Sauna Youth, Saturday's Kids, Kept By Casino + Little Ease

Sauna Youth play scuzzy, garagey hardcore. They don't really sound like you'd expect them to; they tumble, they rage, they echo... It's all very weird and kind of difficult to describe them to people without making them sound incredibly pretentious. I think a lot of people were disappointed that Richard and Lindsay didn't do another band that sounded like The Steal, and therefore this band has been overlooked by that sort of audience, which is obviously a real shame.

Saturday's Kids are a young band from South Wales who are probably sick to the back teeth about being referred to as a "young band from South Wales". They play aggressive, abrasive post-something. I really don't know enough about this sort of music. I think they're a bit post-punk, a bit post-hardcore... They sound like Pissed Jeans, they sound like an early Nirvana; I read a review of their most recent 7" on Art For Blind - which is really good, by the way - which compared them to Harriet The Spy. I hadn't considered that. Regardless, great band.

I've been friends with the boys from Kept By Casino for years. My first band played our first ever gig with their old band nearly seven years ago. The fact that we're still playing shows together after all this time whilst a lot of my friends at that time who were into our sort of music have dissipated is something that really keeps me grounded. Maybe I'm not wasting my time. KBC's new stuff is what they've building towards for a couple of years, they play unfashionable alt-rock influenced post-hardcore in a similar sort of vein as McLusky or The Jesus Lizard; but with the lyrical weirdness of Joan of Arc and the aggression of Refused or Death From Above 1979.

My new band is playing first on this show. We are called Little Ease and it's our first show. We play poppy, garagey hardcore. I yelp over the top and do my best not to sound like I'm in Los Mendozas.

Upcoming Brighton punk shows.

Sat 19th Feb - Sauna Youth, Saturday's Kids, Kept By Casino + Little Ease @ The Green Door Store

Sun 27th Feb - Worn In Red (US), Attack! Vipers!, Light Bearer, Tied To The Mast + OK Pilot @ The Cowley Club

Wed 9th March - Bearings (US), Directions + Bird Calls @ The Prince Albert

Mon 21st March - Thousandaires (US), Calvinball + Pacer @ The Prince Albert

Mon 4th April - From Plan To Progress, Caves, Ten Speed Bicycle + Loose Cannons @ The Hobgoblin

Mon 9th May - Iron Chic (US), Bangers, You Me And The Atom Bomb + Little Ease @ The Prince Albert

Wed 25th May - Social Circkle (US), Big Kids (US) + The Shitty Limits @ The Green Door Store

Thur 28th July - Algernon Cadwallader (US) @ The Green Door Store

Wed 3rd Aug - Ghostlimb (US) + Black Kites (US) @ The Prince Albert

FTC 007 - Kaddish - LP

Kaddish are from Dundee and play heartbreaking, shitkicking screamo. Jangly guitars, howled vocals and melodies that rise and fall into chaos before breaking down into moments of quiet contemplation.

I first heard Kaddish when I bought the split 7" they did with Battle of Wolf 359. The track on there, Combray, completely blew me away. It's too lazy to compare Kaddish to the likes of La Quiete and Funeral Diner, they have taken that chaotic hardcore / emo sound and managed to avoid the dreaded PAES trap that all too many bands fall into.

This record is so good, even my cat likes it:

I've reduced this to £6 postage paid as I'm desperate to clear some of these at the moment!

FTC 006 - Spraynard / Break The Habit split 7"

Spraynard were the touring band for our friend Dave House on his United States tour a couple of years ago. He wouldn't stop going on about them and eventually people starting drawing [very flattering!] comparisons between them and my band. We started chatting online and somehow we managed to book a ten day UK tour. It was one of the best weeks of my life.

On this record, Spraynard continue their domination of New York-meets-Gainesvillian pop punk whilst Break The Habit cut two tracks that build on the split with Bangers with two tracks that they hope have a more emo influence [I'll let you decide that though]

You can download the Break The Habit side of this split from the MySpace, and the Spraynard side from their Website. Also, don't forget to check out Spraynard's amazing début LP on Runner Up Records.

Buy this record for £4 postage paid from here:

FTC 005 - Calvinball - Moving Homes And Breaking Bones

This one was a no-brainer.

I only met the Calvinball boys about a year ago, but we became friends instantly. Their poppy, throaty Latterman-meets-Lawrence Arms pop punk was exactly the sort of music I was desperate for at the time. With these boys you know exactly what you're getting; there's no bullshit, there's no egos - just four lads getting pissed and singing punk rock songs.

This record has five more anthemic pop punk songs that made me fall in love with them to begin with. The lyrics on this record are more self-reflecting than on the first. Dave talks about the awkwardness of living and working in an area where the BNP are in power and his decision to move south to try and get away from it all in Brighter Lights. "The hit", No Matter How Hard You Try hits a nerve whilst talking about the near-death of a friend. This is an awesome EP. You will love it.

The artwork is by Calvinball guitarist and artist to the stars, Joseph William, and was screened by Pete from Cutting Class. I actually don't have any copies of these to sell at the moment, speak to Calvinball, they do.

Their first record, Live Fast, Go To Bed Early is up for free download from here. It's anthemic, it's great.

FTC 004 - Bangers / Break The Habit split 12"

Bangers play Jawbreaker-influenced poppy punk rock and Break The Habit seems to sit somewhere between Lifetime and Latterman. The idea for this record came about at The Bridge House Inn, Copsale where both bands were playing their first gig. We had a lot of problems actually getting this one, not least because I was in my final year of University. In the end it turned out really, really well. There was more amazing artwork by the unfuckwithable William Exley and the record sounds great.

We pressed 350 of these on heavyweight black vinyl. I hand-numbered the sleeves. They are pretty much all sold out, although Andy @ Records Or It Didn't Happen or the nice dudes at Banquet Records might have a couple left. Act fast!

FTC 003 - Burning Times - The End Is The Beginning...

Burning Times was a revolution. I don't think I was alone in Brighton in feeling disillusioned with the local punk and specifically the hardcore scene. Bands were breaking up and less and less people were turning up to shows. Out of the spine of Abandon Ship came Burning Times; a three-piece thrashing out hardcore songs and reuniting a scene. The shows at the Cowley Club were some of the most passionate and reaffirming moments that I don't think have ever been equalled since I have been involved in punk rock.

This is a much-overlooked follow-up 7" from a band that meant the entire fucking world to me for a very short period in time. I was honoured to be involved in this record. This band are sorely missed.

You can buy this record for £2.50 postage paid by clicking here: