Wishing you all the best of the festive season!
The Punktuation team would like to wish all of our friends, supporters, readers and of course all those awesome bands out there, who make our days and nights merry and bright, a Punktastic Christmas and a Rockin’ New Year!
Here are a few of our 2024 highlights:
January
Punktuation’s Alex Goose caught up with Teenage Bottlerocket co-vocalist/guitarist Ray Carlisle before their London show. Portsmouth’s The Glorias released their great new album ‘Songs For The Eaily Pleased‘, and Molly Tie was busy reading and reviewing the story of Belfast punks Ruefrex. Alex also reported on all the action from the Slam Dunk Winter Jam tour in London! Ruth Rae started a new feature highlighting our small venues – first up the spotlight was on Suburbs at The Holroyd, Guildford.
February
We were eager to get our paws on Smalltown Tigers‘ first full-length album ‘Crush On You‘! The Empty Page returned with a second album ‘Imploding‘, and Dom Tyer reviewed Portland pop punks Mean Jeans seventh album ‘Blasted‘. Our small venue spotlight turned to the legendary Hope and Anchor in Islington, London.
Ruth Rae was blown away by The Schizophonics acrobatic live performance in Southampton, supported by The Glorias, and a cracking show from Guitar Gangsters put on by the excellent UXB Music Promotion / Sounds of the Suburbs Record Store in London!
March
Molly Tie interviewed Margate’s most exciting punk duo Pink Suits ahead of their album release. We reviewed albums by the lively Public Service Announcement, oi punk legends Cock Sparrer, and the powerful ‘Sublime Destruction‘ by Desperate Measures.
Starting with the spectacular ‘You Asked For It’ tour from Bowling For Soup and Less Than Jake which finished in West London, we also caught The Stranglers stunning 50th anniversary show in Cambridge, hardcore Perp Walk at the Devonshire in London, and Buzzcocks at Camden’s KOKO celebrating the 45th anniversary of ‘Singles Going Steady‘.
April
New music came from LoGOz thought-provoking EP ‘Breaking Britain‘, Liverpool’s YOBS released their debut album, WitchDoktors put out a magnificent double A side single ‘Before the War‘ / ‘Spanner in the Works‘ in aid of PTSD, the legendary TV Smith‘s fluid and insightful album ‘Handwriting‘ was highly acclaimed, folk punk Wilson Getchell released his solo album, and the fuzzed-up punk rock of brilliant duo Yur Mum on their latest album ‘Duality‘ broke the bounds of new music.
We kicked off the festival season in style with a punktastic weekend at Undercover Festival in Guildford – Ruth provided full coverage of day 1, day 2 and day 3! Meanwhile, photographer Phil Thorns‘ lens captured the action at Scarborough Punk Festival day 1 and day 2! Roger Kasper took a deep dive into 10 – The Stranglers album many love to hate..
Great live shows were witnessed from Aussie punks Drunk Mums in London, Spaced hit the capital on their Trippin’ Thru the UK tour, and NYHC punk metalheads Subzero headlined at the New Cross Inn. End of the month highlight was the Vive Le Rock Awards, featuring a star-studded array of superb performances!
May
Madcap punks Johnny Moped released a great album – ‘Quonk!‘ – to celebrate their 50th year in music!
Live action came from King Salami and the Cumberland 3, The Members launched their latest album supported by a new line up of Los Santos, Chinese punks Dummy Toys wowed the crowd in Leiden, and UK Subs celebrated their legendary singer Charlie Harper‘s 80th Birthday in Amsterdam!
June
Nrew music came from post-punks Torpedoes with their exceptional album ‘Heavens Light Our Guide‘, top punk/rock collaboration UltraBomb returned with their second album, and Dutch riot grrrl band Clitteband released their first album ‘Kattekwaad’. The Damned releaesd a live album ‘AD 2022‘ of their ‘original four’ reunion gig in Manchester from two years ago.
Live highlights included Bikini Kill and Big Joanie raising the roof of Amsterdam’s Melkweg, while Nic Howden reported on a cracking show from The Stranglers supported by Buzzcocks in a medieval setting..
July
This month saw the release of the third instalment of Ruts DC‘s ‘ElectrAcoustic‘ albums, Bar Stool Preachers reimagined semi-acoustic ‘Below The Static‘ EP, and UK punk collaboration Vicious Bishop‘s debut EP.
Of course we were also out at hot ‘n’ sweaty gigs, reviewing Midway Still / Dealing With Damage at the Hope & Anchor, The Priscillas, Love Parade, and Explode The TV raising funds for the Tom Wilson memorial charities, Canadians Death From Above 1979 celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut album, and Yur Mum with Fantazmaz in London. Meanwhile, Hi-Fi Spitfires and Chaos 8 toured Europe – Herman De Tollenaere saw them in Leiden!
The festival season continued with a glorious summer weekend at Guilfest.
August
Kicking off with Rebellion Festival in Blackpool, we were the first to report on all the action from day 1, day 2, day 3 and day 4! We also showed a video premiere exclusive for celtic punks Bullitz 23 and reviewed their debut EP ‘Burn’.
Other live shows we reviewed in London included The Speedways, Poison Ruïn with Home Front, and another excellent Shake Some Acton gig with Thee Gravemen, The Go Go Cult, Tuesday Violence and CaveGirl & The Neandergals!
September
We heard new music from Bristol punks IDestroy‘s self-titled second album, and Molly Vulpyne‘s debut solo EP.
The live circuit was buzzing, with shows from RVG at London’s Lexington, a trio of rock ‘n’ roll from Altermoderns, Dead Hombres and The Zipheads, eight young punk bands in a sampler gig in Amsterdam, Spy/Stiff Meds/Trading Hands/Power Failure at London’s NXI, lots of great bands at Handfest 2024, a one-off London gig from SPAN, and the punktastic Frank Carter and the Sex Pistols in North London!
October
New releases included second albums from Damage UK, Narcotic Hearts, and LiVES. We also did some reading, with Deryck Whibley the vocalist of Sum 41‘s biography and Die Toten Hosen singer Campino‘s book about the history behind his song lyrics. Hung Like Hanratty‘s front man Al Sation gave us a comprehensive insight into his influences with his Punk Top Ten Albums.
Live action came from Mudhoney and John E Vistic at the Electric Ballroom and Swami and the Bed of Nails at Hackney Oslo in London, Downtown District at a free show in Leiden, Maria Iskariot in The Hague, dream line up The Undertones and Ruts DC in Sheffield, a farewell gig by Frank Carter & the Rattlesnakes, the debut of a new band at Reading’s Punk Rock Outlook 3, and Canadian hardcore legends Fucked Up!
Photographer Phil was out and about in Leicester, catching HRH Punk 4 on day 1 and day 2.
November
There was new music from Germany’s Noopinion, a superb second album by Millie Manders and the Shutup, a long awaited album by Department S, West Midlands punks Year Zero, Camden’s mighty Healthy Junkies, and up and coming UK South Coast band Thee Headshrinkers,
Live highlights were; the phenomenal Bob Vylan at Sheffield Leadmill, LA’s The Bronx on a brief hiatus from their tour with Sum 41, hardcore anthems from Fear The Lord, Desperate Measures with hotly tipped newcomers Split Dogs, Laurie Wright’s second album launch, the final (sob!) London gig by The Hip Priests, and The Damned in Amsterdam!
December
Reviews included new releases from Hung Like Hanratty and No Real Hero. We caught The Skinner Brothers live in Nottingham, Grade 2 in Guildford, Chubby and the Gang at the Moth Club, ace new Italian band Spleen with Yur Mum lift the roof off the Hope & Anchor and top Aussie rockers The Chats at the Electric Ballroom in London. We partied to the end of the year at Vive Le X-mess with our friends from Vive Le Rock and Janus Stark, The Middlenight Men, Marc Valentine and Desperate Measures!
2025 is looking like it will be an amazing year for new and live music – and we’re keen and eager to report it! Look out for new writers joining our team at Punktuation, and all the news and reviews of your favourite punk bands. Keep on rockin’!
Need more Punk In Your Life?
Six of the Best – 26th February 2025
Single, EP and Album releases from The Pighounds – Tutti Frutti’, State Power – ‘Final Hour’, Launch Control – ‘Hedge Fundamentalism’, Killing Daisies – ‘Echoes
Live review: TV Smith raises the Face Bar roof in Reading!
Punk legend TV Smith may just be one man with an acoustic guitar, but the founder of The Adverts can still fill a room with
EP review: ‘¡No Pasarán!’ by Dutch punks Mouser
Mouser, four veteran punks, release new songs on the fascist threat, mobile phones, refugees and forced labour in prisons in their debut EP ‘¡No Pasarán!’.
Album review: Black Spiders – ‘Cvrses’
Isn’t rock n’ roll supposed to be a young person’s game? Then how come so many of the old guard are doing such a great
Album review: Split Dogs – ‘Here To Destroy’
There’s one glaring omission on ‘Here To Destroy’; namely that, unlike a Split Dogs gig, it comes without vocalist Harry Atkins’ utterly magnetic stage presence.
Six of the Best – 19th February 2025
Single, EP and Album releases from Eville – ‘Plaything’, SPY – ‘Seen Enough’, Silverstein – ‘Antibloom’, Punchcard – ‘Soap Box Hero’, Real Sickies – ‘Triage’
Usually found jumping around down the front at gigs, I also relish taking photos and videos, singing, speaking with fellow music fans, and asking musicians the questions nobody else does. Writing about my favourite bands and connecting with people who love music too keeps me more-or-less sane! I’ve worked for over 25 years at a video production company, mainly filming live music events, therefore I have an additional backstage perspective on the scene.
Did you know that we are 100% DIY? We run our own game. No one dictates to us, and no one drives what we can or cannot put on our pages – and this is how we plan to continue!
