Live – Le Lamb | Swallowtail | Veronica | Restless Taxis at The Hope & Ruin

Le Lamb, Swallowtail, Veronica & Restless Taxis at The Hope & Ruin, Brighton, 10th October 2025

If an artist who wasn’t on the bill ever deserved a shout out – this one’s for Kate Bush, without whom I’m not sure that Friday’s extravaganza of talent would ever have happened.

Playing at Brighton’s Hope & Ruin for Hidden Herd’s latest new music showcase, a quartet of acts all shining their own light on proceedings, kicking off with some ethereal shoegaze-psych from London-based Restless Taxis. Alongside the intensity of the music building as the set progresses, some impressive interpretive dance moves give an air of watching a Lynchian video, with the rest of the band totally focused on what they’re playing – a winner with the early crowd for sure.

Restless Taxis

Next up and deserving of the praise I heard from other regulars who’d seen them before, the first of three local acts (via Milan in this case), Veronica and her band almost float onto the stage, hypnotic and whimsical with a sharp edge of strong vocals. Encouraging the crowd to chant ‘one more song’ before their final song adds a sprinkling of humour too.

Veronica

Penultimate act for the evening, Swallowtail have recently undergone a significant (50%) line-up change but look and sound as though they’ve been playing together for significantly longer than is the case. The vocals are lighter and contrast well with the vigour of the music and some forceful drumming. Early days for this version of the band – it will be interesting to see how things develop as newer songs come into play.

Swallowtail

Owning the headline slot, another on point performance from Le Lamb. Their set is fine-tuned, rightfully confident and visually beguiling. Mia’s vocals and sense of theatricality are slick as ever, and the rest of the band ensure that the overall production is flawless. An excellent finale to a really well thought out line-up.

Le Lamb