From the moment they hit the stage, Maximo Park looked the part, their innate confidence magnified in the small space. Their chief selling-point is frontman Paul Smith and you can immediately see why - he is genuinely eccentric performer.
Brit-rock heroes Maximo Park are back with a new album – and without the novelty hair-cuts. Here they talk about death metal, hip-hop and missing notebooks.
Track after track comes out of the speakers, nipping at your ankles like some overexcited dog that you can’t shake off no matter how hard you try. The production from Bloc Party/Futureheads man Paul Epworth is sparkling and the songs wed pop and punk in perfect manner, all delivered in the deliciously broad Newcastle tones of singer Paul Smith. It reaches a crescendo with the glorious ‘Going Missing’, at which point it seems that Maximo Park can do no wrong. Unfortunately, from then in they start to struggle a tad.
Sorry not to get swept up in it all, but is the second Franz album really that good? To be honest, I’m not convinced and ‘Walk Away’ is not the kind of song to change my mind. It is a fairly dull mid-pacer that sounds positively pedestrian next to Maximo Park, Bloc Party et al.
Foo Fighters are the first band to be confirmed for the BudRising Summer festival - and Maximo Park are kicking the whole series off with a free, low-key gig!
Maxïmo Park could have easily disappeared into the slew of angular, affected guitar bands that emerged in the UK last year, but two factors helped them stay on the muso radar. One was them being the first non-electronica signing to the unspeakably hip Warp label. The second was their enigmatic frontman Paul Smith with his candid/overwrought lyrics – whichever side of the fence you sit on – and labour intensive stage workout.
They’ve played with Bloc Party and Muse and shared a studio with Fionn Regan. Now, London garage rockers The Noisettes are set to make a splash of their own.
Along with their two Dublin Ambassador shows with Arctic Monkeys, Mystery Jets and We Are Scientists, Maxïmo Park are Limerick-bound for a Heineken Green Room Session.
The Lovebox festival returns to Dublin with a stellar line-up including Maximo Park, N*E*R*D, Paolo Nutini and Gorillaz Soundsystem. We talk to organisers Groove Armada.
After the impressive reception for their top 10 debut single 'Reconnect', Director have announced details of their new single, album and a rather large tour to boot.
Officially the hottest band of the moment with phenomenal sales of their debut album in its first few days of release, the Arctic Monkeys stole the show at the second date of the NME tour.
The Camden Crawl: 40 buzz bands play across 10 venues on one night, in indie’s capital of cool. In the green corner are The Chalets, who pit their musical talent in a predominately London-led line-up.
Having graced the Closer soundtrack and made the cut for the OC’s illustrious collection, Damien Rice is doing very nicely out of compilations these days.
Most cities and towns have their trouble spots and their danger zones, but Limerick's have been given more than their unfair share of publicity. Such a focus on the negative has tended to detract attention from the positive aspects of this resurgent city, with its vibrant music scene, its buzzing university, the warmth and friendliness of the people, its obsession with rugby, and er, Ryan Turbidy.
It may have bucketed rain, but both bands and fans kept the faith for a full-on day of muddy rock mayhem! Check out our selection of the best shots from Saturday.
It may be just day one, but we've already collected a heck of a lot of autographs from the likes of Republic of Loose, The Coronas, Therapy?, Spinnerette and more!
Never mind the naysayers, Dublin 2006 is spilling over with white hot talent. Steve Cummins and Shilpa Ganatra run the rule over the capital's new breed.
Perhaps it was Marlay Park fatigue or the hotchpotch line-up but Lovebox was far from full. That’s not necessarily a bad thing – no queue for the booze or the loos!
Yes, the incessant downpour ensured that Punchestown Racecourse often looked more like the set of a World War 1 epic than a music festival, but the rain couldn't dampen the 80,000-strong Oxegen crowd's spirits, not to mention the fiery performances delivered by Arctic Monkeys, Franz, The Who, the Chili Peppers and a cast of, well, hundreds.
In the first installment of Hot Press' Oxegen coverage, Phil Udell, Steve Cummins and John Walshe pick out their personal favourites of the weekend. This Thursday's Hot Press will feature extended coverage from Kim Porcelli & Ed Power as well as more exclusive photos from Liam Sweeney, Graham Keogh & Andrew Duffy - PLUS the Phantom reports from backstage!
Online Gallery Of Live Shots Here
Part one of our pictorial round-up of Saturday at Oxegen 09, including shots of James Morrison, Little Boots, Maximo Park, Nick Cave, Pete Doherty and much more!
