Category: Live Music

Amplify Her Live at The Hope & Ruin, Brighton, 17th April 2025

A project founded in 2023 by Andrea Dee, Amplify Her creates a space where women in the music industry support each other’s progress whilst championing gender equality. Last week’s Brighton showcase at The Hope & Ruin saw three talented artists perform, and offered a great networking opportunity for women in multiple creative roles to meet and make connections. The evening was opened by Andrea, speaking about the reasons she set up Amplify Her, noting that the lack of women booked for festivals was not reflective of the current chart scene, which is often filled and topped by successful women artists. Andrea then noted two guidelines for the night – 1. speak to a stranger and 2. if you’re here for the first act, stay for the last act (this one should be a given for any gig, and the same goes in the other direction – come to see the headliner, get there for the supports).

First up, some smooth soul rifts from Tia Ice, incorporating poetry into her songs and drawing the crowd in with her narrative of personal reflection. Taking the middle slot, a fusion of folk and Americana from Mookie switched the pace up, with bags of energy from her and the band. Lastly, headliner Adriana Lord took us on journey of storytelling spanning history, heritage and motherhood, all backed with some beautiful songs and an almost meditative atmosphere. A great line-up and a very welcoming crowd of people – you can check out more Amplify Her events here.

Tia Ice

Tia with Andrea / Networking

Mookie

Adriana Lord

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram: 16beasleyst

Published 21st April 2025

Hot Face,  Jock & Telecom at The Prince Albert

Channeling the pop-leaning surface of 60s’ psychedelia, Telecom opened up Wednesday’s Hidden Herd showcase with a smooth set of soft melodies and double vocal harmonies. With a sound reminiscent of tracks like See Emily Play and My White Bicycle, the five piece fit well together and are clearly building a local following as they progress.

The rest of the night took a noisier turn with gritty garage-punk from Jock bringing a bunch of abrasive tunes and bags of energy – think Television meets The Slits on double speed. It comes with a contemporary twist and a sense that the trio are having an absolute blast, an attribute that always get picked up by the crowd and adds to the atmosphere.

Headliners Hot Face continued the frenetic pace with a bundle of fuzzed up songs, some frenzied guitar playing and all three band members taking turns on vocals. There are many current artists picking up the punk mantle but not a huge number that manage to make it feel authentic. Hot Face take this in their stride  with nods to the spiky sound of Wire and pure punk originals The Clash. Not hard to see why they were picked up by the prestigious Speedy Wunderground label, definitely worth a repeat visit.

Hosted by Hidden Herd

Telecom

Jock

Hot Face

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram: 16beasleyst

Published 19th April 2025

Pale Blue Eyes at Dust, Brighton, 11th April 2025

On the road with their latest album New Place, Pale Blue Eyes played to a packed venue at Brighton’s Dust on Friday night. You can’t fault their precision as they run through a selection of the new songs, interspersed with some welcome tracks from earlier records – Honeybear and Under Northern Sky sitting back to back, comfortably slotted between newer tunes Rituals and The Dreamer. The trio – Matt Board (guitar, vocals), Lucy Board (drums) and Aubrey Simpson (bass) are joined live by Lewis Kellett-Johnson on keys and additional guitar for an incredibly tight-knit set that feels reminiscent of Stereolab’s French Disko era. Often presented under the shoegaze mantle, it feels like their performance takes the genre and injects a huge bounce of energy, reflected back from the ever increasing head-nodding and foot-tapping throughout the crowd. 

A great night’s entertainment, the band have a couple more dates to come this week at Oxford’s Bullingdon on Wednesday 16th April and Islington Assemble Hall in London on Thursday 17th April – get along if you can.

Set list:
Scrolling, TV Flicker, Rituals, Honeybear, Under Northern Sky, The Dreamer, Motionless, Our History, Our Lost Words, Now And Again, Chelsea, Sister, Half Light

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram: 16beasleyst

Published 14th April 2025

Lip Filler, Bacci Pouch & SLAG at The Hope & Ruin, Brighton, 2nd April 2025

I suppose three out of four ain’t bad but still, circumstances meant that I missed all but the last few bars of opening act Reubin X, a combination of delays at my end and a super short set from them as they were without their keyboard player. Another time perhaps.

So my night kicked off properly with SLAG, very popular locally and just announced for The Great Escape. Vocals switching between light and dark, the band seem to be growing in confidence and comfortable flipping genres as the mood takes, indie-pop meets spiky art rock keeping the audience on their toes.                                                                                                             

Bacci Pouch provided the filling in the night’s punk-leaning sandwich, with riffs reminiscent of The Undertones and a top speed version of The Rockefeller Skank. A tight threesome with not too much of a nod to nostalgia, though its influence is there for sure. 

Last up, Lip Filler played a compelling set, animated moves and spat out lyrics pulling the crowd into their powerhouse performance. If Radiohead were angrier and surrendered to angular dance moves, there might just be a comparison there – as it stands I’d guess it’s much more fun to see Lip Filler.

Hosted by Hidden Herd

SLAG

Bacci Pouch

Lip Filler

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram: 16beasleyst

Published 7th April 2025

Winter Gardens, everyday saints & Rats-Tails at The Prince Albert, Brighton, 20th March 2025

A gentle start to the evening with London-based dream rockers Rats-Tails. At times, the vocal is almost whispered, which only serves to draw in the early crowd’s appreciation more. A few pops of psychedelia, and the clarinet inclusion, ensure the overall sound challenges the expected and adds some sharpness to the baseline etherealness.

Onto local outfit everyday saints, with some clear influences shining through from goth/alt 80s onwards, both sonically and visually. Plenty of darkwave leaning mixed with a bunch of palpably danceable hooks, the band manage to capture that integration of gloom and pop cultivated by the likes of The Cure and Garbage. Definitely ones to watch.

And for the headline slot, a very popular booking in Winter Gardens, and rightfully so. The band have continued to develop their signature sound which culminates in a fusion of melancholic shoegaze with some sweeping Lush-esque undertones. Latest single Anthropocene demonstrates their evolution to becoming one of Brighton’s most sought after acts. 

All in all, a night that makes a mockery of those events that say they can’t find women to front their line-ups when there’s so much blatant gender-diverse talent around…

Gallery by Siobhan
Hosted by Hidden Herd x Crafting Room

Rats-Tails

everyday saints

Winter Gardens

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram: 16beasleyst

Published 24th March 2025

 

 

Hidden Herd All-Dayer at The Green Door Store, Brighton, 1st March 2025

With the sun shining for the first time in a long time, and a stack of talented acts on the line-up, Hidden Herd presented an all day event that perfectly reflects the importance and ethos of local grassroots venues and the platform they offer to emerging artists, along with an opportunity to see those more established playing in an intimate setting.

First up at Green Door on Saturday were Triple Drain, their ‘goth sludge’ tunes making an impact that proved worthy of an early arrival. The opening slot is never an easy one but the trio gave a strong performance, with nods to the likes of The Banshees and The Slits.

With an unapologetic step into the world of pop-punk, crysometimes continued to warm things up with audience participation and a late set singing slot knelt on the cobbles of the venue floor – dedication to the cause because, believe me, that floor is cold!

And then perhaps one of the most talked about slots of the day from Francis Pig. This was very much a visual as well as musical display, and I felt their confidence had grown since last seeing them along with the quality of the set. Last time if I’m honest, I wasn’t sure – this time they left me suitably impressed, and I clearly wasn’t alone in that.

Triple Drain

crysometimes

Francis Pig

Another act gaining a buzz around them, lots of interest in Cordelia Gartside amongst the gig-goers both before and after they played. With captivating vocals and tight support from the band, their music is a beguiling mix of fragile and hard-hitting, and leaves a little bit of intrigue behind.

Next, Room Service brought lots of energy to their pop/rock offering and segued things nicely into the evening section.

Switching out the genres again, an impressive helping of soul-fuelled rock from Car Boot Sale took the pace up a level. Great to see a band that looks like they’re having fun and has the venue bouncing along with a party atmosphere and some solid tunes in their repertoire.

Cordelia Gartside

Room Service

Car Boot Sale

And so, to the final three acts of the day – Porchlight gave an animated, angular performance, keeping energy levels high. If you’re a fan of the likes of Keg and Duds, you’ll likely find the direction they’re heading is right up your street.

Next up, the formidable DSM IV. At times intense, humorous and the best possible version of unhinged, the trio have mastered the art of syncing  chaos into order, their accomplished elctro-dance-punk riffs the perfect backdrop to an immersive journey for the crowd as the venue transports into their own little piece of late night clubland. A lot of fun underlying just how good they are.

No better way to follow on than with another foray into darklands club utopia with two-piece Baba Ali. Heavy dance synth beats and fuzzy guitar combine to make theirs a hypnotic and potent production. What an ending to an all round excellent day.

Porchlight

The DSM IV

Baba Ali

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram: 16beasleyst

Published 6th March 2025

 

Cordelia Gartside, Ashaine White & Rottweiler at The Prince Albert, Brighton, 19th February 2025

A truly multifarious assortment of acts at The Prince Albert in Brighton on Thursday – something for everyone, or maybe in this case everything for everyone, as all three acts impressed and received a warm reception from the crowd.

First up, Rottweiler are making waves with their take on grunge mixed with splashes of punk and pop and a performance that lives up to their name. Energy by the truck-load and some lipstick smearing that Robert Smith would be proud of set a frenetic starting pace for the evening.

A change of mood as Ashaine White took to the stage with a collection of soulful rock love songs, and chats about beef mince and parking tickets. Sometimes simplicity is the key, and Ashaine’s stripped back set was captivating and engaging.

Last up, Cordelia Gartside’s self-described creep rock brought ethereal vocals and a collection of songs that felt at times vulnerable, before heavier crescendos kicked through. Accomplished and compelling, this was an excellent way to close the show and a night full of musical twists and turns.

Hosted by Hidden Herd

Rottweiler

Ashaine White

Cordelia Gartside

Words and photos © Siobhan 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram: 16beasleyst

Published 24th February 2025