Category: Gig Gallery

Cucamaras | Shady Baby | Wonderbug | M. Woodroe at The Hope & Ruin

With more local talent on display in the shape of Shady Baby and M. Woodroe, an overly long but appreciated trip from London for Wonderbug, and Cucamaras repping Nottingham, last week saw all four acts play at Brighton’s Hope & Ruin for the latest Hidden Herd line-up. 

Steadily building their presence on the local scene, M. Woodroe pit delicate vocals and occasional screams against dark instrumental backing. It feels as though their sound is still developing and it will be interesting to see where it leads. For those in the area, there is a pending gig at The Bee’s Mouth in Hove this Thursday (6th Feb).

With grunge infused indie tunes filling the stage, Wonderbug gave a great performance with multi-vocals and a hint of Republica with added intensity. Again, some more local dates on the cards as the band play Havana Club in Chichester on Thursday (6th Feb) and The Prince Albert in Brighton  on Friday (7th Feb). These are followed by visits on the rest of their current tour to Bournemouth, Oxford, Reading, Exeter, Bristol and Swansea.

Shady Baby were up next, their indie-garage sound becoming more cohesive over time. Recent single Held In reflects a nod towards the 90s, a punchy Mary Chain without the feedback comes to mind. Heading stateside next for New Colossus festival in New York, keep an eye out for further UK dates to come.

Headliners Cucamaras are riding pretty high right now with a wave of impressive live reviews and new music to boot. They took no prisoners with their set, jumping straight in with bags of energy, and always nice to see a band that looks like they’re enjoying every second. A punk/new wave leaning and attitude kept the crowd happy until closing time. Cucamaras’ new single Laughing is out now (taken from forthcoming EP of the same name due to land in May).

A packed venue from early till late is always a strong indicator of a good night, and this one certainly delivered.

M. Woodroe

Wonderbug

Shady Baby

Cucamaras

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com

Published 31st January 2025

Catbandcat, Freddie J Watts and the Hot Rocks & Le Lamb at The Prince Albert, Brighton, 9th January 2025

It’s good to be back out in the land of live music after the holidays and, if you’re in the Brighton area, the Hidden Herd showcases are always a safe bet to find a strongly selected mix of emerging artists. Thursday at The Prince Albert was no exception, with three acts who all gave us a solid performance along with the music.

First up, theatrics, cowboy hats and a songster in sheep’s clothing came in the form of Le Lamb. Musically resonant of Portishead and PJ Harvey, it was a powerful set rather than a gimmick; none the less the crowd were content to ‘bah’ back to the stage on cue and there were numerous conversations overheard from people planning to see them again. Keep an eye out for pending dates if you want to join the flock.

The middle slot was taken by Freddie J Watts and the Hot Rocks, and it could prove difficult to advise the genre as there were elements of so many musical influences cleverly mixed. On first appearances, we were heading down a psyched up country lane but there were other layers too. The recurring intro riff across multiple songs echoed The Temptations’ My Girl and the inclusion of a sax is always welcome. Let’s go with melancholic spoken-word spaghetti western and see how things progress…

Headliners for the night were Catbandcat and, once again, the tempo and style switched up. The clearing of the drum kit made the stage immediately more spacious than seemed possible, the expanse easily filled with an array of keys, violin, acoustic and electric guitar and accordion. Split vocals and segues between distortion and almost orchestral intensity made for an intriguing close to proceedings.

Hosted by Hidden Herd & Crafting Room Recordings
Gallery from all three sets below

Le Lamb

Freddie J Watts and the Hot Rocks

Catbandcat

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com

Published 11th January 2025

Sunken, ladylike, goodbye & Swan Deep at The Hope & Ruin, Brighton, 27th November 2024

Hosted by Hidden Herd

A chilled evening of  good music at The Hope & Ruin on Wednesday as a quartet of acts took to the stage, opening with the intricate  sounds of Swan Deep. Experimental with elements of jazz, their set held a certain amount of intrigue – enough certainly to draw a lot of people there early to catch them play, and worth braving the cold outside for.

Swan Deep

Second up, goodbye brought another interesting mix of styles. Fairly new to the Brighton scene as a collective, they include some familiar faces from other local acts (Flip Top Head, Moon Idle, etc.) and meld together well with strong vocals and a Banshees-esque lilt.

goodbye

The penultimate act came in the shape of ladylike, honing their shoegaze / alt-folk sound and gaining a fair amount of media interest since releasing their debut single almost exactly a year ago. Understated but quite captivating to watch, it’s easy to see why their appeal is stretching.

ladylike

Last up, London five-piece Sunken have worked hard to create something that sounds effortless. Trippy dream pop that can’t help but call Portishead to mind, their closing set was a fitting ending to a night that drew on lots of influences from the past, while kicking one foot firmly into the present. Keep an eye out for all four on the line-up – they’re sure to be catching more attention in 2025.

Sunken

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com

Published 29th November 2024

Walt Disco at Dust, Brighton, 16th November 2024

Playing Brighton before heading to Europe then back for more UK dates, Walt Disco‘s headline slot on Saturday was almost scuppered by a broken down van. Happily all was well and they made it in time to greet the packed room at Dust. From their early days of glam and pomp, the band has cultivated their sound, style and confidence to produce a more mature, polished performance. Touring as support for OMD and Duran Duran has opened them up to a much wider fanbase, and it was good to see some of those new followers there, mixed with faces from pre-lockdown days still out in force.

Latest album The Warping featured from the outset, with Seed, Gnomes and the title track the first three on the setlist, followed by a trip back to 2022 with past favourites How Cool Are You and Cut Your Hair. All this year’s single releases took their place too before the 16-song set closed with a faultless version of Weightless. Their catalogue of songs is a journey through serious subject matter and frivolity, the constant being the danceable backbeat, their USP the always impeccable vocals from Jocelyn.

The stage at Dust isn’t the biggest in the world, but there was still plenty of opportunity for synchronised dance moves and, when floor space is lacking, swinging from the ceiling beams is always an option. Walt Disco have undoubtedly evolved but are very much still here to entertain.

Pending UK tour dates are 28th Nov at London’s Bush Hall, 29th Nov at Newcastles’ Xerox and 30th Nov at SWG3 in Glasgow.

Gallery from Brighton below, honourable mention to the RAC for their services to live music.

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com

Published 18th November 2024

Benefits & Polite Bureaux at The Hope & Ruin, Brighton, 23rd October 2024

Another night of great music in Brighton as Benefits transformed The Hope & Ruin into an immersive sound and light experience not for the faint hearted. Experimental? Industrial? Political? Poetic? All of the above to be fair, noise levels rising as the lighting dipped between neon and darkness. An impressive bank of keyboards and pedals, and an understated violin that brought the spirit of the Bad Seeds before the following tracks took us into Faithless territory with an exasperated vocal putting the world to rights, the crowd eager to join in with yelling ‘Shit Britain‘ into the night. Latest single Land of the Tyrants offers an insight into the band’s newer work, the same protagonism with a subtler feel, all the better to get inside your head and stay there. Despite the intensity of the music and its delivery, there’s a poignancy about a Benefits performance, lots to think about, lots to talk about, no question that something very special just happened.

You know when a band gets their support act just right? So, that happened too. Polite Bureaux already have a strong local following and the opportunity to impress a chunk of the crowd new to them was not wasted. Their live shows still have that serrated edge that is intrinsic to their sound, but there’s no denying that the set-up is becoming a well-oiled machine that spits out quality every time. Love to see this band doing so well and sticking to their own terms in the process.

A captivating night, and kudos for the pre-set playlist, an incongruous fit including the likes of Inner City and Fiction Factory that somehow warmed things up perfectly.

Hosted by Love Thy Neighbour

Polite Bureaux

Benefits

Benefits pending UK dates:
24th Oct – Where Else? Margate
25th Oct – The George Tavern, London
26th Oct – Le Pub, Newport
27th Oct – The Grove, Newcastle Upon Tyne

Words and photos © Siobhan – 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram

Bob Vylan at Chalk, Brighton, 22nd October 2024

After a string of summer festivals and dates in the States, Bob Vylan kicked out on the UK leg of their latest tour last night at a sold-out Chalk in Brighton 11 months since they last played the same venue, and it’s been a busy best part of a year in between.  Their third album Humble As the Sun released in April continues to push boundaries, tracks like He’s A Man and Dream Big already popular from previous live dates.

The foray into meditation and light stretching still starts off the show, both Bobs smiling and looking relaxed even before it begins. They state they’re happy to be back in the UK, and it’s pretty clear that the feeling is mutual. Chalk is rammed, hot and sweaty, and bouncing wall to wall before too long. Reign and GYAG appear early in the set, setting the pace  for plenty of crowd participation, the surfers making regular appearances as the evening progresses (inevitably including Bobby).

Their live reputation goes before them and they somehow manage never to disappoint. Boundless energy, a case full of jagged current-day protest songs, their voice is important amongst today’s music scene and they use their platform to maximum effect. I’m Still Here waxes lyrical, ‘A peaceful type of brother with a war inside my head, I’m all for loving living, but keep a bottle by the bed, because it’s brutal, life has been so strange and so unusual’, while He’s A Man is straighter to the point, with the opening line, ‘Loves a chicken korma, but hates the hands that cook it’. Lots to say, lots that needs to be said, Bob Vylan take no prisoners with their message but balance the heavy content with an always exceptionally fun night out. Hopefully it won’t be another year before they’re back in town.

Words and photos © Siobhan – 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram