Bristol’s finest multi-venue festival returned to the city for the fourth year. Its inaugural event – originally planned for 2020 – was plagued by pandemic delays but Ritual Union has gone from strength to strength since.
I reviewed the event for Bristol Gig Guide last year and am trying not to simply repeat the praise I heaped on it then. The strengths of the 2024 event are all still present in 2025; it’s a smoothly operated festival carefully organised by music lovers for music lovers.
Ticket holders were already queueing to collect their wristbands well in advance of the 12.30 kick off time. This dedication from the audience is a very important part of Ritual Union’s success – it means that every band on the bill plays to a decent-sized attentive crowd.
Bossa nova indie band The Parallels had the job of being the first band of the day at Strange Brew. Their uplifting guitar pop sound is reminiscent of 00’s bands like The Kooks and a good chunk of attendees chose to start their festival here.
Strange Brew remained busy throughout the day but never uncomfortably so. A wonderful live space with a great drink selection, a lot of people seemed to choose to hang out there for much of the festival and just take in whatever artists happened to perform.
Among those artists included soul singer MT Jones whose exceptional, authentic vocals immediately silenced the previously chatty room. Playing solo with just an electric guitar, his music would perhaps be more at home on Radio 2 than some of the other acts on the bill but the crowd were clearly impressed. He played an enjoyable cover of The Beatles’ ‘And I Love Her’ when the audience selected a cover version over a new song.
Reverb-heavy, post-punk band Hank followed. Sonically there is no overlap between these two acts but the crowd at Ritual Union were more than happy to enjoy a diverse mix of genres. They were followed by The Orchestra (For Now) who delivered one of the best sets of the day; the comparisons to early Black Country, New Road cannot be overlooked and they will certainly fill the gap for people missing the Isaac-fronted incarnation of that band.
The venues are all very close so you can hop from one to the other within seconds. However, those waiting until the last minute to see The Shania Twainsaw Massacre in Rough Trade would unfortunately miss out because the venue was full 5 minutes ahead of their start time. Such was the desire to see the Bristol-based noise rock band, a ‘one in, one out’ queue continued throughout their set as people hoped to make it in for at least some of the show. The packed room were treated to an impressive performance which unfortunately finished sooner than scheduled but displayed a lot of promise for another homegrown band poised to break out to bigger things.
Bristol’s music scene is stronger than ever and Ritual Union does a great job of showcasing that. Eve Appleton Band opened SWX 2 with their wonderful harmonies and gorgeous Americana. The perfectly jarring tempo shifts in ‘Sometimes’ and impressive efforts of a keyboardist with a broken hand helped make this an early highlight. Later in the day on that stage, pop punk band My First Time draw a big crowd who all enthusiastically sing along to the infectious ‘Wind Up Merchant’.
Another well-received local act was Getdown Services. The alternative electronic duo were treated like heroes in the 5pm slot as they packed out the main SWX room. Drawing the largest crowd of any band of the day, they are surely future headliners of the event. Phone lights lit up the room for ‘Get Down Jamie’ and it really felt like the audience had got their money’s worth for this set alone and there were still several hours to go.
The following two acts – Gurriers and CVC – both commented on the difficulties of following Getdown Services’ performance. Neither needed to worry as they delivered similarly energetic performances to large, appreciative crowds. Dublin post-punk band, Gurriers, have drawn comparisons to Fontaines DC and Idles on record but live they are more groove-based. Throwing themselves into the audience and generating the largest mosh pits of the day, it’s another excellent booking. Welsh psych-pop band, CVC, are a bit more saccharine than the rest of the line-up but there are big sing-a-longs to festival-ready anthems like ‘Sophie’.
Other impressive sets included Lennon Gallagher’s experimental band, Automotion, Manchester’s punk rapper DBL A and electronic alt-funk singer, Paige Kennedy, whose on stage banter was as enjoyable as their catchy pop songs like ‘What Does Your Girlfriend Think?’
Singer-songwriter “Tor” Maries who performs under the stage name Billy Nomates was tonight’s headliner. She headlined Marble Factory on the tour for her excellent second album, ‘Cacti’, and so it’s a great booking for a festival of this size.
Previously Billy Nomates toured completely solo, using a laptop to play backing tracks she had created whilst thrashing around the stage with more energy than an aerobics instructor. Tonight, she’s here with a guitarist and drummer. It’s unclear whether this change is due to unfair criticism of television coverage of her actually very good Glastonbury set or because she no longer wants to be ‘nomates’.
Either way, Billy Nomates is an exceptional talent. Lyrically impressive with a DIY approach to her music, she’s the perfect candidate to headline a festival like this one. The ‘no frills’ approach to her performance is demonstrated by her remaining on stage for the entire soundcheck with her bandmates and then simply stepping forward to begin the set rather than entertaining the spectacle of leaving the stage before returning.
I am a huge fan of how Tor used to perform solo; the use of the backing tracks seemed to encourage increased performance effort and I really hope that online trolls have not knocked her confidence. She road-tested the new set up at Strange Brew in December and I was sceptical at that show about whether the live band added anything to the performance or if, in fact, it made Billy Nomates ‘just another band’.
At Ritual Union, the sound mix was more clear and you could hear how the bandmates helped bring her songs to life. Freed from the need to run back and forth across the stage, she was able to demonstrate her immaculate vocal ability particularly in ‘Blackout Signal’ which elicited loud cheering from an impressed SWX audience. Solo or with the band, Billy Nomates remains an impressive live force.
New songs like ‘The Test’ were as well received as favourites like ‘Blue Bones’ and ‘No’ – Tor remarked that she forgets that we all know the words (“of course you do, Bristol”).
It’s a headline set that perfectly encapsulates Ritual Union; brilliant, experimental, genre-hopping music for people who just appreciate live gigs – no online trolls here. The crowd is a mixture of people who adore Billy Nomates and people who have never heard her before but are keen to discover something new. Both parts of the crowd leave more than satisfied.
The ticket price is impressive value for money, especially in these times of ever-rising prices to often extortionate levels.
Ritual Union has become an essential part of the city’s live music calendar and we cannot wait to see what it has in store for us in 2026.
Words: Ryan Simmonds
Images: Becca Hargreaves
