The Crofters Rights, 23rd February
Mallavora
Mallavora are growing… we have seen the change first hand since first catching them at The Louisiana a few years back.
Off stage one of the nicest bands you could hope to meet, but on stage they are becoming battle hardened and ready to bring an iron fist down on the music industry and its taboos.
There is an honesty and integrity about their music that is both powerful and likeable. Jessica Douek (vocals) is both captivating and strong in displaying a controlled rage. Backed by mesmerising skills of Ellis James (bass & vocals) that sound is put to unique effect. Larry Sobieraj (guitar) and Jack Pederson (drums) give the band that harder, cutting edge.
Their sound is ear shattering in all the right ways. Big riffs, anthemic choruses aplenty from the Bristol four piece, but even the titles of their releases tell you so much about them and where they are coming from. “Ego”, “Deceiver”, “Imposter” and the latest single “Disorder” are windows into a band determined to upset the apple cart and challenge the status quo.
Technically the band have come on leaps and bounds over the past 24 months. There is a palpable drive and sense of purpose about them now, that whilst always on the fridges is very much at the forefront.
A steely determination not just to have their music listened to, but to have their music LISTENED TO.
The new EP is set to drop in May and the live taster provided at this show has only wet our appetite for the main course.
Knives
There had been a lot of chatter amongst the Gig Guide crew of a band called Knives.
Recommendations that they simply must be seen live to get over how good they are.
So the support slot last Thursday to Kite Thief’s hometown headliner seemed like the perfect opportunity to see what all the fuss was about.
The pitch black stage was a clatter of what seemed like an absurd amount of gear and bodies… surely they can’t all be in the band? Well, turns it yes they can.
Within five minutes I turn to another of the TBGG team and mouth “OMG”
We see a lot of bands, hear a lot of music. Being Bristol we especially see a lot of punk and indie based artists… what we see with knives is something utterly fresh & unique.
It’s pointless and somewhat disrespectful to provide any comparisons as Knives have already cut something very different from the normal cloth.
Elements of post punk effortlessly fused with dynamic alt-rock and pop blended with pure chaos on stage. Saxophonist Maddy Hill and their harpist G Garland (harp gone punk is quite the sight) play alongside Dan Farren and Josh Cook on guitar, Erin Cook on drums and Jay Schottlander on vocals.
Jay cuts a impressive figure as he leans out into the crowd, his charisma demands the attention of those watching.
With only one single out so far, “Newhounds”, but a EP in the offing for spring Bristol is about to get a new entry to its reputation as a rebel city. That is producing some of the best punk artists in the country right now.
Gurl
Pink & blue is my new hue…
This is a band we have been looking forward to catching live for sometime.
Originally discovering them via Spotify’s recommendation of “Caviar Gold” and presuming them to be a well established international band (such was the quality / production value of the music available) We were stunned to discover they call Bristol home.
For how much longer though we are not sure. Make no mistake this is a international touring band of the future. So much so that Thursdays gig at Crofters felt like thoughs rare occasions huge bands decide to play little intimate shows.
The sound of this trio is HUGE… stadium-sized riffs, heavy-hitting drums, and irresistible basslines.
Front and centre vocalist/lyricist Joshua Dalton is a STAR! If the multiverse is true, then in 99.999% of them Josh is already filling stadiums. A natural born performer and talented writer, Josh’s take on the kaleidoscopic worlds of fashion, money & music are like grabbing razorwire in your hand and screaming thank you.
Lining up alongside we have the finger bleeding workhorse guitarist Jonny Turner. And the most bitching bass of Jay Parker adding bags of sass and attitude.
If quality is key, then Gürl have the keys to unlock any future they desire. 2022 EP “Ouija” doesn’t have any filler. Hearing live versions of “Shoot Me, I’ll Live” and “Last Night I Read Your Diary” it was obvious the confines of Bristol’s small venues are not big enough to contain the sound. And with arena anthems such as the aforementioned “Cavier Gold”, “Antipop” and “Crying In NightClub Bathrooms” already in the arsenal Bristol’s inevitable loss will be the UK’s gain.
Gürl are one of those bands, you force your friends to listen too. Because to hear them is to love them.
Kite Thief
“I just got Kite Thieved” – to leave a gig covered in sweat, ears ringing and wearing a huge grin.
The reputation and draw that this band have is obvious from the excitement in the sold out crowd for their first home town headliner in quite a while.
You buy a ticket to a Kite Thief show because you know the band will give you every ounce of blood, sweat n tears to ensure you have a good time.
With enough energy to power a small nuclear reactor KT explode out of the darkness with “The Tide” and for the next 45 minutes we are all swept away.
Fusing elements of guitar pop with metal like a mad version of charlie & the chocolate factory. The five piece (Elin, Max, Josh, Henry & Zach) hit the perfect balance between raucous, high voltage riffs and lyrics tapping deep into social issues.
The crowd favourites such as “Sweepstake” & “Allegedly” are there, but the depth of material is enough that they no longer need to be book endings of a set. We are treated to a tantalising glimpse of whats to come off the new EP “Goldsick”, “Shush” delighting the crowd.
Photographers at the front of the stage not sure whether to focus on the high kicking of Josh, the Tasmanian devil spinning of Max, the possessed contortions of Elin… or the absolute carnage going off behind them on the venues floor as “Judge Judy & Executioner” hits its peak.
“Pictures” closes us out. And if a picture paints a thousands words this one tells us that the Kite Thief juggernaut has just fired up its engines And is ready to steamroller the UK this summer.
@bristolnomad_gigphotography
@thebristolnomad / @bristolnomad_gigphotography
Role: Photographer / Reviewer / Interviewer
Chief, the one that bugs the team for team for their reviews and images. Creator and founder of The Bristol Gig Guide. Can usually be found swamped in admin or getting cramp kneeling at the front of a gig.
Available for: Gig Shoots, Gig Reviews, Photo Shoots, Album and Single cover shoots, Videography work, Interviews and Touring
First attended gig: Republica, circa 1996.
First gig shot: Hands Off Gretel, at The Louisiana!
Dream gig: Huge metalhead and my ultimate dream gig would be shooting my heroes Slipknot at a huge stadium gig, or as festival headliners. And to experience shooting a headline tour outside the UK
