Features

One more song: Do we really need encores anymore?

Encores have long been an established tradition in live music, but are they really necessary? Scene Queen, Boston Manor and The Wonder Years reveal how their shows end by mixing things up…

“It’s about passion and courage and fighting for things you believe in”: The story of Foo Fighters’ In Your Honour

How do you go from thinking you might never make another record to creating a double-album? Soul-searching, self-interrogation and ripping up your own rules, that’s how…

House Of Protection: “This is a safe space for creativity. You can get as weird as you want”

Stephen Harrison and Aric Improta immediately bonded when they met in FEVER 333. Now, striking out together, they’re properly showing themselves to the world with House Of Protection. We joined them in East London, where they explained why they can’t quit, the power of creativity, and how “we have each other’s backs, which is extremely important…”

Lowen: “It’s illegal to play metal in Iran. It’s illegal for women to sing. So this is defiance, it’s rebellion”

Blending doom, death metal and prog with traditional Iranian music, London’s Lowen are a colourful pot of heavy sounds. For singer Nina Saeidi, it’s also a way to express and explore her heritage, as well as taking a stand…

Mouth Culture: Meet the Leicester trio determined to manifest their alt.rock dreams

Bringing authenticity into UK alternative through a sprinkling of pop-punk, Mouth Culture’s sound is equally addictive and ambitious. The Leicester trio – who live together – introduce us to their new EP Whatever The Weather, their upcoming tour with heroes You Me At Six and how they’re “manifesting” their destiny from the ground up…

Chubby And The Gang: “It’s me vs. the world. If the world don’t like it, f*ck ’em!”

How dedicated is Charlie Manning to hardcore? Well, he made the new Chubby And The Gang record by himself, after his crew were reduced to just him. “I’ve never even thought about not doing it…”

“It’s time…” A Day To Remember talk Slam Dunk Festival 2025, new music, and three-hour shows

With A Day To Remember set to make their Slam Dunk debut next May, Jeremy McKinnon tells us about their UK return, this year’s mind-blowing headline dates in their home country, and where they’re at with new stuff…

In the studio with The Linda Lindas: “We’ve grown exponentially since our first record”

With 2022 debut Growing Up, The Linda Lindas’ breakthrough was stunning. Now, having spent an entire year working on album two, the young punks couldn’t be more excited to “show off how we’ve grown as musicians, as people and as writers”.

Mimi Barks: “I already wasted half my life destroying myself. There’s not much time left”

With THIS IS DOOM TRAP, Mimi Barks has made one of the darkest and most open things you’ll hear in 2024. And one of the most exciting. She tells us how creating is a battle against demons, obsessively forging forward, and how, “I’m always being thrown back into the abyss no matter what I do…”

Peter Xan: “I’m here to redefine what it means to be a young black man making music”

Gritty rock. Rapped vocal flows. Soaring melodies. Is there anything Peter Xan can’t do? With the arrival of his new EP Empty Space, the British-Nigerian artist tells K! about channelling grief, “breaking genre” and leaning into the guitar…

Rain City Drive: “We all serendipitously came together… It feels like this was meant to be”

Despite forming in a “funny way”, Rain City Drive are unified in their goal: to become the biggest and best band they can. And they want to make rock the “biggest genre in the world” while they’re at it…

Drug Church: “Don’t look to a musician for secret knowledge – or even intelligent conversation half the time”

With fifth album PRUDE, post-hardcore iconoclasts Drug Church have made an insightful and incisive record about modern life. But don’t try telling frontman Patrick Kindlon that…

Reason To Believe: Crows are still making an important post-punk racket

Crows’ third album Reason Enough finds the London mob adding a more personal touch to their political post-punk. And even if things still feel raw, they’ll never lose the spark that keeps them going…

From emo workwear to spooky jewellery: The best in alternative style this month

Whether you’re looking to celebrate Halloween all month (probably) or just wanting to embrace an all-new autumn wardrobe, here’s the best collabs and collections around right now…

Boston Manor: “It’s arrogant to think that you’re in control of everything, but lazy to think that you’re not in control of anything”

When Boston Manor set out on a two-album journey chronicling the post-pandemic crawl from darkness into light as it unfolded, it was an audacious gamble on their ability to get back on track. Finally crossing the line with sublime second part Sundiver, frontman Henry Cox reflects on the non-linear nature of healing, and how, truly, there is no fate but what we make…

RØRY: “Not everyone gets a second chance in music. I want to treat it with the utmost respect”

RØRY used to feel like she was faking it being onstage. Now, having battled drink and drug abuse, they’re a certified headliner with an eye on the charts. Meet British alt. music’s most surprising success…

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