The Underground Stage
“With thick air and full of rumble, Futureheaven’s shoegaze lurks before it strikes, great threatening clouds that sit on the horizon for ages before you find yourself slap bang in the middle of one.” Gallery Listen
“Tonix songs come in rich and rolling waves, a keytar and a saxophone the undertow to pounding rhythms and a truly soaring vocal. It’s like being drowned in cake, sweet but layered, a sugary beating with savoury notes.” Gallery Listen
“merci, mercy’s set is as sharp as a blade but you don’t even feel it swishing it past your throat. It’s strong and it’s tight but it’s full of delight, pop beauty that never backs down.” Gallery Listen
“PEPTALK make you feel *awesome*. That’s basically the whole review. I could chuff on about snark and giddiness and fun and humour and scream-worthy choruses, but honestly – what would be the point? I feel fucking GREAT.” Gallery Listen
“Gia Darcy’s big pop isn’t at all disposable or flighty, it’s delivered with heft and effort, meaning and might. If you’re just in the mood for Saturday night dancing then you’re all good, but there’s tons going on under the surface too, a blood-rich and beating heart.” Gallery Listen
“Pisco Sour pack energy into every corner and cranny, a buzzing and happy payload delivered direct. Sunny but sharp, there’s edges around the smoothness that’ll draw blood.” Gallery Listen
“Pallas Haze’s hazy atmospherics add texture and feel to clean tones and occasionally jazz-infused indie, smooth as glass but full of mood. There’s muscle and musicality, but the high points are the ones where the touch is at its lightest.” Gallery Listen
“Dead Kennedys flourishes and furious, relentless pounding mean it must be a Dick Move set, fast and savagely good fun. Not an inch of ground is given, a wall of immoveable and shouty racket designed to raise heart rates and armies, all in the cause of righteous protest against a world worth picking a fight […]
“JADED lands hard, the blows powered by a frankly astonishing mixture of Any Winehouse, Ari Up, and Tank Girl. You’re rarely going to hear such lovely-sounding songs, sung with a jazz voice capable of levelling city blocks, about such unflinchingly confronting topics. It’s – literally – stunning, leaving you woozy and buzzed, seduced with sound […]