The latest issue of the Full Pelt Magazine is here, and you can download your copy for free below!
Volume 16 is a special edition where we run down our Top 50 Albums of the Year! 2023 has seen some amazing records released, but who will take the coveted number one spot?
Our News Report is still here also covering the latest from Vended, Slam Dunk Festival, Liam Gallagher & John Squire, Teddy Rocks, Brighten the Corners and LeeStock!
Finally, we round up the latest additions to our ‘Discover’ New Music Playlist with Telltale, Shooting Daggers and Fraser Morgan!
It’s fitting that Paramore come back to the UK around Easter time as their return has been received much like the second coming. Yes, you’d struggle to find a more engaged and dedicated audience than the hardcore Paramore fanbase.
Tonight their tour arrives in London at the gargantuan O2 Arena. It’s within this cavernous space that opening act Rozi Plain serenade the early attendees. What I can hear sounds delightful however their sound does struggle to fill the venue.
Our next act don’t struggle with that issue however as indie icons Bloc Party deliver a short and succinct set that mixes old and new to good measure. The uninitiated in the crowd seem somewhat unsure of what they are watching, but those familiar like myself have a great time with this gem of the landfill indie era. How can anybody not perk up to the likes of ‘Banquet’, ‘Flux’ and ‘Helicopter’?
Soon enough the lights are dimmed and Paramore arrive on stage where they quickly deliver two new tracks ‘You First’ and ‘The News’ from recent album ‘This Is Why’. Soon thereafter classic tracks ‘That’s What You Get’ and ‘Playing God’ kick the evening into another level.
The dynamics of arena seating has always intrigued and annoyed me; particularly the perhaps controversial issue of whether fans in seating should stand up during the show. Personally, it’s fine but it needs to be all or nothing – either everyone stands or everyone sits, not little pockets of standing people ignoring the fact they are blocking the view of those around that remain seated.
The other thing that gets me is the disrespect of only standing during certain songs. Tonight it was telling the moment Hayley Williams said “my band are letting me play a solo song” or “Zac is going to sing a HalfNoise song” that the vast majority instantly sat down before even a note was played clearly indicating that they weren’t interested in even giving these tracks an opportunity.
This was a theme throughout the night with the older hits getting people stood up (usually to just film the song on their phones), and anything more obscure being treated with utter contempt. This isn’t of course a new phenomenon but it was very noticeable this evening.
Performance wise though, whether the audience reciprocated or not, the entire set was Paramore on top form. It was great to see the band clearly enjoying themselves again, something else which was evident from the night.
By the encore of ‘All I Wanted’ and ‘This Is Why’, the band have delivered the goods and the fans whether sat down or stood up are all clearly pleased with the show. It’s great to have the band back!
Some six years have passed since Paramore released their previous record ‘After Laughter’. A lot has happened in the intervening time and the world is a different place now, a this is reflected in their new record, ‘This Is Why’, which is their most mature offering yet.
Speculation and conjecture over the last few years attempted to deduce the sonic composition of Paramore’s next album. Would guitars become more prominent? Would singer Hayley Williams solo direction impact on the band? Well, Williams herself offered Bloc Party as a heavy influence and on the first half of this album that is clear for all to hear.
With their recent releases Paramore have shown that they are far greater than their simplistic pop-punk beginnings, although many fans will always clamour for a return to that style. The band have certainly found themselves entrenched in those circles again through recent festival appearances, but alas those fans will be left unfilled by ‘This Is Why’.
The answers to the above questions are probably a little of everything. This is distinctly a modern Paramore record, and one that isn’t afraid to dig into some wide-ranging influences. The biggest influence (sans Bloc Party!) though may be their own musical identity. This feels like perhaps the most honest album yet from the band, unshackled and ready to fully explore themselves.
The second half of the album particularly feels like a band testing what they are capable of when they work outside the confines of their own past. This being a relatively short album at thirty-six minutes, the listening experience is succinct and the delivery precise. There are tracks that will flourish live such as the title track and ‘The News’, but there is also plenty to dissect here beyond the obvious.
This is one of those albums that deserves your undivided attention, just stick in your head phones, close your eyes and enjoy a band mastering their craft.
It’s been another big revival year for the music industry following the pandemic years, and it’s been another year of growth for us at Full Pelt Music! We’ve reviewed 67 albums, 7 EP’s, 6 festivals and 38 gigs in 2022 as some level of normality or even stability has returned to our industry.
That said, there are still many issues facing the industry with livelihoods, venues and organisations at risk for a plethora of reasons. Whilst government action is required in many places, what we as fans can do is support the industry with our money. Times are tough for us all, but purchasing an album, buying a t-shirt, nabbing a ticket and grabbing a drink whilst at a gig does so much to support the industry that we love.
In our now annual end of year awards we’ll be giving out seven hotly contested awards looking at both the recorded and live sides of the industry. Adding to our well established Album of the Year award this year will be the new EP of the Year award. We’ll also once again be revealing our Single of the Year. All awards have seen fierce competition, as once again it’s been a high quality year for new releases.
On the live side of things, we’ll announce both our Gig and Festival of the Year awards. This year of course provided our first full calendar of music since 2019! We were able to witness many great performances this year and we can’t wait to share with you are favourites.
Lastly we’ll look at the artists who’ve had special years as we award our Artist and ‘Discover’ New Artist of the Year awards. So without further ado, let’s work through those award catagories!
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
It has been a truly magnificent year for album releases and getting a spot anywhere in our Top 50 was hard enough but in particular the Top 10 was incredibly tightly fought. You can read the full list here.
‘IMPERA’ from Ghost was able to take the crown this year but any of the top 10 could’ve taken that spot. ‘Reeling’ from The Mysterines in particular would likely have won in any other year, but the majesty and magnificence of ‘IMPERA’ proved unbeatable.
Winner:
‘Impera’ by Ghost
The contenders:
‘Reeling’ by The Mysterines, ‘FTHC’ by Frank Turner, ‘Skinty Fia’ by Fontaines D.C. & ‘The Price of Life’ by Bob Vylan
Previous Winners:
2021 – ‘Blue Weekend’ by Wolf Alice 2020 – ‘Ultra Mono’ by IDLES
EP OF THE YEAR
For the first time this year, we are separating EP’s out of our main award and giving them their own pedestal. That alone is the truest compliment to the quality of EP’s on offer this year.
Again, all EP’s in our top 5 are worthy of the number one spot, but it’s ‘coming of (r)age’ from As Sirens Fall that pips it. Catchy as hell single, ‘heaven (spat us back out)’, helps elevate the release to be crowed our first ever EP of the Year.
Winner:
‘coming of (r)age’ by As Sirens Fall
The contenders:
‘False Start’ by James and the Cold Gun, ‘SCP’ by Oakman, ‘Tyrants’ by IOTA and ‘BLACKGOLD’ by BLACKGOLD
SINGLE OF THE YEAR
We look now at our Single or Song of the Year. In considering the award this year we’ve considered the ear worms that have stayed with us after live performances. We’ve also pondered which songs instantly struck a chord and created a buzz of excitement for the albums and live shows that would follow.
Songs which fell into both of these considerations competed for the award and it was again a tight decision, but ultimately for us this year ‘Dangerous’ from The Mysterines has not just ticked both boxes but also remained on heavy rotation throughout the year despite being an early arrival in 2022. That’s why that track is our 2022 Single of the Year!
Check out the winning single below:
The Mysterines – ‘Dangerous’
Winner:
‘Dangerous’ by The Mysterines
The contenders:
‘Talk Hard’ by Jamie Lenman, ‘Compliance’ by Muse, ‘Wicked Ways’ by Halestorm, ‘Spillways’ by Ghost
Previous Winners:
2021 – ‘Test of our Resolve’ from Press To MECO 2020 – ‘Obey’ by Bring Me The Horizon feat. Yungblud
FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR
2022 was the first full festival season since 2019 and what a return it was. All eyes were on Glastonbury once again, British Summer Time curated a stunning line-up, Download Festival breathed fire and 2000trees was able to remind everyone what’s so great about smaller festivals.
Our winner this year though is Reading & Leeds who went big, sold out and delivered an action packed weekend even with the huge loss of Rage Against The Machine amongst others. Always a perennial contender for this award, 2022 felt like the year the event reclaimed its identity.
Glastonbury Festival, British Summer Time, Download Festival, 2000trees Festival
Previous Winners:
2021 – Download Pilot Festival 2020 – Wild Fields Festival
GIG OF THE YEAR
We’ve reviewed many gigs this year but in reality there could only ever be one winner. Rammstein’s tour is less of a concert and more of an experience; one that everyone, fan of the band or not, should experience at least once.
Beyond that there was still some incredible, top tier gigs in 2022 and our contenders are all worthy of glory, but Rammstein are currently on a whole different level.
Royal Blood @ O2 Arena, London, Ghost @ Resorts World Arena, Birmingham, Muse @ Eventim Apollo Hammersmith, London, The Killers @ Carrow Road, Norwich, The Hella Mega Tour @ London Stadium, London, Creeper @ Roundhouse, London, Idlewild @ O2 Kentish Town Forum, London
Previous Winners:
2021 – Bring Me The Horizon @ O2 Arena, London 2020 – Frank Turner @ Arboretum, Nottingham
ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Artist of the Year now and for this award we look for somebody who has had a huge, perhaps even career-defining year. Previous winners Frank Turner and Biffy Clyro have done so by delivering incredible feats, far above the norm.
This year was a big year for many acts, but we’ve gone for Bring Me The Horizon as a band that have had a career-defining twelve months. Long tipped as festival headliners at a major event, many felt that the time would never come for one of the best live bands on the planet. Big releases, sold-out tours, no matter what the group did they never seemed to be given that torch, that is until this year!
Watching Bring Me The Horizon step up and headline at Reading & Leeds this summer felt like a real moment, not just for the band but for the whole scene. For any metal band, let alone one once considered so unfashionable to headline the biggest festivals in the UK is massive.
Already announced to finally headline Download Festival in 2023, 2022 will forever be linked for Bring Me The Horizon to taking that final career-defining set. Throw in their genre-defying collaboration with Ed Sheeran, 2022’s Artist of the Year had to be Bring Me The Horizon.
Winner:
Bring Me The Horizon
The contenders:
Ghost, Rammstein, Biffy Clyro, Muse
Previous Winners:
2021 – Biffy Clyro 2020 – Frank Turner
‘DISCOVER’ NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
As a publication we always want to put new music at the heart of what we do, and that’s why our final award is perhaps our most important! Our ‘Discover’ New Artist of the Year is awarded to the act we’ve chosen to highlight on our ‘Discover’ New Music Playlist and Podcast who we feel has made the biggest impact this year.
At the beginning of 2022 we put the spotlight on new Colchester act PET NEEDS as they continued to promote their debut album, ‘Fractured Party Music’. From that point on the band never looked back with a world tour, a second album (‘Primtime Entertainment’) and a sold out hometown show all under their belts.
They even found the time to become the first (and only at the time of writing) band to progress from our ‘Discover’ New Music Podcast and appear on The Full Pelt Music Podcast! Yes, fighting off some stiff competition for the ‘Discover’ New Artist of the Year award in 2022 is PET NEEDS!
Winners:
PET NEEDS
The Contenders:
BERRIES, As Sirens Fall, Oakman, James and the Cold Gun, Daytime TV, MOSKITO
Previous Winners:
2020 – Miss Vincent
So, that’s it! Another year in the record books, it’s been another difficult year and it has again been particularly tough on the music industry. That said, we’ve had a full year of live music for the first time since 2019 and the creative juices remain flowing with some absolutely stunning new releases over the past twelve months.
Below you can enjoy some of our favourite gig photos of the year courtesy of our wonderful photographer Denis!
All 📸 (c) Denis Gorbatov / Full Pelt Music
We hope you’ve enjoyed our The Year in Review 2022 and we wish you a very Happy New Year. Here’s hoping 2023 is a good one!
Hayley Williams – FLOWERS for VASES / descansos – Album Review
Last year Hayley Williams shed her Paramore bandmates for her first solo effort ‘Petals For Armor’. We enjoyed her debut so much, that we included the album in our Top 20 Albums of 2020.
Williams has now returned with a surprise release for her second solo record ‘FLOWERS For VASES / descansos’.
As with its predecessor ‘FLOWERS For VASES / descansos’ is far removed from the sound of early Paramore as Williams looks to cement her own musical path. Williams’ distinctive voice does however lend a sense of familiarity.
Hayley Williams – ‘First Thing To Go’
Williams recorded the album at home and the record is heavily intertwined with ‘Petals For Armor’. But, whilst Williams’ first album brought together a plethora of musical talent, this album sees Williams credited as “All songs written and performed by Hayley Williams”.
This album certainly feels like a statement from Williams, who has been targeted with many criticisms over the years in relation to her role in Paramore.
The record flows perfectly whilst journeying through folk, country and pop. It’s tender and warm. It’s thoughtful yet uplifting. Really it is a stunning piece of art. Its simplicity creates a majesty that elevates the music to powerful heights.
On this album, Williams has managed to truly showcase her songwriting and musical talents for the world to admire. The word masterpiece is thrown around too often, but when the dust settles on Williams career, this album will be held up like Simba in the Lion King signalling the dawning of a new era.
