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Ben Myers

Ben Myers

Ben Myers is a former staff writer at Melody Maker and since the mid 90s has written for publications including MOJO, NME, Kerrang!, Time Out, Q, The Quietus, Alternative Press and 3:AM Magazine. He is the author of a number of books, including biography and fiction, translated into seven languages. His most recent books are Richard, a novelisation of the life and disappearance of Richey Edwards, and Pig Iron.

www.benmyers.com

60 articles

List of articles in the library

By date | By artist | Most recently added

Blur, The Levellers, Mark Owen, The Prodigy, Stereophonics, Symposium: Alive and Kicking

Report by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 31 May 1997

Sunday sunshine and a celebrity soccer shoot-out! A brace of top pop stars recently puffed their way around the pitch in a charity match. Some ...

Green Day: Stick 'Em Up, Punks!

Interview by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 4 October 1997

Those loveable American punk rockers GREEN DAY are back. We join them in Milan to find out if they're still punk at heart. Guess what? ...

Portishead: Portishead (GO! Beat 11tks/50 mins)

Review by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 4 October 1997

GLOOM, GLOOM, SHAKE THE ROOM! It's dark, it's gloomy and it's brilliant. Yep, PORTISHEAD are back ...

Hanson: Combat Pop!

Interview by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 22 November 1997

Well, we couldn't take them out on the piss all night, could we? We take HANSON to Laser Quest in Reading and zap their little ...

Soundgarden: A-Sides

Review by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 22 November 1997

IT SEEMS LIKE Soundgarden's rich and fruitful career falls into two distinctive camps, reflected quite clearly on this, their first post-split release. ...

3 Colours Red, All Saints, Goldblade: All Saints, 3 Colours Red, Goldblade: Can't Cook, Won't Cook

Interview by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 20 December 1997

The search for the spirit of Christmas. Eating 'n' drinking: Ben Myers ...

The Candyskins, My Life Story: My Life Story, the Candyskins: Astoria, London

Live Review by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 3 January 1998

HMMPH. THE Candyskins. Who would have believed it? Just over a year ago I saw them in a dingy pub in Luton. They were indie ...

Bernard Butler: People Move On (Creation)****

Review by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 4 April 1998

YOU KNOW the story. March 25,1992 and there in block capitals, the stuff legends are made of: "Suede – The Best New Band In Britain". ...

Diamanda Galás: Malediction And Prayer (Mute) **½

Review by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 2 May 1998

WITH A voice akin to Ella Fitzgerald, Edith Piaf and Shirley Bassey, yet with a distinctly goth-baroque slant, Galás is something of a unique entity. ...

Girls Against Boys: Freak*on*ica (Geffen)

Review by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 16 May 1998

UH-OH. IT'S that corporate record thing. After many years riding the subways of an ultra-cool underground, first as Soulside, then as Girls Against Boys and ...

Smashing Pumpkins: Adore (Hut)

Review by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 30 May 1998

BILLY'S THE KID ...

Tricky: The Forum, London

Live Review by Ben Myers, Melody Maker, 30 May 1998

PRE-MILLENNIUM TEDIUM ...

Stereophonics: Three Local Boys Go Global

Report and Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, April 1999

THERE'S A GAGGLE of giggling girls in the hotel lobby. There's even more outside the venue, huddled under blankets or sitting smoking cigarettes in doorways. ...

Reef: Next Stop...The World!

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 10 April 1999

Mullet-spotting, interviews with idiotic Euro-hacks and close encounters with transvestites in restaurant toilets – REEF's bid for global domination is only 24 hours old and ...

The Donnas: Hot Style: The Donnas

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 29 May 1999

ALL THE best bands look great. Whether it was the Sex Pistols in their safety pins or Kurt Cobain throwing on a plaid shirt and ...

Feeder: Truth Or Dare — "How good are you in bed?"

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 5 June 1999

Do not be fooled by first impressions. Take FEEDER: on the surface they're three serious gentlemen in love with their art. Ask them the right ...

The Offspring: Come Out & Spray

Report and Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 31 July 1999

July 1999, Orange County, California — THE OFFSPRING are about to play the two biggest gigs of their career in front of 14,000 rabid fans. ...

Charles Manson, Henry Rollins, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails: Charles Manson: The Man That You Fear

Retrospective by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 7 August 1999

Thirty years ago this week, followers of CHARLES MANSON committed a series of brutal murders that changed US culture forever. On the anniversary of the ...

Foo Fighters: I'm Still Standing

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, September 1999

This year Dave Grohl has split from his record company, seen long-time friend Franz Stahl walk out on his band and endured far too much ...

Def Leppard: On The Road: Again….

Report and Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, October 1999

"RIGHT," SAYS Joe Elliot. "I think it's time for a few drinks." ...

Rage Against the Machine: Hello, Hello...It's Good To Be Back: Rage Against the Machine

Report and Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 16 October 1999

Humourless revolutionaries. Po-faced militants. Volatile insurrectionists permanently on the verge of splitting. RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE have been called all of these and more. Which ...

Kid Rock: Ghetto Superstar

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 16 October 1999

Currently America's hottest property, KID ROCK has spent the last 12 months shagging porn stars, witnessing depraved sex acts and earning more money than he ...

Bush: The Chemical Brother

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 23 October 1999

You would give your left arm to have a celebrity girlfriend, holidays in the Caribbean, several million in the bank and a reputation as Britain's ...

Glassjaw: Noise 2000

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 8 January 2000

"IT'S MADE ME realise the value of life, and it's a strong part of me," says Daryl Palumbo, frontman with rising New York crew Glassjaw. ...

Machine Head: Truth Or Dare

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 15 February 2000

For some bands, Kerrang!'s legendary Truth Or Dare grilling provides the opportunity to delve into their respective psyches. For Machine Head it's an excuse to ...

Slipknot: There Goes The Neighbourhood…

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 11 March 2000

Last week, Slipknot flew into Britain for their first full UK jaunt. Over the next seven days, they will contemplate suicide, get thrown out of ...

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 12 January 2002

Making music to take drugs to… ...

Staind: It's Been A While...

Profile and Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 26 January 2002

Eight years, in fact, since Staind formed in Springfield, Massachusetts. In 2001, they made the second biggest selling album of the year. This is their ...

The Hives: "One, two, three, four…"

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 2 February 2002

They're the most stylish band on the planet. They're also one of the most exciting. This is the rise and rise of THE HIVES… ...

Hell Is For Heroes

Profile and Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 23 February 2002

Not every young British band gets the opportunity to relocate to Hollywood to record their debut album Hell Is For Heroes have. And they're having ...

Fugazi, Minor Threat: Ian MacKaye: Inventing Hardcore

Profile and Interview by Ben Myers, Careless Talk Costs Lives, March 2002

"These are our demands: we want control of our bodies. decisions will now be ours. you can carry out your noble actions, we will carry ...

Richard Hell: Hell Is Other People

Interview by Ben Myers, Careless Talk Costs Lives, March 2002

IN HOT And Cold, Richard Hell's new collection of three decades of writing, there's a photo of a young obscure poet called Theresa Stern. She ...

Custom

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 16 March 2002

Looking for a genre-splicing, cop-car-driving, multi-media musical experience? Six-foot eight New Yorker Custom is your man. ...

Desaparecidos: Youth of Today

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 20 April 2002

Conor Oberst began his musical career as a 14-year-old singer-songwriter. Seven years later, he has formed the fiery Desaparecidos. His mission: to open America's eyes… ...

SikTh: The Freak Brothers

Profile and Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 11 May 2002

They say you can judge a band by their fans. For fast-rising UK noiseniks SikTh, that means obsessive lunatics and pavement-licking berzerkers... ...

The Libertines interviewed at the 100 Club, Oxford Street, London, October 4th 2002

Interview by Ben Myers, unpublished, 4 October 2002

IT WAS A crisp autumn day when The Libertines arrived back in London to play the penultimate show of a 26 date tour at the ...

Sum 41: Menace To Sobriety

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 15 February 2003

As they headline their first UK arena tour, party monsters Sum 41 insist drugs and sex are off the menu. Happily, gambling, boozing and hanging ...

The Mars Volta, The Red Hot Chili Peppers: Red Hot Chili Peppers/The Mars Volta: Docklands Arena, London

Live Review by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, 22 March 2003

IT TAKES A RARE band to transform a large cavern sucked of all life into something approximating a Saturday night party. Many try, most fail. ...

The Distillers, Peaches: The Distillers and Peaches: When Brody met Peaches...

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, February 2004

THEY MAY have only met once before but within thirty second of being re-introduced backstage at London's Brixton Academy it's clear that Brody Dalle and ...

The Prodigy: Liam Howlett: Never Outgunned

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, August 2004

"I REMEMBER being in our rehearsal room and Keith was picking holes in shit and I just thought 'What the fuck, man? What's happened to ...

The Clash: London Calling 25th Anniversary

Retrospective by Ben Myers, Record Collector, October 2004

BY EARLY 1979, to the outside world The Clash were coasting. In their three short years of existence they had signed to Sony for a ...

The Clash: Paul Simonon: London's Most Handsome Man

Interview by Ben Myers, 3ammagazine.com, November 2004

IT'S ALL ABOUT poise. If you don't have poise – definition "balance; a dignified and self-assured manner" – in rock 'n' roll, you're nothing. Paul ...

Billy Corgan: The Pumpkin King Goes Solo

Interview by Ben Myers, Kerrang!, June 2005

THE FIRST thing you notice is not how tall he is or how large his hands look, or the fact that he's dressed like an ...

Muse: Supermassive: The Making Of Muse

Retrospective and Interview by Ben Myers, Record Collector, July 2007

This month's gigs at the new Wembley Stadium confirm Muse's status as Britain's biggest rock band. Ben Myers traces their rise from Devon schooldays to ...

(British) Sea Power: British Sea Power: Rock Needs To Get Back To Nature

Comment by Ben Myers, The Guardian, 20 November 2007

Cities have been done to death. More rock bands should take inspiration from countryside, mountains and rivers - like British Sea Power ...

Why "Disco sucks!" sucked

Retrospective by Ben Myers, The Guardian, 18 June 2009

The "Disco Sucks!" campaign in 1979 had racist and homophobic undertones — and, 30 years on, has proven to be a resolute failure ...

Half Man Half Biscuit: Why Half Man Half Biscuit are wholly terrific

Profile by Ben Myers, The Guardian, 23 July 2009

WITTY AND DRY, sardonic yet never cynical, the lyrics of Half Man Half Biscuit are an undiscovered treasure trove. It's time this great Birkenhead band ...

The Libertines: Confessions Of A Blagger: Carl Barat's Threepenny Memoir Reviewed

Book Review by Ben Myers, The Quietus, 20 October 2010

Carl Barat's new tome doesn't shrink away from embracing ugly self-truth — and according to Ben Myers, is subsequently far worthier of praise than the ...

Talk Talk: How Talk Talk Spoke To Today's Artists

Retrospective by Ben Myers, The Guardian, 28 February 2011

IN HIS WEIGHTY 2010 TOME Electric Eden: Unearthing Britain's Visionary Music, Rob Young charted a century's worth of musicians who helped define British folk. In ...

The Unthanks: Last

Review by Ben Myers, The Quietus, 23 March 2011

FOLK MUSIC GETS A HARD RAP in the UK. In the US it's different. Far from being the subject of derision, the long standing American ...

Hip-Hop and Festivals: An Awkward Relationship

Comment by Ben Myers, The Guardian, 23 June 2011

When they get it right, rappers can rival stadium rock acts. But a mere gust of wind can expose how few MCs can hack festivals ...

Darren Hayman & The Long Parliament: The Violence

Review by Ben Myers, bbc.co.uk, November 2012

A concept album about the 17th century witch trials of Essex? Yes please. ...

Fat Goth: Stud

Review by Ben Myers, bbc.co.uk, 2013

Dundee alt-rock trio offers more than just a mirthsome moniker. ...

NOFX: 30th Anniversary Box Set

Review by Ben Myers, bbc.co.uk, 2013

Satirical Californian punks display cockroach-like endurance. ...

Pure Love: Anthems

Review by Ben Myers, bbc.co.uk, 4 February 2013

Former Gallows singer unleashes his inner arena-rock beast. ...

Iceage: You're Nothing

Review by Ben Myers, bbc.co.uk, 19 February 2013

Young Danish punks create a beautiful noise for the worldwide disaffected. ...

Mudhoney: Vanishing Point

Review by Ben Myers, bbc.co.uk, 1 April 2013

Grunge originators show zero signs of mellowing. ...

Biffy Clyro: Step In The Arena

Report and Interview by Ben Myers, MOJO, June 2013

ON PAPER it's the first day of spring, but Newcastle is begging to differ. Upstairs in the Metro Arena, the three members of the UK's ...

Lostprophets: Rock Music Isn't Evil — it's the rock star myth that creates men like Ian Watkins

Comment by Ben Myers, New Statesman, 18 December 2013

Music journalist and author Ben Myers has been doing some soul-searching on the day the former Lostprophets singer was sentenced to twenty-nine years' imprisonment plus ...

The Comet Is Coming: The Brudenell Social Club, Leeds

Live Review by Ben Myers, MOJO, March 2017

West Yorkshire braces for the impact of Shabaka Hutchings' near-Earth trio. ...

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