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Music, Film, and Gaming

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Earl Sweatshirt collaborating with skate shoe company Lakai

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Lakai x Earl Sweatshirt

Having grown up skateboarding with Lakai team rider Nakel Smith in Los Angeles, Earl Sweatshirt of the Los Angeles based hip hop collective Odd Future is now to collaborate with Lakai Limited Footwear as the Lakai Camby shoe is to be released in four different Odd Future inspired colourways.

The design theme centres around the stripe pattern found in Odd Future’s iconic ‘Doughnut’ graphic, and coming from a skateboarding background Earl wanted at least one pair in the series to be suitable for skateboarding, so there are two all-canvas colours and two all-suede colours.

The shoes will be released in the next two weeks to UK skate shops, and in addition to this there will also be a series of t-shirts, hoodies, socks and bucket hats.

Little Matador – Stitch Yourself Up

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Fronted by Snow Patrol guitarist Nathan Connolly and featuring alumni of Idlewild, LaFaro, and Bell X1, Little Matador is somewhat of a rock supergroup that, on the basis of this single at least, certainly demands to be listened to.

With a pulsating rhythm throughout and a hugely hard hitting drumbeat, ‘Stitch Yourself Up‘ has an absolutely massive instrumental sound and the vocals also sit strongly in the sound to provide for an incredibly impressive single. The band use all their years of experience here as they slam their way through the song with fantastic intensity and power. The track has a relatively simple structure, it’s hugely effective, however, with an incredible amount of drive as the band struts its way through the track with incredible confidence and style. Little Matador is a band that has evidently set out with a firm idea of exactly what sound they’re going for, and not only do they have a clear direction for the band but they also have the talent and the experience to pull it off in style.

If you like an intense, in-your-face rock sound, Little Matador is definitely a band for you and you should certainly look to give their ‘Stitch Yourself Up‘ single a listen if you haven’t already done so.

‘Stitch Yourself Up‘ is taken from the band’s self-titled début album which is due to drop on April 21st, and if this track is anything to go by then it could well be one of the most explosive rock releases of 2014.

Deafheaven announce world tour plans

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Deafheaven European Tour

Deafheaven will begin a world tour at the end of April, stretching out into mid August when they will finish up in Dublin, Ireland. The band only recently closed out a 41-show North American tour, they’re hitting the road again soon though and will then have a pretty hectic schedule right through until the beginning of July when they will then have a several week break before heading out to Europe.

The following is a full list of Deafheaven’s tour plans over the coming months:

April
25 Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre w/ Earth, Marriages

May
2 Taipei, Taiwan @ The Wall
3 Singapore @ Beep Studios
6 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia @ ALT + HQ Fahrenheit 88
8 Jakarta, Indonesia @ The Basement Cafe, Kemang Raya
9 Beijing, China @ Yugong Yishan
11 Shanghai, China @ Yuyintang
13 Tokyo, Japan @ Earthdom
14 Osaka, Japan @ Conpass
15 Nagoya, Japan @ Club Upset
16 Tokyo, Japan @ Eggman
23-25 Quincy, WA @ Sasquatch Festival
28 Athens, Greece @ Gagarin 205
30 Barcelona, Spain @ Primavera
31 Nijmegen, Netherlands @ Fortarock

June
1 Karlsruhe, Germany @ Jubez
2 Milan, Italy @ Magnolia
3 Padova, Italy @ Radar Festival
4 Rome, Italy @ Traffic Live Club
7 New York, NY @ Governor’s Ball
8 Boston, MA @ Sinclair *
9 Philadelphia, PA @ Barbary *
10 Washington, DC @ Rock & Roll Hotel *
11 Richmond, VA @ Canal Club *
13 Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo
15 Miami, FL @ Churchill’s *
16 Orlando, FL @ Backbooth *
17 Tampa, FL @ Crowbar *
18 New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jack’s *
20 St. Louis, MO @ Firebird *
21 Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick *
22 Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon *
23 Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock *
24 Lawrence, KS @ Granada *
26 Houston, TX @ FItzgerald’s *
27 Austin, TX @ Red 7 *
28 Dallas, TX @ Club Dada *
30 Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom **

July
1 San Diego, CA @ Casbah ^
2 San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall ^
20 Chicago, IL @ Pitchfork Festival

August
2 Katowice, Poland @ OFF Festival
3 Dresden, Germany @ Beatpol ^*
4 Vienna, Austria @ Arena ^*
5 Prague, Czech Rebublic @ Klub 007
7 Gothenburg, Sweden @ Way Out Festival
8 Oslo, Norway @ Oya Festival
10 Aarhaus, Denmark @ Voxhall
11 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Dirty Days of Summer
13 Hamburg, Germany @ Hafenklang
14 Hasselt, Belgium @ Pukkelpop
15 London, UK @ Jabberwocky ^*
16 Manchester, UK @ Gorilla ^*
17 Belfast, Ireland @ Mandela Hall ^^
18 Galway, Ireland @ Roisin Dubh ^^
19 Dublin, Ireland @ Whelans ^^

* w/ Pallbearer, Wreck & Reference
** w/ Destruction Unit, Wreck & Reference
^ w/ Wreck & Reference
^* w/ Chelsea Wolfe
^^ w/ No Spill Blood

Candy Hearts premiere new single via Alternative Press

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Candy Hearts - I Miss You

Candy Hearts have today premiered the first single from their new album via Alternative Press.

‘I Miss You‘ has now been made available for streaming via AltPress.com, and will be available digitally via iTunes, Amazon, Rdio, Spotify, eMusic, B9Store, B9 Bandcamp, and more on April 1st.

‘I Miss You‘ is taken from the ‘All The Ways You Let Me Down‘ studio album which will be officially released via Bridge Nine subsidiary Violently Happy Records on June 10th.

Above the Underground – Sonder

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With the entire album clocking in at just 25 minutes, ‘Sonder‘ is a fast blast of a pop-punk release that features driving guitar lines, booming drumbeats and absolute pounding bass parts. With a vocal style not too dissimilar to that of Set Your Goals, Above the Underground have a fast and frantic style that comes complete with a huge amount of energy and a good amount of style. There are times on this album where the tracks can get a little samey, the band’s music is nonetheless always well written though and individually each track has its own merit.

‘Prologue‘ is an interesting 30 second number to start the album that serves as the calm before the storm, a melodic track that kicks the album off gently before the band then explodes into ‘Return To Point Pleasant‘. Interestingly, with the closing number the prologue is later revisited with ‘Reprise‘, taking the structure of the intro yet putting a darker spin on the proceedings and turning it into a full length album track. ‘Reprise‘ takes the album full circle and stands out as one of the album’s best and most distinguishable moments with its impressive instrumental style and as ever excellent vocals. ‘Reprise‘ just feels like it really completes the release, serving as an absolutely perfect closing number that certainly makes the listener well aware that it’s the final track on the album.

Much like ‘Reprise‘, ‘I Was Never Lost‘ is another track where the band take a harder approach and another that really stands out strongly. Borrowing from the ‘Your Favorite Weapon‘ era of pop-punk, ‘I Was Never Lost‘ shakes things up a little and stops the album from stagnating too much with its hard hitting style. It’s the longest track on the album and the band really seem to take the time here to fully explore the track and develop it in all areas into something extremely special. Instrumentally the band have a lot to offer here, it’s the most complete sounding track on the album and along with ‘Reprise‘ just seems to really showcase the band at their very best.

Just as the heavier tracks break things up rather nicely, ‘Shine‘ is another track that helps provide something a little different here, an acoustic track that comes complete with ‘woah oh’ vocals that it’s very difficult not to sing along to. It’s nice to hear the band strip things back a little, take away the distortion and showcase their strong talent for songwriting and Will Kirkman’s impressive vocal style. A well carried out acoustic track can really leave a strong lasting impression and this is certainly the case with ‘Shine‘.

Although ‘Reprise‘, ‘I Was Never Lost‘ and ‘Shine‘ stand out for offering something different, Above the Underground are very good at writing straight up pop-punk/pop-rock songs and tracks such as ‘Return To Point Pleasant‘ and ‘Not Home‘ are well worth checking out as incredibly catchy slabs of rock goodness. ‘Lavender Town Syndrome‘ may come as somewhat of a disappointment for those hoping for Pokémon inspired lyrics about wanting to be the very best, it’s another pretty impressive and catchy piece of music from the band though and another track that’s certainly well worth a listen.

Whilst it can be argued that the ‘Sonder‘ album does suffer at times from patches of predictability, it really is hard to understand as to how this band still remain unsigned. Granted, it can be a bit difficult at times to get spotted in a genre where so many bands sound so similar, Above the Underground showcase some absolute moments of quality on this album though, more than enough to merit them a record deal at least and certainly enough to garner them a far greater following in the future.

Above the Underground are a UK pop-punk band well worth paying attention to. There are definitely plenty of people out there that will love this band that just don’t know it yet.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate HD now available on Steam

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Castlevania Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate HD

Following its success across console formats, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate HD has now made its way to PC and is available from today on Steam. The new game is set 25 years after the events of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, and also acts as a precursor to Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 which was released in February.

You can take a look at the official launch trailer for the game below:

Whales in Cubicles touring the UK this May

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Whales in Cubicles

Whales in Cubicles are bringing their music back on the road with a UK tour this May, ending on June 5th with a show at the Camden Barfly.

The following is a full list of the shows that Whales in Cubicles have planned this May/June:

04 May – Handmade Fstival – Leicester, UK
07 May – Krakk – Machester, UK w/ Fight Like Apes
08 May – The Duchess – York, UK w/ Fight Like Apes
09 May – Oakford Social Club – Reading, UK
10 May – The Great Escape Festival – Club The Mammoth Stage – Brighton, UK
15 May – The Lamplighter – Northampton, UK
16 May – Bunkers Hill – Nottingham, UK
22 May – Wharf Chambers – Leeds, UK w/More Than Conquerors
23 May – Adelphi – Hull, UK
05 June – Barfly – London, UK

Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes Review

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Serving as a prologue to Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes provides an introduction to the new open world experience that the Metal Gear series is now keen to explore, allowing gamers to adjust themselves to a new kind of Metal Gear Solid and get to grips with the new controls and capabilities of the newly introduced FOX engine.

Set within a Cuban prison camp, the game allows you to explore the camp as you wish, setting about a rescue mission as you look to locate your targets and extract them safely from the camp. Completing the main Ground Zeroes rescue mission unlocks five Side-Ops, and although the main mission can be completed within a couple of hours of gameplay on first run through, the side missions provide further story and hours of gameplay that help make Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes feel like a more complete experience.

With the ability to run, duck and dive, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes introduces a new style of gameplay to the series that feels incredibly fluid. Tactical awareness is absolutely key to success within the game and you have to be constantly on your toes and aware of your surroundings; the map is fairly small, it’s still large enough that it’s possible to lose track of exactly where each guard is, however, and if you’re not careful then it’s easy to tip one off and have them alerted of your location. Sprinting can be a good way of getting around the map more quickly and speedily taking down a guard from behind, it’s also a lot easier to make a mistake and be spotted when you’re sprinting though so this is something that you always need to keep in mind when running around the camp. Interrogating guards is great fun and you’re always curious to find out what information they’re willing to relay to you, and every element of the gameplay seems well considered in order to make the gameplay experience as satisfying and enjoyable as possible.

Graphically, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is an incredibly impressive game to look at. Although the game runs at 720p on Xbox One as opposed to the 1080p that it runs at on PS4 (60 frames per second on both systems), the game still looks fantastic on the Xbox One and regardless of what platform you play the game on you would no doubt be highly impressed with the way that the game looks. A lot of work has clearly been put into this game to make it look as polished as possible, with both Snake and the camp itself looking absolutely phenomenal, and the cut scenes always incredibly well executed also. There’s fantastic attention to detail throughout the map and although it’s not huge it does feel a pleasure to progress through with each run through on the various mission options available.

Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes at times touches upon some incredibly dark and actually quite shocking elements of storyline. The game feels extremely serious and has a suitably gritty aesthetic style to match the dark components of the storyline, particularly in the main mission with its miserable rainy evening backdrop. The decision to set the main mission on a stormy night certainly works from a stealth perspective, but it also fits the mood of the game perfectly and helps mould the overall gameplay experience and make Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes the hugely enjoyable title that it is. Stylistically it is very difficult to find any reason to criticise this game, there’s so much to admire about how the game looks and feels and Hideo Kojima should certainly be praised for what he has been able to achieve here.

Despite its relatively short length, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is still a game that is easy to recommend for its aesthetic beauty and fantastic quality of gameplay. It’s a great teaser title for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, introducing new gameplay features and preparing gamers for the next full game in the Metal Gear Solid franchise. If you enjoy stealth titles then there is certainly much to admire about Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, and although it may be true that the game could be longer, there’s still a reasonable amount of content to the title once you factor in the five Side-Ops, and the game definitely warrants a good few playthroughs as you look to better your score each time with the ultimate goal of achieving an S-Rank.