The sun is shining in Wolverhampton today, and that’s great as we’ve got Slam Dunk to go too and with 2 outdoor stages we need all the sun possible. The queues have already formed as thousands of rock, emo, pop punk and ska fans wait eagerly for the gates to open. At one they let the crowds into the festival site so they can get ready for a long day of fun, and the majority head indoors to catch the first band.
 So
the first band Jude and myself catch at Slam Dunk
is Heart in Hand (2.5/5), a UK
melodic hardcore band, honestly it's not the most
electrifying start to the day. It's pretty much
by the numbers, the vocalist fancies himself as
Frank from Pure Love in his Gallows era, not nearly
as exciting though. (RL)
Next up is first band on the Wulfrun stage, American
scene (3/5), nothing exciting here, it's
very middle of the road rock I don't think a single
punter here is a fan, I'm guessing they're here
for the other bands on later as everyone is standing
still void of emotion towards the band, the band
are alright and would have been perfect in 1995
but far from special today. (RL)
The
Summer Set (3.5/5) kick things off in
the main room which is bustling, no doubt allot
of the people are here to get there place ready
for the headline act All Time Low, but as they’ve
got a long wait ahead of them. It’s good
that the first band are in the same vein, very
poppy and upbeat. They play lots of catchy songs
and end with the cheesy but loveable, Chelsea,
The Summer Set kick things off with a bang, let’s
hope the rest of the day continues like this.
(JD)
Gnarwolves
(3/5) are next up on the Vans stage,
they're a fun pop punk band and have drawn a bit
of a crowd down one of the side streets where
the stage is located, they are quite interactive
with the crowd which are responding in kind, at
times the sound is very bass heavy, so it comes
across at times as a mess of sound with vocals,
bu the crowd seem to love it. (RL)
Transit (3/5) are next up on
the Wulfrun stage, they are a US emo band, it's
surprisingly catch easy to listen to stuff but
it really lacks a punch in the sound and attitude
it needs more umph, other than that its alright
music. (RL)
Tonight
Alive (2.5/5) have travelled all the
way from Australia for these gigs, and I think
all those miles and all the gigs around the UK
have took it out of them, they play a nice enough
set but the sound isn't really suited to this
size of venue, Jenna's vocals are a little lacklustre
and the songs lack any real power. There are good
points though, they move about the stage with
great prowess, and the fans in this heaving room
really dig them, so it could just be me missing
their appeal. (JD)
Next
up on the vans stage, is MC Lars (4/5)
, I haven't seen this laptop rap guy
in quite a few years, he's as lively and funny
as ever, turning the super mario brothers theme
into a rap song, he raps very much tongue in cheap
and his mid song banter is quite amusing too,
getting some fans on stage to skank will endear
him further to his fans here today. (RL)
The Story So Far (3/5) are next
up on the Wulfrun stage, they are a US pop punk
band, they're quite lively, with the liveliest
crowd I've seen so far today, not a bad band by
any means but feels very familiar, but one of
the better pop punk bands on offer today playing
a very lively set that keeps the crowd energised
from start to finish, so much so that I only get
to shoot 1 song in the pit. (RL)
Mallroy
Knox (4/5) burst onto the stage like
they own it with all the power and attitude of
a veteran band. They may have only been going
a few years but they've worked hard to be as good
as they are and it really, shows. The crowd sing
along and mosh like maniacs especially to the
“woe ohs” of death rattle. This band
are up the way up and definitely deserve their
place, on the main stage. (JD)
We
Are The Ocean (5/5) take to the main
stage situated in the Civic Hall around 4:45pm,
opening with 'Let It All Go' the room erupts!
As expected, the fans are tightly packed in and
really giving it some welly with the jumping and
singing along, even with slightly slower paced,
'What It Feels Like'.
We Are The Ocean have been a band I've been meaning
to catch live for a while, and I am 100% not disappointed
today, they play a good mix of old and newer tracks
and keep the crowd engaged at all times. Last
but one track is the awesome 'Waiting Room' and
once again the room erupts with huge energy. One
of the best performances and atmospheres so far
today. (JO)
[Spunge]
(4/5) are playing outside on the Vans
Stage and are trying their best to brighten up
the rain that’s just started. They play
plenty of classic songs including Roots and Kicking
Pigeons that get the whole outdoors jumping. They
also throw in some nice banter between songs like;
“if there’s one thing you take away
from today, it’s that we are not dead”
and “we don't have merch, as we couldn't
be bothered to bring any, so if you want Spunge
on your shirt, then find a mate with a pen”.
They brighten the whole mood of the festival and
the weather also agrees as the sun comes out towards
the end of their set. (JD)
Fireworks
(2.5/5), a pop punk band from the US
are on the Wulfrun stage now, they have a bit
of a following in the crowd, one thing that strikes
me about this band is that a lot of their songs
seem to build and build then don't go any where
they just sing with a whimper and their stage
presence only seems half arsed, not from the singer
but from the rest of the band, maybe it's just
tiredness I don't know, but its not a very convincing
performance (RL)
Sleeping
With Sirens (2.5/5) are on the main stage,
and have the room waiting in anticipation to see
one of the hottest bands around at the moment.
Unfortunately there not as good as all the hype.
They blast onto the stage jumping and twisting
around, whilst singer Kellin Quinn screams down
the mic. The sound is impressive, but the vocals
are lacking but this doesn’t matter to the
crowd as they lap it all up, including Quinns
sickening intro to ‘A Trophy Fathers Trophy
Son’ where he tells everyone how this is
for all the people with deadbeat dads and for
all the people who have to bring up their siblings,
whilst yes it is rather heartfelt, it feels rather
tacky at a festival especially when all the people
here are basically agreeing and slating their
own families who probably bought them a ticket
to be here. They do play a decent set, but it
really doesn’t stand out from the rest.
(JD)
Me
Vs Hero (3/5) are up next on the Vans
stage, they're giving me a much needed lively
shot in the arm, it's more pop punk tasticness,
the die hard fans are at the front singing arms
up in the air, but it peters out after a few rows
of sparce crowd members. Their sound is lively
and their on stage show is just as alive, and
they get the crowd singing along, it seems that
some of the crowd has disappeared as its feeling
less crowded than it has been. (RL)
Allister
(4/5) are bringing a dowse of pop punk
to the Macbeth Stage, by playing their iconic
album Last Stop Suburbia in full. Although they’ve
been back together since 2010 they haven’t
been back to the uk since 2006, but the way they’re
playing today it’s like they’ve never
left. They’re on fire and play through this
timeless album with a great amount of energy and
they sound great. They get this bustling room
bouncing and send them away feeling all warm and
full of that lovely nostalgia. We hope they come
back with a tour that includes other albums soon.
(JD)
Yashin
(4.5/5) are playing on a stage that is
only just about big enough to hold them, over
at the Tiger Stage. The room is to capacity and
we think it’s an odd choice that they’re
playing this stage but when they kick into their
set by playing ‘New Year Or New York’
it’s clear why, they love this intimate
atmosphere as they get up close and personal with
the audience. They play a stonking set and sound
amazing, with the two singers making great harmonies
whilst at the same time commanding the crowd to
circle pit and have a great time. By the end of
the set they’ve climbed on top of amps and
have got the entire room hot and sweaty. (JD)
Kids
in Glass Houses (3.5/5) are the next
band up on the main Civic stage today, slinging
their particular brand of pop punkyness at this
youthful crowd. They're a pretty decent live band
and one of the better bands on this stage this
afternoon I was expecting them to be higher up
on the bill, they're a lively bunch and the crowd
are just as lively as they blast through their
set with ease, which seems to fly by without much
interruption (RL)
The
Wonder Years (4.5/5) are already in full
swing as I fight my way into the Wulfrun Hall.
They’re playing their newest song ‘Passing
Through a Screen Door’ from their latest
album ‘The Greatest Generation’ and
everyone is getting into it. They play a great
set that includes songs from all 3 of their albums,
and even though singer Dan Campbell’s voice
is going this doesn’t detract from the sound
as the rest of the band all have mics and the
audience helps by singing every word. They take
the audience through up and downs as they sing
about being disillusioned in your twenty’s,
which bursts into an explosion of emotions as
they play ‘The Bastards, The Vultures, The
Wolves’ and the whole room chants “I
came here looking for a fight!”. The Wonder
Years show everyone on this bill how it’s
done, and we can only hope they’ll be back
later in the year with a tour of their own. (JD)
Deaf
Havana (4/5) are up next and it's a much
needed change in Genre as pop punk is starting
to wear a tad thin on my ears. A bit of alt rock
is really a relief, and they deliver, it's still
a tad radio friendly in places, they open with
a cover of 'Let Me Entertain You' to get the crowd
really into their set early on, and they keep
the crowd engaged this would be a hard thing if
they weren't such a good band, they have the time
to take their set up and down a notch, which is
good to give you a break from the fast and singular
pace of the day. It's a really good set from a
really good band (RL)
The
Skints (3.5/5) are bringing their unique
form of Dub, Ska, and Reggae to the outside Vans
Stage. They sound awesome and play songs such
as Ratatat and Rise Up which get the moderate
sized group that’s gathered all chilled
out and mellowed. As well as sounding great they
also look wonderful as the lighting hits the stage
with blasts of greens and blues that make the
band shine in the lowering natural light. They
wrap up their set with Culture Vulture that has
everyone begging for more. (JD)
My
last review of the day comes from The
Early November (3/5). After getting my
ears refreshed its back to listening to more radio
friendly pop punk, I have to say that this band
is again run of the mill, nothing really genre
breaking apart from the odd bit of heaviness every
now and again, and its not surprising as the second
biggest stage hardly has anyone here to watch
them, it's a quarter full if that, average at
best. (RL)
All
Time Low (4.5/5) are headlining the main
stage, and have a jam packed room to play in front
of. The girls that got their early to get a place
at the front, remain in their majority ready to
raise the roof with their screams and chants of
All Time Low! The Baltimore four take to the stage
and blast away with 2 hit songs, ‘Lost In
Stereo’ and ‘Damned If I Do Ya’
which has the whole room singing along and rocking
out. They do their normal bit of entertaining
everyone with their witty if not dirty one liners,
as well as jumping around the stage and placing
Bra’s that the girls through onto their
microphones. They continue their pop punk infused
show with songs like ‘Neverland’,
‘Stella’. ‘Pillowtalk’,’Time
Bomb’, ‘Jessy Rae’ before ending
their set with their biggest hits ‘Weightless’
and ‘Dear Maria’. They close the main
stage in style and make it clear why they’re
the main act on the billing. (JD)
Four
Year Strong (4/5) headline the Macbeth
Stage and have a room that’s only half full
due to the scheduling of having 5 headline bands
play at the same time, which is clearly a shame
as they put on a great show by playing songs such
as ‘Tonight We Feel Alive’ ‘What
The Hell is a Gigawatt?’ and ‘Enemy
of the World’. The bearded foursome, sound
wicked, the levels make them sound as good as
they do recorded and even the security guards
can’t help but mosh along to the pop punk
goodness. They finish their set with the massive
songs ‘It Must Really Suck To Be Four Year
Strong Right Now’ and ‘Wasting Time’
which sends everyone who stuck around for this
treat home happy. (JD)
King
Prawn (4/5) are fighting a tough battle,
being up against 4 other headliners on the bill
and to be fair most of the crowd here today probably
hadn’t heard of them, as the average age
here is probably 15 and the band haven’t
played a gig in almost 10 years, but a good sized
crowd has gathered to see the bands great comeback!
They sound amazing, it’s almost as if they
hadn’t been away, the audience lap up their
ska/dub/punk vibes and dance into the night as
they play songs such as ‘Racist Copper’
‘Day In Day Out’ and ‘Dominant
View’. They end the day on a high and show
that there’s allot more to come from them,
so if you don’t know who they are, check
them out now as they’ll
be around for a while to come and are ready to
convert newcomers into the world of the mighty
King Prawn! (JD)
Overall today has been a huge success, the bands
have been amazing, the crowd have all had fun
and were up for it, the security have been great(especially
the one that gave me a can of monster), and it
has been organised to the best level. I sincerely
hope they bring it back to the midlands next year
as it has been one of the best festivals I’ve
ever been too (and I’ve been to allot!).
To see more of Rob Lawrence's photos from the event Click Here
To see more of James Daly's photos from the event Click Here
Review By Robert Lawrence, James Daly And Jude
Onions
Photos By Robert Lawrence And James Daly
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