‘VARIOUS ARTISTS’ – PRESTON PARK, BRIGHTON 7.8.22 (DAY TWO)
Day two of Brighton & Hove Pride’s Fabuloso in Preston Park brought the same energy as the Saturday – Read our review of that HERE.
LYRA
The opening act on the main stage was Lyra, an Irish singer and songwriter. Both Izzy and I had the same first impression which was that we absolutely loved her outfit!
She had such a warm and welcoming energy and you can tell a performer is good when people are dancing along to the very first act at 2pm. I enjoyed her music, in particular ‘Falling’ and ‘Lose My Mind.’ I was a big fan of her whole attitude towards love and heartbreak, bringing these feelings into catchy songs with deep-cutting lyrics.
CAT BURNS
Then came Cat Burns, a singer who went from busking on the Southbank to blowing up on TikTok during lockdown. Her success has led to her performing on the main stage at Pride. Izzy very much enjoyed Cat Burn’s beautiful voice and the entire atmosphere she created.
Cat Burns sang a moving song about coming out called ‘Free.’ This was absolutely perfect for Pride as she encouraged self-acceptance. She also explored mental health in her song ‘Anxiety.’ Covering these topics is important in an environment like Pride as it makes others who may be feeling a similar way feel less alone. Her new EP ‘Emotionally Unavailable’ is out now, we’d both recommend supporting her work.
Cat Burns setlist: ‘People Pleaser’, ‘Free’, ‘Anxiety’, ‘Sleep At Night’, ‘Ghosting’, ‘Go’
Cat Burns on Instagram
BJÖRN AGAIN
Next was Björn Again, who Izzy decided was their favourite act of the whole day. I’d heard good things about Björn Again and they exceeded my expectations. We both had so much fun; neither of us could stay still, and the rest of the crowd was exactly the same! As avid fans of the film ‘Mamma Mia’, we couldn’t help but do the harmonies that appear in the movie, particularly Pierce Brosnan’s harmonies in ‘SOS.’
When I was ten years old, I performed ‘Super Trouper’ in a school show, so I pulled out the dance moves I’d learnt all those years ago. Björn Again helped us with dancing when they taught us a line dance which the crowd all joined in with.
Izzy’s favourite ABBA song is ‘Does Your Mother Know’ so when Björn Again played it, we screamed so loud. Izzy wants to see them in concert again as they entertained the whole crowd—there was not an unhappy face in sight. I think the pair of us will see Björn Again as soon as possible. They were absolutely perfect and we had the best time listening to them perform.
Björn Again setlist: ‘Waterloo’, ‘Super Trouper’, ‘Honey Honey’, ‘SOS’, ‘Voulez-Vous’, ‘Mamma Mia’, ‘Does Your Mother Know’, ‘Dancing Queen’
SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR
Then came the moment I had been waiting for…Sophie Ellis-Bextor. We managed to get to the barricade for Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s set and as an avid fan of her (aka obsessed) since I was a child, I was absolutely buzzing.
When the band came out they were wearing animal masks, the pigeon and shark stood out to the pair of us! The backdrop was a photo of one of her sons dressed as a ‘horse spiderman.’ Sophie is a genuinely lovely and funny person; during lockdown she did online live kitchen discos at 6pm on a Friday with her family, which gave so many people comfort and a laugh in such a strange time. During these parties she would dedicate songs to those she loved that she could not see during lockdown.
At Pride, she picked a song to dedicate to all of us at Pride: a cover of Madonna’s ‘Like A Prayer.’ It was such a thoughtful song dedication. I’d love it if this cover was on music streaming platforms because it was brilliant and I felt so alive during it. Of course, the highlight had to be ‘Murder On The Dance Floor’ which has always been one of my favourite songs.
I sang incredibly loudly and danced just like I used to around my bedroom. I really felt like I was living the dream my five-year-old self would’ve wanted. It was truly incredible and one of the highlights of my Pride weekend. Even writing about it now, I feel giddy and teary like a child just thinking about it!
Sophie Ellis-Bextor setlist: ‘Take Me Home’, ‘Disco Inferno’, ‘Hypnotized’, ‘Get Over You’, ‘Lady (Hear Me Tonight)’ / ‘Groovejet (If This Ain’t Love)’ / ‘Sing It Back’, ‘Crying At The Discoteque’, ‘Heartbreak (Make Me a Dancer)’, ‘Like A Prayer’, ‘Murder On The Dance Floor’
JAKE SHEARS
The penultimate act of the day was Jake Shears. Formerly from The Scissor Sisters, Shears went on to produce his own music which he treated us to today. Izzy was impressed with his stage presence and everyone was clearly having a good time, he really got the crowd going.
On Saturday we saw drag queen Snow White Trash perform and today she performed with Jake Shears. She is a very talented performer and we both agreed she was as fantastic as she was the day before. Her saxophone solo during ‘I Don’t Feel Like Dancing’ was absolutely iconic.
The crowd went wild for ‘I Don’t Feel Like Dancing’—we were all dancing away! ‘Take Your Mama’ was another fun crowd pleaser. We both thoroughly enjoyed his set and I’m so glad he got Snow White Trash involved as she deserved a spot on the main stage.
Jake Shears setlist: ‘Too Much Music’, ‘Any Which Way’, ‘Comfortably Numb’, ‘Do The Television’, ‘Creep City’,’ Laura’, ‘I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’’, ‘Take Your Mama’, ‘Filthy/Gorgeous’
PALOMA FAITH
Paloma Faith was the final act of the Pride weekend, and we enjoyed her even more than we expected—she was so down to earth and very relatable.
She came out in a red catsuit which gave off the same energy as Velma in her orange PVC catsuit in the ‘Scooby Doo’ movie, perhaps a slightly niche reference—one for all the 1990’s and 2000’s babies! She looked truly iconic, it was the perfect outfit for pride. Although it was iconic, Paloma said she felt sweaty and uncomfortable in it, particularly with the high heeled shoes. They were so uncomfortable that she ended up getting her backing singers to help get her thigh high boots off! The catsuit she had on covered her feet and was made of the same material so she was slipping and sliding around! It was so funny to watch but she styled it out every time she slipped. Luckily there were no disasters where she actually fell over despite the close calls.
Paloma was absolutely hilarious the entire time and both Izzy and I genuinely would pay to watch her do a stand-up comedy set! I loved hearing her tell stories about the meaning behind songs. My favourite story came before she played a cover of Chaka Khan’s ‘I’m Every Woman.’ When Paloma was first starting out, Prince mentored her, which is very impressive. At a concert, Chaka Khan decided that she wanted Paloma to join her and sing ‘I’m Every Woman,’ the issue being that Paloma didn’t know the song. When it came to her turn to sing the second verse she had to adlib over the music the whole time! She said that this song still gives her the “heebie-jeebies”, but she was brave enough to treat us to it tonight.
Whilst there was a lot of humour, Paloma gave some moving stories and powerful emotive songs. One particularly moving story came before she played ‘Better Than This,’ a song dedicated to her children which she ended by saying “people said I made you but it’s clear you made me.” This made the song feel even more special and I felt very emotional during it.
She ended her great set with ‘Only Love Can Hurt Like This’ and Izzy and I danced and spun around till we were dizzy with our pride flag. It was the perfect way to end Brighton Pride 2022.
Paloma Faith setlist: ‘Gold’, ‘Last Night On Earth’, ‘Monster’, ‘Living With A Strange, ‘Crybaby’, ‘Better Than This’, ‘Supernatural’, ‘Infinite Things’, ‘I’m Every Woman’, ‘Picking Up The Pieces’, ‘Mistakes’, ‘Lullaby’, ‘Can’t Rely On You’, ‘Changing’, ‘Only Love Can Hurt Like This’
Both Izzy and I agree that Sunday was one of the best events we’ve been to in 2022 on the whole!
