The Underground Stage
“Ess-Em celebrate ten years on the tools tonight, with this first set playing the self-titled 2015 album in full, both a reminder of how musical this set has always been and how snarly it has become since. Ess-Em’s decade-grown growl adds a layer of fuck-you to the OG mad shanties, technical chops and music hall […]
“An Ess-Em show is the demented musical you wish your parents had dragged you to as a child, the show where the final scene ended with the theatre on fire and collapsing in on itself, and where you woke up the next day in a dumpster minus a kidney. Giddy mayhem in major thirds, and […]
“Watching an Ess-Em set is like fighting an octopus armed with many knives and axes. Just when you think you’ve got a grip on it, it stabs you right in the back of the head, precisely where you weren’t looking. It’s complicated, hilarious, boisterous, and bonkers, the best head wound you’ll ever have.” Gallery Learn […]
“An Ess-Em set is a furious hot slap to the back of the head, like a Disney musical about the life and times of Snuff performed in a squat by various characters out of Tank Girl. It’s raucous enough to hide the fearsome musical skill underneath it, and even though each song ends with a […]
“Ess-Em trades in despicably clever songs that lie somewhere between musical theatre, a knees-up, and a punch in the minerals. Sharp of eye, and sharper of wit, this is such giddy, densely-packed fun you’re honestly just a bit relieved if you can keep up with most of the jokes. Grin, you bastards.” Facebook | Instagram
“Ess-Em self-describe as folk-punk but that doesn’t really get close. Sure, there’s an upright bass and a trombone and an acoustic guitar but this rage is baroque and wide-ranging and a lot more than that simple label implies. It is also disgustingly talented. Few bands deliver this much skill, nous, and fun in one set. […]