The 2023 Full Pelt Awards are here and you can have your say from our shortlists below!
Votes here will be tallied with those on Social Media, plus weighted votes from our Full Pelt staff with the winners all revealed in a special Magazine on New Year’s Day!
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When Yellowcard disbanded back in 2017, that was it, there were no plans for live shows let alone new music, it was the end of an era. Thankfully things changed when the group returned at last yearās Riot Fest.
Now the next step has arrived with the band offering new music in the shape of new EP, āChildhood Eyesā. The reflective record sees the band sonically embracing their 2007 album, āPaper Wallsā, but ultimately capturing the essence of everything that made the band so loved.
Welcome everyone to another edition of our weekly music News Report!
This week we are starting by rounding up the best live announcements from the past week and we begin with Halestorm.
Ahead of their performance at Download Festival the band have already revealed that they will return to the UK for a special one-off show at Wembley Arena.
It was a big week this week for Skinny Lister who had both new music and new tour dates to share.
Alongside a full UK tour later this year, the band debuted new single, ‘Down On The Barrier’, which you can check out below!
Skinny Lister – ‘Down On The Barrier’
Speaking about the message behind their euphoric, enlightening new track frontman Dan Heptinstall says:
“Music is a kind of religion to many gig-goers, and in āDown On The Barrierā weāve tried to capture that feeling. The church in this case is the venue, the sermon is the song and the preacher the artist. Itās a nod to those almost spiritual moments when we gather to enjoy some communal rockānāroll worship, as well as a healthy dose of support, release and camaraderie. See you down on the barrier!”
Another hot ticket later this year will be the ‘This Is How It Feels’ tour from Lottery Winners.
Announcing the tour the band said “Weāre going to be throwing everything at this, with special guests and special production and doing our best to make it a special experience. So, please come. Bring a friend. Letās spread the word and get these venues bouncing. We love you all so much! X”
After their appearance at Slam Dunk Festival, Yellowcard have revealed details of a new EP, ‘Childhood Eyes’ which will be released on July 7th.
Ahead of the release the band have shared the title-track, which you can check out above!
About the new single, William Ryan Key said: “I woke up in the middle of the night with the chorus ringing in my head. I grabbed my phone off of the night stand and started typing away, squinting in the dark. This was months before we even started demoing the EP. When we started writing I threw the idea in the hat at the last minute, picked up a guitar to try and put music to the melody in my head for the first time, and Childhood Eyes was born. This is a song about being defeating, let down, and deceived time and again, but still managing to find your creative soul and carry on. I think it captures the spirit of Yellowcard, both old and new.ā
Another band with new music following their appearances at Slam Dunk Festival was Trophy Eyes.
The band shared their new single, ‘Life In Slow Motion’, which you can check out above!
āāLife in Slow Motionā is my assessment of life itself, and the way we as humans navigate life and time here on Earth.ā says John Floreani. āSearching for meaning in chaos, I found myself seeing signs in number patterns and small examples of beauty in ordinary life; a hug at the bar exchanged between friends, a crinkled photo of a loved one kept close, a kindness or a smile. What they mean, I canāt say, but sometimes if you look hard enough and sit quietly enough, life reaches out and speaks to you.ā
The release comes ahead of new album, ‘Suicide and Sunshine’, which is out on June 23rd.
Currently touring stadiums with Arctic Monkeys, this week also saw The Mysterines share their latest new track, ‘Begin Again’, which you can check out above.
Grian Chatten shares ‘Last Time Every Time Forever’
Grian Chatten – ‘Last Time Every Time Forever’
Grian Chatten had more new music to share this week as he debuted new single, ‘Last Time Every Time Forever’, which you can check out above!
Chatten says: āāLast Time Every Time Foreverā is a weak kneeād 99th lap around a hellscape town of your own making. Itās haunted by seagulls and hoarse-throated slot machines from the 1980s and it breaks its own promise on every listen.ā
The track comes from upcoming debut solo album, ‘Chaos For The Fly’, which is out June 30th.
‘Discover’ New Music Podcast alumni ANGER PARTY shared their latest new single this week.
Bringing this section of our News Report to a close is, ‘Save Myself’, which you can check out above!
“No matter how many times our intuition tells us to leave, no matter how much ourindiscretion speaks for itself, sometimes weāre inexplicably drawn to people that never fail todisappoint and betray us. āSave Myselfā tells a story of inner turmoil, treading the fine linebetween yearning for somebody that will never earn our affections, and having the selfrespect to realize that weāre better off alone.ā – Guitar / Vocals – Owen Claxton.
Norwegians Fixation share new single, ‘Flat Earth’.
The band states, “Flat Earth is a track that delves into the minds of people who persuade themselves into believing conspiracy theories. People that are so centered around their own perception of the truth that they refuse to see it any other way. The lyrics sums it up: Ā«Even if they see it, they probably wonāt believe it.”
Kings County – ‘Holding On’
US band Kings County share new single, ‘Holding On’.
Singer Rob Dexter says, āāHolding On” was the song we needed to write. After our last release in 2022, we were constantly performing live for months and knew we had to get back to writing or we would become complacent. You are as good as your last song and “Holding On” was a pivotal moment for us. We needed to raise the bar and that’s exactly what we did with “Holding On”.ā
Welcome everyone to another edition of our weekly music News Report!
We start this week by running through the best festival announcements made over the past week and up first we have Kendal Calling.
Topping the bill this year will be Kasabian, Royal Blood, Blossoms and Nile Rodgers & Chic! They are joined by the likes of Kaiser Chiefs, Frank Turner, Circa Waves, The Enemy, KT Tunstall and The Amazons.
Also across the weekend will be The Hunna, The Murder Capital, Vistas, We Are Scientists, Lottery Winners, Black Honey, Newton Faulkner, October Drift, Jack Valero and many more!
Glasgow’s TRNSMT has added some fifty new acts to the bill for this year’s festival. The events features headliners Pulp, Sam Fender, The 1975, George Ezra, Kasabian and Royal Blood.
They are joined by Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott, The View, The Kooks, Pale Waves, Hot Milk, Hamish Hawk, The Wombats, Nothing But Thieves, The Enemy, The Amazons, Bob Vylan, Dream Wife, Lauran Hibberd and many more.
Rock returns to Mote Park in Maidstone with the newly minted Maid of Stone taking place in July. The first headline act to be revealed are rockers Airbourne.
Joining the Aussies on the bill will be Skindred, The Hunna, Phil Campbell And The Bastard Sons, Kris Barras Band, Elles Bailey, Florence Black, Bad Touch, Black Spiders and more.
Wales is also able to attract rocks finest with Steelhouse Festival leading the way. This week the festival announced that Black Stone Cherry will be topping the bill alongside already announced Saturday headliners Airbourne.
They are joined over the weekend by the likes of The Answer, Blues Pills, Kris Barras Band, Florence Black, When Rivers Meet, The Cruel Knives and Dead Man’s Whiskey!
Another rock event getting bigger this week was Slam Dunk Festival who have added more bands to an already packed bill. Probably a good thing then that they’ve also broken down the stage splits.
Added to the event were PVRIS, Sueco, Millie Manders and many more. They join the likes of Enter Shikari, The Offspring, Billy Talent, Bowling For Soup, Yellowcard,Creeper and far too many others to mention!
Live At Leeds: In The Park has added The Hives, DMA’s, gengahr and more to an already packed line up headlined by Two Door Cinema Club.
They join amongst others, The Big Moon, Black Honey, The Beths, Skinny Living, Deadletter, Ellur, Low Hummer and Opus Kink.
Speaking about their appearance at Live At Leeds: In The Park 2023, The Hivesā frontman Pelle Almqvist said: āSome festival names just have a ring to them donāt they? Live At Leeds. It sounds like some upper echelon rock shit and if this yearās edition wasnāt before, now it is. The Hives are very proud and happy to join this upper echelon. They are coming for your money and dignity and in exchange they will deliver however long a show you will let them of life-affirming record-breaking rock ā ‘ roll music. If you have never seen them before. imagine a rock show but to the 3rd power. Too much of everything. If you have seen them before, you know you will have to again.ā
Skinny LivingĀ said: āLive At Leeds is one of our favourite festivals in the UK! The line up is always top class, so to be able to play the main stage as a local band this year is a proper moment for us and our people.ā
Looking ahead, Festival Promoter Joe Hubbard said: āIt may be chilly outside, but weāre already incredibly excited about returning to Temple Newsam for an unforgettable summer festival celebration – with even more favourites and new faces joining the party at Live At Leeds: In The Park this year.
DMAās and The Hives may just be some of the best festival bands going right now, and having phenomena like Cavetown and Crawlers join the party is truly special. At Live At Leeds, we always look to bring unmissable live titans together with fansā next favourite bands – and this yearās In The Park is the perfect example of that. All coming together on one day at Temple Newsam, thereās nothing quite like it – and we canāt wait to see everyone this May!ā
Following a run of new solo singles, iconic guitarist Chris Shiflett this week revealed a run of UK dates this March including a tour finale at Scala in London.
Our News Report continues with news that Pierce The Veil will be in the UK next April. The band will play a number of large venues finishing up at Alexandra Palace in London.
Next in our News Report is the latest single from Willie J Healey featuring Jamie T. Listen to ‘Thank You’ above now.
The track comes from forthcoming album, ‘Bunny’, which is out August 25th.
Willie comments on the new single: “I was tired and flat and didnāt know what to make & then my friend Jamie said ay willie Iāve got this drum machine it might inspire you.. I picked it up and wrote ‘Thank You’ the next day, it was my way of thanking Jamie for being a good friend. I dedicate it to anyone trying to do their own thing.”
Mimi Barks concludes this portion of our News Report with the new video for her track, ‘SAW’, which you can watch above!
The track features on their recently released mixtape, ‘DEADGIRL’.
Barks had the following to say, “SAW, the third song on the DEADGIRL Mixtape, marks the resistance, rage, and anger I experienced while seeking my identity and self-worth on an emotional, spiritual, physical, and mental level.ā
She continues to mention – āWorking independently on set with a micro teamājust me, and my videographer, and his cameraāit takes me back to my roots. No crew, no lights, and no screenplay. Itās raw, industrial and dirty – with the walls of the derelict buildings captured in the music video reflecting the wrath and backlash of my internal war.ā
Blondshell will release her self-titled debut album arrives April 7th and is preceded by new single, ‘Joiner’.
Describing the new single, Blondshell explains, āI was listening to a lot of Britpop when I wrote this song. A lot of those bands like The Verve, Pulp, Suede, and Blur channelled dark subject matter, drugs, and all this dirty stuff, but with a fun acoustic guitar under it. I was listening to The Replacements, too. Thatās what this song was inspired by sonically. I wanted it to feel like youāre watching HBO, where even though itās heavy, itās still a good time.”
BLACKGOLD – ‘Boogeyman’
Masked Misfits BLACKGOLD are back at it again with new single āBoogeymanā!
The band comment, āāBoogeymanā is about that person that haunts your dreams. They have full control over you within your subconscious and it feels like you canāt escape.ā
Riyah – ‘Perfect’
Riyah is ready to unleash her first single ‘Perfect’, showcasing what is to come from her hands and lungs.
She comments,Ā “I’m excited to see this new chapter roll out with this new EP. I’ve spent almost two years figuring out which way to go, and these songs might feel like baby steps to some, but for me it’s gigantic leap into my passion”Ā
Iron Maiden announce new Triple Vinyl to commemorate 40th Anniversary of ‘The Number of the Beast’
The legendary Iron Maiden have announced the release of a commemorative triple black vinyl album in honour of the 40th Anniversary of seminal third album, ‘The Number Of The Beast’, which was also the first to feature Bruce Dickinson on vocals and was to become the record which catapulted the band to international stardom.
Included in the new vinyl package is ‘Beast Over Hammersmith’ – available now officially for the very first time on vinyl – featuring the live concert from March 1982ās now legendary Hammersmith Odeon London show from the ‘Beast On The Road’ World Tour.
Recorded only days before the release of ‘The Number Of The Beast’ album, itās remarkable to think these now classic songs at that time were still brand new, unfamiliar and being heard live by fans for the very first time. A real piece of history in the making.
Steve Harris comments, āOn this vinyl release we get the chance to put āTotal Eclipse’ in its rightful spot on the album for the first time. The reason it didnāt make it in the first place was that it was all a mad rush when we were finishing the record and we had to get the āRun To The Hillsā single out before the tour and we basically had to pick a B-side and it was between āGanglandā and āTotal Eclipseā and we just picked the wrong one, really! I think āTotal Eclipseā is a stronger song and the album would have been stronger if it had been on there.ā
With new album, ‘The Calton Songs’, out soon on October 14th, Gun have shared the new reinvigorated version of firm fan favourite ‘Inside Out’, which you can listen to above.
As Jools Gizzi says: āWhen the pandemic hit we realised that it was the perfect time to try and counteract the bleakness that was all around. It felt like we couldnāt write anything, or of course tour. Out of that darkness came a desire to completely rework these songs that we know the fans love, and bring a different, stripped down vibeā.
Dante Gizzi added: āItās ironic that those feelings of negativity led to something so positive, a celebration of our career up to nowā.
VUKOVI will be releasing their new album, ‘NULA’, on October 7th. This week saw the band share the latest single, ‘QUENCH’, which you can listen to above.
Willie J Healey has announced that his new album, ‘Bunny’, will be out March 24th. Healey, who support Florance + The Machine on tour this November, also debuted new track, ‘Dreams’ which you can listen to above.
Willie says, āāDreamsā is a song I wrote when thinking about the cost of an ambition. The idea behind the video is, what would life be like if you had to carry all of the money you made on your back, and that if you did have to carry it you probably wouldnāt want as much.āā
Asylums have this week debuted their new single, ‘Instant Coffee’, which you can check out above.
The track comes from upcoming album, ‘Signs of Life’, which is out on October 28th.
Producer Dave Eringa says of āInstant Coffeeā:āItās like all of Lukeās songwriting to date has been leading up to Instant Coffee, a beautifully melancholic perfect pop song with real depth! Late 90ās Albarn meets the great bits of American indie at a classical concert & they all get together for a party!ā
Incredibly talented youngster Nandi Bushell took the next step in her musical evolution this week but debuted her first single, ‘The Shadows’, which you can listen to above.
“Early in 2022 my Dad fell into a depression as his autoimmune disease worsened. It was a difficult time for our family. I wanted to help cheer my Dad up by writing a song for him. He would describe his feelings to me and I would put them into lyrics letting him know, I would be there for him.
My Dad is now doing much better, he is on medication that is helping with his autoimmune disease and has recovered from his depression.
If you are suffering from mental health issues, please reach out for help. If you know of any good charities, groups or organisation in your area please share them in the comments for others.
Razorlight frontman Johnny Borrell this week debuted his new musical project, Jealous Nostril. The trio also includes Mystery Jets Jack Flanagan and drummer ELLiS D.
You can watch the video for their debut single, ‘Phase 6’, above.
The group also announced their first live dates in St. Albans and London, with tickets available here.
After a successful debut event this year, Firestorm Festival will return to Manchester in August 2023 for a second edition.
The first waves of acts include Kris Barras Band, When Rivers Meet, Hollowstar, Jack J Hutchinson and former ‘Discover’ New Music Podcast guests Scruffy Bear.
Desertfest returns to London in May and this week revealed the first acts for the festival including Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats, Graveyard, Kadavar and more.
We bring our News Report towards a close now with the best tour announcements from the past week and start with Tom Grennan.
Grennan revealed an Arena Tour set for March next year which concludes at the O2 Arena in London.
The news follows new single, ‘All These Nights’ and comes ahead of new album ‘What Ifs and Maybes’.
Speaking about the new album, Tom said:Ā āI’ve called my new album What Ifs & Maybes. It’s about going with your gut, not your head, because you never know what’s going to happen. I’m not afraid to jump into the unknown – because it’s exciting! It’s about rolling the dice and living your best life with nothing to lose. I’m in a new creative space, and I know I’m finally the artist I want to be. I’m so buzzing for these shows, my biggest gigs to date. I can’t wait to get out and play these new songs to everyone. Let’s go!”
The tour announcements keep coming in our News Report this week, and next up is Elles Bailey. Bailey will be playing a lengthy run of dates early next year including a date at Lafayette in London.
Von Hertzen Brothers are in the UK for Planet Rock Winter’s End Festival in February. Fans will now have additional chances to catch the band with headline shows now added in Manchester and London.
Our final tour announcement in our News Report this week comes from Sleep Token and it’s a massive tour for the band as they step into venues such as Brixton Academy.
TikTok star and queen of angsty pop/rock, Charlotte Sands, has released her hard-hitting, fan favourite single āTantrumā.
On the track, she said, āāTantrumā is so special to me because since the first time I played it live, people immediately latched onto it and have been fighting for its release ever since. This song not only represents experiences of anxiety, panic, and rebellion throughout my life and career but also the journey and relationship between me and the people who have made my career possible. Iāve been playing it live for over a year now and Iām thankful for the people who have pushed me out of my comfort zone to release a song that without them would still be sitting in a folder somewhere on my phone. I am overwhelmed with excitement for this song to finally be out in the world, itās been a year in the making (almost to the exact day) and I canāt wait to finally be able to throw a tantrum together.ā
As Sirens Fall – ‘heaven (spat us back out)’
As Sirens Fall share their new single, ‘heaven (spat us back out)’.
āi started writing heaven (spat us back out) just as our last ep ālāappel du vide (part 1)ā was releasing. that ep was a project about grief, and āheavenā very much comes from that same place. itās about giving up on the hopeful delusions that often come packaged with grief. itās about realising youāre coming of age in a dark world and choosing to face it all and grow up anyway – choosing to live.ā Mikey Lord, Vocals
Arliston – ‘Hold My Wine’
Arliston return with the stirring and spirited new single, ‘Hold My Wine’, taken from forthcoming EP āEven In The Shadeā.Ā
Vocalist Jack Ratcliffe says, āWeāve been wanting to make something a bit more playful for a while, so when we first hit on that chorus idea and made a silly middle-class pun on āhold my beerā, everything just fell into place around it. This one was a lot of fun to make.ā
Jack adds,āThe song is about that occasional moment of recognition when you look up from the narrow corridor of your own thoughts and are seized by the idea that everyone else has progressed and developed, while you are stuck in an unchanged rut. The protagonist attempts to do something about it in the chorus ā but inevitably, he gets it wrong.āĀ
