Cold Years

In the organizer's words:

Cold Years are rightly seen as Scotland's new hope on the rock 'n' roll circuit, not only capturing the spirit of the times with their emotional style, but also taking fans' hearts by storm. Why are Cold Years one of the most interesting newcomers of recent years?

It's simple: Imagine Against Me! go out for a few beers with the Foo Fighters and bump into Bruce Springsteen. Voilà - Cold Years! The band was founded in 2014 by singer/guitarist Ross Gordon, guitarist Finlay Urquhart, bassist Louis Craighead and drummer Fraser Allan. Following the EP "Death Chasers" in 2016 and their first concerts in the UK, the prestigious Kerrang! magazine crowned Cold Years the "hottest band of the year" in 2019. In 2020, their highly acclaimed debut album "Paradise" was released, which received support from Kerrang! (#42 in the Top 50 Albums of 2020), Rock Sound, Upset, Alt Press, NPR, American Songwriter, Visions (DE) and many others. The band achieved numerous positive milestones through placements in playlists including New Punk Tracks, The Punk List, All New Rock, Rock Rotation, Pop Punk's Not Dead, Covered In Punk, New Noise, The Scene, NMF Suomi, VOLUME SUOMI. "Paradise" even made it into the charts: #36 in the UK Indie Charts, #7 in the Indie Breakers Charts, #16 in the Scottish Album Charts, #17 in the German Metal Rock Charts and reached #4 (Rock) and #21 (All Genres) on iTunes.

However, the pandemic halted all plans, but in September 2020 Cold Years managed to make their debut in Germany in Hamburg. Due to the lockdown, Gordon was forced to exchange ideas with Louis and Fin via email instead of discussing them over a beer in pubs like they used to. Filled with renewed energy and emotion, the band decided to unleash their musical creativity and step out of their comfort zone on "Goodbye To Misery" (2022). Originally, one of the songs was seven minutes long. Another song features an air raid siren from the 1940s. They even considered using bagpipes (...maybe next time). The drums played by Sam Ogden of Static Dress, the "successor to John Bonham", took center stage, incorporating marching beats, snare rolls and fills that enhanced what used to be a simple 4/4 rhythm. At other moments, you can hear the stadium-worthy command of a Green Day chorus combined with the kind of malevolence found in the melodic brilliance of Against Me! in full swing. As Ross says, "It's a fucking punk rock record" with a free-spirited and fearless attitude. Bold opener "32" showcases all the "We are the Generation Fuck It All" glory of this band that has nothing to lose and gives everything they've got in every moment. "None of us will ever pay off our mortgages, none of us will be debt free, and none of us will retire," explains the singer. "That's all over for our generation. But that's why we're really good at taking risks.

Whereas previous generations were more cautious. I don't care what happens to me when I'm 65. You have to live life in the moment. You have to take risks. And that's something I've always been afraid of. But now I'm not afraid anymore." Amidst all this newfound optimism and positivity, "Goodbye To Misery" also contains more legitimate anger and rebellion than you'll find on most modern punk records. If anything, Cold Years even sound angrier than ever before. Understandably so, as there are plenty of reasons to be, like "Britain Is Dead". A song that reminds us that if you're not angry, you're not paying attention. "It's not even political; it's a moral stance. Since Brexit, our country has been a fucking disgrace," Gordon says without hesitation. "People are fighting over toilet paper. There are supermarkets trying to stick a Union Jack all over it to make it look upmarket. There's nothing to be proud of about being British. The empire has exploited and plundered civilizations for years. Being British is not something I identify with, and I don't think most people of our generation think it's cool. It's embarrassing. And now we're the laughing stock of the world." As the world slowly returns to what it used to be, there are many reasons to rejoice, including Cold Years making it onto the Radio Germany Rock Charts! The single "62" climbed to #3, "Nights Like This" reached #6, "Life With A View" #13, "Good As Hell" #3, and the previous single release "Home" reached #5.