Kerrang - March 12, 2016

“Hi, my name’s Bert,
and I’m a camel…”
PLUS: THE NEW REGIME
O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN,
LONDON. 22.02.16
KKKK
EMO VETERANS RECHARGE THEMSELVES
BY PLAYING THEIR DEBUT IN FULL
WORDS: JAMES HINGLE PHOTO: PAUL HARRIES
“ H ’ A Ytoenjoyoneof
the best rock records ever written?”
screams a wild-eyed Bert McCracken.
The Used are in town to celebrate 15
years of the band by playing the 2002
self-titled debut album that fired them
into the hearts of every emo on Earth,
and they’re doing it with heads as big
as the choruses.
Before that, though, are The New
Regime, fronted by fuzzy-haired Kylo
Ren doppelgänger IIan Rubin, a name
you may recognise from NIN and
Paramore. They fire out crunchy enough
riffs, but while it seems enjoyable for the
trio onstage, it quickly becomes a selfindulgent
snorefest for everyone else.
For Bert,tonight is all about
escaping the world outside these
venue doors.He grabs the very
heartstrings of those hardcore fans
screaming back every single damn
word, but it’s the never-dying flame
of The Taste Of Ink that really strikes
a chord. It’s the refreshed joy with
which the band play that really sets
tonight off.
“If you’re not smiling, then kick
yourself in face,” cries Bert, with a
renewed fire in his eye. While this
show started as a throwback,it ends
feeling like a rebirth.
STAR SHOUT!
BERT
McCRACKEN
(VOCALS,
THE USED)
HOW WAS IT
PLAYING THE
RECORD ALL THE
WAY THROUGH?
“It’s incredible. It’s
heavy-heavy-heavy
emotional magic.
How many ‘heavy’s
was that? It should
be four. ‘Heavy’ is
such a subjective
word, as it can mean
so many things, and
that’s exactly what I
mean – tonight was
heavy, all-round, like,
starting from the
top of the globe and
spinning it round. It’s
been a humbling and
magical experience.”
UM, OKAY. WHAT
ARE YOU UP TO
NEXT, THEN?
“Well, we are writing
right now as we
speak. We’ve kinda
hit a new momentum
with the band – it’s
been like this new fire
in The Used camp, it’s
heavy. We’ve written
about 15 songs, we’re
experimenting with a
lot of new sounds. We
kinda like the idea
of a rock opera like
the Green Day one.
I don’t know, man,
anything is possible!”
THE CULT
SCOTCH OF ST JAMES, LONDON. 23.02.16
KKKK
BRIT STADIUM-ROCK LEGENDS LAUNCH THEIR
NEW ALBUM WITH A TRIP DOWN THE PUB
QHOW’S THIS for rock’n’roll pedigree: tonight at
The Scotch, the 150-capacity nightclub that played
LSWXXS.MQM,IRHVM\´W½VWX9/WLS[8LI'YPX
celebrate the release of their 10th album, Hidden
City, in front of some very special guests. It’s all
the more impressive when frontman Ian Astbury
– the sort of luminary that can bring together
members of Steel Panther and the Sex Pistols in a
basement – reveals that, as a young man, he used
to beg for change in nearby Soho. So, while tonight
provides a chance for this crowd to witness
legends at hugging distance (an opportunity many
take full advantage of), for Ian this is nothing less
than “therapy. I hope it’s cathartic for you, too.”
It’s certainly emotionally rewarding to hear Billy
Duffy’s guitar render the likes of Lil’ Devil and Wild
Flower in the sort of setting the band cut their
teeth in the early ’80s, just as it is to hear Hidden
City tracks like Birds Of Paradise (“If you don’t
cry to this you’ve got stone hearts,” suggests Ian)
holding their own in such esteemed sonic company.
After just over an hour, following the one-two
combo of She Sells Sanctuary and Spiritwalker, it’s
all over. “Please come to Brixton,” says Ian of their
bigger appointment in the capital in a few days
time. This isn’t some piece of rockstar upselling. He,
like this crowd, has had a blast and simply wants to
reconvene for more. After a show this good, who
are we to say no?
JAMES HICKIE
PRESS TO MECO
PLUS: MAX RAPTOR, ALLUSONDRUGS, ATLAS : EMPIRE
BROADCAST, GLASGOW. 23.02.16
KKKKK
SCORCHING BRIT-ROCK TRIPLE-HEADER
SMASHES SCOTLAND THREE TIMES OVER
QTHERE’S SOMETHING special about this
tour’s triple-threat, rotating-headline set-up.
Camaraderie. Competition. Communion. British
rock is surging from strength to strength, and with
three of its hottest acts throwing down, we’re all
WIX JSV½VI[SVOW0SGEPSTIRIVW%XPEW)QTMVIWIX
the scene with a textured slice of progressive alt.
rock, but it’s Leeds’ Allusondrugs who kick us off
proper. With aesthetic sensibilities straight out of
1992, songs like Good People (“This one’s about
sex!” grins Cobain-alike frontman Jason Moules)
roll effortless cool and laconic panache into a
smouldering musical joint well worth a toking
on. Bringing us up fast, Burton upon Trent’s Max
6ETXSVGSQISRPMOI&MPP]8EPIRXMREFEV½KLX±-
don’t feel like I need a microphone!” snarls wideeyed
singer Wil Ray as he crashes headlong into
the front rows, spilling enough beers to leave one
drenched punter grimacing like an unimpressed,
alcoholic Carrie, but imbuing iron-cast bangers
likes thumping newbie Old Romantics with the
unhinged chaos they deserve. Combining diamondtipped
riffage and crystalline vocal harmonies,
tonight’s headliners Press to MECO fall – tonally
– somewhere between their tourmates. Cracking
cuts like Diffusion Of Responsibility (getting its
½VWXIZIVSYXMRKXSRMKLXGSQIPEHIR[MXLZMVXYSWS
musicality, but there’s stacks of fun, too – a
±QSROI]GMVGPITMX²JSV%J½RMX]XLIarms-roundshoulders
jubilation of Wasting Time, and stagediving
chaos for well-past-curfew closer Love And
Reason. Best of all, despite concussive hits from all
three challengers, tonight everyone’s a winner.
SAM LAW
48 KERRANG!