Features

Biff Byford and his band Saxon were one of the first bands to spearhead the 'New Wave of British Heavy Metal' movement towards the end of the ‘70s. So what do you do when you’ve been the vocalist of one of the finest heavy metal bands, for over 40 years? You make a solo record, of course! We recently caught up with Biff to talk all about his debut solo album, 'School of Hard Knocks'.

This month saw the release of 'Heroics', the new album from Scottish post-rockers VASA. Ahead of the release the quartet unveiled a video for 'Mini-Boss', a song that serves as an open letter to victims of bullying. Wanting to know more we sat down with drummer Niall MacRae, who directed the video alongside Alice Restrick, to talk about why 'Mini-Boss' is a standout track for the band and stories behind the video.

After releasing their debut album 'Chlorine' and spending 2019 playing as many shows as possible, including tours with Hüsker Dü’s Bob Mould and Kadavar, Berlin trio PABST are back with 'Ibuprofen', the first taste of their forthcoming sophomore album. Also marking their first new material in a year, we caught up with the band to find out more about 'Ibuprofen' including themes, changes to their writing process and behind the scenes stories from the video shoot.

THE GURU GURU released their new album 'Pointing Fingers' last month and now the time has arrived for the Belgian quintet to bring their chaotic songs to UK stages, touring alongside Poly-Math. We caught up with the band ahead of the dates to hear their top tips and stories from the road.

Featuring eleven tracks that were born from guitarist/vocalist George Pauly's trauma both during and after the mass shooting at Las Vegas' Route 91 Festival, 'GOLDY' is The By Gods' most vulnerable and expansive work to date. Pushing themselves out of their comfort zones on their fifth album, we sat down with Pauly to delve into their latest single 'Try So Hard'.

Donovan Melero (Hail The Sun) and Sergio Medina (Royal Coda) came together last year to form their new project, Nova Charisma. The band launched with their 'Exposition I' EP and quickly followed with 'Exposition II', which celebrated its physical release earlier this month. We caught up with Donovan Melero to find out more, including his influences and what Nova Charisma aim to achieve.

Last year electronic rockers Vex Red made their return with their new EP 'Give Me The Dark', their first collection of new music since their 2002 debut record 'Start With A Strong And Persistent Desire'. In the lead up to the release the quintet revealed a video for 'Air', a song that tackles the current climate emergency. We wanted to find out more, so we caught up with the band to talk themes, behind the scenes stories and more.

It's been a busy and exciting month for Boston metallers Great American Ghost, who have released their new album 'Power Through Terror' during an extensive US tour with Bodysnatcher. We took five minutes with vocalist Ethan Harrison to find out more, including the band's influences and what song made him want to make music.

Liverpool's The Mysterines have been going from strength to strength since the release of their debut EP last summer. From supporting Royal Blood, Sea Girls and The Amazons and headlining the BBC Introducing stage at Reading Festival in 2019 to almost selling out their upcoming UK tour, the band are quickly building a fan base with their grungy sound, which is both nostalgic and fresh in equal measure.

Instrumental post-rock trio Parachute For Gordo are taking things up a gear with their new album 'Best Understood By Children And Animals', immersing themselves in a professional studio environment for the first time to expand and develop their sound. We caught up with guitarist Laura Lee to find out more about the band, including their influences, what to expect from their live show and more.