Author: birminghamreview

Writer Laura Mills / Photography Erin Connolly

As I step out of my Uber it’s instantly clear this is a sold out date because heaps of fans are already waiting eagerly outside the O2 Academy. I finally get through the queues, up a few steps, and looking up around the venue it is unsurprisingly rammed.

These fans have all come out early to bag themselves a front row spot for a serious name in indie right now: Sea Girls.

Before our main act, here to warm up the crowd is Lauran Hibberd and her band. We move through each track and it’s clear she’s comfortable in front of an audience of this size, jumping around the stage along with the band as they play a mix of punk-pop hits.

Hibberd radiates energy, doing her utmost to warm up this Friday night crowd. As a performer she’s likeable and you want to champion her on, but after a few songs the vocals appear to slightly falter, losing that touch of confidence that was there at the start of the set.

However, she still shows charisma within her stage presence, leaping around, covering every bit of stage. She exits, and myself, along with many other fans head to the bar for a refreshment before the headliners.

Bev in hand, I make my way further through the crowd. It’s packed, it’s sweaty, and there’s this feeling across the room that tonight is going to be messy; I haven’t been to a gig like this for a while and there’s electricity in the air.

Shout out to the DJ, we’ve just had ‘Seventeen Going Under’ by Sam Fender which got everyone singing along, and now he’s put on ‘Don’t Delete The Kisses’ by Wolf Alice. I’ve just graduated, I’m next to my best mate singing arm in arm, swaying in the crowd together singing Wolf Alice and waiting for Sea Girls to play.

If it’s up to their typical standard, I think I’m about to be in heaven.

The lights dim, all eyes are on the stage and each member of Sea Girls walks on met by a massive roar from the crowd. Guitar in hand, subtly strumming the strings, frontman Henry moves closer to the mic and starts to sing: “I was full, shining / And when you took it, I felt thin”.

Everyone in the crowd joins him and the set kicks off with ‘Damage Done’.

The electricity in the air zaps between us and Sea Girls with the band thrashing at their instruments.

Next up, it’s ‘Lucky’. It appears everyone in the room is a die hard Sea Girls fan because they know every line. As the song’s tension builds through a series of fast-paced guitar riffs, this is mirrored with the crowd’s reaction who are eagerly waiting for Henry to sing a certain line.

Finally, he sings: “Oh, If that was me in another life / Well, I wouldn’t be on this stage tonight.” with the thrashing of a guitar and the crowd bouncing up and down belting out: “But I’m on fire tonight”.

A few songs in we get to hear the band’s latest release, ‘Falling Apart’. It’s the first time for many hearing it live I can assume, and Sea Girls don’t disappoint.

Throughout this track the marching beat of the drums guides us through, the guitar riffs vary, some sound funky, others sound sharp. The cherry on top is Henry’s soulful, heartfelt vocals, and as he sings every word I can feel the authentic emotion behind the lyrics.

Henry’s voice is arguably even better live than recorded, he hits every note, high or low with his own signature sound.

Moving further down the setlist, we reach one of the band’s first releases in the form of ‘Too Much Fun’. This song is special, visually you can see how united this band is through their cheeky glances at each other. As I’m watching I wonder whether they are also reflecting on how far they’ve come since this release.

Sea Girls are giving us a whole load of fan favourites including ‘Adored’, ‘Violet’, and ‘Do You Really Wanna Know?’ Mid-set we receive a treat in the form of an acoustic cover of ‘Lonely’ on the keyboard.

For a moment I look around at this crowd, people have their arms in the air waving with lights on their phone, everyone is singing and time feels like it’s stopped for a minute. We’re all caught up in this moment. “This next one is called ‘Friends’,” says Henry.

I look instantly at my mate and put my arm around her, as we’re swaying and singing the band use their instruments to build us up to the chorus. It hits, and pairs of friends including myself grab each other and scream the following lyrics in each other’s faces.

“So grab your friends whenever you can / Go fuck up your plans / ‘Cos every second you’re not wasting is one you’ll never get back.”

At this moment the room is pure escapism – nothing else matters. Sea Girls exit the stage and the crowd start to beg for more. Finally, they appear giving us what we want.

The encore starts with ‘Daisy Daisy’, an early Sea Girls tune, and we finish on ‘Call Me Out’.

We all knew it would come eventually, but the arrival of ‘Call Me Out’ sends the crowd wild for a last time. Crashing and smashing into each other, throwing pints and singing til our throats can’t take it any more.

For more on Sea Girls visit www.seagirls.net
For more on Lauran Hibberd visit www.lauranhibberd.com

For more gigs and events at O2 Academy visit www.academymusicgroup.com/o2academybirmingham

Writer Mark Roberts / Photographer Ewan Williams

It’s a rainy Tuesday November night and I’m walking into the Hare and Hounds for a gig put on by Supersonic Festival. As I enter the room, the stage is rammed with synths and organs for Swedish-born Karin Park’s set. They appear to be fiddling with some massive orbs, which I assume are lights.

Karin Park opens the night with sounds from the bottom of the ocean and haunted vocal harmonies courtesy of a mellotron plugin. As this sparse audio space is created, Park begins to sing with a Gaelic-style folk voice that meanders over the timid atmosphere.

The bass is droning, piercing through the floor, rumbling up my feet, continuous as though it vibrates out of the subterranean roots of long-forgotten trees. The Björkian display by Park is executed with technical feel, emotive and angelic, relying on luscious harmony between the synth and the voice.

As the set develops, beats are brought in, and as they build and layer over each other the syncopation progresses. Suddenly this ethereal landscape has a groove; as arpeggiated synths scatter over the head-nod-inducing pulsations, the hi-hats enter, turning this song into a polyrhythmic banger.

How did I end up at an ambient rave? It seems oxymoronic yet, here it is. I’m listening to it right now, as Park bends mellotron vocals with the help of a pedal in and out of tune.

As the set ends, Park jumps onto an antique organ for her final, drawn out, ambient tune, returning back to the start of the set’s vibe.

It’s a stunning moment that draws in the crowd.

Between the two acts, the crowd fills out somewhat, and I overhear how the person next to me is really excited to eat some brownies tomorrow as they haven’t had them in ages. You know, normal gig conversations.

At this point, London based A.A. Williams arrives on stage, backlit and brooding, four silhouettes slowly swaying to the anticipatory opener. The sound is (and has been) impeccable, and the Hare and Hounds yet again get big kudos for being the best sounding small venue in Birmingham (in my opinion).

A.A. Williams is post rock but with some dark influences. The opener is almost Opeth inspired, the tremolo guitars cut across the atmosphere as the bass slowly underlines the entire piece with sustained filth. A.A. Williams herself rides on a bed of reverb, filling every corner right down to the pockets in your coat.

The climb to crescendo and the space is cinematic, like the band version of the cumulative scene in a (probably dystopian) film. It is incredibly well synced, these are clearly accomplished musicians.

Guitars drop down, muted and driven over a flowing piano that pings in the distance. There is a classical inspiration here, and this element clashes with the metal influenced post rock in a melting pot of soft and hard sounds, both combining to create something both powerful, yet delicate.

This band is absurdly well-timed, and the sound may as well be played off the album, but for me this might be an issue.

The only problem with A.A. Williams on stage performance is that as silhouettes it’s difficult to connect with the audience, and without a lot of movement either there’s little stage presence. Combine this with almost album perfect sound and I’m wishing for a bit of chaos, a moment where I feel like the band have gone beyond where you think the limits of the tune are.

Something which legendary post rock bands like Sigur Rós and Godspeed You! Black Emperor achieved in all their sets.

This isn’t to say A.A. Williams are lacking, they just need to move beyond the comfortable, beyond the crescendo. They need to balance their tightness with chaos, and then they’ll be unstoppable.

A.A. Williams + Karin Park @ Hare & Hounds 15.11.22 / Ewan Williams

For more music from Karin Park please go to: www.karin-park.sellfy.store/karinpark
For more music from A.A. Williams please go to: www.aawilliamsmusic.com

For more from Supersonic Festival please go to: www.supersonicfestival.com
For more gigs at the Hare and Hounds please go to: www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk

Writer & Photographer Connor Pope

As I open the door to Venue 1, or rather as I’m let in by the Hare and Hounds security, the room lets out a booming bass sound. It’s still early in Kings Heath and I’m presented with an almost empty space. But given that Mungo’s Hi-Fi has sold out the main 250 capacity room, with no tickets available on the door, I expect it to fill up soon.

The support from Moseley locals Young Culture Sound starts the night’s energy off on a high, heading straight into the genre of the evening – dub. And people inevitably start filtering into the Hare, grabbing their first rounds from the bar.

Whilst this isn’t the usual kind of gig I attend (I’m trying my hand at writing because there’s a horrific bug going around), I love the beats as much as the rest of the crowd. Which as Young Culture Sound gets more into their groove is up to be a total mix of all kinds of people.

Those at the front are having the time of their life, dancing to the electronic remixed reggae, using the space in front of the stage with those behind them head bopping, beer in hand. The DJ crew looks right at home, donning ‘Young Culture Sound’ branded hoodies, beanies, and bucket hats, playing the decks and switching up who’s spinning next.

I manoeuvre through the growing crowd, dancing along, trying to keep a good view and get a good shot.

The support act lasts for two hours, and this brings a lot of anticipation for the main performance. The queue (I’m told) is snaking round to the record shops on York Road, almost a half an hour wait. Most people turn up just before midnight, catching the last few songs played by Young Culture Sound.

The set transitions seamlessly into Glasgow based Mungo’s Hi Fi with an introduction from the last DJ from Young Culture Sound going straight into the first song of their set. Although this isn’t my usual bop, I did check out Mungo’s before coming to the gig and I had to do more research when I saw them described at a ‘Sound System’.

The atmosphere is bubbling, and as Mungo’s Hi-Fi start their set they quickly bring the (gorgeous) 18th century venue’s walls shaking to the ground. I see what they mean by sound system now, with DJ’s and MC’s collabing to showcase great dub, reggae, and ska tracks effortlessly mixed to satisfy the packed out room’s hunger for dance tracks.

I’m starting to understand why the group has such a reputation.

Whilst I didn’t stay until the 3am ending, the party was far from over when I left just after 1am – and people were still turning up at the door, desperate to get in.

I’m sure that, depending on how much they drink, this is going to be a night to remember for most of the audience. Although I came in to see Mungo’s Hi-F with high expectations given their reputation, it definitely was for me.

And, while a lot of that is thanks to Mungo’s, Young Culture Sound made up a good part of my night. If you haven’t yet had a chance to check them out, I recommend you do. You can usually catch them at Jam Jah, in fact they’re performing at one at Nortons in Digbeth on 21 November.

For more from Mungo’s Hi-Fi go to: www.mungoshifi.net

For more from Young Culture Sound go to: www.soundcloud.com/youngculturesound

For more from Hare and Hounds go to: www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk

Writer & Photographer Emily Doyle

Nightingales have bubbled to the surface of the Birmingham consciousness in recent years. Since the pandemic-clouded release of King Rocker, a so-called “anti-rockumentary” about the band written by Stewart Lee and directed by Michael Cumming (who also directed comedy shows Brass Eye and Toast of London), we’ve had a string of live dates and a tasty new record with all the snarl of their earlier work.

A campaign to bring back Nicholas Monro’s iconic King Kong statue – heavily featured in the documentary – has led to some property developers resurrecting the ape, larger than ever and looming arse-first over Great Hampton Street.

Whether they first heard Nightingales last year on Sky Arts or back in the eighties doing a Peel Session, there’s an expectant buzz among the gig-goers at the Castle and Falcon. Support act Tymon Dogg’s shrill fiddle playing makes short work of the hubbub, cutting through even the chatter at the four-deep bar queue.

“Good evening Birmingham – it’s a joy to be here. I didn’t expect it to be, but it really is.”

Dogg, formerly of Joe Strummer’s The Mescaleros, retains a punk sensibility in his solo incarnation. He shakes away the fragile gloss of his recorded work and offers up strangled vocals and intricate Spanish guitar. The rawness of the whole performance, coupled with Dogg’s nervous laughter, toe a line between pleasant texture and outright dissonance.

But ultimately his conviction wins out, and the room nods along to a bashful rendition of ‘Mondo Bongo’.

Nightingales’ frontman Robert Lloyd holds a plush bird (presumably a nightingale) to the microphone and gives it a firm squeeze, causing it to play out a recording of the bird’s song. It’s time.

The pounding drums of ‘Sunlit Uplands’ kick in. Tonight marks the final date in The Last Laugh tour. For this short run of dates, the band’s ranks have swollen to include Terry Edwards on saxophone and local multi-instrumentalists Natalie Mason and Beth Hopkins as “The Nightin-gals”.

Lloyd cuts a simian silhouette above the heads of the eager front row, some of whom have been there since doors with records and marker pens in hand.

The performance which follows is expertly crafted chaos. Growling bass and tumultuous drums from Andreas Schmid and Fliss Kitson hold the reins, while the rest of the band move seamlessly between songs. The makeshift orchestra of Edwards, Mason, and Hopkins swap between instruments from song to song, filling out the sound with an accordion, saxophone, keys, and a healthy dose of maraca.

James Smith keeps things true to their post-punk sound with biting guitar. The embellishments add a fresh edge to everything; Mason’s violin in call-and-response with Lloyd’s slide whistle solo on ‘The Divorce That Never Was’ is particularly inspired.

Throughout the seventy-five minute set, Nightingales are unrelenting. Lloyd is magnetic, yelling: “it’s just the same old cabbage,” over the squalling riff of ‘I Needed Money At The Time’. He holds the vegetable in question aloft, looking for all the world like he’s about to stage an impromptu version of the “alas, poor Yorick” speech.

Eventually proceedings dissolve into a sludgy, venue-shaking performance of ‘Dick The Do-gooder’ that sparks some dancing; even from this, the most chin-strokey, 6 Music-listening of crowds

“As you know, we don’t do encores or anything…” notes Lloyd, before wandering off stage. As quickly as it began, it’s over – all in time for the 50 bus back to New Street.

For more from The Nightingales, please go to www.thenightingales.org.uk
For more from Tymonn Dogg, please go to www.tymondogg.uk

For more from the Castle and Falcon, please go to www.castleandfalcon.com