FESTIVAL PREVIEW: Slam Dunk Festival 2023
Words: Dan Barnes
It doesn’t seem five minutes since we were last at Slam Dunk, watching The Dropkick Murphys and Sum 41 deliver top quality rock shows, and revelling in the glorious sunshine after the de facto house arrest of the previous couple of years.
And so, Slam Dunk weekend ticks around again – the first outdoor shindig of the season (for me, at least) - and a perfect way to ease into the alfresco 2023 festival season.
The main difficulty for the Slam Dunk organisers is how do they top 2022? It felt as though it was the perfect encapsulation of everything the festival stands for: from the aforementioned mainstage appearances of the Dropkicks and Sum 41, to the marvellous Interrupters and Pennywise; right down to the smaller stages and Nova Twins and Flatliners. Every single artist on the 2022 bill played their parts in making the show a rousing success and a benchmark going forward.
So, what can we expect in 2023?
Another stellar line-up is already guaranteed, having drafted in heavyweight headliners The Offspring and Enter Shikari to top the two, simultaneously running, main stages, so expect a steady stream of people bouncing between arenas throughout the day.
Headlining the Dickies Stage is Californian institution, The Offspring. Having been functioning as a band since back in 1984 – when they were known as Manic Subsidal – the core duo of Dexter and Noodles have been flying the flag and have been one of the primary standard bearers for the nineties wave of bands responsible for reigniting interest in the supposedly dead Punk genre.
Having issued a steady stream of records since their self-titled 1989 debut, The Offspring are no strangers to the big occasion, with festival headlining slots and prestigious Special Guest appearances building their reputation as a killer live act.
Scheduled for seventy-five minutes, expect The Kids Aren’t Alright, Self Esteem and all those genre-defining – and in many cases, era-defining – earworms to jump around to as The Offspring add another layer to their reputation.
Of course, if the prospect of a Pop Punk masterclass isn’t your thing, and you’re after something with a bit more bite, then you can always pay a visit to Amazon’s Rock Scene Stage for St Albans’ favourite sons: Enter Shikari.
April saw the release of the band’s seventh album, A Kiss for the Whole World, which has them once again blending a myriad of sources and influences in their own, inimitable manner as they rage against the state of the world.
Another band familiar with the big event, Enter Shikari have a proven track record of bringing it and slaying all who witness, whether that be at Download, Reading/ Leeds or Glastonbury Festivals, not to mention previous Slam Dunk shows.
Those hardy souls picking the Shikari option over The Offspring can expect a full-on feast of post-hardcore alt rock, spiced with electronics, techno and even some dub and drum and bass; a challenge for the mind as well as the body, Enter Shikari will be taking no prisoners.
The Offspring’s Special Guests on the Dickies Stage is Bowling for Soup who’re also approaching their thirtieth year together and have recently issued Don’t Mind If We Do, their twelfth studio record. Expect the Texans to attempt a smash and grab of the headliner’s party punk credentials; when you have songs like Girl All the Bad Guys Want and 1985 locked and loaded, then there’s a fair chance these boys could pull of such an audacious coup d’etat.
As proven by The Interrupters last year, if you want to get a party started – or, indeed, keep it going - you need some Ska. And, who better than Slam Dunk veterans, Less Than Jake to take that role? Celebrating a quarter of a century (yep, twenty-five years!) since the release of the seminal third album, Hello Rockview. Those of us of a certain age need to start on a fitness regime right now to negate the possible injuries from the inevitable skanking during All My Best Friends are Metalheads.
After releasing the cracking new record, Anthem, last year and a few summer dates in support, Dave King brings his love-letter to his Irish roots to Slam Dunk. Flogging Molly have been stomping stages across the world for the past twenty-years or so and are always guaranteed to have you singing your throat raw and swigging copious ales in equal measure. Although Molly’s music is filled with pathos it’s delivered with the inimitable Irish quest for joy. Let the Craic begin and let Dave and co’s drunken lullabies be the soundtrack of the day.
Bringing all manner of cultural influences will be Gogol Bordello, who have been blending Punk with Polka, Romany, Folk and even a bit of Dub to ensure their set will be one of joy. Millencolin will be dropping their particular take on Skate, Ska and Pop Punk and laying down some solid riffs as they do so. Zebrahead make a return to Slam Dunk after appearing as recently as 2021 and having their Rapcore going down a real treat with the Punk in Drublic stage capitulating to the Californians under miserable – in Leeds, at least – September skies.
Teenage Bottlerocket will be laying down a ridiculously early marker for all who follow and Millie Manders and The Shut-Up are incapable of anything other than getting a crowd onto their feet and skanking like their lives depended on it; Ms Manders will undoubtedly have the Dickies Stage ready to party from the opening notes and, with this line up, that party won’t end until The Offspring have.
While the party rages across the field, the more serious option will be offered on the Amazon Music sponsored Rock Scene Stage. Backing Enter Shikari in the tussle for your attention are post-hardcore Canadians Billy Talent who have been at this gigging caper for thirty-years now. Another band not afraid to take chances and mix up their sound, with last year’s Crisis of Faith album receiving plaudits for modernising the band’s sound without breaking the ties with the past.
PVRIS’ appearance will coincide with the band gearing up for the July release of the new album, Evergreen, and will see the combo mixing electropop, sythnwave and pop-rock in an irresistible melee of big beats and killer guitar riffing. The classic Pop Punk sound of Kids in Glass Houses is bound to go down a storm as the Welsh quintet regroup to invite us all to a fifteenth anniversary celebration of the debut album, Smart Casual.
Last year’s Voyeurist record shifted enough units to make a dent in the US charts, remind one and all that Underoath are still a force to be reconned with. Their emo post-hardcore meets metalcore sound and acknowledged influences as wide reaching as Refused, Radiohead and the Lord Almighty Himself, means little quarter will be asked when they take the stage. The British duo of Sam Matlock and Milkie Way, collectively known as Wargasm have been making waves with their unique brand of electropop-infused nu-metal for the past couple of years, with lauded festival appearances at Download, Bloodstock and Slam Dunk. Last year saw the release of the debut full-length Explicit: The Mixxxtape, making their achievements prior to that all the more impressive.
2022’s Split with Alpha Wolf showed Holding Absence could stand toe to toe with more aggressive acts and still hold their own without compromising on the subtlety or emotional content of their material. Trash Boat have no such issue, with their sound being heavily influenced by the likes of the Sex Pistols and Rise Against, with literary heavyweights Emily Bronte and WB Yeats acting as Muses to Tobi Duncan’s lyric writing. Coming over the border from Scotland is Vukovi who’ll be packing some discordant beats and harsh noise that will be setting the day’s benchmark for brutality. Zand refer to their music as “uncomfortable, messy, industrial ugly pop.” It’s certainly abrasive and as difficult to categorise as it is to herd cats; early mind-messing appears to be on the cards.
Of course, if you’re feeling particularly aggy at any point in the day you can always have a saunter over to the Knotfest Stage where (relatively) local heroes Malevolence will be taking their now familiar headlining slot. Since signing to Nuclear Blast the Sheffield five-piece have been wrecking stages wherever they set up camp; and with good reason.
Debut album, Reign of Suffering saw the light of day a decade ago and was built around Crowbar-style sludgy riffs; come 2017, when Self Supremacy was released the band had added a heavy hardcore vibe to their sound and with the EP The Other Side showing they had a softer side and the latest full-length, Malicious Intent, elevating them into the big leagues, the sky is the limit for Malevolence. Appearances at Download, Bloodstock and a surprise slot at Outbreak last year prove they are grizzled road-dogs up for the big occasion and the recent three-way split with Fit For an Autopsy and Thy Art Is Murder, The Aggression Sessions, suggest there is no immediate intention to slow things down.
The positive message of We Came As Romans is often overlooked by the casual observer. Enmeshed within their combination of post-hardcore and metalcore, it might come across as being too in-yer-face, but the augmentation of orchestral parts set the senses tingling that there is more to this bunch than meets the ears. Active since 2009’s To Plant a Seed debut up until last year’s Darkbloom album, We Came As Romans have been mainstays of the US scene for quite some time and aren’t looking to hang up their spurs just yet.
When you cite influences as broad as Linkin Park, Eminem and Michael Jackson alongside such Rock Royalty as Iron Maiden, Queen and Cannibal Corpse, then you know you’re in for an eclectic time of it. So, buckle up for Escape the Fate’s procession of dirty riff, crunchy guitars and big beatdowns. Texans Fit For A King are still flexing the Metalcore muscles of their seventh full-length, The Hell We Create, but are seasoned enough to blow the doors of the venue with some uncompromising tunes.
Marseille’s Landmvrks will be making the short hop across the Channel to both mesmerise and mortify with their unique brand of fearsome Deathcore negated by melodic hardcore. Travelling considerably fewer miles will be Leeds’ Static Dress who use their art to create an alternative reality, akin to the imagery found in a Tim Burton film. Musically, they merge alternative, electronica and nu-metal into their mix of post hardcore and screamo.
Although not as abrasive musically, Dragged Under’s energy levels will be the equal of any band in the field today. Harnessing the spirit of Punk with the intensity of hardcore, these Washington State natives might only have a handful of years under their belts but that won’t be hampering their attempt to bring Slam Dunk to its foundations. Uniquely-labelled Sasscore, Californians SeeYouSpaceCowboy resist categorisation with the vigour of an unwilling child being dragged to school. Looking to educate as well as entertain, the quintet will no doubt attract a sizeable crowd to listen.
Higher Power is another band with less of a journey to make as they blend their hardcore sensibility with as diverse a spread as Alt Rock, Shoegaze and even some Funk for good measure. Church Road Records’ Heriot have come a long way since their initial inception, morphing into a devastating modern metal machine; I’ll be catching the band in Manchester on their May tour ahead of the Slam Dunk shows, so they will be primed and ready by the time they hit Hatfield.
What self-respecting festival wouldn’t have a tent or two and Slam Dunk’s main cavassed arena is the twin-staged Kerrang Tent, featuring Left and Right stages.
Topping the Left Stage will be the newly reformed Yellowcard who make their first return to these shores since December 2016. They come in celebration of the twentieth anniversary of their Ocean Avenue record, so be prepared for a long and tearful walk down Memory Lane.
Chicago’s gone-too-soon The Academy Is… are dusting off the instruments and heading back out on the road after an eleven-year hiatus. Prolific between the years of 2004 and 2009 this emo-pop combination will certainly be bringing a sense of perspective to the proceedings come May.
Four Years Strong’s brand of Easycore is certainly on the more rambunctious side of the definition, articulated as Pop Punk meets Metalcore, FYS are no strangers to a grungy guitar and a liberal spicing of overdrive. If the Slam Dunk sound was to be encapsulated in a single band, then Illinois’ Real Friends wouldn’t be too far from the mark. Their recent release, There's Nothing Worse than Too Late, continues the band’s focus on extended players and is a further example of the mastery of their craft.
Fireworks arrive at Slam Dunk at the same time they hit the thirty-year mark and, though Lit Up was the last new record way back in 1997, these Texans will be ready to go. With eight studio albums and half a dozen EPs to their name, Hawthrone Heights will have a setlist options a plenty and are sure to be inundated with shouted requests from their loyal fanbase. Bringing more of a classic punk sound the show will be three-piece Destroy Boys, who cite influences as broad ranging as Operation Ivy and Misfits alongside Lady Gaga and The Police (Sting and co, rather than the rozzers).
Slotting together like the cogs of a well-oiled machine is the Right Stage, headlined by rapidly rising stars, Creeper. The combination of horror punk, emo and gothic rock places them alongside the likes of The Damned and Christian Death mixed with My Chemical Romance and AFI. I remember first seeing the band opening a three-band-bill at Manchester’s Sound Control – don’t look for it, it isn’t there anymore – featuring Baby Godzilla and Gallows and thinking to myself that they were a band who, with a favourable wind, would be able to go places.
Possibly due to the lack of opportunities at Dunder-Mifflin, the Scranton-based The Menzingers opted for life on the road as a fully-fledged, and unapologetically, punk rock outfit. Seven albums into their careers have honed the craft to pin-point accuracy, so expect the Pennsylvania four-piece to deliver a full-on punk spectacle.
The lads in Boston Manor are from just up the road from me in Blackpool so I’m going to be slightly bias toward these Seasiders. Their brand of emo-pop/rock Punk has seen them sharing stages with the likes of Good Charlotte, The Ataris and A Day to Remember and, with that pedigree, alongside some prestigious festival appearances, Boston Manor have the chops to give anyone a run for their money. Newcastle (New South Wales, rather than Upon Tyne or Under Lyme) melodic hardcore Trophy Eyes have a historied relationship with Boston Manor after singer John Floreani leant his vocal talents to BM’s Welcome to the Neighbourhood album back in 2019.
Having coined the term ‘Grouchrock’ for their kitchen-sink approach to genre identification, Spanish Love Songs see themselves as a natural continuation of Jawbreaker and Hot Water Music; the latter of which were one of my favourite sets of last years’ show. Movements’ post-hardcore blends alt rock with some spoken word elements as the band addresses serious issues such as anxiety, depression and heartbreak. Opening the show is Sincere Engineer who have the unenviable task of beginning proceedings for the whole tent before the sun has trans-versed the meridian but whose upbeat outlook will see the morning out with a smile and set us all up for the day.
Over at the Key Club Stages, in the smaller tent, you’ll find a host of eclectic acts and a guarantee that at least one will be right up your street. Topping the Left Stage are The Hunna, whose alternative-cum-indie rock is scheduled to compete with both Yellowcard and Malevolence for attention but will see a sizable crowd gathered to a more laidback option.
Assisting The Hunna on the Left Stage will be social media personality JXDN, rapper Sueco, rising US artist Charlotte Sands, self-styled inventor of Bimbocore, Scene Queen, faith-affirming pop rockers, Emarosa and Pure Noise Records’ emo crew, Youth Fountain.
Playing tag with those artists will be the Right Stage, headlined by workaholic Arizonians, The Maine, who are coming up on two years since the release of their last album, so don’t be surprised if there’s not a newbie or two slotted into the set.
I have the feeling that Maggie Lindemann will be attracting a sizable interest as she possesses the voice of an angel and the tunes of the Devil. Unreasonably young and talented singer- songwriter, Noahfinnce, US Alt rockers, Greyscale, the edgy Soul-inspired musings of LOLO, the impossibly catchy Girlfriends and Slam Dunk label band, The Tyne will all be assisting.
So, whether you’re off to Hatfield on the 27th or Leeds bound the day after – or both – Slam Dunk 2023 is sure to be another triumph of an event; and, if the organisers can order the same sort of weather we had last year, that would be just swell.
