Archive for the ‘Live’ Category

Burial / Thy Dying Light / Blasfeme / Cogas – The Fulford Arms, York 21st June 2025

Posted: 22 June 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

Last night, I spotted a post on Facebook from the Fulford Arms bearing the caption ‘hot day / sold out show = sweat dripping from the ceiling… f*cling awesome!’

And the gentrification of the grassroots venues we have left mean such occasions are a lot rarer than they used to be. And while for some punters it’s likely seen as a good thing, I personally do miss the sweaty mess aspect of packed-out pub venues, not because I necessarily enjoy being a sweaty mess, but because it was a part of the live experience, and you knew you’d been to a proper show if you came out absolutely drenched and having lost about 3lbs through perspiration.

And so it is that here we are at The Fulford Arms on the hottest day of the year so far. The thermometer in my back yard was showing 34°C earlier in the day. I found myself thinking ‘at least it can’t be as hot as The Mission at The Crescent, right? Or DZ Deathrays at the 50-capacity Woolpack in 2013… Surely?’ And it wasn’t. And not just in terms of temperature.

Cogas are a blackened death metal three-piece, with guitar, drums and vocals, plus face paint, chains, studs and random props. The seven-string guitar brings frenzied fretwork and some solid low end, and rapid fire kick drum action ensures the sound isn’t thin despite that lack of numbers. The singer looks really angry for the entirety of the set, and it works in terms of character, but it may be because of the amount of time he spends adjusting his mic stand. Towards the end of the set he wields an inverted cross of bones. Its relevance is unclear, but it’s an interesting visual.

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Cogas

Blasfeme have more and bigger spikes, more black face paint and more guitars: two plus a five-string bass. This combination ratchets up both the volume and density. They play hard and fast, the vocals are a demonic shriek. By a few songs in, half their makeup has disappeared, and with his office haircut the vocalist is transformed back to a more daytime look, but guitarist Vermin flails his hair furiously and they pound their way through a set of highly structured songs, predominantly culled from their latest album, delivered with a rare tightness, and there’s no denying their quality.

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Blasfeme

Thy Dying Light go darker still, with iron cross patches and black cymbals and shiny Spandex trews – plus a candelabra and a selection of horns and sheep skulls in front of the drum kit. the smoke seems to make the room even hotter, and by the end of the set, even the skulls looks like they’re sweating. The guitar/ drums duo – self-professed purveyors of “Cumbrian Black Metal” – deliver a set that’s raw and murky and true to the principles of black metal, seemingly have spent as long on their makeup as writing the songs. A big bearded guy in a Sunn O))) t-shirt emits a guttural growl between each song instead of applause.

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Thy Dying Light

Burial bring beards and shaved heads, and t-shirts with cut-off sleeves. Their sound is as burly as they look, meaning that sonically they’re solid, but the fact their inter-song chat can be summarised as “how are you doing York, you soft wankers” and “fuck off you sexy cunts”, I’d have preferred more songs and less bantz. There seems to be a lot of in-jokes, which the faithful are in on, calling for them to get their tits out, but it rather falls flat for the casual observer.

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Burial

Perhaps the heat was a factor – certainly, the moshing was minimal and the crowd were keener to rush the bar and get air between the bands than go nuts during their sets – but something about the lineup simply failed to ignite on the night. None of the bands were duds, by any stretch, but there were no explosive cathartic peaks, making for a night that would sit in the ‘middling’ bracket overall. And that’s fine: four bands for a tenner means £2.50 a band, and it’s hard to begrudge that, and as a showcase of a breadth of metal, it delivered.

Shonen Knife / Speedreaders – The Crescent, York, 6th June 2025

Posted: 7 June 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

Sure, having Kurt Cobain proclaim his fandom and bringing them on tour as a support act may have helped bring Shonen Knife to a wider audience, but in the Internet age, when it’s much easier to discover bands who aren’t shoved under your nose by pluggers and playlists, it seems probable that they’d have reached the current place on their journey on their own merits.

And so it is that the original all-female Japanese pop / punk power trio return to York after quite some time, bringing their ‘Have a Knife Day’ tour to a sold-out Crescent the night after stopping at the legendary Brudenell in Leeds. With the twenty-seven EU / UK tour taking in Hebden Bridge, Manchester, and Sunderland, it’s nice to see the North getting a decent share of shows, and the turnout and response tonight shows it’s appreciated.

The front bar is busy a good half an hour before the doors open, and local support Speedreaders seem genuinely surprised by the size of the crowd they’re playing to. They’re never the most conversational of acts, with the gaps between songs spent turning up and keeping their eyes to the floor, but their brand of slowcore indie – a significant contrast to the headliners’ uptempo style – is well-received, and deservedly so: they’re tight, and the arrangements are such that there is considerable air between the instruments, The sound is crisp and clear, and their concise set no doubt won some new converts.

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Speedreaders

Shonen Knife set up their own kit – drums, the lot, tuning, etc., all wearing their own current tour shirts. One bass pedal, perhaps half a dozen guitar pedals, small amps, there’s nothing fancy about their setup. That’s the essence of punk right there. A tech does come on and make some final checks before they return, T-shirts removed to reveal their co-ordinated colourful stage dresses, and they’re proceed to serve up a set which is pure joy from beginning to end.

For a band that’s been going for nearly forty-five years, their lineup has been consistent for long periods of time, and currently consists of co-founding sisters Naoko and Atsuko Yamano (guitar / vocals and bass / vocals respectively) and singing drummer Risa Kawano, who’s been with the band since 2015. This stability is likely one of the key factors in their tightness as a unit: the songs may not be especially complex, but their played really well – to the extent that it stands out. What also stands out is just how much they look to be enjoying themselves: they smile a lot, and Kawano in particular beams throughout the set, like she’s having the absolute time of her life on every swing of a stick. And that joy is infectious.

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Shonen Knife

For the uninitiated, Shonen Knife sound like a Japanese female Ramones experiencing a massive sugar rush. Their songs are perfect pop, and revel in the pleasures of ice cream, candy, and cookie dough. They’re the musical equivalent of kawaii drawing, and their stage show is in keeping with this. It’s not just the outfits, but the spangle guitars, the way the harmonies come together, the way the jumps aren’t jumps so much as bunny hops. Yet none of it feels trite or contrived, and it’s never cloying. It’s simply good, clean fun. A couple of times, I find myself thinking of Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds – and it’s theme tune, that hyperpop energy the likes of which I had never heard before at the time.

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Shonen Knife

For an hour and a half, I find myself uplifted to a point that I am simply bursting with joy. While they play, everyone is in the moment, transported away from everything: the room is filled with happiness which celebrates simple joys. It’s pure escapism, and absolutely wonderful.

The Sisters of Mercy / Oversize – The Roundhouse, London, 25th May 2025

Posted: 26 May 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

Yes, they’re still going. Despite not having released any new material since 1993, they’ve continued to tour frequently over the last thirty years, and have during that time showcased about two albums’ worth of new songs. And while performances of said new songs are all over YouTube, it’s no substitute for a live performance witnessed in person, which goes some way to explain why this, the first of two nights at the Roundhouse, is sold out. Another key reason of course is that people love this band with a rare devotion. I am here as one of those people, rather than in a press capability.

The support act, Oversize, deliver 90s-style alt-rock with grunge and shoegaze elements. I’d have probably dug them if it was 1992-3. Or perhaps not: there’s too much “How are you doing?” and “Let’s see those heads banging” calls between songs, in addition to the obligatory merch plugs. The longhaired bassist stomps about and flings his hair around, while the lead guitarist, who’s waring a Type O Negative T-shirt, does melodic backing vocals and also some metalcore screamy bits which don’t really gel within the overall sound. Still, they were well-received and did the job of warming the crowd up.

The Sisters’ set list on the current tour may not be radically different from those of the last couple of years, and as we will come to learn to no surprise whatsoever, identical to every night on this tour, but it’s certainly quite a different crowd they’ve drawn compared to the last few times I’ve seen them (either side of the pandemic, the last time being in this same venue in September 2021 on their three-night run belatedly marking their fortieth anniversary, and before that in Leeds in 2020). Dare I say it… younger. There are a lot of makeup goths out tonight, people born after the turn of the millennium dressing in the 2025 reimagining of 1985. Or something. No doubt many of the older fans – the ones who were there in 1985 who like to moan endlessly about how The Sisters have been shit since Wayne Hussey left will say that they missed out and are only seeing a karaoke tribute or similar now, but that they’re all here more than validates the case that The Sisters are still a going concern, and that there are plenty of more recent concerts who are keen to hear the unreleased material live alongside back-catalogue hits and classics. It’s certainly a livelier crowd than I’ve witnessed in these later years (although the less said about the tall woman dressed like a member of Bananarama who was swinging about and busting moves in the second row near me the better – I’ll simply leave it that there’s lively and there’s being an attention-seeking dickhead).

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‘Alice’ is dispatched early on in a set which largely ignores their pre-Floodland releases, with ‘Marian’ being the sole representation of First and Last and Always (in contrast, there’s a lot of Vision Thing). It’s almost as if Andrew is stubbornly ignoring the forty year anniversary of the band’s debut album to wind up the ‘golden age’ complainers, and you wouldn’t put it past him.

The band – and that extends to Chris Catalyst, former guitarist and now nurse to the Doktor – look to be enjoying themselves. Eldritch’s vocals sound rather more warmed up and he relaxes into the show more with the arrival of ‘Summer’, and the newer songs – in particular ‘I Will Call You’, ‘Here’ and ‘On the Beach’ – sound particularly strong. Yes, his voice is still a scratchy, crackling croak for the most part, but he’s much more audible and there some of the deeper notes come through. Eldritch seems to revel particularly keenly in giving it some on ‘More’: ‘I don’t know why you gotta be so undemanding’ he growls, before snarling a full-throated ‘I what MORE!’ and the bombastic backing vocals power in. Credit to Chris and Kai for their contributions on that score and the pair do work well together, bringing movement and energy to the stage, the former with classic rock poses, the latter twirling and pirouetting about with abandon, and Kai’s switching between electric, acoustic, and twelve-string guitars adds texture to the sound.

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On the subject of the sound, for many years, Sisters gigs have been on the quiet side, with the drums reduced to a clattering in the background rather than the relentless boom that was always integral to the band’s signature sound. Tonight, the volume and mix are both substantially stronger, with a denser sound overall, even the sequenced bass sounding more powerful and resonant. And this, this is what we came for: because when The Sisters are good, they’re GOOD.

Eldritch remains on stage after the band depart at the end of ‘Temple of Love’, performed in the 1992 style, with Kai doing the Ofra Haza parts. They do a decent job, too, although I find myself on the fence with it, not least of all because I wasn’t rabid about the later version in the first place. But, as with the more backing-track-based version of ‘This Corrosion’, a lot of people in my vicinity seemed to be absolutely over the moon to be hearing the hits in a recognisable form, and it’s quite possible that this is what the newer fans want to hear over, say, ‘Heartland’ or deep cuts from The Reptile House EP. You can’t please all of the people all of the time, but tonight, the Sisters seem to be pleasing enough of the crowd as well as themselves.

“I take requests,” he jokes, before muttering the punchline and leaving the stage.

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On returning, Ben takes up a bass guitar (something rarely seen onstage at a Sisters gig since the 90s, particularly since ‘Romeo Down’ was dropped from the set) and leads a hefty version of ‘Neverland’. It seems the song suits Eldritch’s current vocal range, and Andrew’s vocals sound the best yet, and remain strong for both ‘Lucretia’ and ‘This Corrosion’ which cap off a solid set. Overhearing exchanges on the way out, there seemed to be an overall positive consensus, and with this, I would have to concur.

Froglord / Kraken Waker / Chefs Kiss – The Fulford Arms, York, 21st May 2025

Posted: 22 May 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

It’s encouraging to arrive twenty minutes before the first band are due on, and, despite it being a pleasant, sunny spring evening in the middle of the week, it’s already busy inside the venue, and not just at the bar. There’s a tangible buzz.

The arrival of the first act, Chefs Kiss, who describe themselves as a ‘comedic food themed slam metal band’, brings a fair few forward, and it’s clear that they’ve brought their mates with them. There was a time when I may have viewed this in a rather sneery way, but what matters, I realise these days, is that if they’ve got people in through the door, then it’s all to the good.

With a wardrobe which included kilts and masks and aprons and chef hats, Chefs Kiss weren’t all that comedic – or at least that funny – a comedy act, nor especially musically accomplished either. Does the world need a joke thrash act? Actually, it probably does, and fair play to them, in that they didn’t take themselves seriously, and largely adhered to their rather daft concept, and were good fun, bringing out a life-size cardboard cut-out of Ainsley Harriot which was passed around the venue above the heads of the audience like some sort of crowd surfing cardboard deity. What’s more, they looked we enjoying themselves, and every young band has to start somewhere. This is once again why we need venues like this.

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Chefs Kiss

Just as Chefs Kiss were a shade shambolic, so Kraken Waker were finely honed performers, clearly with not only hours of rehearsals behind them, but also a lot of gig experience. They seriously were incredibly tight. Their sound is very much classic US rock at the heavier end of the spectrum, with a strong, dirty, stoner leaning. I had afforded myself a chuckle while they checked their mic levels: the three beardy longhairs all came on with affectations as if they were from Texas. But piling into their set, they were instantly impressive, and it soon became apparent that they were unapologetic Geordies, with strong songs about being drunk, smoking weed, and wanting all the billionaires to fuck off to Mars. Quite possibly the band of the night.

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Kraken Waker

If you’re going to pursue a concept – particularly one that’s ridiculous – you really have to go all-in to pull it off. Oh, and Froglord do. The Bristol band’s five – yes, five – albums to date, including the most recent, Metamorphosis, released just a couple of weeks ago, are all preoccupied with expanding the lore of The Frog Lord, centred around the Book of the Amphibian, with swamp rituals and The Wizard Gonk and the like. Behind all this stupidity, there are some fierce riffs, and a fantastically solid doom metal band. I would have been perfectly happy if they turned up in jeans and T-shirts and blasted out the raging riffs. I might even have found it easier to connect with. But this is about performance, theatre. It’s also about doing something different. There is certainly no shortage of serious doom bands. There are considerably fewer doom bands who have devoted their entire careers to a concept as absurd as this.

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Froglord

The more preposterous the concept, the more committed you have to be, and Froglord prove that they’re one hundred per cent committed (or that they perhaps ought to be), with a stage set which has all the props, from a stage backdrop to a lectern on which stands a copy of some esoteric bible, via masks, cloaks, and a giant plastic frog. The set is structured around a swamp ceremony, and there’s no breaking character – apart from when plugging merch, which is done in character while acknowledging it’s a break in character, which offers some postmodern reflexivity, and in the way front man Benjamin ‘Froglord’ Oak will adopt the stance of a high priest before getting down and grooving to the monster riffs, cloak flapping, mask slipping. It’s funny because they clearly know it’s daft but play it with straight faces. That kind of dedication is impressive – as is their shit-your-pants bass sound.

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Froglord

And perhaps this is why it works. There’s a knowingness in the delivery of the performance, but they’re feigning that they don’t know we know it. Or something. And musically, they’re really strong. By the end, there are people traversing the venue, just grazing beneath the room’s low ceiling, in the same fashion as the cardboard Ainsley at the start of the night, and we filter out into the night to a chirping chorus of frogs. No two ways about it, Froglord put on a show.

Utterly Fuzzled All-Dayer – York Fulfordgate WMC – 10th May 2025

Posted: 11 May 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

With grassroots venues closing at an alarming – and depressing – rate, there are fewer and fewer places for bands with a smaller draw, and new acts, to play. Meanwhile, particularly since the pandemic, Working Men’s Clubs have also been in decline or otherwise struggling. But as The Brudenell in Leeds and The Crescent in York have demonstrated, WMC make ideal gig venues, with a well-appointed room with a stage which is simply ideal. And so it is that the organisers of previous all-dayers in York at the now-closed Vaults have scoured the city for a new home, unveiling a brand new ‘Utterly Fuzzled’ stage banner to mark simultaneously a fresh start and a rebirth of sorts.

The advertised lineup included a number of acts who are no strangers to the York scene, or to these virtual pages – certainly solid enough to get me and plenty of others to an out-of-town venue before 4:30pm on a broiling hot Saturday afternoon.

Pete Dale, who also happens to be the guitarist in Knitting Circle, got things going with a solo set of Milky Wimpshake songs, with a couple of covers tossed in for good measure, before Fat Spatula stepped things up with the first full-band set of the occasion.

Every time I see Fat Spatula it’s like experiencing a different band, with different facets of their sound seemingly presenting themselves and pushing through to the fore. Going for a set of high-energy roustabout songs, they’re good fun, and some people dance.

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Fat Spatula

Soma Crew start slow with ‘Hey Sister’, and it’s a set that focuses on the mellower, gentler stuff. You never know what you’re going to get with Soma Crew, from lineup to set, but one thing is always assured, and that’s drummer Nick’s T-shirt. About halfway through they finally kick things up a notch with their first Motorik groove, when they come on like Hawkwind playing Sister Ray. It’s not until the last track that they pick up the tempo and let the drone diffing spin out. People don’t dance. It simply wasn’t that kind of set.

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Soma Crew

In these troubling times, Knitting Circle’s commitment to being an issues-driven band is something I find both stirring and in no small way quite moving. It shouldn’t seem like a bold thing to be staunchly anti-war and sing about it, but this is seemingly where we are now, and the fact they have some cracking tunes with two and three-way vocals and choppy Gang of Four style guitars makes seeing them an uplifting experience – and they’re consistently good, too.

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Knitting Circle

The next couple of acts aren’t local, but they are both absolutely outstanding. Glasgow’s Slime City bring energetic punky tunes, matching zipper tops, and a size nine shoe with knobs on that does something to the guitar. They have a few gimmicks, but they’re worked into the set in a way that’s knowing and humorous without being cringey. And they have TUNES. Said tunes are led by some outstanding drumming – tight, crisp, a bit disco in places. ‘Never Stop Giving Up’ goes a bit poppy, a bit Prince, but more oftentimes, they’re rather reminiscent of Future of the Left.

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Slime City

Irked take things to a whole other level: fierce, ferocious, tight, they’re blistering from beginning to end. I didn’t really take any notes during their set. But what’s to say about a band with such a fearsome frontwoman who charges about the room howling a fill-throated roar against a full-throttle twin-guitar attack interspersed with some good-natured between-song banter with a strong North-Eastern twist from the guitarist. The vitriol is real, but so is the fact they have a clear sense of humour.

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Irked

Now, the last time I saw Crumbs was a rather difficult night, when they supported Dream Nails. They were great, although their performance was rather eclipsed by subsequent events. It’s a pleasure to see them under more friendly circumstances: they’re good fun, and worthy headliners. There’s more inter-band crossover, as Jamie Wilson who does guitar / synths / vocals for Knitting Circle is also Crumbs’ bassist, and paired with Gem’s easy drumming style. with minimal kit – bass, floor tom, snare, hi-hat – they play straight-up indie that’s accessible and quite simply great fun.

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Crumbs

And ultimately, fun is what this is all about. The sense of community is heartwarming. A lot of those present are in bands – and not the bands playing – but there are also plenty of faces often seen at local gig, as well as many who aren’t, but hopefully events like this will entice them out more often. And with a decent enough range of bottled beers at £3.70 ago, and good quality sound throughout, Fulfordgate WMC has strong potential to become a more regular venue. Real credit has to go to Jo Dale, bassist with Knitting Circle, for her curation, organisation, and promotion of such an adventurous DIY event. Here’s to much more Fuzzlement in the future.

IST IST / Oliver Marson – The Crescent, York, 3rd May 2025

Posted: 4 May 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

Is it acceptable to wear the band’s T-shirt to their show? It’s a frequent topic of debate amongst my gig-going friends. As a rule, we tend to agree it’s not cool, although we all have our notable exceptions, and I got mine. But IST IST fans would largely disagree, it would seem – unless this is their exception band.

Usually, with the front bar right next to the auditorium, people sit at the tables supping until the bands start, sometimes until the headliners take to the stage. Not tonight. A large cluster of middle-agers in IST IST T-shirts are queueing and actually blocking access to the bar room half an hour before doors.  There’s a guy with an immense beard wearing a sleeveless black denim jacket with Sisters of Mercy and Fields of the Nephilim patches paired with red tartan trees and he’s standing in the queue too. The queue is practically out of the front door by 7:25, but the bar remains almost empty. These people are keen.

The support is an Ian McCulloch wannabe in a knee-length coat doing sub-mid-80s Psychedelic Furs lifts with a goth tinge. The drum machine is nicely up in the mix and the sound is great, even if the songs are only middling at best, and wince at worst. and it’s mostly backing track. But the Jarvis Cocker moves are overdone, suddenly throwing shapes in the most uncool fashion, sometimes going for a power pose or something a shade more aggressive and all the more incongruous, and the shades are off and back on and off and I again and the cringe only increases as the set progresses. It’s one of the longest half hours of music, and probably the most painful since the band supporting A Flock of Seagulls at The Brudenell a few years ago. It’s a rare talent to be this technically competent and so fucking embarrassingly awful at the same time.

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Oliver Marson

Having clocked a vintage Sisters T in the gents and emerging to find the front of the stage absolutely rammed, I was reminded just how hardcore – not to mention fucking stubborn – older gig-goers can be. It’s no wonder I learned spot-bagging and elbows when I started going to shows as a teen in the early 90s. And, as then, I’m probably a sound 10-15 years younger than the majority of these buggers. Those clustered in the front row in groups are discussing the set lists placed on the stage. Smoke drifts as Interpol’s ‘Roland’ blasts from the PA.

It’s not hard to comprehend why this band enjoys such devotion from this demographic: they present all of the quintessential post-punk elements, delivered with precision and panache. It is, it must be said, post-punk as viewed through the prism of the 21st Century revival. And there are many who are here for that, too, with plenty of under 30s grooving away behind the first five rows of old sods.

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IST IST

There has been no shortage of bands doing precisely this since around 2004, but Superlative drumming elevates their Editors /Interpol / White Lies – etc. – sound. The vocals are a flat, monotone and slightly twangy baritone with all the reverb, which take me a while to place, but they land somewhere between I Like Trains and She Wants Revenge. Credit to the sound guy, too, who’s working hard with the reverb and echo, especially on new song ‘Echo’, which has ‘instant classic’ written all over it and goes down a storm. They’re tight as and the sound is outstanding, with some super-solid bass at the pulsating heart of it all – and unlike Oliver Marson, leather jacketed bassist Andy Keating keeps his shades on – although I can’t help but wonder if they’re prescription and he’s doing a Wayne Hussey.

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IST IST

One of the tracks later in the set – my notes are sketchy as I was a bit engrossed – is pure She Wants Revenge, and it would be easy to shrug that IST IST offer nothing new, and it would be a valid criticism – but the counterpoint to that would be the consistency of the material and sheer quality of the performance, where some nice 12-string action adds some all-essential texture, and there are abundant I Like Trains-style post-rock crescendos along the way – and shshsh, don’t tell the younger fans, but it’s all as goth AF.

The March Violets continue their late-career blooming with hometown show at Leeds Warehouse in July

Posted: 28 April 2025 in Live, Previews and Editorial
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Performing at Warehouse on Tuesday 1st July 2025, the boundary-shredding Yorkshire post/punks continue their epic live comeback with this unmissable gig on home turf.

Following a rapturous reception to what were their first live shows in nearly a decade in 2023, plus high praise for their new studio output including 2024 album Crocodile Promises, which received a double thumbs-up from us at Aural Aggravation, and a reappraisal of their classic works in a series of reissues on the Jungle Records label; the cult band are clearly revelling in their recent revival.

Comprising founding members Rosie Garland (performer, poet and author) and Tom Ashton (Guitarist, producer and studio owner), plus Mat Thorpe on bass, the band are intending the shows to be a celebration of The March Violets’ legacy, while also honouring the irreplaceable contribution of friend and founding member Simon Denbigh.
Speaking about their recent reunion shows, The March Violets explain:

“Since the March Violets tour in 2015 we’ve been shocked at how many musical friends have passed over and out. And after Simon Denbigh’s life-changing stroke, it’s no surprise we all thought that was it for the Violets. When, in 2021, Jungle Records released Big Soul Kiss (The BBC Sessions double album) for Record Store Day 2021 it sold out its entire pressing in 24 hours. We were amazed at the response, absolutely amazed. We faced a choice – to fade away quietly or go out with a celebration.

We feel for Simon, and honour his massive artistic contribution & intense vision as one of The March Violets founding members. He’s irreplaceable, so we’re not going to try. We believe the legacy of The March Violets deserves a far better conclusion than sinking into silence, and now is the right time to do it.”

With their first incarnation described by Sounds magazine as “slinky, savage yet warmly delicate [with a] thirst for mystery, magic and brutal darkness”, The March Violets were a post/punk band cut from a different cloth. Founded in Leeds in 1981, from there the band would initiate an impressive career that would see them navigating all corners of the alternative scene and accrue a longstanding cult following. With their debut EP Religious As Hell released by Andrew Eldritch (frontman of fellow Leeds scene band The Sisters of Mercy), TMV would tally a total of seven successful Indie Chart singles including “Grooving in Green”, “Snake Dance”, “Deep”, and “Walk Into The Sun”, plus their ‘Radiant Boys’ EP, at the height of their powers. With an impeccable John Peel Session also under their belts, the band released two compilation albums Natural History (which peaked at No.3 in the Indie Charts) and Electric Shades in the US, before signing a major deal in 1985 with London Records. Releasing the poppier charms of the hit single “Turn to the Sky”, the track would notably feature in the John Hughes movie Some Kind of Wonderful in 1987, before the band eventually split later that year.

Reforming for a one-off hometown gig two decades later, their 2007 reunion would lead to a flurry of activity in the 21st Century including festival headline slots across Europe & the USA, the brand new studio albums Made Glorious (2013) and Mortality (2015), plus a storming Record Store Day release in 2021’s sell-out double album: Big Soul Kiss.

In 2023, The March Violets confirmed the release of their full back catalogue via Jungle Records for the first time, while releasing two new compilations Play Loud Play Purple and The Palace of Infinite Darkness in the run up. Taking their creative spurt into the studio, the band have also been working on new material and released a new record Crocodile Promises in 2024, via the Metropolis Records imprint.

Most recently, the TMV have been taking their gothic majesties stateside and have completed a triumphant tour of the USA, while also impressing UK audiences last summer with major festival appearances at the likes of Rebellion Festival and Bearded Theory.

Returning to the fore in 2025, The March Violets will be back with a vengeance for what promises to be a very special hometown show strewn with classics and new cuts, surprises and so much more.

On the night, the band will also be supported by one post/punk’s brightest new hopes – Vision Video. Following the release of their new album ‘Haunted Hours’, VV will be making the trip from Athens, GA, for a set of their refreshingly honest and dark gothic pop. Following on from their 2021 debut ‘Inked in Red’ (which told the story of lead singer Dusty Gannon (aka TikTok’s “Goth Dad”) and the darkness he saw as a soldier in Afghanistan), their recent work ‘Haunted Hours’ explores Dusty’s experience as a firefighter and paramedic working on the frontlines of the pandemic that followed his return. Vision Video will soon record their next LP Modern Horror at Maze Studios in Atlanta headed by Grammy award winning producer Ben Allen.

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TICKETS / DETAILS

Tickets On General Sale Wednesday 16 April

Doors 7.30pm / Curfew 11.00pm

Age Restriction – All ages, under 14 to accompanied by an adult over the age of 18

Available here:
https://pinkdot.seetickets.com/event/the-march-violets/the-warehouse/3385250

Suspicious Liquid / Velleity / Echoviolet – The Fulford Arms, York, 24th April 2025

Posted: 25 April 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

And this is why it’s always worth turning out in time to see the support acts… Just last month, I was in this very same venue to see Feather Trade, a band who pretty much guarantee a quality show. There were three other acts on the bill, all of whom were well worth seeing, but the pick of the crop by some margin were Suspicious Liquid, who, it transpires, won the York Battle of the Bands last year. It wasn’t hard to see why. But has I stood outside chatting, or just rocked up for the headline act I knew, I’d never have seen them. And having seen them play as a support was what compelled me to come and see them headline tonight. And once again, the support acts proved to be good value – especially when you do the sums of three bands for seven quid.

As they took to the stage, I had some initial doubts about Echoviolet: image-wise they look a bit 90s indie, especially the singer / guitarist who’s sporting a bad indie haircut, and they sounded like a band who are still working things out. Sometimes the bass and guitar lines don’t really gel, with one running ascending chords and the other descending and not necessarily in perfect time either, but then suddenly from nowhere they’d land a cracking chorus. The vocals, too, aren’t quite there yet: they sound somewhat tentative, undersung, as if rehearsing quietly in a bedroom rather than going all-out. But, as a power trio, they’re unusual in that the guitar parts favour spindly picking rather than fully-struck chords. It’s certainly distinctive, and they’ve definitely got things going for them.

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Echoviolet

Broadly speaking, their sound could be reasonably described as alterative rock with a 90s flavour and some heavy moments that would have really hammered hard at higher volume. There are hints of Bleach era Nirvana, and a few dashes of dark psych, and at times they call to mind The Horrors.

The punky ‘Micromaniac’ is driven by some foot to the floor bass but dominated by an unexpected drum break near the end. Drummer definitely overplays, but he brings a vibrance, an energy to the stage, and while they’re a bit rough in places, there is clear potential here. Would see again.

Velleity are straight in with a groove, they’re as tight as fuck and the layers of synth add polish. Sure, they’re a bit muso, a bit groggy, there’s a bit too much sexface guitar wankery, but they radiate confidence and it’s forgivable because – and it’s a rare thing – they actually are as good as they think they are, and you could easily envision them going down a storm at festivals, bringing in a range of elements from Pink Floyd to Led Zepp and… Muse.

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Velleity

It’s certainly a remarkable debut even from seasoned musicians, and the quality of the performance and musicianship is impossible to deny. Mid-set they drop a tune that could easily be a Smashing Pumpkins outtake, before going Alice in Chains for the last song. They grew on me as the set progressed, and the bass tone was supreme. During last song, singer popped to the bar and returned with shots which he fed the band before a particularly indulgent instrumental break. I guess you could call that showmanship…

Suspicious Liquid are the reason most of us are here, and while it’s only a third full, it’s not bad for a Thursday night when students are still drifting back after Easter. And they give the show 100% from start to end. It takes some guts to open with a slow, sprawling epic… which is just what they do. Showcasing new material – a lot of new material, for that matter – and some seriously meaty hard rock riffs, they are on fire. The small audience pack forward and close to the stage, things look busy. It must be gratifying for a band to see faces up close instead of playing to a void with lights in their faces. All the elements come together perfectly, with no weak parts. Sound and performance, everything is just superb, and they play with intense focus. They boast powerful vocals with incredible range, especially at the upper end, and collectively they seem so comfortable on stage, too. Yes, this is how it’s done.

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They chuck in a King Gizzard cover mid-set, followed by more new material and some colossal riffery, debuting one nine-minute behemoth near the end of the set. Every second of the set is pure quality, and on the strength of the new songs, you get the sense that the best is yet to come.

Dead Space Chamber Music / The Silver Reserve / Hanging Freud / Futures We Lost – The Cemetery Chapel, York, 19 April 2025

Posted: 20 April 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

As a venue for a live music event, The Cemetery Chapel in York is an inspired one. It’s not only a remarkable building and a perfect space for music – its high ceiling and being a perfect rectangle mean the acoustics are superb – but it is a functioning chapel in the middle of a massive graveyard. Again hosted by The Velvet Sheep, it’s a very different affair from the ‘Gothic Moth’ event held in this same space last September, but still feels entirely fitting to be here.

I arrive a few minutes before doors, and spend the time indulging in one of my favourite graveyard games, of ‘find the oldest headstone’ but soon find myself distracted by the ages of many of those who died in the mid-1800s: there were many children, some only months old, and many adults between the age of thirty-five and fifty, which made the ones who made it into their eighties and nineties something of a surprise. And this would not be the only surprise of the night after purchasing a glass of Shiraz and finding a seat close to the front.

Futures We Lost presented a pleasant surprise by way of a start to the evening. The solo project of Doug Gordon, the set offers up expansive, haunting synths, occasionally brooding and dark, propelled by reverby, hypnotic programmed drums. For large passages, it’s beat-free, and dense, sonorous drones, distorted, ominous samples, discordant chimes, and occasional blasts of abrasive noise echo around the high-ceilinged chapel. Cracking hums and fizzing static swell into thick layers which hang like mist in the candlelit space.

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Futures We Lost

Following immediately, Hanging Freud – a band I’ve raved about in the recorded format for quite some time now – bring the temperature down a few degrees: icy synths, thick with gearing textures grind against dolorous drums. Paula sings with her eyes cast upwards to the ceiling, or the heavens, her vocal between Siouxsie and an almost choral croon, rich and often reminiscent of Zola Jesus. Musically, they offer strong hints of Movement era New Order. The songs are concise and compelling and pack in a palpable density of atmosphere into their brief spaces. It’s growing dark outside now, and against the candlelight the duo are barely visible apart from Paula’s platinum hair and pale forearms, but the mood is even darker inside as the songs bring an ever-increasing emotional weight. The songs are all driven by bold beats, with crisp and heavy snares cutting through the thick swathes of synth. They don’t talk, they just play, never breaking the wall or the spell, ending with a simple ‘Thank you’ before slipping away and cueing the arrival of the interlude.

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Hanging Freud

Raising the curtain on Act II, The Silver Reserve – another solo project – bring a significant stylistic shift with a set of introspective post-rock / slowcore, with soft-focus solo acoustic guitar and vocals with additional loops and lots of reverb. A couple of the songs felt a bit disjointed, and sat at odds with the gentle flow of the emotive, reflective ballads, which draw heavily and with sincerity and honesty, on personal experience. The perhaps less-than-obvious comparison which came to mind as I was listening was later Her Name is Calla, although their work was in turn drawing on Radiohead. In between the tuning and returning and chat, the songs are pleasant, but the set as a whole, though well-received, wasn’t entirely gripping, and while contrast is key to keeping an evening moving, this set seemed to stall the flow a little.

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The Silver Reserve

Dead Space Chamber Music are something else altogether, and you would never know by sound alone that there are only three of them. The set begins by stealth, a sparse introduction with percussion like soft waves on sand, folk vocals seem to emanate from the back of the room before ringing glasses create a haunting wail. Then things begin to get really interesting, and their innovative approach to the creation of sound is something to behold. Drummer Ekaterina Samarkina is particularly impressive in her work and provides a real sonic focal point, first applying a bow to the edges of the cymbals, while singer Ellen Southern occupies herself for large parts by creating remarkable sounds in unconventional ways: the rustle of a foil sheet being unfolded slowly is just a start, and abstraction gives way to thunderous drums and slow, deliberate guitar. This is dramatic, and this is exciting, unexpectedly so. They incorporate a wide array of instruments, from bells and whistles to horse’s skull – although in truth there are no whistles, but pretty much anything else you could name is in the mix their sound and performance is bold and theatrical.

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Dead Space Chamber Music

I tend to wear earplugs when in the presence of live music, but didn’t for this: it wasn’t loud, until it was: from seemingly out of nowhere, the volume had crept up to a pulverising roar, evolving towards a Swans-like climax consisting of a brutal percussive barrage and squalling guitar and vocal ululations. The blistering wall of sound attained the force of a tsunami for a sustained crescendo, during which time stood still, and while some members of the audience swayed and nodded in their seats, I found myself practically paralysed by the sheer sonic intensity. The focus of the three musicians was absolute, and while Southern went through a number of changes to her visual presentation, Samarkina and guitarist Tom Bush, who really cut loose with some monumentally treble-heavy distortion during the second half of the set, lurk in the long shadows of the flickering candles as they grow ever shorter and the venue grows ever darker. The effect is nothing short of stunning, making for an almost overwhelming finale to a night of the most remarkable music.

Ultha / Ante-Inferno / Wolvencrown / Terra / Oneiros – The Fulford Arms, York, 13th April 2025

Posted: 14 April 2025 in Live, Reviews
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Christopher Nosnibor

Ultha have been going for over a decade now, and have amassed an impressive catalogue of releases, but this is the German black metal band’s first UK tour. They’re out with Ante-Inferno as touring buddies, and tonight offers an impressive five-act lineup with early doors. And what could be better than back-to-back blistering metal on a Sunday evening? Some may suggest pretty much anything, but for many metal fans, this is the ultimate escape before the return to work. And with an early start and an early finish, this is gig perfection in terms of planning.

It’s not far off in terms of bands, either. Back-to-back black metal may sound like a slog, but tonight’s showcase presents the full spectrum of an increasingly diverse genre, with much to be excited about.

The venue is pretty busy from the start, and Oneiros make for a solid opening act, with atmospheric passages giving way to big, throbbing riffs. In terms of guitar work, apart from a bit of Brian May flourishing at the start of the second song, there’s nothing particularly flashy on display here, instead focusing on bold heavy chugs, and the songs evolve through movements defined by some deft tempo changes. There are some slower, trudging grooves which work nicely, and the front man doesn’t use his growly singing voice in between songs, which is a bonus. Sometimes, theatre is a stretch too far. They’re decent, for sure.

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Oneiros

Power trio Terra arrive in a wall of feedback and then blast in with some bowel-shredding bass. And they bring power to the max, with dual vocals and a maximalist sound. The bassist has obviously nabbed his stance from Lemmy as he leans back and raises his head up to the elevated mic. This is fierce. These guys have all the hair and all the beards and deliver a devastating wall of noise, with lengthy instrumental passages plugging away at expansive, repetitive riffs: they’re something like a black metal Hawkwind. The set’s five listed songs were performed as a single, continuous thirty-minute piece, and it was truly immense. For a band of this calibre to be so low on the bill speaks volumes about the quality of the lineup here.

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Terra

Wolvencrown are rather more clean-cut, but still bring beards, albeit trimmed ones (apart from the drummer). The quartet also bring the evening’s first synths and a whiff of Deep Heat. Their sound is crisper, cleaner, more cinematic, with rolling piano and soaring strings in the mix amidst their wide-screen compositions, which are overtly more technical in their bent, the lineup boasting seven-string guitar and five-string bass. The vocals hit the higher range, which adds a certain tension. Expansive, emotive, and highly polished, they’re hard to fault technically, and offer some immersive noise, too.

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Wolvencrown

Ante-Inferno bring the face paint. Not corpse paint, but dark smears, extending to arms and chests, too. With imposing candelabras positioned either side of the drum kit and smouldering incense smoke drifting from the stage, we’re in dark pagan territory here, and dressed in black and smeared in black, they’re barely visible in the low-level lighting. The sound is as filthy as their skins, scorched by the flames of hell as they create a sonic blanket that evokes pure purgatory. Heavy isn’t even close. It’s brutal and relentless, and there is no let-up at any point during their forty-five minute set.

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Ante-Inferno

Ultha’s lighting of choice is red, and red only. The stage is bathed in a bloodlike hue as they unleash their relentless fury. Their kit has two bass drums, and they’re blasted hard throughout. The vocals are a rabid squawk, pitching down to a guttural growl, and the interplay between the two vocals is perfect. Apart from the drums, which are up in the mix and clear as day, the instruments mesh into a dense squall of noise. This meshing creates a wall of noise that borders on shoegaze, only with thundering percussion and everything coming at a thousand miles per hour. It’s a full-throttle raging racket and they play primarily under red lighting, but seem remarkably affable between songs, even laid back, unflustered by a bust snare as they borrow one from another band. Theirs is a confidence that only comes from experience, and it shines through in the solidity of the performance.

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Ultha

For anyone who is of the opinion that all black metal sounds the same, tonight’s lineup abundantly disproves such a misconception, and while it may sound perverse to many, there’s something, if not necessarily soothing, then escapist about extreme metal shows. Mostly, the fans immerse themselves in the barrage of noise, nodding along in their own worlds.

Even having worn earplugs, I leave with my ears screaming, but feeling ultimately calm and uplifted.

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