Reviews

The Waeve sees Blur‘s Graham Coxon team up with Rose Elinor Dougall, of The Pipettes, to release their debut eponymous collection of ten songs that travel through genres. Elements of jazz, punk and rock combine […]

Throughout their three decades of existence, Fucked Up haven’t built up a reputation for doing things on a small scale. From enormous concept albums to twelve-hour performances, it’s obvious they like to take their time. […]

Time Out of Mind upon its release in 1997 was the first album of original songs since the poorly received Under the Red Sky seven years earlier. Time Out of Mind, received impressive reviews and […]

After a decade of releasing their own music, Black Star Riders have shown themselves to be much more than the spin-off band some feared they would be. Starting life as Scott Gorham’s reincarnation Thin Lizzy, […]

As I wandered towards the O2 City Hall, feeling the cold, January air around my face, I recalled that today was also known as Blue Monday. This is not a celebration of a classic New […]

Back in 2020, Ziggy Marley teamed up with Lisa Loeb to release a catchy and infectious song that will get people of all ages to sing along called “Music Is in everything”. This song which […]

In 2020, the eponymously titled Billy Nomates album, the first by Bristol-based songwriter Tor Maries, oozed post-punk minimalism with very healthy slices of anger and confrontation served in a DIY bun. However, if you tried […]

After an extended hiatus of eight years, The Subways are back with their fifth studio album, Uncertain Joys, a record of driving riffs and catchy choruses. This time, there is a different look to the […]

What a way to kick off 2023, with the return of the mighty; Trivium! As the Deadmen & Dragons Tour landed in the Ulster Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland, our photographer Marc Leach was reliving his […]

L-Plate played a fantastic debut headline show with support from Moonbot & Disorder last night at McHughs Bar, Belfast, Northern Ireland. Bernie McAllister was there to take these amazing images.           […]

In 2022 we all got back to normal and enjoyed live music and the fantastic albums released this year. So it’s that time of year again when the XS Noize writers have sat down and […]

In 2022 we all got back to normal and enjoyed live music and the fantastic albums released this year. So it’s that time of year again when the XS Noize writers have sat down and […]

Having an anniversary tour when a band’s significant album reached a poignant milestone is hardly an original concept. Still, with more artists doing these anniversary tours, they can be considered modern and part of the […]

Joe Talbot, frontman of IDLES, once said of the album Brutalism, “It was a last-ditch attempt for us. We didn’t see it as the first of many albums.” He was feeling confused and felt completely […]

Judging by the front cover, one might expect Pop Rock Icons to be festooned with infographics. It isn’t. Instead, it’s a collection of photographs depicting “London’s Swingin’ 60s & 70s”. Rather than homogenise and cluster […]

In the weeks and months leading up to this gig, I had been thinking how it was a little anachronistic that a band so synonymous with having a black-clad following should be ending their tour […]

Rock supergroup, The Dead Daisies, made their triumphant return to the Limelight 1, Belfast. Founded by Australian guitarist David Lowry, this lineup of the band featured Doug Aldrich (Whitesnake, Dio), Brian Tichy (Whitesnake, Billy Idol) […]

The temperature had just dropped to -1° Celcius as I arrived at the venue. A brass monkey wandered across the quad, looking for a welding torch. Hoping to find warmth inside, I found the venue […]