Indie gig promoters ‘Kick Out The Jams’ have announced a welcome return to the Grade II listed former chapel The Font (formerly the Font and Firkin) on Union Street in The Lanes in Brighton after their incredible 3-day ‘Brighton Rock’N’Roll Circus 2’ festival last month, where we reviewed all of the 43 artists taking place – Reviews HERE, HERE and HERE.
This time around they are organising a series of concerts under the banner of ‘Brighton Mix-Up’ which aim to promote the amazing wealth of local talent out there at the moment. The first of these nights has just been announced and will feature Riff Raff, CURRLS and TUCO and will take place on Thursday 18th July at The Font. Tickets are on sale and can be purchased HERE.
We last encountered Riff Raff at The Hope & Ruin, Brighton on 25th October last year, here is our account of their set:
Next up were genre-bending newcomers Riff Raff, a six-piece band featuring versatile vocals, guitars, violin, keys, bass and drums. For their performance at The Hope & Ruin, there were five of them.
There was a wide-ranging mix of musical styles, and also on the vocals. The singer had hints of Siouxsie of Siouxsie and The Banshees and Sister Sniffany of Sniffany and the Nits, and included spoken word, screaming and even a rap like delivery on ‘Ratty Look’ Cheeky Chappy’.
Musically Riff Raff’s sound drew upon elements of jazz, soul and psychedelia, with a few hints of prog rock and metal guitars. While varied, some of the styles seemed to clash and at times it seemed like the musicians were competing with each other.
Riff Raff’s closing song by contrast had a dreamy intro and almost a solo vocal with the violin as the main instrument on an uncomplicated accompaniment. Although some may have been confused by Riff Raff’s mix of musical genres, many more enjoyed their performance.
We last encountered CURRLS at The Prince Albert, Brighton on 15th May, here’s our account of their set:
Next up were Brighton indie garage rock trio Currls who formed back in 2017 and were crowned winners of Record Store Day Unsigned Competition back in November and consist of Holly Deanna (vocals and guitar), Hannah Websdale (drums) and Jack Smith (bass), who have steadily been making a name for themselves over the past few years. Their compelling mix of raw garage rock, hard-hitting and fast-paced punk energy has landed them plays on BBC Radio 1 and BBC6Music.
This evening we were given a 39 minute set consisting of 10 tunes, which began at 9:30pm and concluded at 10:09pm. Holly is on lead vocals and Epiphone guitar, Hannah on the drums and occasional backing vocals, and Jack is on Fender Precision bass and backing vocals. At the beginning of their set there are considerably less punters than at the end of the PROJECTOR set which is a shame, but many do make a re-appearance from downstairs whilst Currls are doing their thing.
You immediately get a sense that Holly has powerful vocals, even from the opening line…“I know a girl…”. Their sound is also powerful and as ‘Honey’ and latest single ‘Let’s Talk About The Weather’ pass us by we arrive at the ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ sounding ‘Nerve’, which Holly informs us was written about someone who gets on her nerves. The trio continued to rock on out for the duration of their set, and performed tunes from their new EP (their second), including ‘Throwback’ and ‘Blame’. It’s titled ‘Let’s Talk About The Weather’ and dropped on 12th April. After these we had ‘Family Man’ which Holly informs us was penned about the Police and their treatment of Sarah Everard (RIP), and that this tune was for Radio6 dads. It’s their most punk fuelled number and in my opinion their best composition to date. Having got the punters into pogo-bopping mode, they then slowed it right down with ‘Transmission’, which isn’t a Joy Division cover, but actually a song written about them. They signed off their set with 2019 single ‘Let Down’, followed by 2018 single ‘April Fool’.
We last encountered TUCO at The Font, Brighton on 18th May, here’s our account of their set:
South of England-based reggae-rock meets indie-rock four-piece TUCO have a feel of the Black Crowes about them, musically and vocally. The band are Max Everitt (vocals/ rhythm guitar), Luke Fitzwalter (lead guitar), Jake Khadaroo (drums) and Connor Barton (bass/backing vocals). Greeting the audience jubilantly Everitt asked “Alright Brighton, how are you doing? Has anyone else been stuck in traffic today? Anyone else’s drummer forget the one f*cking thing he had to remember to bring? HIS STICKS!”. Oh dear! Moving on…The songs in the set showed more of the reggae influence mixing in with the rock. The strong vocals mixed with the music to create the perfect summer soundscape. The band’s sound had an organic uplighting feel, with crisp, clear vocals from the energetic up-beat frontman Max Everitt. Standout songs in the set included: ‘Easy As You Like’, ‘Step-By-Step’, and the closing song ‘Rum And Coke’.
Once again, the tickets for the first ‘Brighton Mix-Up’ show are available HERE.
