Maycomb

It's bands like Maycomb that really give new British pop-punk a great reputation. Along with All or Nothing and Wolves at Heart; they're at the top of their game at the moment.

Last year the Wolverhampton based foursome played with a plethora of cracking bands that are breathing new life into the pop-punk scene over in the states such as Man Overboard, Transit, The Wonder Years and Set Your Goals. Their sound is catchy, melodic and solid. Keep an eye on these guys in 2011, they're sure to be making waves within the UK scene and proving we can do it just as good as the Americans.

Guitarist Jonathan Ward chats to Kiki Vs Everyone about the band's sound, their views on the state of the music industry and their dream tour...

I The Mighty

San Francisco's I The Mighty is a band I really like at the moment. Really like. Intricately crafted pop punk with hints of Panic! At The Disco, a splash of Hawthorne Heights and a dash of Circa Survive, download their free EP Hearts & Spade (for free, no less!) and I guarantee you won't be able to stop listening. Singer/guitarist Brent Walsh has the most beautiful vocals (seriously, check out their youtube channel and have a listen of the Jason Mraz and Glen Hansard covers) and the quartet is rounded out with Ian on guitar, Chris on bass and Blake their drummer.

Kiki Vs Sell-Outs

No one is disputing that we'd all like to see our hard working favourite bands succeed. We are there to support them, go to their shows, buy their shirts and tell our friends about them. It's what we, as fans, do. We give as much as we get back. These things work both ways.

Sometimes they forget these simple facts. Perhaps they forget we pay their wages? That we keep their dream alive?

Warning: Rant to follow!

Brown Paper Tickets

Hot on the heels of our recent feature in the Vs Series, 'Kiki Vs Live Nation', we introduce to you Brown Paper Tickets. Our first full on non-band feature.

Kiki Vs Myspace

Having recently branched out into the world of Facebook, Kiki Vs Everyone now has a Myspace too! If you still use it then head on over and let's be friends!

In other blog-related news I'm excited to reveal that Kiki Vs Everyone will be interviewing Forever The Sickest Kids in October when they cross the pond on a UK tour with Bowling For Soup. So, as we did with the Hit the Lights interview back in May we will be asking for your questions for the band! Leave a comment, drop me an email (kikivseveryone{at}gmail.com) or head over to the Twitter, Facebook or Myspace to give me your questions.

I look forward to hearing all your wonderful questions!

Kiki Vs Live Nation

We all love going to gigs, right? For me there's nothing quite like the fun of going to see a band I love play a show. Enjoying a night out with friends, having a dance and appreciating some good live music. But since when did it get so expensive?!

Kiki Vs The Newbies

Last week a bunch of new people started at my work and it got me thinking about how first impressions and the impact you make within that first week window of meeting someone can really last. The exact same thing goes for new bands and rising stars. 

Bands are like the tonnes of people paying their couple of quid each week to play the lottery; only a small handful win the jackpot - some deserving, others not so much. So I've compiled a short list of 'do's and do not's' for those wanting to make it big in this horribly competitive industry. Although mostly a compilation of the obvious and common-sense kind of things, it's these very things that sadly far too many people overlook:

Ultimate Fakebook

With classics like Glitter & Glue and Soaked in Cinnamon swirling around my head for the past decade it was hard to clear my mind of high expectations for the latest release from Kansas' Ultimate Fakebook. Seven years since their last release, 17 track 'Daydream Radio is Smiling Static'  is available for free download at the trio's website. The moment you press play and Bill's distinctive voice comes in you start to wonder why they ever went away.

All the songs are unreleased tracks from the same era so it eases you back into UFB's sound - and for those who've not had the good fortune of being already familiar with the band gives you a healthy taster so you can go and revisit the earlier albums. 

With stand out songs like 'Wallflower Zero', 'Kiss Me To The Ground' and 'Summersongs' confirming that, even though these tunes were written at a time the scene was very different, they're still relevant and still rocking. It's evident that they've not lost their ability to make you want to shimmy around the room to their fun guitar solos and feel-good lyrics. I think it's fair to say that I'm even more of a fan this time around.

I hope Ultimate Fakebook are here to stay because they just don't make bands like this anymore.  

Bill (vocals/guitar) and Eric (drums) gave (a very stoked) Kiki Vs Everyone the low-down on everything from music piracy to rocking the air guitar: 

The Greater The Risk

There's a lot to like about pop-punkers The Greater The Risk. Hailing from Richmond VA the quintet consists of drummer David, bassist Nate, lead vocalist Deek and guitarists Blake and Ashley. Firstly, as a female in this industry, I like that they have a girl guitarist, keeping those boys in line and proving the fairer sex can be more than just fan-girls. 

Another thing to like about this bunch is that they spent several months compiling songs for the EP, roping in Rich Stine (Fighting Gravity) and Jamie King (Between The Buried and Me, A Skylit Drive) to record, mix and master their work. As a result, their debut self-titled EP was released last month. 

Lastly - and most importantly - is their sound. It's catchy, it'll make your foot tap and it'll leave you curious for more. Although only being a band less than a year, the time they dedicated to writing and recording has made them sound like a seasoned band that will sit effortlessly next to the likes of Boys Like Girls and Cartel on your MP3 players. Just remember when they make the big time, that you heard about them here first!

Guitarist Ashley anchors the band as it's only female influence and founding member talks to Kiki Vs Everyone about the band.

 

Summer Vs Ska

Don't be fooled into thinking we only feature pop punk here on the blog. Oh no! Here at Kiki Vs Everyone we like all kinds of great music and who hasn't embraced some ska in their past?

Every year when they sun puts it's hat on and we all cheer "hip hip hip hooray!", crack open the ciders and fire up the BBQ the first CDs we reach for tend to be the sweet, joyous sounds of ska. Although a lot of the legends of ska are American (such as Less Than Jake, Goldfinger etc...) we also have some impressive talent on this side of the pond.

See Capdown, Farse & Whitmore for pioneering British ska. One of the bands now flying the flag is New Riot who count Suicide Machines and Sublime amongst their favourite ska bands. We asked them what the genre means to them:

Donation Station

Great news! We now have a donate button! 

I have added this for a couple of reasons... firstly I'm in the process of getting a new logo design drawn up and I'm seriously stoked about it - I can't tell you how excited I am! It's gonna cost me a bit out of my own pocket, so if you read the blog please donate and contribute what you can - every little helps!

Thank you so much! You all mean to world to Kiki Vs Everyone!

Kiki Vs Bad Romance

Talking of covers, last month both Hayley Williams of Paramore and 30 Seconds to Mars gave us their own interpretations of Lady Gaga's infectious hit 'Bad Romance' and there's only one way to go with that information: to battle!

Kiki Vs Covers

With Fearless Records having released the latest installment of their 'Punk goes...' series this week (...Classic Rock), the first subject to step into the Vs ring is cover versions.

Kicking off the fight with a questionable cover is Cancer Bats' recent interpretation of the Beastie Boys' classic 'Sabotage'. Don't get me wrong, Cancer Bats are a great band, but the Beasties are better. And it shows. Moral of the story is: don't mess with perfection, boys. It really is a risky foray for anyone - given that the song is so brilliant and ageless to start with.

The Vs Series

Introducing The Vs Series.

What this blog needs is a battle; A bit of warfare....(this is the war & society graduate in me rearing it's ugly head!). A healthy argument to clear the air and relieve some tension.

The Vs Series is a feature post pitting artist against artist, festival against festival, good against bad etc, kind of like an epic Spiderman vs Venom/Sparta vs Athens kind of deal. Hopefully when I confirm another contributor or two we can have author vs author battle it out on a subject of your choice.

Email me suggestions of what you feel needs the Vs treatment at: kikivseveryone(at)gmail.com with the subject heading 'The Vs Series'.

And that's basically it. No rules and only one winner. Let the battle commence!