As reported HERE, last night saw four finalists come together at London’s Upstairs at the Garage venue to play for the chance to open the Vans Off The Wall stage at this summer’s Relentless Boardmasters Festival, Cornwall.
The August event is a superb fixture on the festival circuit, combining live music with the best in surf and skate action. Competition for the final four places was fierce, but the judging panel – including Clash – ultimately decided on four bands to play the London-held final: Youves, Cartel, The Tupolev Ghost and The Spires. Check them out below…
Youves (MySpace)
The Tupolev Ghost (MySpace)
CartelL (MySpace)
The Spires (MySpace)
The winners on the night were Youves – who can also be seen at the August 22 Clash Saturday Social, at London’s Notting Hill Arts Club (information HERE) – and The Tupolev Ghost. Congratulations! Check out a gallery of the action above, and find the official Relentless Boardmasters website HERE.
All photographs by Elinor Jones; a full report follows below…
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The Garage sees four bands, all finalists, pitted against each other to win a chance to open the Vans Off The Wall Stage at the Relentless Boardmasters Surf, Skate and Music Festival. The line-up proves to reflect the varied sounds encouraged by the festival in recognising and promoting new talent.
First up is Cartel who get things off to a fine start. This five-piece, hailing from South East London, rock the room with a particular penchant for infectious sounds. They show off their ability to juxtapose speed drumming with yelping vocals, complete with subtle, jaunty melodic nuances.
The Tupolev Ghost pick up the pace with their relentless raw energy, which certainly packs a punch. Purveyors of a harder, edgier sound, they truly set the venue ablaze.
The Spires encourage us to dance with their jerky indie pop. Vocalist Matt Smith is clearly the focal point as he flits across the stage, never still.
Youves are a fitting end, bringing the music, quite literally, to the floor. Cow bells and percussion abound with Stephen Broadley, the group’s wiry vocalist, traversing through the audience, knowingly working the crowd. As the set progresses, they continue to bring feel-good vibes to the audience, their energised state resulting in band members going topless one by one.
The winner is decided, fittingly, by those present. Voting slips marked and counted, it turns out that The Tupolev Ghost have the edge, with Youves also getting the opportunity to play the Boardmasters event. Lads – keep working on the upper torso, as Newquay beckons…
Words: Aysha Hussain
