PORRIDGE RADIO + PIGLET – MARINA FOUNTAIN, ST. LEONARDS-ON-SEA 22.1.22
My first gig of 2022 took me on my first ever visit to Marina Fountain in St Leonards to see Brighton indie favourites, Porridge Radio. This gig had originally been due to happen in May 2020 to promote their then recently released second album ‘Every Bad’ but whilst they were partying at number 10, number 26 Caves Road was empty as we all adhered to lockdown rules. A second date in January 2021 also had to be cancelled for the same reason and here we are a further year down the line and it was hard to believe the gig was actually going to happen. In fact it had been so long since the tickets went on sale that I had forgotten about the gig and failed to purchase a ticket but thankfully a friend offered me a spare last weekend.
In my 19 years as a local resident I felt bad that I had never ventured here as I have heard some good reviews of it as a pub and not just a music venue, since it came under new management and was refurbished in 2019. Probably not a great time to take over a pub with what happened the following year, and prior to Christmas tonight’s gig was in serious doubt as the pub faced closure, but thanks to local community spirit the necessary £15,000, and more, was raised in order to keep it open. A victory for the hospitality industry in the face of a meagre government grant that was offered. I felt somewhat better when the person I attended with also disclosed that he had never been there and he has lived all his 60 plus years in the area.
First onstage was support act Piglet, aka Charlie Loane. Being a newcomer to the venue I made the mistake of standing in the bar area for most of their set and the sound did not travel well. By the time I meandered over to the stage area where the sound was considerably better, the set was almost over and I only got to hear the last two songs properly which is a shame as the last song was particularly good about the personal battle had with the NHS and how they deal with transgender people. The lasting impression is ‘it’s not fair’ as is bellowed out repeatedly by Piglet. Please don’t make the same mistake as I did and get closer to the stage to listen to Piglet’s shoegazing melodies with touching lyrics, should you get the chance.
Tonight was the first time I was to see Porridge Radio live and the excitement was magnified by it being my first gig after a Covid hit Christmas. Formed in 2015 they released the album ‘Rice, Past And Other Fillers’ in 2016. Their most recent offering ‘Every Bad’ was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize in 2020 which showed the high regard that Porridge Radio are held in. The band will be supporting IDLES next month on the European leg of their tour which is bound to bring them to even more prominence. As their stock increases, having played Victorious Festival last year and Rockaway Beach last weekend, it is unlikely that they will be playing such small venues in future, but thankfully they had honoured all the dates arranged pre-pandemic and it was a privilege to be one of the few attending tonight’s sold out intimate show.
The only means of entry to the stage for the band is by walking through the crowd which they achieved with minimum fuss. Predictably I’m stood down the front right in front of the microphone where lead singer and guitarist Dana Margolin was positioned. To left-stage was Georgie Stott with dual keyboards, Roland pitched above Yamaha. Sam Yardley was more central on drums, with Maddie Ryall and her bass guitar taking up the right side of the stage.
First song up is ‘Born Confused’, the opening track from their most recent album ‘Every Bad’. When Dana utters the first line “I’m bored to death, let’s argue” I already feel like I wouldn’t stand a chance in such a situation. Dana’s vocals are effective throughout, especially the chilling whisper, and the occasional raised voice which kept me on my toes. So captivated was I that I almost forgot she was combining this with playing guitar even though she was a matter of feet away from me. A male member of the audience requested her phone number but his request was brisked aside by a bashful Dana. Maybe he wanted to get inside the head of this songwriter and her powerful lyrics; sometimes contradictory but cleverly making sense.
Georgie Stotts’s keyboards are integral to the band’s sound. Sometimes simple but at the same time so essential. Regularly providing backing vocals, she tried to get the crowd to clap hands in unison during ‘Give/Take’, but sadly only three people joined in. “Too early” shouted one audience member, but alas that was our only opportunity of the evening.
Sam Yardley on drums was in a world of his own with his eyes regularly appearing to be in the back of his head as he effortlessly provided the percussion.
Maddie Ryall on bass and backing vocals was faultless apart from an issue with her microphone stand for which she requested help. Up stepped a kindly audience member to the rescue whilst the issue was soon rectified.
The twelve song set included seven songs from ‘Every Bad’, two singles from 2020, and three new songs. I wouldn’t have minded hearing ‘Don’t Ask Me Twice’ played live, but I won’t hold that against the band. Of the new songs I was particularly impressed with ‘Trying’ and ‘Back To The Radio’. As for ‘Waterside’ it sounded pretty good from the toilet as I had to take an impromptu break. The highlight of the night for me though was provided by the angst of ‘Sweet’. A masterpiece in my opinion which hits hard about mental health through the lyrics and their delivery, with a perfect musical arrangement. One to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. This song also brought us as close to a mosh pit as we got all night.
The set ends with ‘7 seconds’ with the closing lines being “Do you ever think about who you were then and who you are now? and I miss you but I’ll never ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever”. Food for thought at the end of an enjoyable night which left the St Leonards audience seemingly content. I was so impressed that I purchased the deluxe vinyl edition of ‘Every Bad’ from the merch stall operated by the band, which they kindly signed apart from drummer Sam who I couldn’t trace at the time.
One audience member who has seen them three times in the past fortnight told me that tonight was their best performance. They definitely seemed at ease with the intimacy of the venue. Some members of local Hastings punk band, ‘Butane Regulators’ were in the audience and their bassist even told me that ‘Porridge Radio’ were responsible for getting him back into music when he first saw them five years ago, proving that their influence covers various genres of music.
Based on their new material played tonight, I for one am looking forward to Porridge Radio’s next album already. I would like to hope that one day they will return to play Marina Fountain, but that may be wishful thinking on my part if they get to play the larger venues that their music so deserves.
Porridge Radio are:
Dana Margolin – lead vocals and guitar
Georgie Stott – keyboards and backing vocals
Maddie Ryall – bass guitar
Sam Yardley – drums
Porridge Radio setlist:
‘Born Confused’
‘Circling’
‘Give/Take’
‘Good For You’ (single released July 2020),
‘Pop Song’
‘Long’
‘Trying’ (new song),
‘Back To The Radio’ (new song),
‘Lilac’
‘Waterside’ (new song),
‘Sweet’
‘7 seconds’ (single released September 2020)
Visit their Bandcamp page HERE and visit their website porridgeradio.com
