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About Me

Music journalist in Birmingham, with a primary interest in hardcore and post-punk.  

Current: Distorted Sound Magazine.

Previously; Gigwise, The Rodeo, Pictor Mag, Rock Sins. 

Contact: jackmcgill999@gmail.com

Recent Work.

Distorted Sound Magazine •

ALBUM REVIEW: Eternal Life Now - Bad Pelicans

BAD PELICANS emerged from Paris’ punk scene in early 2020; they rode that wave with their previous record and stuck with what they knew but since then have decided to depart from it. They approach with their new album Eternal Life Now, boasting distorted art-rock served with a side of grunge. This Parisian trio have evolved into a being of earthy distortion after the discovery of their new found avant-garde energy.

Eternal Life Now is packed full of gems, plenty of which do what they say on the
Pictor Magazine •

THE MURDER CAPITAL – RETURN MY HEAD

Dublin’s The Murder Capital unleash their brand-new single ‘Return My Head’

The past few months have seen Dublin’s The Murder Capital, slowly teasing fans with snippets of their forthcoming album ‘Gigi’s Recovery’. From embracing gorgeous melodies on single ‘Only Good Things’, to having candid conversations of desire in ‘Ethel’, the quintet confirm their departure of the former macabre aesthetic in their newest offering ‘Return My Head’.

The new single is an act of humility, amongst a cacophon
The Rodeo Magazine •

Skullcrusher makes the room a bit too quiet

It’s hard to distinguish where songs start and end throughout Skullcrusher’s debut album. The vocals are thin and refuse to give way for noticeable emotion. Quiet The Room is difficult and despite the overall welcoming sound it doesn’t let you in. Making things too hard to decipher has made this album a solitude that new fans will struggle to breach.

Quiet The Room is puzzling throughout, not with riddles or misdirection but in an attempt to sound intangible, like fog. The problem is that it’s
The Rodeo Magazine •

Curse & Curses talks new EP, writing and London

For the first time ever Cures and Curses AKA Aaron Akpojaro has a new outlook on his musical career. It has structure and plans to it. A timeline that he can see ahead of himself is on display to help him navigate a daunting journey and intimidating industry. He sits in a dark corner of his family home in an attempt to avoid the upstairs noise, coincidentally, so am I.

We begin with his brand new EP Liberate Me which for such a fresh artist feels wonderfully complete, like a nicely wrapped pres
The Rodeo Magazine •

Katy J Pearson on the sound of the morning

The incredibly humble Katy J Pearson has seen a rise over the past two years since the release of her debut album, Return. Now, she has opened the floodgates with her follow-up, Sound Of The Morning. Her voice remains as sweet as ever as she tackles things that have attempted to sour her: despite having such a dreamy feel, she is firmly in touch with her reality.

“I’m very happy with how [Sound Of The Morning] has been received,” she points out, sitting in her parents’ frontroom. “It’s been ama
The Rodeo Magazine •

Talking Change with Porij

Over the past few years many of us have seen Porij rise tremendously. It was an exciting time to speak with a band that creates such a wonderful sound. What’s more, it turns out that they’re bloody lovely!

The festival season has only amplified what success Poij were already seeing. For those of you lucky enough to have been dancing in a field to hit single, ‘Figure Skating’, you’ll understand why people are taking notice.

Despite it being swelteringly hot on the day of our interview, Porij se
Distorted Sound Magazine •

LIVE REVIEW: SeeYouSpaceCowboy @ The Flapper, Birmingham

SEEYOUSPACECOWBOY brought The Flapper alive and had complete control over fans in Birmingham on June 18th – they were the puppet masters for the night. The Flapper is, to put it plainly, a sweat box – under normal circumstances there would be even less space, if not for the mound of people being squashed at the barrier in front of frontwoman Connie Sgarbossa.

Kicking off the night was UPRAISED, unfortunately because of a dreadful parking situation in Birmingham, we missed the Wolverhampton hard
Distorted Sound Magazine •

EP REVIEW: Roger Podacter - Laces Out

Marching out of Orange County, New York, LACES OUT have presented their first venture of 2022 with their Roger Podacter EP. Full of moments to lash out to, euphoric choruses and riffs that could cut through an enemy like a battle axe, this second EP is an amalgamation of over 20 years of experience between the three band members.

The EP opens with lead track Steady, a post-punk whirlwind that has dominating battlecry vocals and writhing riffs. Its verses are fast and breathless, meanwhile the c
The Rodeo Magazine •

Sinead O’Brien talks growth, the past and her mind run wild

Sinead O’Brien and her music are shrouded in mystery, enigmatic scrawlings from her mind. Described as a ‘post-punk poet’, which is pretty fitting, she fills tracks with gabby lyrics that make you feel quite at home but are still complex enough to intertwine multiple meanings into them.

Upon greeting and shaking away that horrible awkwardness that accompanies Zoom interviews, Sinead appeared modest when speaking and very humbled by her recent Glastonbury performances. “The first thing we did wh
Rock Sins •

TV Priest — My Other People Album Review

If there’s anything to preface TV PRIEST’S second album My Other People with, it’s that it might just be one of the most beautiful arrangements of music you’ll listen to this year. They executed magnificently on the politically-powered post-punk album trope with their first record Uppers — but since then the band have gone through immense intrinsic changes and growth.

My Other People is an album built on honesty, especially being honest with oneself, full of reflection and cathartic gut punches
Distorted Sound Magazine •

ALBUM REVIEW: Equations For The Useless - Oreyeon

Italian four-piece OREYEON are primed and ready to unleash their brand new third album, Equations For The Useless. Recorded almost two years ago after a stagnant lockdown in the midst of pandemic, the four-piece offer up six tracks of doom inducing stoner-rock with the odd psychedelic flair.

First up is It Was Time; straight out of the gate its jagged and crunchy guitar riffs set the tone of the album well and do a good job of worming beneath your skin to encourage your body to move. Still thou
Gigwise •

Album Review: Body Type - Everything Is Dangerous but Nothing’s Surprising | Gigwise

Sydney’s Body Type have made their mark and planted the seeds of success for a promising future with their debut album Everything Is Dangerous but Nothing’s Surprising. From rageful and cathartic 'The Brood', to the wading bedroom reality of 'Couple Song', Body Type have produced an album full of bites of life. It’s a microcosm of emotion.

The quartet reveal their ability to make you feel straight off: simple yet electric opener 'The Line's fuzzy and wriggling guitar tones feel like they crawl
Gigwise •

'Dogrel' - 3 Years On | Gigwise

Reflecting on Fontaines D.C's debut ahead of their 3rd album next week

One of the most anticipated albums of the year is quickly approaching as Fontaines D.C. — praised as the best band in the world — release their third studio album 'Skinty Fia' next week. With each release their sound has continued to evolve and shapeshift through their own personal growth, the sombre nuance that lined A Hero’s Death and more recently the singles on approach for the new album.

But it all started with 'Dogrel
Gigwise •

Ep Review: Folly Group - Human and Kind | Gigwise

Emerging from the battle-royale of London’s unforgiving circuit alive, Folly Group have been praised as one of the next best things to dare show what they have to offer in the capital. Now they’re running it back again: their second EP Human and Kind is much more immersive an experience than its older sibling.

Opening with ‘Faint of Hearts’ the quartet set the tone for a brooding EP with a painful dose of reality. It gives off everything lovable about Folly Group, though, thanks to those deep s
Gigwise •

Live Review: Don Broco at Royal Albert Hall, London, 21/03/2022 | Gigwise

Don Broco opened up this year's Teenage Cancer Trust event with a full orchestra

Don Broco, orchestrated, at the Royal Albert Hall was a special one. In aid of Teenage Cancer Trust they played a set truly worthy of such an important cause. With this being the first TCT show in two years, Don Broco had a standard to set or in the words of host Sophie K “Let’s show them how a bunch of greebos do it!”. And boy did they show the Royal Albert Hall how to do it.

The orchestra are playing the band in

In Conversation: DEAFDEAFDEAF

A massacre of the gentrification of cities and the capitalist machine...


DEAFDEAFDEAF are a political anchor for Manchester’s post-punk music and have been ever since bursting onto the scene with their first single ‘Nothingness’ back in 2020. But they’re back for the second time in 2021 with their most politically charged tune yet, enter ‘City Song’.


The single depicts the bleak landscape that Manchester has fallen into over the years, like many major cities have. Instantly you can hear th

HEADSHRINKERS

Bringing their A-game, Headshrinkers knock the roof off of Castle and Falcon at their first gig of 2021.


It’s been a long time coming, this gig, but on the 22nd of May that all changed. The day was finally here. I’m sure I wasn’t the only person in Birmingham counting down the days to be able to bask in the glory of a Headshrinkers gig, dates were rescheduled 2 or 3 times maybe and at times I questioned whether it would happen at all. But Headshrinkers brought their A-game and delivered an ab

Album Review: DITZ - The Great Regression | Gigwise

DITZ are back, baby! This time with their debut album The Great Regression, which hits on all things absurd with its palette of punk and noise. This is an album that owns its freedom, with no set narrative to be committed to.

You’re greeted by ‘Clocks’, its singing riffs quickly twisting into something much more dark and corrupted. Frontperson Cal Francis explodes into the first preach, yelling to relieve anxiety, to remove the pressure of demands of life.

Previously-released single ‘Ded Würst

Album Review: Lady Bird - WE | Gigwise

Where can you start with Lady Bird? Is it back in 2018 with their debut EP, the quipping Social Potions, or do you jump straight into their new debut album WE? The answer is your own: they all hold special qualities, represent something beautiful and have their own nuances. But for now let's kick things off with the brand spanking new premium punk LP WE.

Immediately, ‘GUIDED HESITATION’ sets the standard with determination and intent, vocalist Sam dishing out frustrated lyrics with a fucked-off

Vulnerability, Buddhism + Grief: Lady Bird on the true heart of the band | Gigwise

'It’s important to be vulnerable, isn’t it?'

In anticipation of their most important release to date, we at Gigwise just had to catch up with Lady Bird before their big day. Enter their debut album WE.

Despite some mental health tremors and other assorted hold-ups, WE is the Kent trio's most encompassing work to date, hitting on different parts of the punk spectrum. People are sure to be pleased with the work. So, after four years in the making, here they are talking all things Lady Bird.

Gig
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