New Found Glory - Boardwalk Empire, Piano & 400,000 Likes

Cyrus Bolooki - New Found Glory
O2 Academy Islington
24/08/2015

It's not every day you get to meet the legends of Pop-Punk and see them warm up for Reading and Leeds Festival, one of the biggest dates in the musical calendar. 

So when we sat down with New Found Glory drummer, Cyrus Bolooki we put a pile of ridiculous questions in front of him. Obviously.  


What decade would you most like to have been born in and why?

That's a great question, and one that I don't think I've ever been asked! I'm currently in the middle of watching the TV series Boardwalk Empireand so I think in the spirit of that show I'll say the 1920s...obviously a very interesting time given how much has changed since then. I don't know about here in the UK, but in the US there was a lot of crazy stuff happening with prohibition and it just seems like it would be a fun time to be born in. However, that being said, I probably wouldn't have lived long (obviously healthcare was nowhere near as advanced as it is now), and I highly doubt I would have ever been able to be in a band and travel all over the world like I have been fortunate enough to do in my life. So on second thought, maybe I'll just stick to my current life, a kid from the 1980s!

Is there any musical instrument that you would love to be able to play?

I'm a drummer by trade yet played guitar before joining NFG, and I started my musical career by playing the piano.  I would love to become better at piano, to the point where there's no effort in playing almost any tune, because I think the piano is one of the best ways to learn music in general, and it is pretty accessible meaning that you can play anything from a small keyboard all the way up to a grand piano, instead of having to purchase an expensive (and/or large) instrument. 

Who is the last person on earth you would want to be stuck in a lift with?

There isn't a specific person, but rather a "type" of person. I would hate to be stuck in a lift with the uber-pessimistic person; the person who immediately would think worst-case scenario, and whose overwhelming anxiety would surely bring us both to a quick end.  Just relax and calm down buddy, and (hopefully) help will come!

What is your favourite memory of being in New Found Glory?

Fortunately we've had plenty of amazing experiences in NFG and it's really hard to pick just one memory. However being that I'm in the UK right now, I can definitely look back on our appearances at Reading Festival as some of the biggest (and best) shows we've ever played as a band. When we played Reading 2 years ago my drum tech posted a picture while we were performing on the main stage of the view from over my shoulders showcasing just how many people were actually there watching us. That picture was later reposted by the official Instagram and ended up receiving over 400,000 likes! It was truly an amazing picture, an amazing show, and an amazing memory that I will always cherish! 

What excites you the most about the future of your band? 

At this point, I'm excited about the fact that NFG has been going strong for almost 20 years now, and that there seems to be no end in sight. Every year we find ourselves traveling to new countries, new cities, and doing things that we never thought imaginable. We continue to write, record, and release new music constantly, and our shows are just as fun now as ever. We've been able to have an amazing career not only in the US but all over the world, and I am truly grateful for the opportunities that have been presented to us. Like I said, there seems to be no end in sight and I want to continue to do this for as long as we can, so just the thought of keeping this going is enough to excite me and hopefully does the same for all the NFG fans out there!

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New Found Glory get warmed up for Reading and Leeds

Jordan Pundik - Vocals
O2 Academy Islington
24/08/2015

With Reading and Leeds just days away it was only right that New Found Glory treated the UK to some warm-up shows. We caught all the action at the O2 Academy Islington on Monday as they stretched those festival muscles ahead of their Lock Up stage headline slot on Friday.  

The Pop-Punk legends erupted onto the stage with Selfless, from their 2014 album Resurrection, which set the relentless pace for the work out that they were going to pull the crowd through.

But these guys didn’t get their legendary status for nothing. They kept that fast and sweaty pace through the epic 23-song set which encompassed just a few of the highlights of their extensive career.

And that’s just one of my favourite things about New Found Glory. They can rock out a song from an album released just last year like Selfless, The Worst Person and Vicious Love (their rereleased single) but they can also offer 00’s classics like Sincerely Me, Dressed to Kill and of course My Friends Over You and absolutely nail that too.

Ian Grushka - Bass Guitar 
O2 Academy Islington
24/08/2015

It’s the benefit of having a tight band who have been making music for nearly 20 years and, in 8 studio albums, have never wavered in recording just exactly who they are just because they’re the best at it.

Drummer Cyrus Bolooki mentioned the length of New Fond Glory's exceptional career when he faced the Louder Now Grab Bag. You can read that here! 

And when they’re bored of playing the songs that they’ve written themselves over the past two decades, they can belt out a pretty impressive cover as well. Tonight they played The Goo Goo Doll’s Iris and it was spectacular. (The night after, also in Islington, they played Kiss Me by Sixpence None The Richer. I imagine that was also incredible seen as the recorded version has always been a favourite.)

Jordan Pundik - Vocals
O2 Academy Islington
24/08/2015

This was the first time I had seen New Found Glory for a really long time and it was great to see that the exit of their guitarist Steve Klein in 2013 has had no detrimental effect on their live performance. It’s extraordinary to see how they have adapted so well to being a quartet. Those classics are still as good as ever.

It didn’t take long before Jordan Pundik (vocals) was up against the barrier singing directly into the faces of the crowd, running the length of the pit high-fiving the fans in the front row. It’s always nice to see the great bands spending quality time in the crowd.

Chad Gilbert - Guitar 
O2 Academy Islington
24/08/2015

“This doesn’t feel like an actual gig,” adds Chad Gilbert (guitar) from the stage, “This feels like a private party with people we all have mutual respect for.” He was 100% right.   

The energy tonight was absolutely ferocious, with New Found Glory on top form and looking primed for Reading and Leeds this weekend. So if you’re heading over there then make sure you check them out on the Lock-Up stage (Friday at Reading and Saturday at Leeds.)

And if you’re going to Reading…SEE YOU THERE!

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The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus - Australia, Anniversaries and Pink Floyd

Hardcore legends, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, came to London’s Borderline at the start of the month and we were honoured to sit down with guitarist Randy Winter before their nostalgic and impressive set. Of course, Randy faced the Louder Now Grab Bag, but luckily for him he grabbed some of the more sensible questions.   

What is your favourite memory of being in this band?

That’s sort of a tough question because there’s so many. I would say one of my top ten favourite memories, because I can’t really narrow it down to one, would be a collage of a few. My favourite memories of this band will always be travelling the world. It’s awesome to be blessed to even break even, or be able to make money for a living being able to travel the world doing something you love.

What country would you most like to visit?

I really enjoyed the Phillipines but as far as where I have enjoyed the most it would probably be Australia. It’s so similar to America and the UK. It’s like a hybrid of the two, if you took both and slammed them in to one and added awesome coast lines, with good waves all the time. I surf all the time so that’s a big thing for me.

We have never been to Alaska though, but that will probably change next year. We’re going to be doing an anniversary tour for our debut record Don’t You Fake It. Next year it will be exactly 10 years since it came out. So we’ll probably stretch out to some spots we haven’t been to, intentionally.

On a scale of 1 – 10, how weird are you?

Judging myself I would probably say a 7, being realistic. I’m really picky about stupid things. Be it, OCD, a ridiculous sleeping disorder that I’ve had ever since I can remember or food. I’m a low card guy, I’ve been doing that for almost 11 years. To an average person I guess those three things really add up because it’s something that reoccurs every day.

My sleeping schedule is literally non-existent. I can’t sleep longer than 2 hours sustained. I randomly get two hour sleep bursts whenever I get a chance. It’s actually optimal for this occupation but it was definitely a hard time whenever I was in school because my brain wasn’t getting REM sleep so whenever you’re not doing anything that requires a lot of attention and physical exertion my brain is like “alright, nap time!” I’m always a hands on person otherwise my brain is going to shut off.

Have you ever had an epic fail on stage?

Not really an epic fail but near epic fail, that’s for sure. Where monitors aren’t pinned down correctly and they’re hanging off the edge and you’re up there playing and, woosh, there it went! A couple of times I’ve almost flipped forward but I’ve caught myself with my left hand and caught the next note.

Sound tech issues with mic’s not even being on. I’ll just back hand it and then they figure out, oh there must be something wrong with that mic because he just threw it away. Sometimes they can’t hear what you’re hearing on stage or they’re working on a different part of the mix. Engineers get really into their job and I respect that a lot because I am also an engineer. They’re not just staring at one guy the entire time you’re listening to the mix as a whole.

This is really the fourth version of The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. There were three different versions with different names and I think we got all of the epic fails out of the way then. The closest thing we’ve had to a disaster was recently when one of the strings broke on my guitar that’s tuned to C. I looked around and there was nobody there so I just threw it back into the boat and had to grab another guitar that was tuned to a completely different key and had to transpose, on the fly, and move everything up a full step. If someone would have told me that I was going to be thrown under the bus like that then I would have been freaking out and would have to think it through and maybe give it a test run but I just had to do it.

What’s your favourite album?

Again, this is one of those questions where I’m going to have to avoid answering with just one because that’s impossible. My absolute favourite would be, off hand, the one that I’ve probably listened to the most would be The Wall [Pink Floyd] and then probably from that point Final Cut, which was supposed to be part of The Wall. Anything Pink Floyd, I’m a stupid fan boy for Pink Floyd, David Gilmore and Roger Waters. It’s a shame that they couldn’t just make things work and continue on but I’m sure it was a pride thing. That happens when you have two amazing singer/songwriters in the same band, that’s rough I’m sure.

If the question was what album have I listened to the most than it would be The Wall. It’s definitely a favourite of mine but I can’t say it’s THE favourite because it’s very mute. If that was your favourite album, and that’s all you ever listen to, then you would be depressed and locked in an insane asylum. But it’s so perfect for when you feel that desperation when you feel that need for a light at the end. That’s the one. 

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The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus tear up London's Borderline

The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus have had me hooked since the first time I saw them live in London, in 2008. Having had a rough relationship with their record label, who failed to produce on various promises, the band flew themselves to the UK and decided to remain independent “for as long as possible.”

I remember thinking, and still think to this day, that was the most impressive damn thing I had ever heard.

So when we heard that The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus were coming back to the UK it took us all of five seconds to decide we had to be there.

We were extremely lucky to catch them at London’s Borderline and from the minute that they launched into Damn Regret we knew that this was going to be a night to remember.

And that was just the first of many nostalgic gems from the 2006 album Don’t You Fake It.

Randy Winter - Guitar

What’s that? You didn’t realise that album was released nearly 10 years ago? Yeah me either. We sat down with guitarist Randy Winter before the set and he pointed it out to us.

“We’re going to be doing an anniversary tour for our debutrecord Don’t You Fake It. Next yearit will be exactly 10 years since it came out. So we’ll probably stretch out to some spots we haven’t been to, intentionally.”

And just three tracks into this set and we know why that anniversary tour will be a huge deal. In Fate’s Hand and Justify, both from Don’t You Fake It are, in a word, amazing. Those screeching guitars and aggressive drum tracks bring back the exact same attitude as when they were released.

It’s that attitude and forcefulness that made this band a driving force in the scene a decade ago and it’s what has made them legends now.

John Hartman - Drums

And with Choke from the 2011 album Am I The Enemy standing defiant in between those 2006 belters, it’s easy to see how this band managed to do so well even without a label. This track was the first of four singles to reach number 1 in the US after The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus left their record label, Virgin, in 2010.  

That’s not surprising. There’s something ultimately satisfying about screaming along the words “I hope you choke!” If you don’t believe me, ask the crowd at the Borderline that night. They did it remarkably well.

As we reached the half way point of the set vocalist Ronnie Winter grabs an acoustic guitar and everything gets a bit serious and wonderful. Cat and Mouse and Your Guardian Angel were pillars of my adolescence and it was a pleasure to hear them both played live, as beautiful as ever. When the packed in crowd chimed in to the latter with “Please don’t walk away, please tell me you’ll stay” you couldn’t hide from the spine tingles.

But they didn’t miss a beat launching back into the hardcore swirl of it all with False Pretense and You Better Pray. The former was definitely a highlight of the night, with the crowd jumping up and down and completely losing the plot as they were launched into that banging and infectious chorus.

Ronnie Winter - Vocals

The latter was a spectacular surprise. Ronnie points out on stage that You Better Pray, from the 2009 album Lonely Road, didn’t do extremely well in the UK charts “because you don’t have red necks here. But unlucky for you we ARE red necks and we’re going to play it anyway. So if you like southern rock, sing along.” Turns out we really like Southern Rock and we screamed that opening scream like we were Kid Rock, in a vest, wielding a gun and wearing cowboy boots. None of which The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus did, in case you were wondering.  

Matt Hunter - Guitar 

The set closed up, of course, with Face Down. THE song to define this band for many people because it is the prime example of hardcore sentimentality that The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus have had nailed for a decade.   

This set was everything I wanted it to be and more. The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus played tracks that are iconic in this scene and they did it with all of the boldness and tenacity that you would want them too.

So tenacious in fact that more than one member of the band wore sunglasses on stage. In a basement venue. At night. It was perfect.

Unfortunately, the rest of the UK tour was cut short due to 'a family crisis'. We wish all the best to the whole band and hope that the situation has improved. If you missed out then do make sure that you get yourself to see these guys as soon as possible. You will not regret it, I promise! 

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Altered Sky Giveaway!

It's giveaway time again!

This time we're giving you the chance to win a signed copy of the amazing EP from Scot Rockers, Altered Sky! 

We recently caught up with them at London's The Garage and you can read what happened when they faced the Grab Bag here! 

As if all of that wasn't enough we're also throwing in a copy of All Time Low's latest album, Future Hearts. We're too good to you. 

All you have to do is find us on Instagram (we'll give you a clue, out username is @loudernowx) and like our poster for this giveaway! Simple! 

The winner will be picked at random by us on August 12th 2015 so make sure you're in with a change before then. 

And once you've done that make sure you go and watch Altered Sky's latest video for new track Bury It All HERE. 

Good luck everyone! 

Altered Sky - Shorts, Travelodge and David Cameron

We went and had a blast with Altered Sky in London’s The Garage last week and, you guessed it, forced the Louder Now Grab Bag on them! You can read what we thought about the show here, and you can stalk Altered Sky on their Facebook, Twitter and Website!

P.S Altered Sky Might be the nicest people in the world.

You’re feeling ill and can only have one home comfort. What do you choose?

Ross: Erm. Vivaldi Spring.

Rich: You’ve never listened to Vivaldi Spring.

Ross: Probably not intentionally, no.

Ryan: Shorts.

Ross: Aye! Shorts!

Ana: In all colours as well.

Ross: Yes so I can pick and choose.

Is there one thing you would like to become better at?

Ana: Probably answering questions. I find it so difficult to keep my mind on the question I just end up rambling but I would probably say reading.

Ross: That’s because you don’t read, ever!

Ana: I don’t! It’s hard, I have such a short attention span.

Piercings or Tattoos?

Ryan: Now I don’t have any piercings but I do have tattoos so I will say tattoos. The pain is simple depending on the area (Ana giggles here but we couldn’t tell you what on earth she could possible have found funny) , down to my wrists it wasn’t sore it was just annoying because of the vibration. I’ve basically planned out everything. I’ve got both arms planned and my chest. I’m thinking about my neck but it depends on my chest but…no definitely tattoos.

What do you prefer recording or playing live?  

Ana: Ooooh think of how many albums you could spit out! Or would you rather play in front of your mum?

Amy: Just my mum? I would probably have to say playing live. I love the response you get from the crowd playing live and just the sound you get as well is completely different. So as much as I love recording.

What is your favourite memory of being in this band?

Rich: Probably touring. Maybe not one single thing but being out on the road and playing gigs every night is brilliant and I couldn’t ask for anything more. The way things are going they’re getting bigger and bigger and better and better so I’m very much hoping that the best is still to come. That’s sort of a boring story. I could have told you about the time that Ryan set a bin on fire and that would been a better story but…

Who is the last person on earth you would want to be stuck in a lift with?

Ryan: The LAST person?

Ana: Can it be in the band? Haha!

Ryan: David Cameron to be honest.

Rich: Oooooh po-lit-i-cal!

Ryan: He would just have that posh accent and…just everything about him… and I would be like oh shut the…

Describe yourself in one sentence:

Ross: I really really love David Cameron. No but the singer upstairs really really looks like Boris Johnson, it’s scary so I had to leave.

How would you like your band to be remembered?

Ana: Well we’re not going anywhere! But if we were headed for guillotine I would thank our manager who is French and probably put us there. I would like us to be remembered for being real people still there isn’t a space between us and the fans or anyone else who comes to see us play we’re still human and we want to have fun all the time! We just want to chill out, e don’t want to have to run away after gigs or anything. That’s not a choice of ours and we do want to just chill out and be human.

Which decade would you most like to have been born in and why?

Ana: We talked about this yesterday!

Amy: I would have liked to have been around in the 60s because I love the music from the 60s and the clothes…and the furniture. I just wish I was around in the 60s.

Where’s the worst place you have ever woken up?

Rich: A Travelodge with Ryan’s tongue next to my ear. I turned around, it was right there.

Ryan: Are you sure?!

Rich: You were fast asleep!

Altered Sky Paints London Multi-Coloured

Vocalist Ana takes a moment before the set

Last week London’s The Garage played host to an astronomical line up of talent headlined by Scotland’s Altered Sky who burst onto the stage in a rainbow of colour and charmed their way into our hearts.

After facing the Louder Now Grab Bag (which you can read here) Altered Sky introduced themselves to the crowd with I Know You Know from the 2011 EP In This World. It’s one of their grittier songs but has stood the test of time and sets just one end of the tone that this band can convey

Tracks Decay, Where I Belong and Traitor In Me blend forceful drum work from Amy Blair with impeccable vocals from lyricist and energetic entertainer Ana Nowosielska. Add in the backdrop of feisty guitar riffs from Richard and Ryan and some intense bass work from Ross Archibald and you have a post-punk band with appealing hints of pop brilliance running through it.

Richard - Guitar

A highlight of the night for us was Apple Tree the video for which you can see here. It’s another oldie and they are much more developed offerings from Altered Sky but there’s a charm to Apple Tree which is really infectious and we really hope that they carry this song through even when they’re playing the huge venues they deserve to be playing.

We were lucky enough to grab a copy of the 2014 EP Stop and Live (which you could get your hands on here if you’re lucky enough) and the production value is really impressive and for the most part, it conveys the sheer energy that they exert on stage.

However, if you get a chance to see these guys live then you must do it. Those clean vocals that exert passion and ferocity when it’s necessary are so much more explosive when they’re on stage and the flash of vigorous energy the band produce as unit is something you can’t record.

Ryan - Guitar

Luckily Altered Sky have recently teamed up with Pulp Clothing which is fantastic news because now they’re heading back out on an acoustic tour up and down the country. Check out the dates here and make sure you get yourself to a show and meet these guys.   

Closing track on Stop and Live and penultimate track of the night, Live For It, is an inspiring record which starts out on a rare quiet character but escalates into an explosive example of those impeccable vocals filled with passion and attitude when they need to be.

The night ended with new song Bury It All which the guys released a beautiful video for a few weeks back. It will be on the band’s first full length album which is expected to be released later this year and if it’s anything to go by then hold on to your beanies because you’re all about to get blown away.  

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