Russell Hughes

rushonrock.com — @ Newcastle O2 Academy, December 9 2012 The start of the gig followed the pattern of A Flash of Colour as first System... and then Meltdown were played consecutively, eliciting a whirlpool of testosterone and metal attitude from the writhing faithful. This was incited by the energy of lead singer Rou Reynolds, who boasted the youthful exuberance of a child on a sugar rush after being given his first can of Coke. Throwing himself bodily across the stage, arms and legs flying everywhere, he was the perfect companion to his band's dub-induced sound.

rushonrock.com — @ Newcastle O2 Academy, December 7 2012 When bands play gigs at the Academy on a Friday night they are always going to be in a race against time due to the venue's infamous 10pm curfew. And it felt cryingly obvious with Electric Six. But they warmed to the task after a ropey start. Dick Valentine looked every inch the man that straddled the moose in the video for Danger, High Voltage - albeit the face that had gone through old-booth and come out the other side after 100 units of alcohol and 10 years of rock and roll.

www.themag.co.uk — The subject of Newcastle United and transfers have never gone hand in hand with much harmony. Under the often chaotic and sometimes foolish stewardship of Freddy Shepherd, large amounts of money were splurged on supposed marquee signings, only to see them underperform and drain the club of money and patience. Remember Albert Luque anyone? That may be the reason that the current leadership; Mike Ashley, Derek Llambias and Alan Pardew have attempted to steer the club away from its big spending past, and have largely done a stellar job so far.

rushonrock.com — Royal Republic may be from Sweden but this foursome are blistering hot. Launching straight into Save The Nation without as much as a hello, the band from Malmo set a furious pace to the night - so much so that drummer Per Andreasson broke his snare after only two songs. Front man Adam Grahn is an out and out showman and he laps up the crowd's adulation and gives it back tenfold - cajoling, encouraging and even scolding the people hanging around at the back of the venue to get more involved.

rushonrock.com — This was the gig that nearly didn't happen - a miscommunication between booking agents and band management left hundreds of the Bowling For Soup faithful in the cold for an hour while frantic techies worked inside to get the show started. All that was soon forgiven and forgotten as the Texas rockers launched into their hour and a half long set, playing renditions of their most recent work in between outbursts of mostly funny and entirely entertaining chat. Frontman Jaret Reddick even persuaded the crowd to sing Happy Birthday to his support band's drummer in Spanish - a scene unlikely to be repeated in Newcastle anytime soon.

rushonrock.com — Bowling For Soup remain one of the best-loved pop punk bands on the planet and regular trips to the UK have helped to strengthen the bond between the wacky Americans and British audiences. A highlight of the recent Vans Warped Tour UK shows, the crazy Texans have never been in better shape. RUSHONROCK 's Russell Hughes spoke exclusively to the band - and discovered BFS's dream bill. But will it happen? rushonrock: Do you feel that bands that have a great sense of humour, such as yourself and Steel Panther, get taken less seriously as musicians?

www.themag.co.uk — The Europa League can be seen as a poisoned chalice by some. Just how far down the ladder of some fans concerns that Europe's second competition is, could be seen when Manchester United supporters almost breathed a sigh of relief when the Red Devils were knocked out of the competition. Now we can concentrate on what's really important, the Premier League, they said. The Europa league can also be the graveyard of Premier League ambitions. Stoke and Fulham both finished lower in the league because of the added fatigue and injuries brought about by an extended season.

www.touchlinetalk.com — Touchline Talk is a new website that features news from the English Premier League.

soundcloud.com — Russell, Tom and Scotty pick each others brains on this weeks football action; including an interiew with Terry Mitchell.

soundcloud.com — First recording of Northumbria Football Radio. Matt and Russell discuss the latest results as well as making general Poly chit-chat.