On This Day 15/09/2004 Susperia

Images may be subject to copyright

On this day, 15 September 2004, Norwegian thrash metal band Susperia played Cardiff’s Barfly. The had recently released their third studio album Unlimited

Formed in October 1998 by Tjodalv and Cyrus the band was originally named Seven Sins, but since there was another band with that name they changed it to the title of the horror film Suspiria, changing the spelling to avoid a clash with Suspiria, a gothic rock band that also took its name from the film.

On their early albums, the band experimented with a mixture of black and thrash metal. Testament, one of the members' favorite bands, was a major influence, and by the time the album Unlimited was released, the black metal elements had disappeared. Instead, the band gave more space to influences from heavy metal. Today, Susperia are generally regarded as a melodic thrash metal band.

The lyrics written by singer Athera are personal and either purely fictional or autobiographical. Politics and religion are not dealt with, nor are certain concepts. Athera uses both guttural and clean vocals.

Susperia is not a Satanic band, though their lyrics tend to criticise and question the views and morals of Christianity.

On This Day 05/09/2003 The Black Keys

Images may be subject to copyright

On this day, 5 September 2003, American rock band The Black Keys played Cardiff’s Barfly on their Thickfreakness tour.

Formed in Akron, Ohio in 2001 the group consists of Dan Auerbach (guitar, vocals) and Patrick Carney (drums). The duo began as an independent act, recording music in basements and self-producing their records, before they eventually emerged as one of the most popular garage rock artists during a second wave of the genre's revival in the 2000s. The band's raw blues rock sound draws heavily from Auerbach's blues influences, including Junior Kimbrough, R.L. Burnside, Howlin' Wolf, and Robert Johnson.

Thickfreakness, the band’s second album was released on April 8, 2003, and received positive reviews from critics. The record spawned three singles: "Set You Free", "Hard Row", and a cover of Richard Berry's "Have Love, Will Travel". The other cover from the album was Junior Kimbrough's "Everywhere I Go".

Time later named Thickfreakness the third-best album of 2003. That year, the duo received a lucrative offer of £200,000 to license one of their songs for use in an English mayonnaise advertisement. At the suggestion of their manager, they rejected the offer for fear of being perceived as "sell-outs" and alienating their fan base.

The band toured extensively throughout 2003, playing its first dates outside of the United States and opening concerts for Sleater-Kinney, Beck, and Dashboard Confessional. However, exhaustion had set in by the end of the year, forcing the band to cancel European tour dates.

In August, the group made its national television debut on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and performed at the Reading and Leeds Festivals. As fellow garage band the White Stripes grew in popularity, the Black Keys drew comparisons to them—sometimes as a derivative act—since both groups had two-piece lineups, Midwest origins, bluesy sounds, and names with colors.

In September, the Black Keys released a split-EP with the Six Parts Seven titled The Six Parts Seven/The Black Keys EP, featuring one song by the Six Parts Seven and three songs by the Black Keys.

On This Day 31/08/2004 Allister

Images may be subject to copyright

On this day, 31 August 2004, American punk/pop band Allister played Cardiff’s Barfly. They were about to release their third studio album Before The Blackout.

The four-piece formed in 1994 as Phineas Gage when the original band members were still in high school. In 1998, Allister became one of the first bands to sign to Drive-Thru Records.

They went on hiatus in 2007, then reunited in 2010, and have been touring and recording again since. They have released six studio albums: Dead Ends and Girlfriends (1999), Last Stop Suburbia (2002), Before the Blackout (2005), Countdown to Nowhere (2010), Life Behind Machines (2012), and 20 Years and Counting (2019). The band also made a cameo appearance in the 2004 film Sleepover.

On This Day 17/08/2002 The Darkness

images may be subject to copyright be subject to copyright

On this day, 17 August 2002, British rock band The Darkness played Cardiff’s Barfly.

The band had just released their debut recording the EP “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” but had not yet issued their debut album '“Permission To Land” released the following year.

"I Believe in a Thing Called Love" was originally issued as a 3-track EP in August 2002; however, as only a small number of copies were printed, it was ineligible to chart. The EP also included early versions of "Love on the Rocks With No Ice" and "Love Is Only a Feeling". When released as a single in September 2003, it was beaten to number one by The Black Eyed Peas' "Where Is the Love?".

The Darkness came to prominence with the release of their debut album, Permission to Land, in 2003. Backed by the singles "I Believe in a Thing Called Love", "Growing on Me", "Get Your Hands off My Woman", and "Love Is Only a Feeling", the album was certified quadruple platinum in the United Kingdom, with sales of over 1.3 million.

In 2004 the band won three Brit Awards: Best British Group, Best British Rock Act, and Best British Album.

The success of this album led to heavy touring for the band, including European portions of Metallica's Summer Sanitarium Tour 2003.

They then went on to headline the Carling Festival in 2004. The band won three BRIT Awards in 2004 in response to the album, Best Group, Best Rock Group and Best Album.

They also won two Kerrang! awards in 2004 for Best Live Act and Best British Band. The third single from the album, "I Believe in a Thing Called Love", was a substantial hit in the UK as was their tilt at the Christmas 2003 number 1, "Christmas Time (Don't Let the Bells End)", which only just fell short, both singles reaching number 2 in 2003.

On This Day 18/06/2003 Future Kings Of Spain

Images may be subject to copyright

On this day, 18 June 2003, Irish rock band Future Kings Of Spain played Cardiff’s Barfly supporting the Cosmic Rough Riders. The band were just about to release their self-titled debut album in August.

Formed in Dublin 2000 by Joey Wilson, Anton Hegarty and Bryan McMahon. The three had played together with ex-Spudgun guitarist Dave Layde in Mediumwave between 1996 and 1999.

The band released two studio LPs Future Kings of Spain (2003) and Nervousystem (2007) and one EP Les Debemos (2004).

In September 2009 after a period of inactivity, a number of music media outlets reported on the statement on the band's website announcing how the band had "brought things to a close", though not giving a reason for this apparent break-up.

The idea to call the band Future Kings Of Spain came about when Wilson, "was reading two unrelated articles at once and lined up the words Future Kings on one side and of Spain on the other."

On This Day 12/06/2008 Infadels

Images may be subject to copyright

On this day, 12 June 2008, London-based indie-electro Infadels played Cardiff’s Barfly. The band were just about to release their second album Universe in Reverse, following the earlier release of their single “Make Mistakes”.

Signed to the Wall of Sound record label. Infadels were founded in 2003 by Alex Bruford (drums), Matt Gooderson (guitar, programming) and Bnann Watts (vocals), who were joined shortly afterwards by Dead at Thirty founder Richie Vernon (live keys) and Wag Marshall-Page (Bass).

Their debut album, We Are Not the Infadels, was produced by Jagz Kooner and released in January 2006.[1] A second album, the Martin "Youth" Glover produced Universe In Reverse, was released in June 2008. Their third album, The Future of the Gravity Boy, was released digitally on 19 March, and physically on 9 June 2012.

The band's second album, Universe In Reverse, was released in June 2008 and written largely by Watts and Gooderson, and produced by Martin "Youth" Glover (Verve, Guns ’n’ Roses, Depeche Mode). "Play Blind", the first single from the second album, was given away for free as a limited-time download in February 2008.

Next single "Make Mistakes", was released in April, and "Free Things For Poor People" was released in June 2008, reaching No. 1 on the UK Indie Singles Charts and No. 52 on the UK Singles Chart. On Monday 19 August they were voted best band at the 2008 Lowlands festival by the Dutch public ahead of Editors and N.E.R.D.

On This Day 07/04/2005 The Glitterati

Images may be subject to copyright

On this day, 7 April 2005, hard rock band The Glitterati played Cardiff’s Barfly along with rock band Hurricane Party (Roadstar).

Originally from Leeds, but primarily based in London, England during most of their career. The band were signed to Atlantic Records and later to DR2 Records/Global Music.

In 2004 the band released an EP called "Here Comes a Close Up". Limited to a certain number of copies, it was not eligible for the UK Singles Chart, but did manage to sell all its limited edition units.

The band released their debut album The Glitterati on 25 April 2005 on Atlantic Records The album was produced by Mike Clink, who previously worked with Guns N' Roses (on Appetite for Destruction and Use Your Illusion I and II) and Metallica. The album was completed in a recording studio in Los Angeles. This was followed by the extensive 'Back In Power' tour of the UK.

In early 2005, the band broke into the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart with their single "You Got Nothing On Me". Their next single, "Heartbreaker", also entered the UK Top 40.

They were nominated in The Best New Band Category at the Kerrang Awards.

In 2005, the band also co-headlined the second Nokia 'New School of Rock' tour, together with The Black Velvets and Hurricane Party.

Over the summer of 2005, The Glitterati played at festivals in the United Kingdom such as T in the Park and Download Festival at Donington Park and The Leeds & Reading Festival

and also Toured with a number of varied acts throughout 2004-2006 including The Killers, The Wildhearts, Kings Of Leon, David Lee Roth, Jet, The Vines and many more, garnering a reputation as an exciting Live band.

On This Day 31/03/2004 Bloc Party

Images may be subject to copyright

On this day, 31 March 2004, rock band Bloc Party played Cardiff’s Barfly venue.

Formed in London in 1999 by co-founders Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, sampler) and Russell Lissack (lead guitar, keyboards). They are joined in the band's current iteration by Louise Bartle (drums, percussion) and touring bassist Harry Deacon.

Former members Matt Tong, Gordon Moakes and Justin Harris left the band in 2013, 2015 and 2023 respectively. Their brand of music, whilst rooted in rock, retains elements of other genres such as electronica and house music.

Upon their formation at the 1999 Reading Festival by Okereke and Lissack, the band went through a variety of names before settling on Bloc Party in 2003. Moakes joined the band after answering an advert in NME magazine, while Tong was picked via an audition. Bloc Party got their break by giving BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq and Franz Ferdinand's Alex Kapranos a copy of their demo "She's Hearing Voices".

In February 2005, the band released their debut album Silent Alarm. It was critically acclaimed and was named Indie Album of the Year at the 2006 PLUG Awards and NME Album of the year which both honour indie music. That year, the record was also certified platinum in Britain.