Music
Guest review: Zoax’s Adam Carroll reports from Havoc Festival 2015
Zoax frontman Adam Carroll gives us the lowdown from Havoc Festival 2015. Check out his guest review below…
It’s Sunday the 9th of August, and today is the day of the highly anticipated first ever Havoc Festival. Created by the headliners, Fearless Vampire Killers, they’ve handpicked some of their friends to showcase some of the best emerging British rock music. We’re at Tufnell Park’s The Dome, the perfect venue for it to take place.
From the word go, the crowd’s spirits were high. As soon as I arrived, I could see people dressed from head to toe in FVK merchandise, some having travelled five hours to be there, some queuing all morning outside the venue. I knew immediately that this was going to be a great day and a massive success.
Kicking off the show were our friends in Myth City. We’ve had the pleasure of touring with them before and they are great dudes with equally great tunes. With their music touching upon sounds from Deftones and Rage Against The Machine, they managed to get the crowd going straight away.
Next up were Hindsights, a band whose name I’ve seen around but never had the chance to hear until now. Their sound was a mix between Balance and Composure and Turnover, and I would love to see more of them. Aside from the odd technical difficulty with a guitar, there was consistent movement from the crowd throughout. They’re fantastic and I very much look forward to seeing them again.
Our guitarist Doug said Villains were “pure amazing and the crowd loved them” in his thick Scottish accent, and he wasn’t wrong. Frontman Renz oozed charisma and the Essex quintet were bursting with energy throughout their set. I had no choice but to check them out the next day online and they are spot on. Massive sound.
Zoax have been on a few of the same festivals as Allusondrugs in the past, but our stage times always seemed to clash. We finally got the chance to see them, and I was not disappointed. Their image is incredible yet effortless, and their fresh take on grunge is a sound that I certainly welcome more of.
We, Zoax, were up next. I have no idea how to review myself. But let’s just say, that we had an absolutely incredible time. The crowd were engaging, constantly bouncing. There was talcum powder and tons of glitter – where else would you get this except Havoc Festival? For the first time in our career I can say we felt like ABBA, it was definitely a memorable show for us as a band.
After fighting a losing battle backstage to remove the glitter and make myself look less like a Christmas decoration, Forever Never took to the stage. Riffs galore. They had a tonne of energy and managed to fit in a fantastic cover of John Farnham’s You Are The Voice, so as you can imagine everyone was singing, air grabbing and swiping all round.
The time has come for FVK to hit the stage. After previously touring with these guys, I can safely say that I have never seen a fan base as dedicated as theirs, and rightfully so for how hard they work. It is on a whole other level. And tonight is hands down the best I have seen and heard them. Their set never dips for the crowd who are shouting every word from the top of their lungs, and it’s a perfect note to end the first ever Havoc festival on.
In a time where a lot of bands in this scene are calling it a day, Havoc Fest is a breath of fresh air. There was a real sense of community despite the line-up being pretty diverse. Musicians and fans were all hanging out and chatting, enjoying every moment the day had to offer. If Havoc Festival returns next year (and it definitely should) it will no doubt be another great day to look forward too, and the start of something really big.
