It may well be grim up North, but despite the gloom crowds pile into venues around the city to catch the some of the brightest new bands and local talent.
Things kick off in typically raucous fashion as Clash gets embroiled in the mosh pit madness of Rolo Tomassi at The Cockpit. The crowd seem mostly here for the old songs, lying in wait for the scattergun keyboards and hellcat vocals of ‘Abraxas’ before leaping out from all directions. We emerge quite literally battered and bruised.
Time then to see solace in the Holy Trinity Church with Paul Thomas Saunders. A local boy tipped for big things, his soaring Fleet Foxes meets Bon Iver stylings are perfectly suited to the hallowed surroundings.
Lightspeed Champion at Stylus is packed out, people clamouring for space as Dev Hynes plays the Motown showman to the handclap drumbeats of ‘Tainted Galaxy’. It’s a little bland though, so we head out for a sharp shot of rampant energy in the form of These Monsters. On local hit label de jour ‘Brew’ they are sweaty, phenomenally loud and utterly uncontrollable.
Slinking out of the shadows at the Met Esben and the Witch seem almost embarrassed to be here. Crippled by shyness, their swirling Florence and the Machine style loses some of its impact. With illness forcing a last minute cancellation, plans to catch Egyptian Hip Hop adrenaline filled synth pop are scuppered. Luckily there’s not too long to wait before Wild Beasts take to the stage. Filling the room with Battles-esque oompa of ‘All The Kings Men’, this gig marks something of a homecoming for these adopted sons of Leeds and their grins are hard to hide. Stomping drums impose their mark as singer Hayden Thorpe screeches in his deftly measured falsetto.
Rounding of the evening in comedic fashion is the bizarre spectacle of Mariachi el Bronx. The sight of foul-mouthed rockers The Bronx trussed up like Mexican banditos could well be the stuff of hallucinations, but as we dance along pints aloft it seems a pretty enjoyable dream.
It’s Sunday with the aptly named ‘Hangover’ gig at the Brudenell. Chicago born Juffage refuses to give our ears a rest though, spraying his dreamy anti-folk with layers of distortion and feedback. Rolling around on the floor before leaping into spasmodic drumming, his music has a melancholy beauty that is well and truly mind-blowing. Spectrals delay led surf rock gets the crowd up dancing the slow-shoe shuffle. Formerly a one-man bedroom outfit Louis Jones lazy vocals on ‘Leave Me Be’ lull us quietly into submission.
Headliners Crystal Antlers look like a genuine, bona fide rock band, complete with shades and leather and a guy whose sole job seems to be baton twirling and cymbal whacking. This aside, the sprawling prog keyboards of ‘Swollen Sky’ offer a ragged, punky take on Neil Young that makes for compelling listening. They end on a flourish, with wailing guitars and thunderous drums, propelled by singer Jonny Bells frantic screams.
Queuing issues and cancellations aside this precocious little festival could soon rival the likes of Camden Crawl. So ‘here’s to the North. Where we do what we want’.
Words by Kate Parkin
Photo by Bart Pettman
View a full photo gallery of bands at Live At Leeds 2010 HERE.
