically impossible. We don't have any more songs!" but when the audience continued to demand more he gave Max the chance to choose one song from the setlist to play again, giving him the reins at the end of his last show. He instantly picked 'Sugar, We're Going Down' which James refused, and after a few moments of pondering it was decided that they'd be closing with their opening song, 'Dreamland Ain't All It's Cracked Up To Be'. The crowd were much more energetic second time around, giving Max the send off he deserved by breaking out into another mosh pit and yelling the words into the microphone when James held it out into the crowd.
You might not have heard of Better Than Never just yet, but it won't be that way for long. 

Setlist:

Dreamland Ain't All It's Cracked Up To Be

Slowly Slipping Under

Deadweight

Panama

Lowhill Lane

Forty Eight

Sugar We're Going Down cover

Learning To Swim

Back Of The Line, Kid

-

Dreamland Ain't All It's Cracked Up To Be

Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown - Oxford O2 Academy 2, 12/11/16

I'd never heard of Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown before, but when the venue offered free entry to the upstairs show for all Skindred ticket holders, I knew I had to check them out. I love discovering new music, and it turned the evening into a mini-festival, running up and down stairs between the venues to see as much of each band as possible. You can read my Skindred review here.

I'd been very excited to see Evarose for the first time, so I only went upstairs for the end of Coldredlight's set. 

I found myself sucked in very quickly. They finished a song to polite applause, and while vocalist Gaby-Elise was talking to the crowd, drummer Casper Miles grabbed a bass guitar and started tuning it. Gaby's head shot round and she asked "Oh, is this happening?" and when Casper continued to play they launched into 'I've Got Mine' by Small Faces. To be able to play bass guitar and drum? That's a level of skill I can hardly comprehend. And they say men can't multitask!

I can only find one of their songs online: the track they closed with, 'Little Scorpion'. The outro was insanely complex, layered and building to a roaring climax, and it hinted towards great things to come from this duo. Having only been added to the show that morning they did a brilliant job, and I wish I'd been able to see more of their set. 

After having supported both AC/DC and Guns 'N' Roses, I have no idea how the crowd for Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown was so small. Even with the free entry for Skindred customers there were at most 75 people in the room at the end of the set - rising from under 50 when they took to the stage - and that's a damned shame.
I was expecting the room to be fairly empty at the beginning, as Raging Speedhorn were retaining their huge crowd downstairs by putting on a raucous performance, but I thought after their set finished more people would have climbed the stairs to give a band they didn't know a chance. I'm disappointed that that wasn't the case.
But they're the ones that missed out, because by taking a risk and popping upstairs I saw one of the most dynamic shows of my life. Within moments of taking to the stage their energy level was astounding, and it's easy to see how they've become such regulars at performing in arenas and stadiums across the world.
I hadn't heard of the band before, but you could tell that there were people in the room who had: all of the people who stood at the barrier sang every single word back to Tyler, reaching out for his hand and yelling and screaming at the end of each song. Despite the poor turnout, the fans who were in attendance made the show unforgettable: their enthusiasm showed how much they cared about the band, and that was far more important than having a room full of disinterested listeners.
Tyler reminds me of The Struts vocalist Luke Spiller, who also has bountiful levels of swagger - and a penchant for wearing scarves and layered necklaces - when he's on stage. Musically, I found myself drawing comparisons to Highly Suspect and Royal Blood, but it's hard to directly compare Tyler Carter and the Shakedown to anyone: they act like a much more experienced band with their crazily extended guitar solos and impromptu jam sessions. It's hard to believe that they've been together for less than ten years and that their debut album 'Wild Child' was only released in 2013. 

Each member is an asset, and they all have an unquenchable chemistry. Tyler was dancing across the stage towards guitarist Graham Whitford, and when they leaned back against each other playing their guitars they both had the widest smiles on their face, loving every second that they were on stage with each other. Drummer Caleb Crosby is definitely a loose cannon, wandering around the stage with a tambourine during 'House That Jack Built' and taking half of his drum kit down to the crowd to play a huge drum solo during 'Lipstick Wonder Woman', sitting casually on the barrier and handing his sticks out to fans before jumping back on to the stage.
Tyler shared that it was "an honour to be in the UK" with "my best buds in the world. We all just love rock 'n' roll" and that they "would do this even if you didn't show up, but the fact that you showed up means a lot". I wish that more people had turned up for the band's first trip to Oxford, but I'm actually grateful that I've managed to see them in such an intimate environment - in years to come, when they're headlining venues ten times the size of this one, I'll be able to look back on this very special moment with joy.
I was sad when the band had to finish their set, because I was having such a brilliant time. They had to finish before Skindred took to the stage, though, so they had less than an hour on stage, but they stuffed in with hit after hit. I can't wait to listen to this band more in the future.

Setlist:

Devil's Keep

Criminal Imagination

House On Fire

Downtown Tonight

Got My Mojo Workin' cover

Stitch It Up 

House That Jack Built

Lipstick Wonder Woman

Skindred - Oxford O2 Academy, 12/11/16

While Skindred were performing downstairs, there was another band upstairs: Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown. Their ticket sales were rather low, so the venue had a special offer: if you were a Skindred ticket holder, you could get free entry to the upstairs venue. Of course, I took advantage of this opportunity, turning the day into a mini-festival! My review of the other show will be up soon: I'll edit the link in here as soon as it's finished.

I've nearly attended a couple of Evarose shows in the past: being from Banbury, they're a fairly local band. Sadly, life has always gotten in the way, so this was my first time actually seeing the four girls live.
I walked in towards the end of 'Glitch', startled to see that the room was already filled to bursting. I've seen some poor turnouts for opening acts recently, and I was ecstatic to see Evarose had attracted such an eager crowd. It must help that they're local to Oxford: they play a lot of shows in the city, so I'm sure a lot of the people in attendance had heard of them before even if they hadn't yet seen them live. But being a group made up entirely of girls, I'd been nervous in case they didn't get the crowd response they deserved.
I was wrong to be worried about something like that. The audience were extremely receptive, hollering and hooting at the end of each song and filling the venue with applause. Vocalist Dannika Webber has a very powerful voice, and she shines when she's on stage. With such a charismatic frontwoman it's difficult to dislike Evarose, and even though some of their songs sounded similar I found myself enjoying the set despite that, and their half an hour stage time flew past.
I think I might prefer Imogen Leslie's backing vocal to Dannika's main vocal, which was something I hadn't realised until seeing them live. She elevates 'Provoke Me' to another level, but I think it's the contrast between the two vocals that makes it such a powerful moment.
I always love seeing and supporting bands with female members, because a lot of them have a tough time cracking into the industry. I'm so glad that Evarose got this opportunity, and I'm looking forward to seeing them again in the future.

Setlist:

Glitch

Shedding Skin

Telephonic

The Cause and the Cure

Provoke Me

Vice

I didn't stick around for much of Raging Speedhorn. I hadn't even heard of them this time last year, and now I've seen them three times in six months! From the songs I did hear 'Bring Out Your Dead' stood out the most: even though the band have existed for almost 20 years they've still got a talent for songwriting. Their new album, 'Lost Ritual', was released back in July - if you're a fan of heavier music and screaming vocals, I'd definitely suggest you give it a listen.

I was more excited about discovering new music, which is why I left their set, but based on the scream of "Oxford, I see a whole lot of fucking people and no fucking movement. What the fuck?" I can imagine the end of the set was much more explosive than the already riotous beginning.

This was also my third time seeing Skindred this year, after many many failed attempts. Opening their set by playing 'Hey Ho, Let's Go' by The Ramones, AC/DC's 'Thunderstruck' (ironic, as the band upstairs - the previously mentioned Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown - supported AC/DC on their UK and European tour earlier in the year, their very first visit to the UK) and 'The Imperial March' by John Williams over the speakers, ten minutes of their stage time evaporated before the band had even appeared.
This was the only thing I didn't particularly enjoy about Skindred's set.
Their hour and a half stage time only featured eleven of their own tracks, because a huge chunk of the set was dedicated to playing pieces of backing tracks. The three intro songs, the tongue-in-cheek sampling of Justin Bieber's 'Sorry' and a half-assed cover of House of Pain's 'Jump Around' all came in the bulk of their set, and their one song encore was cushioned by a jokey song about "wearing Peter Griffin's waistcoat", a brief bit of Black Sabbath with the screech of "heavy fuckin' metal!" and the speakers playing 'Nobody Does It Better' by Carly Simon as the band left the stage. That's eight songs that weren't their own.
I had a lot of fun at this show. I was very disappointed when I saw Skindred at Download and didn't get to see much of their main stage appearance at Reading Festival, so this was easily the best I'd seen the band before. It's just dissatisfying that they could have performed a lot more songs if they'd just stopped messing around and relying on cheap tricks.
If they didn't have such brilliant and energetic songs, it would make sense. But when their setlist is filled with catchy tracks like 'Doom Riff' and 'Trouble' they don't need to fall back on other people's music to make fans enjoy their set. Even before they were on stage everyone in the room was dancing, bouncing and throwing their drinks in the air, and when the band came out they built the crowd into a frenzy of jumping and arm-waving, making this one of the sweatiest and most exciting concerts I'd been to in a very long time.
Vocalist Benji Webb isn't afraid of speaking his mind and, despite the audience being up in the thousands, at times it felt as though he was speaking to everyone individually, making the night feel extremely intimate.
Towards the beginning of the set he enthused that coming to a Skindred show wasn't "coming to another fucking concert. You're coming to make friends and have a good time. If you hate fucking gay people? Get the fuck out. If you hate bisexual people, get the fuck out. If you hate Muslims, get the fuck out. If you hate niggers like me, get the fuck out. At a Skindred show, everybody is welcome. [...] We are all soldiers of the Skindred army now." Making a speech like that in the same week that Donald Trump was elected as president and riots kicked off across America, it was extremely poignant, and it wasn't surprising at all that the crowd roared in agreement.
But his speeches weren't always so positive. Introducing acoustic track 'Saying It Now', he told a heartbreaking story about his friend Shaun, who died from cancer. "He told me to come back and see him another day," he shared, "and I said Shaun, I will mate, I will. But life gets in the way of all the things you should fucking do." I wasn't surprised when he admitted that he turned up on Shaun's doorstep, finally finding the time to go and see his friend, only to be told that he'd passed away that same morning. "If there's anybody in your life that you keep putting off, go and fucking see them," he demanded. "I never told him I loved him. I never said 'I love you, bro', and that's what fucks me off to this day. I couldn't share my love with him because I couldn't go round to his fucking house. Bullshit." I wasn't the only one that was nearly in tears, and I was touched by the fact that Benji was willing to share a story so personal with his fans. It's moments like that that make Skindred feel more like friends than a famous rock band.
I was disgusted by the fact that a large proportion of the crowd talked over every word that Benji said, and a lot of them continued talking while the song started. When a band are playing an acoustic song it's obvious if people are talking and not paying attention, but when it's a song that has such a deep meaning it's horrendous for people to be so oblivious to the pain laced through every word that Benji was singing. By the end of the song the entire crowd had fallen silent, attention captivated by the power in his voice as he reflected "I'm saying it now, but I wish I'd said it before". A good amount of people got their lighters and torches up in the air, particularly after Benji encouraged them and said "this is the part where you get your phones out!", but it shouldn't have been so difficult for the headline band to get the respect that they deserved from their crowd. Unfortunately this utter disregard for acoustic songs and artists seems to be a prevailing attitude at shows recently, something that I hope will change sooner rather than later, as the acoustic moments should be the most special and memorable in a non-stop evening like this.
Other than that, I think the crowd made this evening for me. Just like the soldiers Benji stated they were, they followed his every command as though he was their commander, putting both hands up in the air when he demanded it, feet off the floor more than on it when he kept asking them to bounce. Nearly everyone in the room participated when Benji told them to crouch down and jump up, but no reaction was as explosive as the one during 'Warning', in which the crowd performs the Newport Helicopter - taking their shirts off and spinning them around their heads in a whirlwind of movement.
While this wasn't the best show I've ever been to, the energy was astounding and it's been a long time since I've left a concert having had so much fun. Benji shared at the beginning of the set that they "ain't played Oxford in a long time" but had played since "there were 25 people in the Zodiac", so I wouldn't be surprised if they chose to return to a place that's given them so many memories. If you didn't get tickets to this show because it sold out, make sure to buy your tickets earlier next time they tour: I promise you that you won't be disappointed.

Setlist:

Under Attack

Rat Race

Doom Riff

Ninja

Jump Around cover

Sound The Siren

Pressure

Trouble

Saying It Now acoustic

Kill The Power

Nobody

-

Warning

Tigercub - The Bullingdon, Oxford, 06/11/16

The last time I saw Elasea was at their headline show in Swindon all the way back in January, and they were the reason I decided to go to this gig. In the last ten months they've been hard at work, finalizing their new line-up (including the addition of Braydie Haskell on keyboard) and working on new material, and this is a much more confident version of the band than the one I saw at the beginning of the year.
The change in vocalist Andy Bradford is astounding. Whereas before he left the majority of the movement to Liv Jones and Calum Radmore, who would spin and jump across the stage in whirlwind of energy, now he's filled with a new lust for life, throwing himself into every song and owning his role as the frontman. It's impossible to choose who to look at when they're all so enthusiastic throughout every second of their stage time.
I've loved watching Elasea grow and develop over the last year and a half since discovering them when they opened for Funeral For a Friend just down the road, and I think 2017 is going to be their biggest year yet. Song like 'Walls' and 'Breathe' show a new direction for the band, with Liv taking more of a role as co-vocalist which really complements Andy's voice. I wasn't expecting them to cover 'The Hills', but the way they reworked the song and put their own twist on it has me highly anticipating what they'll do next.
Speaking to Liv after their set, she gave me the inside info that their next EP should be coming out fairly early in 2017. If you haven't already listened to their first EP, 'Where I Belong', just yet, you should definitely do that - they played two songs off of the EP, 'Glass Heart' and 'Time Is Against Us', and even though I'm really enjoying the sound of the new material I think the earlier songs still win in a live environment. 

Setlist:

Walls 

On My Own

The Hills (The Weeknd cover)

Breathe

Time Stops

Glass Heart

Time Is Against Us

A late addition to the bill, main support Cassels had the advantage over the other two bands as this was practically a hometown show (the duo hailing from Chipping Norton, less than an hour down the road). Having received radio play and been featured in DIY Magazine in the last month or so, there's a buzz beginning to surround these two, and I wasn't surprised at all to see a large crowd of people at the barrier wearing their merch and singing along to almost every word of their set.
The best way to describe their sound is eclectic. 'Sights For Sore Eyes' starts off with a roaring intro that morphs into a dancier vibe, playing around with abrupt stops and crashing restarts reminiscent of a rollercoaster ride. 'Well Fed Worms In A Graveyard' times in at just over 30 seconds, so when vocalist Jim Beck introduces it as a "quick one" he's not exaggerating.
Contrasting both of those frenetic, pull-no-punches tracks with the quieter 'Ignoring All The Tunnels and Lights' was proof that these two aren't afraid to play around with different styles, ignoring the boundaries between genres and doing what they damn well feel like. Introducing the track, Jim stated that because it was quieter it was their "most romantic one", following up with the information that "it's not at all: it's about getting old and refusing to die" to which Loz Beck, drummer quipped, "pretty sexy!". When Jim said he would go up to girls using the chat-up line "Do you wanna die alone? Hi, my name's Jim," Loz laughed, saying "Works every time...".
If you didn't work it out thanks to the surnames, the band members are actually brothers. It makes the relationship between the two absolutely magnetic: they know each other so well that they're weirdly in sync. There was a moment when Jim was in the middle of tuning his guitar, his reverb going in the background to fill the silence, and he turned it off at the exact same moment Loz crashed against his drums. It sounded brilliant, and Jim shouted that it was "nearly the best thing [they'd] ever done". It takes a lot of time and practice for band members to be able to bounce off each other like that, and Cassels definitely have an advantage by being related.
My only complaint was that Jim needed to retune his guitar between after almost every song. I was getting lost in every song, completely absorbed and focused intently on their music, but as soon as the tuning started it broke the spell. It's not his fault - it's something that happens to all musicians - but it was a little frustrating. Other than that, the set was completely flawless, which is something I haven't seen from a smaller band like this for a long time.
If you close your eyes while listening to Cassels you would have no idea that there were only two men on stage. It's non-stop, unrestrained rock that verges on pop and grunge in equal measures. Loz is currently at university in Hatfield, so I'm thinking the focus is going to be completely on the band as soon as he graduates. These guys could be extremely big in a couple of years time.
If you like your music to be intellectually simulating - the kind that always keeps you guessing about where exactly it's going to go next - Cassels are going to be your new favourite band.

Setlist:

Sights For Sore Eyes

Coup

Flock Analogy

Well Fed Worms In A Graveyard

Ignoring All The Tunnels and Lights

Beach Baby

Hating Is Easy

Cool Box

I hadn't heard of Tigercub before this show, so I had no idea what to expect. When the lights went off before the band took to the stage, 'Drop It Like It's Hot' by Snoop Dogg piping through the sound system, I was instantly entertained: a band that have good intro music always grab my attention and get me pumped for their set to begin.
However, that was the most exciting moment of their set. The lights stayed low, a brief flashing of the strobe light above the stage being the only thing that illuminated the three band members at any point during their set. It was almost impossible to see them through the gloomy, smoke-filled room, and as they moved from song to song hardly interacting with the crowd it began to feel like it was going to be a never-ending night.
If vocalist Jamie Hall had made more of an effort to involve the crowd, it would have been a completely different story. The turnout was remarkably good for a cold, wet Sunday, and if Jamie had asked them to step forward or fill the barrier it would have increased the atmosphere monumentally. Instead he gave up after one sentence, shouting "don't respond!" with frustration. When mentioning their upcoming album, 'Abstract Fears In The Dark', he also seemed quite abrasive, stating "you don't have to buy it, but if you don't want to buy it you don't have to. Fuckers, I'll talk all night. Number one tip for being in a band? Tell your audience to go fuck themselves. That's how it's supposed to be".
Uncomfortable, to say the least. There's having a rock'n'roll attitude, and then there's just being insolent. It did get a couple of chuckles from the people in attendance, but after the fun that Elasea and Cassels brought to the stage earlier in the evening, it was more of a rude awakening for me. 

Most of their songs sound exactly the same, but I did enjoy 'Burning Effigies', which was more stripped back and had far more complex lyrics than other songs they played (such as 'Bittersweet Motherfucker', which does exactly what it says on the tin) and 'You', with its melancholy "there's a hole in my head and it makes me forget about you" refrain.
If you like Nirvana but wish they were a little less energetic, I'd definitely recommend Tigercub. I'm afraid they just weren't my cup of tea.

Setlist:

Drop It Like It's Hot intro

Antiseptic

Omen

Rich Boy

Bittersweet Motherfucker

Burning Effigies

You

Pictures of You

Unfortunately I had to leave before the end of the show, so I'm not completely certain on what other songs they played - I do know that 'Destroy' made an appearance though!

Dance Gavin Dance - Oxford O2 Academy 2, 03/11/16

I don't think anyone attending the show was expecting Kurt Travis's set to have such an early start time, because when he took to the stage there were merely a handful of people in the room. 

It was a crying shame, because his solo material is beautiful. From the sprawling 'The Valar' which times in at over 5 minutes, to the uniquely crafted 'Stay Please' with its first verse made entirely of one-syllable words, Kurt's 10+ years in the music industry have made him a highly accomplished song writer.

There were moments whene his voice sounded a little rough and as though he was struggling to hit the high notes, but rather than detracting from the set it added to the emotion that was pouring from the songs. 

Closing with the bittersweet and mournful 'Desperate' Kurt reminsced "I remember you used to light up the room, and to me you still do. I feel like I'm losing you. I'm starting to feel desperate", a sentiment which is going to be easy to relate to for the majority of listeners. We're lucky that he managed to squeeze it into his set, as before he started the song he announced that he only had a minute of his stage time left and he was only able to "play for about thirty seconds". Thankfully he wasn't interrupted, and it was a special moment for him to finish his set on.

Setlist:

The Valar
Wha Happen?

Stay Please
Everything Is Horrible

Desperate

After half an hour Kurt was back on stage, this time to play guitar for Jonny Craig. The vocalist joked as he walked out on the stage that he was "gonna play the shortest set I've probably ever played in my life" and he wasn't lying, his three song set comprising of one original song and two covers. 

It was my second time seeing Jonny perform live - the first being with Slaves, during their triumphant Download festival return at the start of summer - and while this felt more impressive I was disappointed that it was so brief. I know that was the point of the shorter acoustic sets, but for Travis to perform almost double the amount of songs that Jonny did while Jonny's set was later in the night? That didn't make much sense to me.
He doesn't need a full band around him, and this stripped back set showcased and complemented Jonny's voice, particularly on his cover of 'Cry Me A River', during which Kurt Travis contributed backing vocals in the form of the call and response line "Don't act like you don't know it". The chemistry between the two men is a joy to watch - Kurt feeding lyrics to Jonny during 'Rolling Stone' which he admitted they "hadn't tried [...] for a bit", and both of them cracking up after Kurt's aforementioned high-pitched line in 'Cry Me A River'. The two men perform brilliantly together, and there wasn't a moment of the set that fell short. I'd love to see this collaboration do more in the future.
It felt as though the majority of the crowd were there to see Jonny's return, as there were hollers and whoops every time he performed a vocal trick as though we were attending some kind of hardcore gospel church. He certainly has a talent, and he's a force to be reckoned with, but the problem with Jonny is that he knows it. His confidence verges on arrogance at times, and that won't fly for long.

Setlist:

Children of Divorce

Rolling Stone (The Weeknd cover)

Cry Me A River (Justin Timberlake cover) 

I already had tickets to the show when Good Tiger announced on stage at Download festival that they were going to be the main support for this tour, but I didn't really know anything about them at that point. Since then I've discovered that Good Tiger are a supergroup comprising of ex-members of Tesseract, The Faceless, The Safety Fire and an ex-touring member of Architects.
A lot of people were attending purely for the chance to see this new and exciting band in an intimate setting, proven when Kurt asked the crowd how many of them had heard of Good Tiger and there was a roar of cheers, one member of the audience even quipping "Very Good Tiger!".
I will admit: I had problems with their set. Plagued with mic troubles, vocalist Elliot Coleman was either completely inaudible or straining to be heard over the rest of the band, particularly over the drums which seemed to be overpowering every other instrument. Those issues wouldn't have been the fault of the band, but it still made it difficult to enjoy when I could see his voice moving and couldn't decipher anything he was singing.
Those sound issues were probably the entire reason that I didn't feel as impressed with them at this show as I did at their festival appearance. The energy level was higher, the members all refusing to stand still as they performed and the crowd starting a new moshpit in the middle of every song, but there was a disconnect that I couldn't get over.
(While I'm mentioning moshpits, big shout out to the guy who was stood at the side picking up everyone who fell down despite not being involved himself - there's good etiquette!)
As well as playing 'Aspirations', the song that they've recently shot a music video for, they also inserted a brand new song into the set: 'Float On'. Having all come from other bands it's no surprise that they're musically competent and this was proven by their ability to get every member of the crowd headbanging and moshing to a song that they would have hardly known.
It's just a shame that it sounded so very familiar to the rest of the songs in their set. I'm not going to accuse Good Tiger of being one-trick ponies, because they haven't released enough material to really be able to tell, but they know what they're good at and they're not going to deviate too far from that format. 

Setlist:
Snake Oil
I Paint What I See
Aspirations
Float On
All Her Own Teeth
Where Are The Birds

Dance Gavin Dance are no strangers to line-up changes, but they might be one of the first who've decided to honour their ten year anniversary by bringing their two ex-vocalists along for the ride with them. To get them on board for guest appearances is one thing, but to showcase them by allowing them to do solo acoustic sets? That's undeniable proof that there's no bad blood between these men.
I'm not sure if it was nerves, this being their first time back on UK soils in almost four years and the special guest appearances rapidly approaching, but screamer Jon Mess seemed extremely uncomfortable and disinterested throughout the first half of the set. It seemed as though he was going through the motions, and it was very stiff and uncomfortable to watch compared to the fluid movements of current vocalist Tilian Pearson who was dancing around the stage uninhibited.
But even Jon's nerves couldn't take away from the electricity that was buzzing around the venue throughout their entire set. With songs featuring backing vocals from both guitarist Will Swan and touring guitarist Andrew Wells, the layering adding a complexity that elevates the songs to another level.
It came to a head at the end of the night during 'Uneasy Hearts Weigh The Most', which featured appearances from not just the ex-vocalists but from Tilian too. You'd think four vocalists on one stage - as well as two backing vocalists - would be too much, but the gang vocal that weaves throughout the song and the call and response "Oh my god I like her!" "Yeah, I heard you like her..." works much better with a larger group. The fact that all of the members were joking around with each other during the song definitely added to the atmosphere, as you can see from when they performed it in America.
That's what I really came away with from this show: my favourite era of Dance Gavin Dance is all of them. I loved the enthusiasm that Kurt displayed, particularly at the end of 'Carl Barker' when he was struggling to catch his breath after all the running around, announcing "That one's a doozie!". I've always been a fan of Jonny Craig, and even though the sight of him spitting on stage was a tad off-putting it just added to the swagger that defines every single one of his performances.
But despite the fact that this evening was a celebration of their past vocals and achievements, Tilian still shined. He's the newest member of the band, but he's definitely an integral part, and I think the direction that they've gone in with brand new album 'Mothership' proves that this band might be 10 years old, but it won't be surprising if they go for another ten years at least. They've been very lucky to replace one talented vocalist with another time and again - I just hope Tilian sticks around. 

Setlist:
Chucky vs. The Giant Tortoise
Stroke God, Millionaire
On The Run
Strawberry Swisher, Pt. 3
Betrayed By The Game
Tree Village (ft. Kurt Travis)
Carl Barker (ft. Kurt Travis)
Alex English (ft. Kurt Travis)
Spooks (ft. Jonny Craig)
Lemon Meringue Tie (ft. Jonny Craig)
And I Told Them I Invented Times New Roman (ft. Jonny Craig)
-
Uneasy Hearts Weigh The Most (ft. Kurt Travis and Jonny Craig)
We Own The Night

#BLOGTOBER DAY 24: Fort Hope - The Cellar, Oxford, 22/10/16

Openers A Way With Words are from Swindon, same as me, but I hadn't heard of them until they were added as the local act at this show which was a nice surprise.
With a sound that verges on nu-metal at times - most noticeably on the currently unreleased 'Somewhere' - they wouldn't have been out of place among bands like Papa Roach and Limp Bizkit back in the early '00s. Combining that with their technical guitar work and repetitive lyrics (sometimes almost unbearably so) means that they do seem a little dated: it feels like you're listening to a band who've been touring for over ten years, not one who released their debut EP merely two years ago.
But reviving a sound that's not currently getting much recognition isn't a bad thing, and A Way With Words are standing out from other local bands by choosing to explore this side of the genre. They certainly know what music they want to make and are dedicating themselves to perfecting a style that is difficult to master.
A good chunk of the songs in this set haven't been officially released yet (you can explore their current releases on Soundcloud) but I can tell you that they're the sounds of a band who're going to go on to do bigger things. 'Days Get Darker' was certainly a memorable moment of their set, which, along with the rifftastic closer 'Paper Thin', are songs you won't be able to get out of your head once you've heard them.
I'm going to keep an eye on these four and hopefully go along next time they play a show in Swindon, because they have a lot of promise.

Setlist:
Mr Anger
Over The Top
Days Get Darker
Crowded
Drowning
Somewhere
Paper Thin

Ashestoangels blew me away at Download, and it was the first time I left one of their shows feeling utterly impressed. Losing bassist Nico Veneré was the best thing that could have happened to them: it gave the band a new lease of life when they'd started to flag.
Their set was used to promote their newer material, performing a whopping six songs from brand new album 'How To Bleed', released back in April, and three songs from 2014's 'Horror Cult'. It was my tenth time seeing the band (thanks to festival sets and support slots) but it felt like a completely different show thanks to the removal of older songs like 'Dorian' and 'Wintervention', both of which have been constant staples in their set.
This change wasn't disappointing: it was refreshing.
Vocalist Adam Crilly always throws himself around the stage, but his energy seems to have been refuelled by getting to perform this new material. I was five rows from the front and was still getting splattered by the sweat flicking off of his newly red-streaked hair - that's an impressive feat! Compared to the tension that plagued their live shows twelve months ago, this is a band that have never been happier, and their sets are now a joy to watch. The new members elevate the songs to the next level, with synths and backing vocals adding layers to songs that were previously rather basic, and I think these new additions might be all that was needed to properly launch Ashestoangels from a DIY underground band to more mainstream realms.
They've been constantly supported by the scene for the past few years, with articles in Kerrang! and support slots from William Control and Aiden to the soon-to-be finished FVK, and that combined with their hard work seems to be allowing them to finally get the recognition they deserve. If the professionalism of the lyrics and the polished nature of the new songs is anything to go by, Ashestoangels next album could be their most successful to date.
If you want to see an energetic live performance, I'd highly suggest you attend an Ashestoangels show. 

Setlist:
Not In My Name
The Wake
I Could Never Miss You
Bound and Broken
Something To Believe
666
Down We Go
The Ghost in the Machine
Run

It's been a long time since I've actively listened to Fort Hope.
I sheltered from the rain in their tent at Download and found myself unimpressed, but there was no reaction from the crowd (the majority of who were also only in there to keep dry) so I wondered if that might have been the source of the disconnect.
Now I'm thinking it might be the band themselves.
The reaction at the Cellar was electric. A large chunk of the audience were wearing Ashestoangels shirts so I'd worried that the place was going to empty before Fort Hope could start, but more people crammed in and filled the floor almost to bursting. When the band took to the stage, the dubstep-esque intro seguing into new single 'Say No', the room exploded with movement despite the song only being released earlier in the week.
The thing about Fort Hope is, they're not unique.
With riffs that could be straight out of Don Broco songs, and drum beats that are almost carbon copies of You Me At Six tunes, Fort Hope are an amalgamation of the best parts of the current UK rock scene, but they don't have a USP.
Vocalist Jon Gaskin has an insane range, but with their formulaic writing style he performs the same tricks multiple times in an evening. Instead of being consistently impressive they quickly become predictable. With high notes that almost - but don't quite - rival those of Kellin Quinn from Sleeping With Sirens, and roaring low notes that wouldn't sound out of place in a hardcore band, it feels as though Fort Hope are trying to cultivate a mass appeal by using multiple techniques... but they don't know what music they want to create yet.
You can feel it in the contrast between the boringly repetitive 'That's The Way The River Flows' and the upbeat 'Sick'. The band seem to get more serious with every song they put out, but two years ago ('Sick' being a track on their self-titled second EP) they were having fun, and it was coming across in the music they were making. Jon introduced 'Sick' by dedicating it to someone in the crowd called Ben, saying "it's a funny song really, because it's about telling someone... Actually, no! I'm not gonna say it, it's too rude!". Proof that they have good senses of humour and could get the crowd laughing if they would just interact with them a little bit more, something that would make their set more memorable.
I wonder whether the departure of founding member Andé D'Mello has anything to do with this shift, because it all seems to have gotten very introspective and brooding since he left.
It also doesn't help that they aren't committing themselves to releasing a full-length album. They released mini-album 'Courage' back in 2014, but since then it's been EP after EP, with 'A R m U R E', - their third consecutive EP - being released on December 2nd. When Jon mentioned this there were groans from the crowd, with someone stood behind me shouting "Not another EP!".
I wish I was exaggerating. If the band don't feel comfortable releasing a more cohesive collection of songs, I think they're going to find themselves alienating fans quicker than they can attract them.
It's a crying shame, because they're brilliant at performing live. All three members are insanely talented, and if they weren't releasing songs that sounded so much like already successful tracks, they'd quickly become a force to be reckoned with in a scene that's crying out for 'New Life'.
I think Fort Hope need to take a break to re-evaluate what they want to do with this band, because at the moment it feels as though they're struggling to stay afloat.

Setlist:
Say No
That's The Way The River Flows
Start Again
Skies
Run Fast
Sick
New Life
Tears
Crosses (*)
The Rapture (*)
Plans (*)

(*) Thanks to Oxford Gigbot for the end of the setlist - I had to leave early!

#BLOGTOBER DAY 15: You Me At Six - Oxford O2 Academy, 14/10/16

I was very impressed by VANT.
I briefly attended their set at Reading festival and I think I must have arrived at the wrong time, because I left feeling disinterested, unexcited about seeing them in this support slot. The second they started - the stuttering "C-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-call me" of 'The Answer' grabbing the attention of every person already in the venue - I was obsessed.
VANT stuffed their half an hour stage time to the brim with songs you could dance to, particularly 'Parking Lot' with its repeated "Wait a minute, cause your heart's not in it" chant. New single 'Peace & Love' was only released earlier this week, and its upbeat nature meant it already fitted perfectly with a set that was absolutely frenetic.
But it wasn't just the ability to dance to VANT that made them so appealing. 'Birth Certificate' is a very relevant discussion of immigration in the wake of Brexit ("Our legislation is so black and white/Immigration laws can't change overnight/Reminds me that you have to go home"), while 'Fly-By Alien' is from the viewpoint of an alien looking down on our species, announcing "That race is gonna kill itself, there'll be nothing left, we can take, take the shell".
Writing in the same vein as Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. (now Recreations.), it's brilliant to hear an upcoming UK band being so vocal regarding their political views from the very start of their set, announcing themselves by shouting "We are VANT, from Planet Earth!". It's been a long time since I've heard such a scathing review of attitudes to immigration and border control in a rock song - particularly one that's played regularly on the radio - and if this is what VANT have managed within their first two years of being a band, they're going to do a hell of a lot with their very bright future.

Setlist:
The Answer
Welcome to the Wonderful World of Berners Lee
Peace & Love
Birth Certificate
Parasite
Time & Money
Karma Seeker
Parking Lot
Fly-By Alien
Do You Know Me?

You Me At Six have grown up.
Three years ago, this would have been a predictable set filled with high octane numbers, jumping from single to single with little to no risks. The crowd would have loved every moment, but there would have been none of the rise and fall that is the sign of a truly legendary band. No political agenda, no provocative comments, nothing that made them special in a scene with figureheads like the inspirationally mouthy Enter Shikari.
You Me At Six were inoffensive, bland, vanilla.
But a year away has changed everything.
After lackluster fourth album 'Cavalier Youth', You Me At Six have taken the time away to reevaluate exactly what they're doing with their career. New singles 'Night People' and 'Plus One' have demonstrated a return to form, more reminiscent of the jolting 'Sinners Never Sleep' than the chilled out indie-rock of their latest release.
Now vocalist Josh Franceschi seems unafraid to use his microphone to preach to avid listeners. "I can't go back to being on tour and not do something bigger than ourselves, we need to do something that's bigger than You Me At Six," he shared, before joining the masses in slating presidential candidate Donald Trump, claiming him to be "one deluded man with a long big fucking microphone, talking a lot of shit" regarding people of different skin tones and sexual orientations and genders. He admitted that the band "might not be able to reach as many people as him" but had been "writing songs about this shit, but we've just never spoken about it openly", and this - combined with his recent vow to eliminate ticket touts - shows the band starting their new era in an extremely powerful way.
It's not just their words that have improved. Their setlist was the best they'd ever performed: intelligent, alternating between slow, tender moments and singalongs that left you breathless with the energy surging through the crowd. You Me At Six are at their best when they perform in smaller venues, and anyone who passed up the opportunity to see them on this tour has missed out on intimate shows unlikely to be repeated.
They started and ended their set with big surprises. Choosing 'When We Were Younger' as their opening song - a mournful ballad looking back on their youth - would normally suck the life out of a room, but the gradually building "oh, ohh-oh, ohh-oh" chant was an electric spark charging the crowd, ready to explode when they burst into 'Bite My Tongue', a song that has always been in the latter half of their shows.
The main part of the set was wrapped up with Josh's speech, which served as an introduction to the poignant and relatable 'Too Young To Feel This Old'. Whereas before I've called it boring and lazy, by cutting out the repetitive bridge ('"I'm just a boy", he said/"I'm just a girl," she said/"We're in love," they said/What happens next, who cares?') it made the song so much more mature, breathing life back into something that had previously seemed juvenile and pointless.
Reintroducing 'Safer To Hate Her' (which they haven't played live for four years) was a special treat for early fans disappointed with the lack of material from 'Take Off Your Colours', but I can't imagine anyone being able to complain about the expertly blended mixture of songs old and new.
Talking of new songs, they are superb. I'd already seen 'Plus One' and 'Night People' at their secret Reading festival set but they were too new to make an impact (both being live debuts, with 'Night People' released a mere five days before). At this show, they finally received the reaction they deserved. 'Plus One' is the heaviest song that the band have released in years, and with Josh roaring "I want you when I need you, every single night and day" it's a promising glimpse at the potential aggression bubbling under the surface of the new album. Closing the entire show with 'Night People' was a risk, but as You Me At Six proved tonight, they're no longer averse to those. It went down brilliantly, a mosh pit starting during penultimate track 'Room To Breathe' and not stopping until the band had left the stage.
'Swear' received its live debut on this tour, so the only people in the room that would have been familiar with it were those who had already attended a prior date. Despite the lack of familiarity it still managed to get people shifting, and while it's less energetic than the other two I'm sure it's going to grow on me with time.
This is a band that have taken themselves too seriously in the past, but finally seem to be relaxing and experimenting with what they can do. With Josh fumbling the words on 'Stay With Me' (switching a line from the second verse into the first verse) before sampling 'When You Were Young' by The Killers at the end of 'Reckless', the brand new ending to 'Too Young To Feel This Old' and a stripped back intro to 'Bite My Tongue' allowing the crowd to carry the song, this seems like a band who're finally allowing themselves to play around with their music, rather than striving for perfection.
With Josh announcing that the new album is "gonna kick your balls into your mouth", I want January to hurry up so I can finally hear it in its entirety. You Me At Six are back, and they're better than ever.

Setlist:
When We Were Younger
Bite My Tongue
Fresh Start Fever
Loverboy
Safer To Hate Her
Stay With Me
Little Death
Plus One
Reckless (When You Were Young sample)
Forgive and Forget
Lived a Lie
Swear
Win Some Lose Some
Underdog
Too Young To Feel This Old
-
No One Does It Better
Room To Breathe
Night People

I'm attending another two You Me At Six shows this year (I know, I'm an addict!) and while I'm unlikely to write an in-depth post about their show at Shepherd's Bush Empire on the 24th - almost certainly the same set they played in Oxford - I'll definitely be reviewing their sold out show at the minuscule Dingwalls in Camden for the Dr Martens Stand For Something tour.

Lower Than Atlantis - Oxford O2 Academy 2, 24/08/16

Strange Bones were a late addition to this show, being announced after it had already sold out, so not many members of the crowd had heard of them before. That didn't stop them from trying their hardest to engage the audience, and while it didn't exactly pay off they certainly put on a good show.
With their vocalist pacing across the stage, throwing himself into every second of their stage time and even performing an entire song out in the middle of the crowd, you couldn't accuse him of being complacent. Encouraging the crowd to chant along at multiple "woah-oh" moments, including that explosive opening to closer 'God Save The Teen', they had minimal response but that didn't dampen their enthusiasm. There was moshing and dancing towards the end of the set, but it felt as though Strange Bones hit their stride as the set was coming to a close. They need to concentrate on finding a way to engage the crowd earlier, especially with them only performing 20 minutes out of their 30 minute stage time.
I'd listened to Strange Bones in preparation for Reading festival (they're performing on the Lock Up stage on the Sunday) and I enjoyed their recorded music more than their live performance, but that's something that will improve with experience and a few more shows under their belts. They're stronger musically than vocally, but with this punk-infused sound making a comeback through bands like Slaves, Strange Bones couldn't have picked a better time to start making an impact on the scene. 

Setlist:
Intro
Pussy Galore's Flying Circus
S O I A (Sick of it All)
-
We The Rats
Give Me The Sun (Death To Fascists)
God Save The Teen

This is the third time I've seen Milk Teeth this year, following their Tonight Alive support slot and my brief visit to their set at Download. 2016 has been Milk Teeth's year, and the fact that they're playing halfway up the Pit on Saturday - at their debut Reading festival appearance, no less - is astounding.
Despite the fact that six months have passed, Milk Teeth are still playing the same set (with the exception of 'Burger Drop', which has been cut) and I'm assuming it'll be the same again at their Reading performance.
I don't really have anything different to say: I still admire the fact that they're bringing back the old-school female-fronted punk vibe, but playing the same set means there's nothing new to add.
'Kabuki' didn't work as well in front of this crowd. It was a jarring moment that contrasted oddly to the rest of the set, and a lot of people just talked through it: rude, but it shows that Milk Teeth need to think a bit more about the audience they're performing to instead of bashing out the same songs every time. This is something that'll get easier when they release more music and have more to choose between, because they only have an EP and an album at the moment which doesn't offer much variety.

Setlist:
Brain Food
Brickwork
Crows Feet
Melon Blade
Swear Jar
Kabuki
No Fun
Vitamins

Lower Than Atlantis disappointed me at this show.
That's not something I ever thought I'd say - I've seen headline shows and festival appearances and I've never left less than satisfied - but I think it's something a lot of fans were feeling after they walked offstage after 40 minutes, without saying thank you or even goodnight.
Don't get me wrong, I can understand why they did it: tickets were cheap, they needed an opportunity to practice before Reading, but I still felt a little cheated. Never before have I seen a band leave the stage, confusing their crowd so completely that they couldn't even chant for an encore. The entire room stood eagerly anticipating the band returning until the house lights snapped on and security began ushering people out of the building, no explanation as to why the end of the show was so abrupt.
The band tweeted afterwards explaining that the show was short because they needed to practice the exact set they'd be performing at Reading, but that feels like a cheap excuse to me. Did any of the band make the effort to shout "this is our last song!" after 'English Kids in America', before the riff to 'Here We Go' kicked in? Nope. If they had, at least the crowd would have been anticipating and accepting of the end of the show.
It was just weird. I've been to a lot of shows, and I've never seen anything like it happen before. It was disconcerting.
Until that moment, the night had been going fabulously. Running through all the biggest hits from the self-titled album reminded everyone exactly why it's their best-selling album to date: it's stuffed to the brim with bangers and all of them sound even better live. The "scream and shout" chant at the end of 'Words Don't Come So Easily', the viciously spitting 'Criminal' and the summer anthem 'English Kids in America' - hit after hit, filling up the set. It's going to work beautifully at Reading.
I just feel as though the older material still deserves a chance. Yes, 'Another Sad Song' - Mike Duce's depressing yet relatable anthem - still managed to squeeze in there, but the other fan favourites that they've released over the years were completely disregarded. It makes no sense to me. If the self-titled album had only just been released, it would be reasonable, but it's been out for a few years now and the band should have a better idea of how to craft a setlist that spans the entirety of their career.
The best moment of the night was definitely 'Work For It'. Considering that it was released less than a week ago, the amount of people in the room who already knew all the words was impressive: this small show was definitely for the most hardcore of Lower Than Atlantis fans. If they can get that kind of response to the song at the festivals then I'll be very impressed.
It's just a shame that the end of the night put such a dampener on what had been a note-perfect, almost flawless set. Next time lads, at least say goodbye so your fans understand that it's the end of the show.

Setlist:
Get Over It
Criminal
Emily
Work For It
Words Don't Come So Easily
Another Sad Song
English Kids in America
Here We Go

Patent Pending - Oxford O2 Academy 2, 29/11/15 (+ Patent Pending and Zebrahead acoustic)

This was actually a Zebrahead headline show, but because of tricky transportation and the band having a super late stage time, we missed the entirety of their set. This meant that I was even more grateful that I decided to buy a VIP ticket, giving me access to short acoustics and a meet and greet with both Patent Pending and Zebrahead before the show. 

I knew I was in for an extremely fun night when Patent Pending started their acoustic with 'Hey Mario', a song about - you guessed it - everyone's favourite video game plumber. I'd never heard a song about a video game that had such a great moral: "This princess isn't worth these extra lives". Vocalist Joe Ragnosta has a powerful voice, and because I hadn't heard either of the songs they'd played before I was even more impressed by their performance.
There wasn't much time before the official door opening time, so the band sped along into their second song, with Joe gesturing wildly to the crowd and saying "We don't have much time, so imagine I just said something hilarious!". It was impossible not to smile through their set, because Joe is so unbelievably charismatic and full of a boundless energy. He asked the crowd for songs that they wanted to request, but rapidly turned down all of the options before choosing 'Douchebag', justifying it by saying that he was "bridging the gap between the old and the new, the things we know how to play and the things we have no clue".
I'd never seen such a lovely singalong to a song called 'Douchebag', and that proves how genius Patent Pending are - you can sing to their songs, and they sound beautiful, but their lyrical content is so hilarious that there's no way you cannot have fun. 

Setlist:

Hey Mario

Douchebag

Knowing these were the only two Zebrahead songs I'd be seeing, I was happy when they played one of their newer songs. Their newest album 'Walk The Plank' was released a month ago, but I only purchased it at the show so I hadn't heard any songs before hearing 'Worse Than This' acoustic. Despite the fact that Zebrahead are nearly twenty, they still write incredibly catchy songs with singalong moments, so I'm definitely looking forward to listening to the rest of the album.

I'm sad that I didn't get to see any of their full band set, because the acoustic was amazing. Where Patent Pending only performed with three of their members - their vocalist and two guitarists - Zebrahead had the entire band involved, and seeing drummer Ed Udhus playing drums on a bar stool was an experience I'm never going to forget. Both vocalists, Ali Tabatabaee and Matty Lewis, performed brilliantly, and their voices complement each other even more in a live environment than they do on their recorded songs. I can't really remember much about the last time I saw them live - it was four years ago, so my memory is a bit fuzzy! - but I don't remember being as blown away as I was in an acoustic environment. 

If I get the chance to go and see Zebrahead again I will definitely take advantage of it, because they are so much fun and are really lovely guys. 

Setlist:

Worse Than This

Anthem

Now, over to the main show. I hadn't heard of opening act Man With A Mission, but when they started their set with intro track 'Man With A Mission' by Bad Religion, I knew it was going to be a special set. They walked out wearing their wolf heads and my jaw dropped - they looked absolutely badass. I have instant respect for any artists that wear costumes on stage, because I can't imagine how hot it must be. With all of the members throwing themselves around and performing with such energy and enthusiasm, it must have been even sweatier for them. That's dedication.
Sounding like a mixture of Beastie Boys and Rage Against the Machine, with their quick talking vocals and dance undertones, I was speechless. I can't put into words how instantly I was gripped by their set, and it passed in a blur of what felt like less than five minutes.
I haven't seen a response of that magnitude to an opening band since back when I saw Zoax opening for Tonight Alive last summer. The crowd went from 0 to 100 in the space of one song, and didn't stop jumping and dancing throughout their set. When they covered Nirvana's 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' it could have gone one of two ways - it's an amazingly heavy song, so with the dance spliced throughout the track there was a possibility of it being a disaster - but Man With A Mission avoided disaster and received the biggest crowd reaction that we saw in the evening. I can't vouch for what it was like during Zebrahead, but with a huge mosh pit breaking out and continuing throughout, it was an effervescent and riotous response.
The energy just stayed up through the set. With DJ Santa Monica and one of the guitarists (I'm unsure which one, I mean, they do wear costumes!) going out into the crowd during one of the later songs, it was mind-blowing when the eyes in their wolf heads lit up, making them glow bright yellow as they stood over the crowd. It was both menacing and astounding, and it was the icing on top of the cake.
When Ali and Matty from Zebrahead appeared for a song, 'Out of Control', the audience exploded into action once more - their vocals worked so well on the song, and you could see the bands had been touring together for a while because the chemistry was so natural. It was probably my highlight of the entire weekend of gigs, because it was so unexpected. We'd been able to see them stood side of stage enjoying the set, but as soon as they finished their performance they went back to their spot and watched the end of it, so you could tell that they genuinely appreciated the other bands show.
I hadn't heard of Man With A Mission before this show, but I've bought their album and I can't wait to listen to it. I already adore them.

Setlist:
distance
WELCOME TO THE NEWWORLD 

Take What U Want
Smells Like Teen Spirit cover
Fly Again
Out of Control (ft. Ali and Matty from Zebrahead)
Get Off Of My Way

Now, for our headliners, Patent Pending. We missed Patent Pending at Slam Dunk this year because their set overlapped entirely with PVRIS, but it was definitely a regret so I was glad to finally see them.
While they were setting up they started an impromptu rendition of '...Baby One More Time', and following that up with their intro music of 'Final Countdown', it was a unique opener. Where Man With A Mission were heavier and incited mosh pits, as soon as Patent Pending took to the stage the floor turned into a giant trampoline - the jumping did not stop throughout their set.
That was applicable both for the audience and the band. Joe started throwing himself around the stage, jumping into the crowd within the first song and not hesitating to leap from one side of the stage to the other. Throughout 'Classic You' he was having quite a few microphone problems, but they were hardly noticeable - when you're having that much fun it doesn't matter if it's not completely perfect. But after the first song the issues settled down, which was a relief. It was good to see Patent Pending performing at their best.
As well as all of the jumping and bouncing, there was also lot of spontaneous hand waving, including many counts of jazz hands, and some pirate hooks in the air - this was the 'Walk The Plank' tour, after all. Joe introduced it, shouting out for "pirate hooks up in the air!" and when only a few members of the crowd did he paused, looking around, and shouted "have some fucking Oxford pride, and put your pirate hooks in the air!" which certainly got a larger chunk of the crowd involved. From that intro they dived into 'Psycho In Love' (the song that I was most excited about hearing in their set) which is better in a live environment than on a recording, made even better when Joe came out to the middle of the crowd and proceeded to teach the audience the different crowdsurfing techniques as they carried him back to the stage.
His energy is undeniable, a boundlessly unflappable charisma, and when he explained that he had ADHD before 'Started In My Head' - a song about his disorder - it didn't surprise me all that much. ADHD is something awful to have (I mean, it's a disorder, come on!) but it does really benefit his role as a frontman. There's no way he'd be as unstoppable without it, so I'm almost grateful for it!
I definitely recommend you listen to 'Started In My Head', which is off of their newest album, 'Riot Hearts Rebellion'. It was only released two days before the show ("our new album came out two days ago. If you don't have it yet, you're late! If you stole it off the internet, resourceful!") so they only played one song off of it, but it definitely stood out from the rest of their material. It might have been the subject matter, it might have been the way that the energy got that little bit more frenetic, but it was a definite highlight of the set.
The other big moment followed it, and that was their performance of 'One Less Heart To Break'. Joe shared the fact that the band strongly support many charities that support sufferers of depression and self-harm, and he gave a beautiful speech about the fact that nothing was as bad as it seemed, and that life could always get better. He encouraged the crowd to find something they loved and "spread it like wildfire. There is such a thing as happiness, and I fucking promise you this is it". Compared to the talk about pirates, it was inspiring to hear such a heartfelt sentiment, and it proved Patent Pending aren't a one trick pony - they don't just perform upbeat, humourous songs, they can also make a real difference in their fans lives.
But then, in a huge 180, they went from performing the closest thing they had to a ballad to performing 'Hey Mario' once more. After hearing it for the first (and only) time acoustically, experiencing it with the Super Mario music playing in the background really added an extra something to the song. I'd enjoyed it in the earlier session, but it was catapulted above and beyond when there was the added visual of Joe performing all of the Super Mario-esque jumps, and encouraging the crowd to join in with him at every possible opportunity.
From that into a cover of 'Soft Kitty' and 'The Big Bang Theory' theme song, this definitely won the award for the most ridiculously diverse show I've ever experienced, and I think it also wins the award for the most fun show I've been to - if not ever, then definitely in the last year or two.
In a very poignant moment, Patent Pending played their penultimate song 'Brighter' after giving a indirect tribute to the victims of the Paris terrorist attacks earlier in the month. Joe took a moment, saying that he didn't want to dwell on it, but that "the world is an entirely fucked up place right now. People are scared to leave their houses. A bunch of fucking assholes broke into our house - I'm talking about the house of music, where we are right now - and they tried to take it from us, but we're still fucking here", and with the round of applause that went up it really showed a united front, which was hugely inspiring. So many bands have been cancelling tours, so many fans have been terrified to go to live shows, and it felt right that Patent Pending addressed the difficulties and showed solidarity with the victims and their families. It was very tender and touching, and I'll definitely remember that moment for a very long time.
Before closing with 'Douchebag', the band announced that they'd recently been getting their songs played by Kerrang! radio, and begged the crowd to keep requesting the song ("go to their house with biscuits, please please please insist they keep playing Patent Pending") and it was surprising that after fourteen years they're still so humble and thankful for radio play. It shows how much they care about their music, and it proves that they appreciate everything that they achieve. They really are a lovely band, and they deserve all of the success that they get. At the very end of the show, before they walked off stage (and Joe blew raspberries into the microphone for a good couple of minutes...) they announced that they'd be back in the spring, so I'm definitely keeping an eye out for that tour.

Setlist: 
Classic You
Shake Weights & Moving Crates
Let Go
Valentine
Psycho In Love
Dance Till We Die
The Whiskey, The Liar, The Thief
Started In My Head
One Less Heart To Break
Hey Mario
Soft Kitty/Big Bang Theory theme song
Brighter
Douchebag

The 'Walk The Plank' tour was nothing but camaraderie - Man With A Mission having Zebrahead on stage with them, Patent Pending calling out to Man With A Mission and calling them one of the best support bands they'd ever seen, and Patent Pending thanking Zebrahead, announcing "they've been in their band long enough to have been my first rock show, and they're part of the reason [we] started the band"... These were a bunch of friends playing together, and all of the crowd members became friends throughout the show. If you get the chance to see any of the bands, don't miss out.

If you saw Zebrahead's set, please let me know how amazing they were: I don't mind if it hurts, I just want to know that they put on a great show!