LAMBRINI GIRLS – RESIDENT, BRIGHTON 19.5.23
Resident isn’t new to hosting concerts. Nestled away near the quirky boutiques of North Laine, the record store regularly lets bands celebrate albums and anniversaries with intimate shows just for their nearest and dearest fans. They’re usually acoustic affairs, unveiling album tracks and deep cuts in a stripped-back way.
However, Lambrini Girls don’t really do “unplugged”, unless they’ve ripped out a mic cable traversing a venue to throw Stella over their ever-eager audience. You could argue they’re an act entirely unsuited to a Resident instore, but Brighton seemed to disagree. Well before their schedule started, gig-goers were spilling out of the shop floor in the hopes of seeing the band celebrate the launch of their debut EP ‘You’re Welcome’ the only way they know how: confidently, chaotically, and very, very loudly.
Lambrini Girls insist their new drummer is famed street artist Banksy, but since he couldn’t be here last night, the phenomenal Demelza Mather of The Wytches filled in on drums alongside bassist Lilly Boşgelmez and frontwoman Phoebe Lunny.
Lunny came on with the tongue-in-cheek bravado that audiences have come to expect from the vocalist, guitarist and all-round bringer of good vibes, wasting little time before kicking off with live favourite ‘Big Dick Energy’. As one of Lambrini Girls’ first singles, it made for an opener that everyone could get involved with; it’s a breakneck track with a chorus that’s always fun to headbang along to.
After tearing through the fuzzed-up tirade against the objectification of lesbians ‘Help Me I’m Gay’, Boşgelmez kept the track’s ferocious wall of sound going with a beefy pedalboard while Lunny popped to the corner shop to get treats for the crowd. When I say the Brighton punk scene is eating well this week, I didn’t mean it quite so literally. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen her do this, either. If there’s one thing Lambrini Girls will always do, it’s commit to the bit; if they wonder aloud whether it’s possible to crowdsurf without hitting any of the vinyl on the shelves, don’t be surprised if you find yourself holding up one of the band members as they quite literally clamber the walls.
Of course, as a fundamentally feminist band, even Lambrini Girls’ more comedic tracks still have that conscious bite to them. One of the highlights from their set was recent track ‘TERF Wars’, a title Lunny explained to the crowd to make them aware of the issue of rising transphobia without patronising them. With the song’s targets in mind thanks to some of the band’s wittiest verses, audiences were more than happy to chant along to the no-holds-barred chorus. Their call to action against abuse within the music scene, ‘Boys In The Band’, was a similarly solemn moment, and perhaps the only time silence rather than guitar feedback rang through the venue.
However, Lambrini Girls aren’t a band to stay in one place for too long. In fact, I’d say it’s precisely their rapid-fire switching from serious commentary to chaos that keeps audiences listening as intently as they do. Although this gig was marketed as an instore one, there’s no rules actually stopping bands from heading out onto the streets. “Who’s here to see an actual punk show?” Lunny yelled to the crowd, already halfway out the door, and the cheers she got in response seemed to give her plan the go-ahead. In yet another instance of crowd participation, friends of the band carried Mathers’ drum kit out bit by bit to allow the whole band to roam the streets and initiate a ramshackle mosh pit to the delightfully absurd set closer ‘Craig David’. As with most of the ‘brini’s gigs, we might not have known what was going on the entire time, but damn if we weren’t on board.
Lambrini Girls setlist:
‘Big Dick Energy’
‘Help Me I’m Gay’
‘Mr Lovebomb’
‘TERF Wars’
‘Lads Lads Lads’
‘White Van’
‘Boys In The Band’
‘Craig David’
For further information visit linktr.ee/LambriniGirls ……’You’re’ Welcome’
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