Opinion

Tonight’s gig saw Thunder playing Wembley Arena in London.  On arriving it was clear the gig wasn’t sold out as the back part of the arena was curtained off, but I’d estimate around 7000 as the attendance which is more than enough to justify playing a venue of this size …

Tucked away in the corner of stage left, guitar duo Curran sought to warm up the London crowd ahead of tonight’s headliners Inglorious, but despite the best efforts of Mark Curran, they struggle to motivate the apathetic crowd. Armed with the simplicity of acoustic guitars, they played some well written …

Jeremy Widerman, guitarist for the Canadian Rock band Monster Truck, spoke with Jamie Reader-Johnson of Planetmosh this week to discuss their latest album, Sittin’ Heavy, which was released on Friday 19th February. When it comes to Monster Truck, I’ve always honed in on how their place of comfort seems to …

“And lo, the [heathen] hordes from the East did descend up the city at the mouth of the river called the Farset… and they did lay waste onto the same with their furious vengeance and the spilling of much ancestral blood.” OK, forgive the pastiche of sub-Biblical phraseology, but it …

It’s heat 4 of 7 in Dublin tonight at the Metal 2 The Masses Ireland showcase; the half way point, the fulcrum of the heats but will it be the pivotal heat about which all others will revolve. PlanetMosh is here to see if Alpheidae, Devolted, Emigra, Ten Ton Slug …

Finnish folk metallers Ensiferum played Belfast for the first time this past weekend, when they brought their ‘Burden Of The Fallen’ tour to the UK and Ireland. PlanetMosh took the opportunity to catch up with bassist/vocalist Sami Hinkka to chat about all things to do with the band, including his views on …

The first heat of the 2016 round of the Metal 2 The Masses competition’s Northern Ireland leg was so tight it squeaked.  Just four points separated all four bands.  It couldn’t have been any closer.  Well, that’s what we thought until the second heat, when, at the end of the …

City and Colour are currently on tour across the UK and Ireland, part of which included the sold-out Manchester show on Saturday 20th February at the iconic Albert Hall with special guest, Lucy Rose. The latest tour comes in support of their latest studio album, If I Should Go Before …

PlanetMosh’s Miley Stevens caught up with Saxon‘s legendary frontman Biff Byford ahead of an exciting new release called Eagles and Dragons – due to be out on 18th March 2016. Miley: So Biff, you’re due to release a nine part vinyl box set called Eagles and Dragons? Biff: Yeah, it’s …

Kataklysm, SepticFlesh and Aborted on one tour, sharing the same stage seems to be a perfect combination. Under the “Of the Ghosts and Gods Tour” flag, this team is invading Europe and the Glasgow gig happened just a few days ago. Glasgow welcomed the bands with cold, rainy weather and …

There are some artists who just love to play live, and seem to get itchy feet if they are more than a few minutes away from treading the boards of the stage.  Just off the top of my head, I can think of two homegrown Norn Iron talents who definitely …

It started back on the cusp of the millennium, in the pub next door, when a group of like-minded friends came together and decided to put on a few metal shows of a Saturday afternoon.  Fifteen years later, those ‘RocKD’ sessions (they take their name from that of the bar, …

Rockmantic now in it’s fouth year is an annual mini festival, hosted around Valentine’s Day (hence the name) by Raz White. It might be the fourth event but this was my third Rockmantic as I missed Rockmantic 2. Valentine’s Day 2016 fell on on a Sunday so this year’s event …

Classic thrash metal stalwart act Lich King was formed in 2004 by vocalist Tom Martin. The Massachusetts-based band has released several albums, with the most recent being the Do-Over EP, a full re-recording of Lich King’s “one man band” early material. Influenced by classic thrash bands like Vio-lence, S.O.D., and …

Nottingham Rock City is the local mecca for bands, and headlining the mainstage of this iconic venue is a dream show for any midlands band. Evil Scarecrow have been building a local following for a number of years now with their off the wall stage show, and Planetmosh went along …

It is said that for British pop music to be successful, it has to be imported back into the USA. The same is said for American pop music: it must be exported back to the UK to find success. The cross cultural exchange, a hybrid vigor or novelty factor of …

First up were Crimes of Passion, or COP UK as they introduced themselves (apparently at the request of their label when they got signed).  I hadn’t had chance to check these guys out before the show, so wasn’t sure what to expect.  Opening bands can be a bit of a …

At a time when the world seems rather saturated with bands and musicians who are trying to make something of themselves but get kicked back at almost every turn, it is a genuinely wonderful experience to see a band of accomplished musicians finally making a name for themselves. Getting the …

With Metal 2 The Masses season well and truly in bloom, Saturday night brings battle hardened templars once more to Fibber Magees on the quest for the Holy Grail of a place on the New Blood Stage at Bloodstock Festival. The best thing about these heats is the opportunity to …

Max Cavalera certainly believes in keeping it in the family.  Or maybe it’s a case of keep your friends close but your family closer.  Whatever it may be, the last couple of Soulfly tours have gone out under the ‘Maximum Cavalera’ banner, with bands featuring both his sons and his …