Live – Comforts | Mulimba | Winter Gardens | Fukushima Dolphin at The Hope & Ruin

Live – Comforts | Mulimba | Winter Gardens | Fukushima Dolphin at The Hope & Ruin, Brighton, 23rd July 2025

Quite the mix of musical styles on display at The Hope & Ruin on Wednesday, starting with a sprinkling of psychedelic folk-rock from Fukushima Dolphin. Maintaining the tradition of experimental Brighton duos and throwing in a massive hat for good measure, it was a gentle and upbeat start to proceedings.

Next up and kind of stealing the show a bit for me, Winter Gardens are a prime example of an act who’ve developed over the years from decent but tentative beginnings to mastering the art of making shoegaze stand out in style. Hints of The Cure and Cocteaus come through, but their performance is all of their own, tight-knit and with momentum constantly building. An excellent set.

Another change of pace and genre as Mulimba blends threads of hip-hop, rock and gospel to a backdrop of heavy beats. Technical issues caused some delays and ultimately made for a condensed set – would be good to catch more.

Headliners for the night were Comforts, delivering indie-rock with mandatory hooks and plenty of energy. Making a dent on the festival circuit, they release their debut EP later this year. Good to see the room busy on a school night and surely something for everyone in the mix. All four acts play at this year’s Dedfest on 16th August – tickets here.

Hosted by Hidden Herd x Dedfest

Fukushima Dolphin