Apocalyptica, Shadowmaker tour

Three concerts in a month! For me, November was a great month this year, and I got to finish off the month by going to O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire to see the incredible Finnish cello metal/rock band Apocalyptica! After being lucky enough to win the chance to hear their latest album ‘Shadowmaker’ before its release in the UK earlier this year and actually meet them (all of them except Franky) I knew that I had to see them again. They are such nice guys and their music is fairly unique in that they don’t use guitars, just cellos, drums and vocals.

The support act were Vamps, the Japanese rock band (not to be confused with the pop band, The Vamps). I’d heard of them before and even given their music a listen to before but never thought much of them or understood the hype. Whilst waiting in the queue it was interesting to note how many people were speaking Japanese, and I could tell that many members of the audience were mainly there for the support act.

As the queues were disorganised, I ended up queueing in the wrong queue (seated tickets, not standing) and then had to go to the back when a member of staff told us which was which. Darn!

Vamps JPN were kinda interesting. I mean, I didn’t really understand them and they were kinda crazy, but they were a lot of fun, getting the crowd to sing along, shouting out ‘BLOODSUCKERS!’ and ‘Sex, Blood, Rock ‘n’ Roll!’ I’ve never seen such enthusiasm for a support act before.

Then on came the brilliant Apocalyptica! The band consists of cellists Eicca, Perttu and Paavo, drummer Mikko and singer Franky.

The setlist included many songs from their latest album such as ‘House of Chains,’ ‘Riot Lights,’ ‘Shadowmaker,’ ‘Sea Song’ and ‘Dead Man’s Eyes,’ along with songs from other albums such as ‘I’m Not Jesus’ and ‘I Don’t Care.’ Of course the show wouldn’t have been complete without their famous covers such as Metallica’s ‘Master of Puppets’ and ‘One.’

I love the energy which the guys brought to the stage, and it’s great how close they all are. The new singer, Franky Perez, is a great addition to the band and his voice is perfect for songs such as ‘Dead Man’s Eyes’, one of my favourites. Admittedly I prefer the original versions of ‘I’m Not Jesus’ and ‘I Don’t Care’ to his live versions, but probably mainly because I’m so used to different singers being used, such as some of my favourite singers, Slipknot/Stone Sour’s Corey Taylor and Saint Asonia’s Adam Gontier. Because of this, the songs don’t have quite the same effect with Franky’s voice. However, Franky still did a great job and managed to put a lot of emotion into his singing.

Apocalyptica also brought Vamps back on stage to perform their new song ‘SIN IN JUSTICE’ and it was a fun performance which the crowd got very excited about.

It was a thoroughly enjoyable show, with Apocalyptica putting their all into the performance, headbanging, waving their luscious long hair about, and lugging their cellos across the stage. Only Apocalyptica can look impressively metal when playing the cellos.

Garbage, 20 Years Queer

So I went to see Garbage! Yeah, that alt-rock band that just celebrated the 20th anniversary of their first, self-titled album!

After first hearing about them a few years ago, I was super-stoked to hear them announce that they were going to do a handful of 20th anniversary shows, one of them being at the London O2 Academy Brixton. Of course, after I bought tickets, they announced several other dates all across the country, so the show which I thought was going to be a special, rare thing wasn’t quite so unique. The ’20 Years Queer’ tour had two dates at the O2 Academy Brixton due to the high demand, and I went on the first one.

It’s quite exciting that the last concert I went to, before this, was at the same venue for another 20th Anniversary show (for Korn). Pretty crazy eh?

To add to the excitement a few months prior to the concert, there were signs up around stations for the special edition release of their first album. I found that quite exciting as I rarely come across adverts for music I like.

Anyways, I asked my friends if they wanted to join me to the show, but with a band name like ‘Garbage’ they claimed that they must ‘sound like trash’ or ‘be rubbish.’ Woa, original, I know 🙂 In the end I persuaded my sister to join me (though she dropped out last minute and I had to sell the ticket off super-cheap to a dodgy guy on the streets. Darn).

The show involved the entirety of their first album complete with all the B-sides released alongside, which was pretty cool I’ll grant you, although I didn’t know all of the songs.

I loved the diversity of the crowd – people of all ages, goths, punks, and many out and proud members of the LGBT community. In the queue it was interesting to note the multitude of people with dyed pink hair wearing pink feather boas – you knew you were definitely at the right place!

The support act was Dutch Uncles, who were pretty good fun, with the lead singer having some weird, crazy dance moves. However, they weren’t very good at engaging with the audience and their songs were often very similar. Nevertheless, they got the audience warmed up and people enjoyed trying to replicate the dancing.

Then Garbage were here! Hell yea!

Shirley Manson has an incredible voice! And it’s always exciting watching live music being performed. After the first few songs, she told the audience that she had to go and put some knickers on because she had somehow forgotten to (with the excitement of having her parents here to see the show) and was becoming conscious of her skirt with the wind machines on stage. ‘Twas a good laugh. After putting on her pants, the show continued.

Another unusual addition to the show was the appearance of Shirley’s niece, who was brought onto the stage and shyly said ‘Hello’ into the microphone. Aww, it was really cute.

The highlights of the show, to me, were probably the performances of ‘Queer‘ and ‘Only Happy When it Rains,‘ as I feel as though these hits are what makes the album stand out and they really resonate with the audience. Every one was singing along and having a good time, and it was a really happy atmosphere (even when the lyrics weren’t quite so jolly). The frequent use of pink lighting and simplicity of the staging added to the old-school feel and really tied in with the album.

Finally the band rounded the show off with an encore, which consisted of more recent songs such as ‘Automatic Systematic Habit’ and ‘When I Grow Up.’ It was ‘When I Grow Up’ that particularly got the audience moving, as all of the mismatched outsiders seemed to relate to the lyrics and really connect with each other.

Garbage have been making videos of their journeys and so below is the one for London. It was a thoroughly enjoyable night, and I’m looking forward to their new album which they plan to release in 2016!

Korn, 20th anniversity show, London

Last month I saw Korn at the O2 Academy Brixton, performing the entirety of their self-titled album in celebration of their 20-year anniversary. If you don’t know of Korn, they are an American nu-metal band which combine lots of different genres of music, such as hip-hop, rap, metal, rock and grunge.

I had seen Korn perform earlier on this year as well, supporting Slipknot in January, and I was amazed by how great they sound live and the energy they put in.

Supporting Korn were Sunflower Dead, a fairly new band who I hadn’t heard of before. I liked their sound, although they reminded me of other bands such as Disturbed. They were memorable for their painted faces, interesting clothing and good balance of clean vocals and screams. They also brought out an accordion for some songs, which was a unique addition to their music.

After Sunflower Dead, Snot performed. Snot are a nu-metal band, more similar to Korn, but I’m not fond of their music, as, in my opinion, lots of it sounds the same and the lyrics don’t interest me much. Because of this I didn’t enjoy their performance too much and was just waiting for Korn to come on stage.

Finally Korn were here, starting with the gradual build of ‘Blind’ and the familiar opening line “Arree yoouuu reeeaaadddyyyy?” to get the crowd going. Korn’s debut self-titled album includes songs based on personal experience, such as ‘Faget’ which relives the hate and bullying that singer Jonathan Davis was subject to as a child, as he used to wear eyeliner and earrings and never seemed to fit in with the norm.

The main song which I wanted to hear, however, was ‘Daddy’. This song focuses on how Jonathan Davis was abused by a neighbour, although his parents refused to believe him when he told them. The hurt he expresses through the delivery of his lines allows you to feel his pain. Korn hadn’t performed this live for 20 years, only performing it right at the start of their career, as it was too painful an experience for Jonathan to relive, so I really wanted to see this rare performance. Jonathan performed it with such raw emotion and anger, putting down the mic and leaving the stage as soon as the song ended, reminding the audience of how traumatic the event still was to him. A recording of the performance can be seen below.

Another of my favourites, ‘Shoots and Ladders,’ brought out Korn’t trademark unique sound, through the inclusion of the bagpipes played and interesting mix of nursery rhyme lyrics. Finally, after the entirety of the album, Korn finished off with a few of their most popular songs from other albums, ‘Falling Away From Me,’ ‘Here To Stay’ and ‘Freak on a Leash.’

It was an emotional and thoroughly enjoyable night, and I spent the majority of Korn’s performances in the mosh pits, being covered in everyone’s sweat. It was great to feel everyone’s excitement and enjoyment as the songs were played. It was really interesting seeing Korn perform an album which was released before I was born, and the simplicity of the stage decoration added to the old-school feel.

Pierce The Veil, Sleeping With Sirens

Fairly recently I went to see the bands ‘Pierce The Veil’ and ‘Sleeping With Sirens’ for part of their world tour. They performed at The Forum in London along with support act ‘Issues.’ I’d never seen Pierce The Veil perform before, although I saw Sleeping With Sirens last year and met the lead singer, Kellin Quinn.

As expected, it was a great night. I queued outside for a fair amount of time and saw people I recognised from college, which was quite cool.

After Issues (who I’m not a massive fan of), Sleeping With Sirens came on stage, starting off with the song ‘Kick Me’ from their most recent album. I must admit that the lighting used was quite amusing, as panels had been put up above the stage, which spelled out some of the lyrics of the chorus in time with the band – ‘Kick me when I’m down’, etc. Ah, good times.

The played 12 songs, including some of their classics such as ‘Do it Now, Remember it Later’ and ‘If you can’t Hang’. In addition to this, they added a Goo Goo Dolls cover of ‘Iris’ to their set, which had the whole audience singing along.

They were consistently good, although there were a few high notes which Kellin couldn’t quite reach and so moved the mic away from his face (which is understandable as the songs are so high). I’ve gotta say that some members of the crowd were a bit annoying as the group behind me kept saying things like ‘I can’t even’ and ‘Kellin, why u do dis?’ which I didn’t realise people actually said off of the internet in real life.

Then we waited for Pierce The Veil. The screen put up while we waited was pretty cool.

Pierce The Veil performed songs such as ‘Caraphernelia,’ ‘Hell Above’ and ‘A Match Into Water,’ putting a lot of energy into their performances and keeping the crowd moving, such as by starting circle pits. It was good fun. They also performed an acoustic version of ‘I’m Low On Gas and You Need a Jacket,’ where there was a really nice atmosphere and the audience all sung along.

As they neared the end of the set, Vic asked a member of the audience to join them on the stage and he sung some of ‘Bulletproof Love’ to her (and she was so happy that she was almost in tears). She got to receive signed drumsticks and a setlist – Maan, she’s lucky.

And of course PTV and SWS finished off by performing ‘King For a Day’, which was freakin’ amazing! I really like the good chemistry that the bands have, as you can clearly see that they enjoy being around each other.

Apocalyptica, St Bart’s Pathology Museum

So as per usual my blog posts are really late, but on the 31st March I was lucky enough to receive free tickets to see Apocalyptica performing in a secret location in London. I’d heard about it on their Facebook page and applied by sending an email in the hope of winning, though I didn’t expect to be chosen. I received an email on the day, telling me that I’d won two tickets. By then I’d completely forgotten about the show and feared that I might not be able to leave College and get to the location fast enough. ‘Twas very exciting though.

Apocalyptica are a Finnish rock/metal band, consisting of 3 cellists, a drummer and now a permanent singer. They’re pretty cool and unique – how many cello metal bands do you know?

As none of my friends like (or know) Apocalyptica, I had to go on my own, but ’twas great all the same. We left our recording devices at the door, so this is the only photo I could quickly take.

So whilst we waited for them to come on stage, people hung around and admired the museum, looking at the collections of skulls and random jarred deformed body parts. ‘Twas a pretty cool atmosphere, I must admit.

Pictures of them performing are from http://www.teamrock.com

Apocalyptica played two new songs from their new album ‘Shadowmaker’ and then two of their classic songs. It was good to be able to hear their new singer, Franky, live, and I was really impressed with him. Their performance of ‘Cold Blood’ was amazing, and I probably even preferred it to the track on the album due to the harshness of his voice which made the song sound a bit heavier and more striking.

‘Tis cool because I can see myself in this image, standing up in the crowd near the centre.

Then we all sat or stood around and listened to the new album being played through speakers. ‘Twas very exciting because it hadn’t been released then. I really enjoyed it, especially the last song (‘Dead Man’s Eyes’) as Franky’s vocals really suit it and I love the way it gradually builds. The whole album is beautiful and I highly recommend that you listen to it if you haven’t already.

At the end, I got to meet the band members Mikko, Perttu, Eicca and Paavo, (though not Franky because he left early), which was hella exciting, even though I was kinda awkward and didn’t know what to say. I got their autographs and pictures with them. Aw, they were such nice blokes. They told me that they are planning on touring in the UK in November, so I really hope that I can see them again! 🙂

Halestorm, London

A month ago I went to see Halestorm performing at the Roundhouse in London. Halestorm are a rock band, fronted by Lzzy Hale, and they’re great! I found out about their music through the Evanescence fanbase, as many Evfans also like Halestorm, and Amy Lee (lead singer of Evanescence) and Lzzy Hale seem to be close friends, sometimes performing together.

First of all there were two support acts – Wilson and Nothing More. I’d looked them up before briefly and listened to a few of their songs. I wasn’t too keen on Wilson, but Nothing More had a really interesting, unique sound, so I was looking forward to seeing them. Wilson’s performance was pretty decent – they were better than I had expected – and Nothing More were freaking amazing.

Although I felt as though Jonny [lead singer, Nothing More]’s mic could have been turned up more, as you couldn’t always hear what he was saying, the performance was brilliant. Nothing More had so much energy and you could feel the emotions that they were putting into  their songs. It was great recognising some of their songs such as ‘This Is The Time’ and ‘If I Were God’.

Nothing More also performed a really cool bass solo, as they all gathered around the one instrument and worked together to create an interesting sound. They also used a gadget to hold the bass, spin it around and rotate it, and it’s really cool that they help to make and design their own gadgets, such as this, for use on the stage.

Then of course the main act, Halestorm, came out to perform. The setlist was mainly songs from their first two albums, as their latest third album, ‘Into The Wild Life’ hadn’t come out then. Some of the latest singles from it were performed though, such as ‘Apocalyptic’ and ‘Amen’.

I really love Arejay’s drumming as he is always moving and puts so much energy into the performances. He was also jumping and standing up to play.

They performed:
1. Mz. Hyde
2. It’s Not You
3. Freak Like Me
4. Amen
5. You Call Me a Bitch Like It’s a Bad Thing
6. Daughters of Darkness
7. Apocalyptic
8. Rock show
9. I Hate It When You See Me Cry
10. Drum Solo
11. Mayhem
12. I Get Off
13. Love Bites (So Do I)
14. I Miss The Misery
15. I Like It Heavy
16. Here’s To Us

I really enjoyed the performance of ‘I Hate It When You See Me Cry’ as Lzzy performed this just using her guitar and voice, without the other members, and she really showed off her vocals and got into it.

Well, ’twas a freakin’ amazin’ show and I’m so glad to have finally seen Halestorm (and now know about Nothing More)!

Epica and DragonForce, Concert

Last week I went to see the bands Epica and DragonForce perform at The Forum, London, along with the support act Neonfly. It was an absolutely brilliant evening, and exciting to see two bands I really like (Epica and DragonForce) co-headlining together.

I waited outside for only 2.5 hours, despite originally planning to get there 4 hours early, and I’m glad that I didn’t come any earlier as there was hardly any queue.

By the time I got to enter The Forum, I could barely feel my feet – it was so cold outside! Then we waited by the standing area and observed how empty it was. However, this didn’t really matter as it meant that we were very near the front. The crowd gradually built up.

First of all the support act, Neonfly, who I’d never heard of, performed. They were pretty good, although the sound balance was very odd all the way through and you could hardly hear the vocalist, so I didn’t hear a word of their songs. Also, the ‘Neonfly’ sign in the background was difficult to see and the DragonForce sign was more prominent, which was surprising. They played for around 25 minutes and then we waited for DragonForce.

DragonForce were amazing! I mean, no-one could disagree with me when I say that they were impressive. Being a power/speed metal band from London, their songs are all full of complicated, quick solos. Lots of people on the internet seem not to like DragonForce, but I love their sound, with fantasy-based lyrics and a video-game sound to many of their songs. They suit their image and seem to know what they’re doing.

And all aspects of their performance were brilliant – the high energy, Marc Hudson’s spot-on vocals, and the impressively played guitars, keyboard and drums. I haven’t known about DragonForce for very long, and I was annoyed with myself for not knowing all of their older songs. However, all of their songs were thoroughly enjoyable, and they played with great energy for 1 and a half hours. I also got to admire Herman Li’s ring, which looks pretty cool and seemed to light up. I’ve heard that it helps him play and create the ‘video-game effect’.

And then it was Epica’s turn! For an hour and a half, I listened to and watched the brilliant Dutch symphonic metal band.

I love their most recent album, ‘The Quantum Enigma,’ as the songs have a beautiful balance of clean vocals by Simone Simons, growls/ unclean vocals by Mark Jansen, as well as their recognisable ‘symphonic’ sound, and impressive instrumentalists. I hadn’t known about them for long before their album was released, and I listened to it on repeat when it came out, so it was really exciting seeing them perform live.

It’s always a great moment when you join together with other people with similar interests and sing along with people at concerts. The keyboard was also very interesting (shown in the image above), and I’d never seen an instrument that looks quite like that before.

Their setlist was:
1. Originem
2. The Second Stone
3. The Essence of Silence
4. Unleashed
5. Storm the Sorrow
6. Fools of Damnation
7. Victims of Contingency
8. The Obsessive Devotion
9. The Fifth Guardian
10. Chemical Insomnia
11. Sancta Terra
12. The Last Crusade
13. Design Your Universe

Encore:
14. Cry For the Moon
(Drum Solo Outro)
15. Unchain Utopia
16. Consign To Oblivion

Epica’s lighting was also really cool, with different panels on the walls used to create different patterns, as well as the other, more traditional coloured lighting.

So it was a thoroughly entertaining night, and great to be so close to the front. The show overran, which meant that I just missed my train and so got back home rather late, but it was worth it!

‘Tis a bit of a shame that you can’t see me in the group photo they took at the end, as I would have been close enough to be in it but am covered by some of the members. It doesn’t really matter though.

Asking Alexandria Concert, London

Last Thursday I went to see Asking Alexandria performing at The Roundhouse. Asking Alexandria are an English metalcore band, consisting of Danny Worsnop (vocals), Ben Bruce (lead guitar), James Cassells (drums), Cameron Liddell (rhythm guitar) and Sam Bettley (bass guitar).

When I bought tickets, the support acts hadn’t been announced, so I was very happy when I heard that they were to be Secrets, Crown The Empire and The Ghost Inside as I’d heard of them all before (although am only a fan of Crown The Empire).

I’d wanted to watch all support acts, but I’d come straight from college to try to get there as soon as possible and despite being there an hour early the queue was already really long. It took us a while to get let in, so I missed Secrets.

Nevertheless, I arrived just in time to see all of Crown The Empire, the main support act I’d wanted to see. They were really good, and I love Andy Leo’s vocals which sound just as good live as recorded. The amount of energy that they put into their performance was admirable, as they kept the crowd moving, jumping, singing along and moshing. However, I must admit that I’m not as much of a fan of their new album ‘The Resistance: Rise Of The Runaways’ than their previous one ‘The Fallout,’ so I wish they could have performed more of their older songs.

Then The Ghost Inside came on and performed a few songs. They were quite impressive and you could feel the songs vibrating through your body, but I personally prefer songs with more clean vocals which aren’t purely shouting. I enjoyed their last song the most, ‘Engine 45’ as I recognised it and it’s also quite catchy.

 Then there was the big wait as Asking Alexandria’s stage was set up. They came on to the dramatic opening of ‘Don’t Pray For Me,’ which built up the anticipation, and the audience cheered and sang along as the vocals began.

The setlist was:
1. Don’t Pray For Me
2. Run Free
3. Breathless
4. Break Down The Walls
5. To The Stage
6. Dedication
7. Someone, Somewhere
8. Moving On
9. A Prophecy
10. The Final Episode (Let’s Change The Channel)
11. Not The American Average
12. Killing You
13. The Death Of Me
14. Poison

There’s been a lot of talk recently as fans have been saying that Danny ‘can’t scream anymore’ after breaking his vocal cords and having to get them fixed. From the performance I saw he can definitely still scream, but he just doesn’t do quite as much of it and has a different style.

I like how Asking Alexandria seem to get a different sound with each album as this means that their albums aren’t exactly the same and their sound develops. Now, Danny has more of a classic rock voice which definitely suits the new songs. It’s also interesting to see him incorporate this new style into their old songs such as the classics ‘The Final Episode’, ‘A Prophecy’ and ‘Not The American Average’.

It was great how energetic the crowd was, although I was a bit disappointed that I wasn’t near a big mosh pit, as I’ve never been in one and wanted to give it a go. Despite being between two when Crown The Empire were performing, there were more on the other side when Asking Alexandria were playing.

I was very impressed with the performance AA gave, as Danny was very much in tune, and each member was full of energy. In between songs, Danny and Ben gave random comments and joked with each other, and it was a very enjoyable show. I feel as though they have improved live and their new style may make it easier for them to give consistent performances. I’m very glad I went.

Black Veil Brides IV

So this week the American rock band, Black Veil Brides, released their fourth album, which is self titled. I’d preordered it so it arrived in advance of the release date which was quite exciting and I feel as though I should review it to give my opinion of it.

I must admit that I’m not as much of a fan of Black Veil Brides as I used to be. I saw them live last year and they were great but I didn’t buy tickets to see them this year and wasn’t too fussed about it.

This album consists of the tracks:
1. Heart Of Fire
2. Faithless
3. Devil In The Mirror
4. Goodbye Agony
5. World Of Sacrifice
6. Last Rites
7. Stolen Omen
8. Walk Away
9. Drag Me To The Grave
10. The Shattered God
11. Crown Of Thorns

I’d already heard a few of the tracks, ‘Heart Of Fire’ and ‘Faithless’ released before the album was out, and had also heard various snippets of other songs in the days leading up to the release. However, nothing really drew me in as there wasn’t really anything particularly original. Sure, there were great riffs and catchy choruses but I didn’t have great expectations for the album for some reason. I liked the song ‘Heart Of Fire’ and Black Veil Brides definitely have a slightly different sound now to their other records but I can’t help but feel as though the lead singer (Andy Biersack)’s vocals seem a bit out of place in ‘Faithless’ and don’t really fit the song.

However, I was very pleased when listening to the album from start to finish and it reminded me of why I like Black Veil Brides. Each track has a unique ‘Black Veil Brides sound’ and this album has reminded me of how talented each member of the band is. I also love how each member gets recognition from its fans, although I feel like the fan base kinda puts me off them a bit as they get over-supportive and just annoying!

The track which is probably my favourite of the album alongside ‘Heart Of Fire’ is ‘Walk Away’, as it is such a beautiful and well meant song, contrasting from the powerful guitars in other songs and including other instruments such as a piano and orchestral section. Additionally, ‘Goodbye Agony’ is another rock ballad, so this album has a range of songs and they lyrically focus on issues faced by Andy Biersack.

The album also includes great, powerful drumming throughout, particularly shown in ‘The Shattered God’ and ‘Drag Me To The Grave.’ CC’s drumming keeps up the pace of the songs without being too overpowering.

This album is probably one of Black Veil Brides’ best, being very varied yet strong and characteristic of rock music. The songs aren’t too repetitive and are each different and unique in some ways, so I’d definitely recommend that you listen to this album if you are a fan of rock music.

Slipknot – The Gray Chapter

Today’s the 20th October, the day Slipknot’s fifth studio album has been released in the UK. I like the album’s title, ‘.5: The Gray Chapter,’ remembering the death of bassist Paul Gray, although I’m not entirely sure I like the cover as I was expecting something more interesting and original.

As with every album, fans weren’t sure what to expect, especially after the death of Paul Gray and after Joey Jordison, drummer, had recently left, but we had great expectations for the new music. Luckily we weren’t disappointed. Although some of the songs are softer and less heavy than previous albums, I like Slipknot’s new sound and the songs are growing more and more on me. Lots of fans have been talking about how Slipknot sounds more like Stone Sour (Corey Taylor, the lead singer,’s first band) merely because it includes more singing. However, I don’t agree with this as Slipknot have still kept their signature sound despite not all of the songs having the same amount of aggression as they used to.

The tracks on the album are:
1. XIX
2. Sarcastrophe
3. AOV
4. The Devil In I
5. Killpop
6. Skeptic
7. Lech
8. Goodbye
9. Nomadic
10. The One That Kills The Least
11. Custer
12. Be Prepared For Hell
13. The Negative One
14. If Rain Is What You Want

Most of these tracks had been released in the days counting down to the album’s release. The singles, ‘The Negative One’ and ‘The Devil In I’ had been released in advance along with brilliant music videos. Below is the ‘The Devil In I’ video which is kinda weird and gruesome, but is also relevant and interesting, showing the members discarding their old masks and displaying their new ones.

Today, I’ve listened to the whole Slipknot album from start to finish and I really love it. The first track, XIX, is really atmospheric and interesting. It’s a great start to the album, building up anticipation, completed by Corey Taylor’s aggressive and recognisable vocals.
‘Walk with me
Walk with me
Don’t let this fucking world tear you apart.’

The tracks in the album have a definite distinctive ‘Slipknot’ sound to them despite some of them being less heavy than previous material. Many of the tracks seem to be directed at Paul Gray, including “Skeptic,” “Lech,” and “Nomadic,” and the band’s sadness at the bassist’s death is made clear.

All of the songs are growing on me and I would definitely recommend that you give it a listen if you haven’t already – there isn’t a song that I don’t like and I personally think that this Slipknot album is as good as any other.

I’d love to see Slipknot live but despite trying to get tickets on three separate occasions for the London date in 2015 the tickets sold out within 2 minutes of each and I didn’t get to them fast enough – it’s very annoying. Slipknot are soon to perform at Knotfest, California and Japan, and will tour with Korn and KING 810 for their Prepare For Hell Tour.