Back for its fourth iteration, Glasgow’s weekend-long celebration of heaviness, community and heart has returned with its biggest lineup yet. A major shift this time around has been its relocation from the West End to the heart of Glasgow, with two stages now situated at The Art School and another two at the legendary Nice N Sleazy, a venue that has existed for 35 years will probably outlive the concept of music. Yet another will be set up next door in 1990, while Garnethill Community Hall will be used for a series of showcases throughout the weekend.
The most excited chatter about opening night has revolved around one of only two UK dates for NY screamo veterans Saetia. Although they spent decades in the wilderness, time has shaped their ’98 self-titled debut into one of the most influential works of the genre and undoubtedly has played a part in creating a few of the bands to have appeared at Core. over the years. So yes, this is a Big Deal™. In addition, Portrayal Of Guilt will almost certainly deliver one of the nastiest, filthiest sets of the weekend. For anyone who enjoys dwelling at the darker fringes of heavy sounds, this is an essential one to catch. Those who are in the know will be wanting to catch Kaddish as well. The Dundee mob were instrumental not just in the development of the Scottish screamo scene but also Scottish metal as a whole, making Friday the rare opportunity to catch three legends under one roof. Joining them will a stab of ferocious punk from Glasgow’s prettyboys&handsomegirls, highly recommended for those who take their music like a brick to the head – violent, sudden and likely to leave you reeling.
Those who fancy something a bit more intimate will want to stick around Nice N Sleazy for an evening of emotionally affecting emo and hardcore. Mitsubishi Suicide and incaseyouleave will likely be well known to anyone invested in UK’s healthier-than-ever screamo scene so catching them back-to-back will be a treat, especially given that this will be one of incaseyouleave’s last ever shows, having recently announced their disbandment. Locally sourced noise will be provided by Lesser Beings and if their new EP is anything to go by, expect big ol’ beatdowns and metallic hardcore suitable for all ages and energy levels.
Similar to last year, Saturday is largely geared towards hardcore in all its myriad forms and configurations. If you’re a late sleeper, it’ll be essential to leave the house in time for Taqbir’s appearance on the main stage as there is truly no-one quite like them right now; while not much is known about the members of the band, their message and sound is crystal clear – fuck religious dogma, fuck capitalism, and play loud, fast and hard. Carrying on that spirit will be art-punk collective Petrol Girls, whose presence will be more than welcome in the shite days we find ourselves in, while NYHC veterans Incendiary will close things out with chunky riffing, righteous aggression and probably some of the liveliest pits of the weekend.
Anyone sticking around The Art School will also find a wealth of quality acts over at The Vic Bar, most notably Babe Haven, who will be making their UK debut. For anyone who misses the energy of nu-metal and metallic hardcore from the ‘00s but not so much the sketchiness of many of the bands behind it, they are a breath of fresh air. Just as vicious are local metalcore quintet Bathed In Sun, while bratcore duo Bratakus will be venturing down to the lowlands to kick out some jams.
Over at Nice N Sleazy, the day will be absolutely packed with talent, both local and from further afield. Fancy some Norwegian deathjazz? Of course you do, and Core. has you covered with Agabas. A spot of powerviolence to keep the blood pumping? Xiao have what you need. From the old-school hardcore of The S.E.T. to Knives’ dissonant, strangely unsettling hardcore, it’s an eclectic mix all held together by the same adventurous, no holds barred approach to loudness. Fans of local hardcore might also want to make it along for the return of two of Glasgow’s finest, Flakes and Veto. Both of them called it a day at the same show in 2019 so having them return for such an occasion feels like a moment of everything coming full circle.
Step through into 1990 and you’ll have the likes of Shooting Daggers to entertain. The queercore unit was one of the surprise highlights from last year’s festival so this will be a welcome return for them, while a very different vibe will be had with Half Time, whose rough-and-ready take on shoegaze could either be heaven or hell, depending on the volume levels. The icing on top will be the appearance of Intercourse, which you might want to squeeze in early for. The past few years has been a treasure trove for noise rock lovers and the Connecticut 4-piece has been right at the forefront for plenty of it, so if you choose to end the night here then you’ll be in good hands.
Sunday promises a day of unbridled heaviness, and you don’t get much heavier than Eyehategod and Pig Destroyer, both of whom will be crushing skulls at The Art School. Boasting two of the most gifted lyricists in metal, their approaches couldn’t be more different, with Pig Destroyer’s J.R. Hayes narrating some perversely poetic grindcore for all the (nec)romantics at heart and EHG’s Mike IX Williams lamenting the moral decay of America to a backdrop of tortured NOLA sludge. Joining them there will be the relentlessly brilliant grind madness of Wormrot as well as the return of Core. mainstays Cwfen, who have hinted that some new material might be getting trialled to celebrate the occasion.
Speaking of old favourites, a quick jaunt to The Vic Bar will allow you catch Gout and Machukha, both of whom are returning for their third appearances at the festival. Gout have had an incredible year and seem to be improving with every show, so this will be a good chance to catch them if you haven’t already. Machukha have also revealed that they will be halting live shows soon to work on new material so this might be the last chance to see them for a while. Sandwiched between those two will be Scottish debut of Rwake, whose trippy, glacier-sized riffs likely need no introduction at this point, while Smote will deliver heady, folk-tinged drones to phase out into infinity to. If you can, try to check out All Men Unto Me, the solo venture of Ashenspire’s Rylan Gleave – last year’s Requiem was a truly incredible, near-unclassifiable work of art, so expect the unexpected.
Things will be getting weird at Nice & Sleazy on Sunday, with the downstairs stage opening and closing with local oddballs Electric Sun Defence and L respectively. Expect heavy, proggy weirdness from the former and a daring collision of noise rock, jazz, and surrealism from the latter. One to make your way to the front for will be Healing Wound, who accompanied Agriculture on their recent UK tour and absolutely smashed it every single night. Noisy, unhinged and completely captivating, they pack the best parts of Converge and Trap Them into their music and make it completely their own. There will also be the chance to catch Maud The Moth in a rare intimate setting, with Amaya López-Carromero’s haunting voice and melodies likely to produce the most emotionally devastating effect of the weekend, and metalcore unit Gun Ghaol will be appearing in support of their upcoming debut. As the only Scottish Gaelic metalcore band in existence, what they are doing isn’t just exciting but is also culturally significant so this could be an interesting one from multiple angles.
Upstairs will have some gloriously miserable DSBM from Aberdeen’s Dreich, another short, sharp burst of powerviolence in the form of Jaw and what will hopefully be the first of many Core. performances from vintage rockers Lupine Raine, while a hop into 1990 will delight the nerds in all of us with local Bardcore duo Book Lore. Big emo hooks with a side of genre fiction? Sounds perfect. Closing the stage will be the dark folk of Greet, whose otherworldly vibes sound like stepping back in time by about three centuries.
Merch hunters will find everything they need at Garnethill Multicultural Centre, which will be the weekend home of Radical Glasgow independent merch market, as well as hosting day-long takeovers from two promising Glasgow institutions. Saturday will be handled by Girls Rock Glasgow, an organisation “dedicated to empowering girls and gender-expansive young people through music, creativity and noise” and will feature a selection of acts grown out of the programme as well as a doom yoga session. Sunday is all about the Glasow Library of Synthesized Sound (GLOSS), the UK’s first electronic music library that offer up free access to instruments, workshops and community, and they will be showcasing some of the city’s most promising electronic, noise and drone.
So there you go – three days, six stages, and more bands than you can count. It’s going to be a busy one so sort your schedule out, stay hydrated and bring earplugs.
