“I will burn your likeness everywhere I find it.“
Whilst there are several key venues in the current London hardcore scene (Moor Beers Vaults, New River Studios, and the Black Heart, to name a few), there’s no no-barrier venue that has a reputation like New Cross Inn. If there’s any single event that seeks to define what New Cross means to hardcore, it’s Reality Unfolds. Real Life Promotions makes great use of an otherwise quiet season for festivals to get us all sweaty south of the Thames. For many years now, Reality Unfolds has put seasoned international bands alongside UK stalwarts and even first-timers. Several of this year’s fledgling bands are ones we would have loved to cover last year, so it’s now our opportunity to play catch up and shine a light on some key bands in the hardcore and hardcore-adjacent scenes.
Friday
Vicarage
The third band taking to the New Cross stage will be Vicarage, from which point onwards the Friday night lineup goes from excellent to unmissable.The band also provide a vital dose of black metal to an otherwise un-black event, by way of their aesthetics, frequent foreboding clean guitar passages, and penchant for dissonant staccato riffs. Perfect Hatred is a stand out EP from 2024 – our loss for not covering it at the time. The opener “Honour Thou” is an ominous epic, whereas the following tracks are more focused and spiteful. On these they bring in crust punk sensibilities and soaring black metal moments, especially “In Penitence” which they should not miss out from their performance.
Dry Socket
Making the long trip from Portland, Oregon, Dry Socket will bring their abrasive and vicious hardcore punk sound to the New Cross Inn. A rich discography, including a split with our Ones To Watch 2023 inclusion Body Prison, there’s plenty to stomp, mosh, and two-step to. Regardless of how well you know the band, if you’re in the crowd you’ll be kept busy and given a thorough workout with how relentless Dry Socket’s sound is.
Saturday
Supernova
Speaking of EPs Boolin Tunes sadly missed in 2024, Supernova’s Demo 2024 sports a fantastic sound for the band as they confidently mix punk and hardcore. On the eight minute four-tracker they launch straight into critical topics including violence against women, the paradox of tolerance, and straight edge philosophy. There ought to be some clamouring for the mic during their name-dropping closer “Supernova”. Many straight edge projects are relegated to being a “side project”, short-release-only affair, so we’re excited to see plenty of activity from Supernova which will help put London edge metal on the map, alongside contemporaries like xDELIVERANCEx, xapothecaryx, and of course Hour of Reprisal who you should catch on Friday night.
Aku
The latest act to join the foray of quality bands in BN1, Aku impressed with their debut record Numbers Game in 2024, which has seen them earn a deserved slot on the Reality Unfolds line-up. Tackling themes of identity, intergenerational politics, and mental health, it’s underscored by their rough-and-ready trashy metallic hardcore sound. Aku make for an intense and ferocious listen that should make for a hell of a live show.
Broken Vow
Outside of the obvious, “this is one of the final chances you will have to see Broken Vow” live, the New England unit would have been more than worthy of attendee’s time if that wasn’t the case. A sheer wild energy is pervasive at their live shows, which you’ll find crystallised into their studio material through explosive vocals and metallic riffs. Their lyrics are packed with purpose on humanity’s demise and environmental matters. Broken Vow are ones that will have many going for a mic grab, and for tracks such as “Propaganda of the Dead”, it should be absolute chaos as “This war will end with you, dangling from your feet” is yelled out ahead of a thundering breakdown.
Bitterwood
Scottish knuckleheads Bitterwood are on a mission to out-stupid every other beatdown band on the line up. Their frequent use of samples suggests that they’re a band that started as a joke. Deny it all you like, but hardcore is inherently silly, so it’s good to have a “professional” band make this so obvious. Their discography of EPs and singles is best enjoyed via their “everything” playlist, standing in for a fleshed-out LP release that we hope the band has in the works for 2025. Until the, enjoy their fireworks at Reality Unfolds 2025.
Sunday
Church Of The Rat
When the booker scheduled Church Of The Rat for an early Sunday slot, there’s no doubt they had themselves a sensible chuckle. The band’s sound is centred in the claustrophobia of up-tempo post punk, laced with noise rock and hints of hardcore. They dropped two double singles last summer on which they already sound fully fledged and ready to be weaponised in a live setting. Church Of The Rat will ensure nobody misses out on their quality worship time, as long as you’re a follower of the riff.
Hidden Mothers
Festival appearances at ArcTanGent and Portals have teased the rebirth of Hidden Mothers. Now that their debut album Erosion / Avulsion has dropped, you can get to know the exact material they’ll be bringing (in fact, they have played the record in order at their 2024 shows). Reality Unfolds will emphasise the post-hardcore elements of their sound – it’s likely to be a mosh break for many, but it’s important that the day includes some bands you will feel with your heart rather than your fists.
Perp Walk
Perp Walk are becoming a staple of festivals up and down the country, including Outbreak and Warpath in 2024; they now take on Reality Unfolds and Manchester Punk Festival in 2025. They have perfected their hook-landen hardcore sound, featuring stomping grooves and barked and reverbed vocals, which will bounce off the walls of New Cross Inn to create an enthralling energy.
Sorcerer
Sorcerer are an absolute gem of a band. There should be little doubt that as time progresses – the French unit will build themselves as mainstays of the hardcore scenes on either side of the channel. Experimenting with gothic stylings, that previous Upsurge/Realty Unfolds attendees will be familiar with from Brutality Will Prevail, whirling metal riffs that build up to heavier hardcore moments, that will appease both those of either hardcore or more metalhead leaning audiences, that Reality Unfolds attracts.
Reality Unfolds will take place the New Cross Inn from January the 17th-19th, the full line-up and option to purchase tickets, can be found here.