Concert Review: Parachutes, House vs. Hurricane, Betraying The Martyrs & Memphis May Fire in Stuttgart on May 30th

This was the first show I attended since my taste in music drastically changed for good, so describing it as intense seems to be the most appropriate in my eyes but let's start from the beginning.

When we arrived at the venue, which was a little club in the city, there were some members of House vs. Hurricane sitting outside drinking beer and one of the guitarists of Betraying The Martyrs sat there and read a book. Since we had to wait for my interview to start, we just watched them and wondered who belongs to which band and who does what for the band.
After around one and a half hours, the guys from Parachutes were done with their soundcheck and came out for a quick interview (I'll upload it in a second). It was super nice chatting with them, they were so easy going and really comfortable to be around. Huge thanks to Carsten and David for turning my first interview ever into such a great experience! 

Nobody Takes Vegas - No Respect

Nobody Takes Vegas were one of the first bands I ever reviewed (can be read here), it looks like they liked what I had to say about their debut EP because this time I got the chance to listen to their new EP before they'll actually release it. 

My first impression was very good, after listening to the new stuff once, I listened to their first EP again and it's safe to say that the guys developed a lot, especially Nick and his vocals. If I didn't know any better, I'd probably think they already played Warped a million times because that's how Nobody Takes Vegas sound: confident, passionate, professional. Not only the vocalist but also the guys who are responsible for the amazing guitar parts and drums.

It's actually hard to pick a favourite song because the six songs on No Respect are all favourite-song-material, so to say. The band managed to put so much energy and passion in this EP that I can only sit here being all impressed and happy about it. However, song number five, Floater, makes me the happiest to be honest. It's acoustic so you only concentrate on the vocals as you slowly float away and just enjoy. 

Another really good thing is the music video they shot for No Respect, check it out: 

I wouldn't mind some band playing in my living room (as long as they leave my fridge alone) but apparently there are people who react scared and desperately want to get rid of these guys breaking into their house. The highlight of this video is definitely Nick using a banana as a microphone, that looks definitely punk rock.
At the end I almost feel sorry for the poor owner of the house who obviously had a shit day anyway and then he had to deal with five teenagers playing loud music in his living room. Thumbs up for the idea and the making of it! 


All in all I'm amazed by the great result the five guys from Long Island, New York accomplished and I'm 500 percent sure you guys will like this album as much as I do. Follow them on twitter and give them a like on Facebook to stay tuned for more info concerning the release date!

Facebook

Twitter

Big News, Great News!

Apart from the weather which looks more like October than May, this day has been going great so far. I have some awesome news to share!

First of all, the timetable for this year's Rock am Ring finally went online so I could plan which band I'll see when. Check it out: 

Friday: 

3.50pm - 4.20pm Asking Alexandria

4.40pm - 5.20pm Bring Me The Horizon

5.40pm - 6.25pm A Day To Remember

7.05pm - 8.05pm Paramore

9.20pm - 10.15pm Bullet For My Valentine

midnight - 1.35am 30 Seconds To Mars

Saturday:

2.30pm - 2.55pm Filius Nox

4.05pm - 4.50pm Papa Roach

5.55pm - 6.40pm Stereophonics

7.45pm - 9.45pm Stone Sour

10.55pm - 11.55pm Hurts

00.30am - 2am The Killers

Sunday:

2pm - 2.40pm All Time Low

4pm - 4.30pm Pierce The Veil

5.20pm - 6.05pm Simple Plan

10.20pm - 11.30pm - Casper

… - 00.20am - Green Day

I'm extremely happy about the fact that none of the bands I'd like to see will clash with each other, I didn't even expect this to happen but it looks like the festival god up there is in my favour. 

However, this isn't everything. I'll attend the Memphis May Fire concert in Stuttgart next week and I'll get the chance to interview one of their supporting acts, Parachutes. They're germans, too and getting in touch with them was easier than expected. Big thanks for all the quick replies and a huge thanks for actually giving me this opportunity! I'm already super excited! 

30 Seconds To Mars - Love Lust Faith + Dreams

After being on tour for around two years straight, the Leto brothers and guitarist Tomo Milicevic went on a well-deserved break. Nobody knew when (or if) they would come back, today this break is officially over after almost six months. 30 Seconds To Mars are back with new songs and a new tour. 

Love Lust Faith + Dreams contains twelve songs, the deluxe edition also offers a DVD with Mars300, the last concert of the huge tour, and two other short documentaries. 

The first song on the record, Birth, sounds like it was taken from a movie about some greek army commander who's about to go to war. The drums and trumpets at the beginning convey this impression.
The second song, Conquistador, rather sounds like Mars again, it's the kind of song that pushes you forward when you need it. 

Song number three was the first new song we got to hear: Up In The Air. For some reason it reminds me a lot of Closer To The Edge, maybe that's why it's one of my favourite songs on the whole album. I can't wait to hear it live when thousands of people sing the "oh-oh" part along. 

30 Seconds To Mars started to work with some new elements, for example a synthesizer and a violin. It's different from what we're used to and that's what makes this whole record so special.
Furthermore it wouldn't be Mars if there wasn't this one song that's completely different from all the others. On This Is War it's L490, on this one it's Pyres of Varanasi. I think Jared's time in India inspired him to write this song because Varanasi is a city in India and pyres are places where human bodies are cremated. 

Bright Lights might be my favourite, it just makes me so happy. 

The last thing I noticed is pretty interesting: Some of the songs pick up the album title, it's like a riddle if you want. Have fun finding the songs!

I am very happy about the fact that 30 Seconds To Mars are back, I really missed them. If you haven't picked the CD up yet, you should totally do it, it's worth it!

It's None Of Your Business, But I Won't Be A Witness - W like We Are The In Crowd

I'm officially in love with Tay Jardine and that's how I got into We Are The In Crowd. Well, I kind of knew her because she had something going on with Alex Gaskarth what I didn't really care much about. For some reason I listened to their first album (my review can be read here: [x]) and I immediately fell for it. Do you know the feeling when you discover new music and it's like you found the end of the rainbow? That's how I felt and actually still feel whenever I listen to We Are The In Crowd. I've never been a big fan of female-fronted bands but then WATIC happened and let me tell you I screamed when they followed me on twitter. 

I don't have loads to tell about my relationship to this band because it basically just started so the memories and stories are to come in the future but one thing is for sure: We Are The In Crowd make me very happy and I'm very glad I discovered them. 

All Time Low - Don't Panic

I hope all of you had a great start into the new week, I'd like to present you my album of the week today: Don't Panic by All Time Low. It's not new to me but I had the urge to write about it and this is the result: 

Released on October 9th 2012 through Hopeless Records, the record contains 12 songs and each song is better than the one you listened to before.
Kicking off with The Reckless And The Brave, you already get pulled into this stream of greatness and let me tell you: you won't get out easily. During the last few months this song grew into being the anthem of all the people who are connected to the band in any way. The members definitely are reckless and brave (at least that's the message they carry out into the world) and us fans would like to be. 

People on tumblr put the lyrics on pictures of empty beds, All Time Low shot the most awkward video for it and everybody loves it: Backseat Serenade is a song for people who are "sick of sleeping alone", who are separated from their loved ones and who like crazy music videos [x]. 

We can keep talking about how it feels to miss somebody you love, Alex sings about it. If These Sheets Were States is a love song in disguise. You don't recognize it until you actually pay attention to the lyrics, if you don't do that you get lost in the great sound of the guitars.

I'm emotionally attached to the next song because I don't like the idea of growing up that much. I'd rather sit on my bed at night and wait for Peter Pan to get back his shadow so he can take me to Neverland with him. All Time Low either like Disney a lot, or there's a deeper purpose of Somewhere in Neverland. They also shot a video for it which isn't available in Germany so I can't link you. However, if you watch it, pay attention to Jack's outfit because it's my personal favourite thing of the whole video.

A song I absolutely can't relate to is number ten: For Baltimore. I've never been to Baltimore so I don't know anything about it but the guys from All Time Low love their hometown. They love it so much that they wrote a song for it and that's pretty cool in my eyes (and ears). 

I can't decide on which song is my favourite on the album but Paint You Wings is definitely one of them. 

All in all I can definitely say that Don't Panic is my favourite album by All Time Low so far and I love seeing how much the whole band grew over the years. 

New Discovery: Like Vultures

Sometimes I receive mails from people who ask me to check out their band. I always do and last night I got a message on facebook from Jacob Krueger, vocalist in Like Vultures. He said they sound like Memphis May Fire so of course I was curious and they didn't disappoint me. 
Founded in January 2013, the post-hardcore band from Washington just started working on their career but it already sounds pretty promising. Jacob Krueger (vocalist), Tristen Guillam (drummer), Angel Garcia (vocalist), Caleb Oakes (bassist) and Billy Howard (guitarist) released their first EP (Obsessed) on January 9th 2013. There are nine tracks, including a cover of Taylor Swift's We Are Never Getting Back Together. I wasn't able to check out the lyrics so this time I only focus on what I hear. 

After listening to the whole record once, I can definitely say that I dig it. A lot. The voices of the vocalists go together very well and there's not a single song I'd want to skip. However, I have to admit that I miss a slower song in between just to take a breathe and because I'd like to know how it would sound. 

All the songs contain some pretty nice guitar parts, for example at the beginning of The Truth, which is my favourite song on the record by the way. 

The cover of We Are Never Getting Back Together is brilliant. It starts so innocent and basically like the original and suddenly he starts to scream and you just don't expect it. Who thought that this song could be material to mosh with hundreds of other people? I definitely didn't. 

Not even 24 hours passed since I listened to Like Vultures for the first time but they're already in the top 3 of my favourite New Discoveries. Jacob said they'll try to tour here in Europe somewhen next year and I just really hope that's going to happen. 

Go check them out, show some love and let me know what you think of them!

Bandcamp

Facebook

Twitter

We Faded Faster Than The Speed Of Light - T Like Thirty Seconds To Mars

November 25th, 2011, I'm on the way to Austria to see 30 Seconds To Mars. I only go there because I think they're kind of a big deal, even though I only know the two songs they casually play on the radio. Apart from Jared, I don't even know the other band members. I have zero expectations, I only want to have a great night.
We line up to get inside, the venue is not that big so we make it to the front. Not the first row but we're still quite close to the stage. The supporting acts are weird, I don't really pay attention. I'm getting more excited with every minute that's passing, the whole atmosphere is excited and relaxed at the same time. The supporting acts are gone, they play parts of Mars' music videos on a screen behind the stage. Fifteen minutes pass, thirty minutes pass, I get annoyed. I hate waiting for somebody. After one hour the lights finally go out, the crowd goes wild, Shannon and Tomo step on the stage. I still don't know who they are but it doesn't matter. As soon as Jared appears, all hell breaks lose and they start playing. Obviously I don't know the lyrics so I can't sing along but I'm fascinated by Jared. The way he performs totally captures me, there's no way I could take my eyes off him. I've been to some concerts before but no singer or band interacts so much with the crowd like Jared does. He gets somebody on stage to play Would You Rather: "Would you rather drink your own pee or the blood of a stranger here?" The poor guy is completely overchallenged so he doesn't really answer but the rest of us has so much fun watching this.

We're about halfway through the set, I sweat so much that my hair is wet, there's an elbow pressed against my ribs and somebody's junk against my butt but I've never felt more alive. Jared starts announcing the next song: "Tonight I want you to let go. Let go of all the bad things, the things that bother you. Forget about school or your job or your boyfriend. I want you to dance like there's no tomorrow, you hear me?"
They start playing Closer To The Edge and it feels like life just slapped me right in the face. Suddenly I realise how unhappy I am, how much I hate my life. However, I also realise that I can change it. I tell myself that I'll start tomorrow because now I have to concentrate on what's happening on stage. 

Around four months later I'm in the middle of my finals. There's so much pressure on me that I can barely breathe. Pressure from school and all the work I have to do, all the papers I have to go through, all the info I have to get into my mind in order to graduate. The pressure I put on myself because I'm a loser anyway, I won't be able to make it, I'll horribly fail and the people at school will be right in the end. I am stupid, worthless, nothing. I can barely stand it. I barely get out of bed in the morning, I skip classes when I just can't handle it. This is the first time that I think about ending this. I wonder how many pills I'd have to take in order to fall asleep and never wake up again. I wonder if the river next to my house is deep enough to drown myself, I wonder which knife I should use to make it quick. These thoughts haunt me, they settle in my mind and don't leave. Nobody really knows, I keep smiling and nodding so everybody thinks I'm okay. Just stressed because of the finals. 

However, I fight against it. I fight against myself, against the thoughts. I only listen to 30 Seconds To Mars, they give me strength. They teach me that dreams are possible. My dreams aren't gone yet, they're in the back of my mind, waiting for their big moment. Every morning when I wake up, I listen to This Is War. I go to school, I listen to Closer To The Edge. I go to sleep, I listen to Alibi. I do this every single day until I suddenly graduate, I'm officially free, I'll never have to go back to this horrible place that almost took my life. 

30 Seconds to Mars announce their break, it sounds like they never come back, the whole music world discusses what's going on. They offer a live stream for their last concert in New York in the middle of the week, I have to go to school once again on the next day, because of the time difference the concert starts at 1am. My parents think I lost my mind, I go to bed at 8pm to catch at least some sleep. I watch the whole concert until 4am, I cry when it's over, I go back to bed and sleep for another four hours. I'm literally dead on the next day but it was so worth it. 

Today is May 11th 2013. I went through all the bad things, I'm still alive, I'm getting better. I want to live again. When people mock others for saying that music saved their life, they obviously haven't experienced the power music can have. They obviously don't know how it feels to be at the lowest point of your life, they don't know how hard it is to make your way up again. People leave because they're scared or overchallenged or ignorant but music never leaves no matter how horrible you feel. 30 Seconds To Mars are back with new songs and a new tour, I'll see them again very soon, ready to celebrate them. Ready to make my dreams come true.

Thank you Jared, Shannon and Tomo. Thank you for the best concert I've been to so far, thank you for all the things you taught me, thank you for the memories and thank you for keeping me alive. 

Neuentdeckung: Fires Over Broadway

Normalerweise blogge ich auf englisch, weil die Bands mit denen ich arbeite meistens englisch sind. Diesmal wurde ich gebeten, den gleichen Eintrag auf englisch und auf deutsch zu verfassen, weil die Band mehr deutsche Fans gewinnen möchte. 

Die fünf Jungs aus Leeds, England, nennen sich Fires Over Broadway und sind am Anfang einer vielversprechenden Karriere in der Post-Hardcore/Metalcore Szene. 

Fires Over Broadway haben fast das komplette letzte Jahr damit verbracht, Lieder zu schreiben und für die ersten Liveauftritte zu üben. Es dauert also nicht mehr lange, bis das erste Album aufgenommen werden kann, was planmäßig Ende diesen Jahres stattfinden wird und zwar in den USA.
Im Juni starten die Jungs dann damit, die Bühnen in England unsicher zu machen, falls ihr also zufällig dort seid und über einen Auftritt von ihnen stolpert, solltet ihr definitiv anhalten und euch die Band angucken! Am vierten August spielen sie übrigens beim Khaos Festival, falls jemand von euch das kennt. 

Für die erste Single von Fires Over Broadway gibts sogar schon ein offizielles Video: 

Am Anfang hört es sich stark nach Asking Alexandria an, sobald es aber richtig losgeht, ist der Gedanke an die ebenfalls britische Band verflogen, denn Georges Stimme ist bei weitem nicht so tief und rau wie die von Danny Worsnop. Mittlerweile klingt das Ganze viel mehr nach Memphis May Fire. 

Insgesamt ist das Video recht intensiv und doch gut gelungen! Was meint ihr?

Wenn ihr also Asking Alexandria, A Day To Remember, We Came As Romans, Crossfaith, Memphis May Fire, Capture The Crown, Woe Is Me oder Of Mice & Men gut findet, werdet ihr Fires Over Broadway sicher auch gut finden! Hört und klickt mal rein und lasst ruhig eure Meinung da!

Facebook

Twitter

Youtube

New Discovery: Fires Over Broadway

Today I present you a post-hardcore/metalcore band from Leeds, UK: Fires Over Broadway. 

currently the lineup is the following five members: George Wild (Vocals), Andrew Gula-Walker (Guitar), Alex Coulson (Guitar/Synth), Tom Jepson (Bass/Vocals) and Callum Shields (Drums).

Fires Over Broadway have spent almost the whole of the past year writing and preparing to play live, so they'll soon be ready for recording their first full length album which will most likely be recorded in the USA at the end of the year.
If you live in the UK you should pay attention now because the guys will start playing live in June - they'll even play main stage at Khaos Festival on Sunday, 4th August!

Let's take a closer look at their first single Cowards Don't Give Second Chances. There's already a proper video available:

The beginning already reminds me a lot of Asking Alexandria in a good way, the vocals aren't as rough and deep as Danny Worsnop's though so now I rather think of Memphis May Fire. All in all the video is pretty intense, I love the part when they all bang their heads at the same time, it looks awesome with the lights in the background. 

So, if you like Asking Alexandria, A Day To Remember, We Came As Romans, Crossfaith, Memphis May Fire, Capture The Crown, Woe Is Me or Of Mice & Men, you'll definitely like Fires Over Broadway - go check them out! 

Facebook

Twitter

Youtube

PS: Don't be confused when you'll see the same entry again in german, I just want to make sure that as many people as possible check out this band. 

Album Of The Week: Of Mice & Men - The Flood

The re-issue contains two CDs: four songs are on the first one and twelve songs on the second.

CD one starts with a completely instrumental song: The Calm. The title speaks for itself, the sound of the guitars really calms you down. This was the calm before the storm, which is coming now. Song number two, The Storm, definitely feels like a storm raging through your whole body. The guys always tell a story with their songs and I assume this one is Austin's way of dealing with his relationships. The more attention you pay to the song itself, the better you can feel his anger and how hurt he was.

The last song, The Depths, is pretty intense. It deals with the inner struggles you have when people constantly put you down and tell you that you're not good enough or that you'll never be good enough.

CD two kicks off with one of my favourite songs ever: O.G. Loko. At the same time it's one of the first songs I heard of Of Mice & Men so it will always be special for me. Whenever somebody asks me about this band, I refer to this song at first because it contains lyrics which perfectly describe my feelings for them: “Meet my dedication, inspiration. It may be smothering you but you know it's the truth.“
The next song I'd like to talk about is Let Live. Basically it deals with the difficulties of getting over somebody because letting go is never easy, especially not when the person was important to you. However, sometimes it's better to keep the memories, let go and let live again.

My Understandings is the song with the shortest lyrics but it's one of the most powerful songs on the whole record. There are only Shayley's clean vocals, so if you're not that much into screaming, give this song a try.
The song which left the biggest impression on me is The Great Hendowski. It tells the story of Austin meeting a man and the song as well as their conversation contain some quite inspirational phrases which definitely make me think, for example: “How can you smile with your lips wrapped around a loaded gun?“
The last song on the record is the one I listen to the most: When You Can't Sleep At Night. Again there's only Shay singing and let me tell you, it's the perfect lullaby. It's the perfect song for when you're upset and have trouble falling asleep. There's no screaming Austin, no screaming guitars, only Shay and some acoustic guitars.

Of Mice & Men plan on releasing a new album this year, let's be excited together!

Sometimes You Gotta Fall Before You Fly - S like Sleeping With Sirens

Do you know this weird but awesome feeling in your chest when you discover new music and you start loving it in the first second? When you just know that this will be one of your favourite bands even though you only listened to one song so far? When I found Sleeping With Sirens, I was about to hit rock bottom, I was really upset all the time and Kellin was the one who could sing me to sleep when nobody else could. I remember finding their cover of Iris [x] and listening to it over and over again while I cried over everything that went wrong back then. I always used to swallow all the things that hurt me or upset me, I used to take all of it out on myself. However, then bands came along - they make me cry on a regular basis and I realised that crying is much more relieving than anything else I used to do. 

When I listened to Sleeping With Sirens for the first time I knew nothing about the members. I didn't know that Justin has a shark tattooed on his hand, I didn't know that Jesse used to have long hair, I didn't (and still don't) know why they make fun of Gabe literally all the time and I didn't know that Kellin is a guy (sorry Kellin, that's very embarrassing). The only thing I knew was that this band would be good for me and looking back to this moment I can definitely say that I was right.
When I'm happy, I celebrate with Postcards And Polaroids, when I need to cheer up I listen to Who Are You Now, when I can't sleep I listen to If You Were A Movie, This Would Be Your Soundtrack. There's at least one song for every mood I could possibly be in. Who Are You Now is the most special one for me though, it just describes me like no other song does. I even consider getting "Sometimes you gotta fall before you fly" tattooed somewhere - I swear to God one day I'll be covered in lyrics because there are so many great ones out there.
Anyway, I really hope I'll get the chance to see Sleeping With Sirens soon because they make me laugh when I want to cry, they calm me down when I'm upset, they're there when I need them so I feel the need to thank them personally. 

Is Sleeping With Sirens one of your favourite bands? Share your story in the comments below, I'm curious to read what you have to say!