Heavy Music, UK, 2008

In Summer 2007 I decided to leave heavy music behind. I had become unconfident in my own writing skills, frustrated with audiences and bands alike. The general tone impressed upon me was that of complete apathy. Cliché as this may sound from a guitarist in a hardcore band, I felt as if I was banging my head against a brick wall.

Band such as Botch, Converge, Coalesce, and later on Hot Snakes, The Cure, Mogwai and Cursed really inspired me to take a done genre and fuck with it until it was unrecognisable. By this I mean I sacked off song structures, chorus and verses were banned, and it got to the point where heavy guitar gain and typical ‘hardcore’ or ‘noise’ conventions such as breakdowns, two-steps, spazzy parts etc just felt so done to us. By the end, our experiment was in pure dynamics and tone. At the time it felt all in vain. No one seemed to get it. Certainly the sales of our full length reflected what people thought, and we parted ways with our record label. They were undoubtedly disappointed with Dungeness’s reception, and we were frustrated with anyone that ha anything to do with the release.

Frustration, arguments, friends becoming celebrities and a forgotten single later, we broke up. But in the last few months, there seemed to be a flutter of genuine activity in the UK. We planned to release our next project on Holy Roar, a label with an outlook as close to our own as we could hope to meet. They also announced the release of a split by two new, young bands, Maths and Throats. These bands, both with average ages that just about touch 20 by now probably, completely blew my head off. Throats, based in London, rip seven shades of shit from a twisted version of Hardcore, fusing the desert dry riffs and tones of Jane Doe, with the sentiment and mood of Cursed. But the difference between them and most bands from our fair island, is that they convince me. They have the context and ferociousness that our US counterparts have been schooling us all with for the last 15 years. Speaking with them also, their love for old valve tone, massive evil riffs, but taken out of the metalcore context, and obvious need to just play as loud and aggressively as they possibly can, I have a real affinity for these lads.

Similarly, Maths, from the East Midlands, are shredding their way through the Ebullition sound of the mid to late nineties. Certainly, this band has more of a retro sound, as you can pinpoint the scene that has influenced them, but again, it’s their attention to detail. It’s less plagiarism, more perfect revivalism, in a different time and a different place. They are making the link from legendary bands like Orchid and P99, and just making it sound so relevant to the UK now. Its like the breath of fresh air I’ve been waiting for.

This seems to be a slight epidemic, and bands such as Orchards, Crocus, Queen Of Swords, Rolo Tomassi, Dead Swans, Lovvers and more are really showing that UK bands can have the salts to go head on with US bands. It’s enough to spur me back into heating the valves a bit more this year!