Kovax - cobolt Release date - May 7th 2018    Kovax are a noisy/shouty metal band from Leeds launched in 2016. When they sent me the new single to review I was a bit hesitant as I'm very much a fan of the 'album' and not singles as seems to be the trend nowadays. I listened to it a few times anyway and it started to grow on me so I thought I'd say something about it.    It's not a genre of metal that I'm overly familiar with so I can't speak to much of the influences but what came to my mind was Raging Speedhorn/Machine head with a delicate touch of Skindred based on this single. The song is not very long at 2:22 but it packs a massive punch and the riffs sound huge. The chorus is melodic enough and the breakdown at the end will keep anyone that loves a good 'pit' happy. I had a quick listen to the previous album for a bit of context and I can tell you that from almost every angle, 'cobolt' is a massive step forward. The produc

Venue - Rock City - Nottingham It's Thursday night and you've got work early on Friday. On the one hand you have to be well rested for work to pay your bills. On the other hand there's free metal to had at a good venue near you. I know which one I care about more. The event was arranged as a 30th birthday party for somebody and from being there it looked like everybody had a good time. First up we have Down In One. Local band Down In One are a beer fuelled heavy metal band with a touch of groove. A few songs in and the band have set the bar for the night with chunky riffs and screaming vocals. If you like your metal with big, sweaty, hairy balls and enough girth to leave you needing stitches then this band is for you.  They had the birthday boy up on stage for a requested cover of the Clutch song ' X ray vision'. I'd never heard the song before and it sounded good enough for me to want to check it out so that was a success. They finished with Mad