STREAM THE NEW APOLOGIES, I HAVE NONE ALBUM

CLICK HERE FOR THE STREAM

You have almost 48 hours exactly to learn all the words for manchFESTer on Saturday. Go. Go. Go!

manchFESTer 2 - Pre-Fest...

Doors 6:45pm

Weezer at 7pm

All done by half 10.

Come early.

WELL WEEZER!

Filling in the Fred Durst shaped hole left in the Pre-Fest was going to be tricky. Until...

WELL WEEZER STEPPED UP!
Yup, Well Wisher after claiming they'd never play their Weezer cover set again after Refuse To Lose the other weekend are BACK.

WELL WEEZER, Well Wisher as a five-piece covering Weezer songs to kick off manchFESTer Pre-Fest. They'll be on at 7pm SHARP so make sure you're down before then.

Set Times:

WELL WEEZER 7:00 - 7:30

THE REPLACEMENTS 7:45 - 8:05

HOT WATER MUSIC 8:20 - 8:50

RISE AGAINST 9:05 - 9:35

RANCID 9:50 - 10:20

manchFESTer mixtape

As it is now a couple of days away, here's a stream of the mixtape for manchFESTer 2. Also a link to the downlad HERE, it's been downloaded 222 times already, that is pretty much capacity for the venue. Remember, COME EARLY. You CAN still pay on the door, no ticket required.

manchFESTer Pre-Fest: Limp Bizkit pulled out...

Sad news, Limp Bizkit have had to pull out due to clashing commitments, Fred Durst went back to Uni! I think we're just gonna keep it as the other four bands now, unless anyone's got a great full-band At The Drive-In covers set lined up...anyone?

Anyway, here's a video that I took in 2009 on my first trip to Sheffield since moving up north at the Above Them record release show at The Stockroom (R.I.P). It's the last song from Above Them's killer set that night and fittingly, it's a cover of A Flight and a Crash by Hot Water Music that I'm sure you'll all be seeing in the flesh come Friday night. Holla.

REVIEW: Apologies, I Have None - London

I'm the busiest I've ever been at the moment with University and manchFESTer things going on, so luckily Matt Doherty from The Calvinballers stepped in to review Apologies, I Have None's long awaited debut album 'London'

Apologies, I Have None have finally released their debut album and it's a love-letter to the expensive, over-populated, trendy shit-hole that they call home. I first met Apologies, I Have None when they were a raw and scrappy two piece when my band toured with them years ago, it was a pleasure to hang and watch them rock out night adter night. We played shows to literally six people and had such a blast doing it that when they doubled their numbers with the addition of PJ and Joe to the band, I was skeptical. I was certain they would lose their edge and that raw passion that they had exhibited in the early days by becoming a "full band". And maybe they have.

Gone are the rough and ready pop songs sung over one guitar and sketchy drums, in their place; nine slick, super-produced rock anthems. Oh, and a piano ballad. The amount of work that they have put into polishing this album is obvious and it has paid off. 'London' sounds fantastic, each song is layered and dense, yet the whole record blends together perfectly. There are no filler tracks to be found on 'London', some of the songs the guys have been playing live for years, even back in the two-piece days, and the rousing sing-a-longs never fail to get the nerds at the front raising their fists and screaming along. 'Sat In Vicky Park' is one such jam.
My favourite song on the record that has been doing the rounds for a while in their live set, is 'Clapton Pond'. It's standard A,IHN fare until the two-minute mark when they break that shit down and it becomes a slow, 'woah' heavy banger. 'The 26' is an interesting song. First off, it is one of the best songs on the album (Kieran: one of the best songs ever), it is familiar, yet original. Josh's vocals are less polished than Dan's and they compliment this song perfectly. The lyrics "I'ma smash this bitch's face in, find the cunt and stab the fucker" immediately sounds a bit sexual violence-y, but there is an immediate regret and in the context of the song I think it works and justifies itself brilliantly. The song seems to be about over-reaction and self loathing from thinking terrible thoughts in the aftermath of an emotional betrayal. Odd Future it ain't.
The aforementioned piano balled 'Foundations' is strangely the closest 'London' gets to showcasing the stripped down, minimalistic aesthetics of Apologies of old, and it is a belter. Dan's voice soars like a diva's and the song is a perfect penultimate track that leads straight into the album's closing number 'Long Gone'. This is a song about needing to get the fuck out of the big smoke, it sounds a bit like recent Blink-182, but better. Obviously.
Don't be fooled by the slick production, at a lean ten songs, 'London' perfectly captures the passion and sincerity that made me fall in love with Apologies, I Have None in the first place.

You can pre-order the new record 'London' now from here: http://apologiesihavenone.limitedpressing.com/product/categories/2804

- Matt Doherty.

@mttdhrty