Jettblack Album Launch @ The Borderline; London 30/5/2012

An action packed, excitable evening of hard rock took over London's venue The Borderline last night in the form of the sold out album launch hosted by Wycombe rockers Jettblack.

Entering The Borderline reminded me very much of an American bar on Sunset Strip that I thought seemed the perfect layout for the night of rock and roll that was about to take place among it.

First to play last night were Brit rockers Night By Night. I loved their catchy melodies that you found yourself singing along to even if you've just heard the song. Definitely captured the essence of the almighty 80s stadium rock and combining it with the modern aspects of music we have now. I feel that they will go far; a fantastic set and a hint of what was to come next.

Some girl power hailing from Finland, one of the breeding grounds for rock and metal, was next to play. Barbe-Q-Barbies, a name that catches your attention straight away, are a five piece rock band formed by some lovely ladies who really provide some power to their music. There definitely needs to be some more bands like them out there. Be sure to check out their fantastic cover of the Sweet classic Wig Wam Bam on their Facebook page.

Meansteed was the last support act of the night; they brought their ballsy hard rock music and stage prescence that was very well recieved. Their stage moves such as the guitarist on the roady's shoulders and the frontman rocking out on the table tops of the bar will definitely be remembered in years to come as a rock band. Their tunes were fantastic; lots of great guitar riffs and 80s like blew me and the rest of the crowd away.

Headliners Jettblack definitely pleased the crowd; having a sneak peek at their setlist and seeing mainly new songs I was a bit sceptical at first since I had been to live shows in the past where bands have performed solely new material that didn't go down well with the crowd. This was not the case with Jettblack however; the new material performed live was a fantastic introduction to what we are to expect from their brand new album which will be released this Jubilee weekend. The songs showcased included Prison Of Love and Sunshine, were among the songs that were showcased and performed live for the first time. They also performed material from their debut album that I am sure will be deemed classics in their discography in years to come as musicians such as Not Even Love, Get Your Hands Dirty and the anthemic Two Hot Girls. Their single Raining Rock was performed fantastically; the man Lord Zolton himself from their new video made a special guest appearance last night to introduce the new anthem as part of their encore. It was the perfect night for Jettblack last night; possibly their best show I have seen so far that I was lucky to be amongst the crowd for.

Overall a truly remarkable evening that will not be forgotten anytime soon; all the bands performed to the best that they can deliver. I'll shall be following up on the support acts in the future and I now look forward to the release of the new album from the hailing rock band of this decade....Jettblack.

Tuomaslotte rating:  10/10

Find Jettblack on Facebook and Twitter
Find Meansteed on Facebook, Twitter and their official website
Find Barbe-Q-Barbies Facebook, Twitter and their official website
Find Night by Night on Facebook, Twitter and their official website

Howe - Bolt From The Blue

I am loving the beautiful weather we have been blessed with here in the UK; ended today perfectly with a  debut EP from upcoming band Howe. It really had a summery, relaxing vibe; the harmonies reminding me of the Beach Boys and the smooth guitar riffs reminding me of Led Zeppelin. I can definitely see this EP keeping smiles on people's faces and ensuring us to stay relaxed. My overall verdict; a great selection of songs released in time for summer, if they have material that has a faster tempo I would love to hear it. Also I hope to see them in a town near me soon

Tuomaslotte rating:  8/10

For fans of:  Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin

Listen to their EP by clicking here

Find Howe on their official website

Rachel Hawker - Don't Wanna Break Your Heart video

Well I handed in my last assignment in today so I am now free to catch up with my blogging and reviewing; this makes me very happy. I am reviewing today a video by upcoming singer/songwriter Rachel Hawker; it has been a while since I had heard from this extremely talented lass from Brighton and I got to watch her brand new video for her song Don't Wanna Break Your Heart. The video I feel has a very simple but effective concept; I love how the drawings are done in stop motion animation and the words and pictures match the song perfectly. The song itself I find very relaxing which is perfect now I've handed in all my uni work and the weather being just perfect today. Great music Rachel; keep it coming and I hope to hear more soon. 

Tuomaslotte rates:  10/10

For fans of KT Tunstall and Alanis Morrissette

Find Rachel Hawker on Facebook, Twitter and her official website

The Royalty - Lovers

I received an email from a company called Victory Records telling me about one of their best upcoming bands The Royalty; I was sent a copy of their debut album Lovers and was intrigued. I started to listen to album and it was most definitely love at the first hearing; the moment I heard the opening track Bartender I was immediately reminded of Duffy jamming Vampire Weekend. I can almost definitely see why MTV have given them a very positive reputation; you hear the vintage influences very clearly in the songs yet the music is very refreshing, new and unique. Overall, I would describe this debut album as a masterpiece. Cannot wait to hear and see more from them.

Tuomaslotte rating:  10/10
Stand out tracks:  Bartender, Bottle Breaker and Every Little Bit
For fans of:  Duffy and Vampire Weekend

Find The Royalty on Facebook, Twitter and their official website

Jettblack - Raining Rock single and video

What a fantastic day to kick off my busy day today; four piece hard rock band Jettblack released their brand new single Raining Rock. Giving the fact their debut album Get Your Hands Dirty was very successful and well received I was excited about the new release. The song starts of with the sound of Will Stapleton's distinctive husky vocals that are provided for Jettblack along with a single drum beat and a strumming guitar. You get the vibe of a stadium rock song right there. To be quite honest it did take me a while to get into the song however after hearing the spine chilling chorus and slickest guitar solo the biggest grin had spread across my face. In some parts of the song I am reminded of AC/DC's classic Thunderstruck when you hear the chants RAINING ROCK from the crowd. Overall a fantastic new single to introduce us of what's on Jettblack's upcoming album with the same name. (9.5/10) 

The video for the song has a fantastic concept that most of us can relate to; it follows along the lines of an X Factor type talent show with a twist. It is done in a dictatorship manner where a fictional judge Lord Zoltan rules Britain's airwaves since he assassinated Simon Cowell in the video. Only bands of Lord Zalton's tastes go on through to the next stage of the competition but those who don't get shot by his cronies. Jettblack manage to impress Lord Zalton however one of Lord Zalton's girls accidently sits of Lord Zalton's button to eliminate bands so Jettblack are shot down. Wasn't happy that Jettblack die at the end but I do love how the video has it's own hilarious take on how band's are now accepted into the music industry. (10/10)

Click here to view the video

For fans of AC/DC, Guns 'N Roses and Heaven's Basement

Find Jettblack on Facebook

We Caught The Castle - Time To Grow

Five piece female fronted alternative band We Caught The Castle from Reading have released a debut album called Time To Grow; I had seen them them before locally and have been quite impressed with their performance so to receive a copy of their album was very exciting indeed. Starting with the instrumental Intro that smoothly transformed into the title track Time To Grow was a fantastic way to open up the album. The male screams I did not expect; since I was so used to hearing them perform without scream vocals so when it was the first thing I heard it made me jump slightly. It works well. The album is very well put together, I recognised a few of the songs on the album such as Lips and That Poor Boy from live shows that were good. It started off well but then for my personal taste the songs didn't really show much variety; although it's not the worst album I have heard so overall this album is fairly average.

I am also raising my rating system from now on, so I will be rating out of 10 rather than 5.

Stand out tracks:  That Poor Boy, Time To Grow and Lips
For fans of:  Paramore and We Are In Crowd
Tuomaslotte rating:  7/10

Find We Caught The Castle on Facebook, Twitter and their official website