Words by K Ann Sulaiman
JAN 6th; She Screams Murder
plus; Venom and Apathy, Signs of Fire, Kill Joy City & Conduit
The Birmingham Ballroom kicked off the New Year with local boys – She Screams Murder, headlining a 5 band show in The End room. The evening was small but tight, with a tiny smattering of fresh faces (and some parents) who came down for beer and Midlands metalcore.
The night opened with 90’s inspired alternative rock, before morphing into frenetic catchy metalcore – a style blending the crunchier riffs of thrash and groove metal with bits of hardcore. Conduit and Kill Joy City – who threw in a little extra with a bilingual track in Japanese and English – set this off, but it wasn’t until the appearance of She Screams Murder that the real show occurred.
She Screams Murder appeared at Brumstock 2011, and their set showed why they made that bill. Launching into a hard-edged mix of heavy grooves, front man David Woodhouse’s thoroughly harsh, throaty vocals anchored their sound to the ground. And despite indulging in a much darker side of metalcore, even managed a friendly burst of moshing and slam dancing before getting back onstage to sing.
Stomping and moving together, the band switched between extreme, chugged rhythms and occasional moments of lighter guitar notes. With a good presence and tight songwriting, they held the stage.
But perhaps a more telling sign of maturity was their mix of onstage confidence and banter. She Screams Murder know where they are in the Midlands music scene.
For more information of She Screams Murder visit http://www.myspace.com/ssmofficialukband
JAN 7th: Karma Suite
Plus; We Writers, Idle Playthings & Farisle
Saturday was a significant night for Birmingham Indie rockers Karma Suite. The first gig of the New Year, they’re headlining, it’s the drummer’s birthday (happy birthday Nick).
And their final show. They’re splitting up – front man Tom Swingler is ‘travelling for a bit’.
So whilst we chase some further info from Karma Suite HQ, we put this space on hold. For in a word – clarification. After all a New Year resolution is not to be taken lightly… side project anyone??
With any information on Karma Suite email ed@birminghamreview.net