WORMZ + CELEBRATIONS + VASELINE (SNAYX + CONGRATULATIONS + HYPSOLINE) – THE GREEN DOOR STORE, BRIGHTON 19.12.24
Billed as “The Xmas Party No One Asked For”, tonight’s show at the Green Door Store, under the arches below Brighton railway station, sold out very quickly indeed. Who are the mysterious headliners, ‘Wormz’? Could they be related to Brighton’s favourite belly-crawling, Buckfast-swigging, freestyle-spellers SNAYX? In case there was any doubt, tonight’s presentation comes courtesy of “Bucky Bus Promotions”. Support is from ‘Celebrations’ and ‘Vaseline’, who may or may not bear some resemblance to Green Door Store regulars congratulations (styled with a lower-case ‘c’) and Hypsoline.
This publication has enthusiastically championed SNAYX over the past few years, and 2024 has been a particularly good one for the breathtakingly energetic Sussex punk trio. Their ‘Better Days’ EP, released in February to widespread critical acclaim, peaked at Number 4 in the Official UK Vinyl Singles Chart, and was followed in the spring by a tour of Europe supporting Kid Kapichi. Summer festival dates were supplemented by impressive supports with Billy Talent in the UK and Royal Blood on the continent, and in the autumn the band embarked on a full UK tour as headliners in their own right. Along the way, this year they’ve picked up plenty of new fans, and clocked 1.5 million streams on Spotify. We’re all eagerly awaiting whatever exciting developments are coming next, but right now it’s time to party.
The live room of The Green Door Store is a former goods yard with a rough stone floor to add a frisson of danger to any crowd surfing adventures or mosh pit tumbles. We’ve been treated to superb support from ‘Celebrations’ and ‘Vaseline’, who did indeed sound remarkably similar to congratulations and Hypsoline, and these sets are described below. Now it’s time for the headliners, ‘Wormz’, who are of course our long-time heroes SNAYX. Lainey is already seated behind the drum kit, limbering up with some arm stretches. She’s also the custodian of the laptop, and with a nod to the sound desk launches a specially compiled intro recording, with sleigh bells and a montage of worm-themed movie dialogue. Bassist Ollie takes the stage, stripped to the waist revealing an impressive array of tattoos and fast-twitch muscle. He’s holding up a black T-shirt with a “Who the f*ck are Wormz?” motif. With a shout of “Merry f*cking Christmas!” from vocalist Charlie, we’re underway with the scratchy electronic-supplemented riff of a number that’s new to me, ‘Wasted Again’. The stuttering shuffle beat and monstrously heavy chorus get everyone moving straight away, and things are getting very lively indeed in the centre of the room.
The vigour of the mosh intensifies with ‘Better Days’, whose punky energy is tempered with hints of grime and contemporary pop. Things become appropriately crazy for ‘Deranged’ and the briskly urgent ‘Concrete’. Charlie implores the crowd to come forward so the punters crowding in the doorway can get into the live room. “I say let those people in,” he announces grandly, before jokingly adding, “Unless you’ve not paid. F*ck off, if not.”
‘Braincellz’ is announced as new, and it’s a magnificent sonic headbutt of seething vitriol: “I’m the most moral human alive, and I’ll kill anyone who says otherwise.” The irresistibly slinky groove that opens ‘Body Language’ gets everyone dancing, and when it shifts up a gear for the manic section, the result is a kinetic whirlpool of strobe-lit chaos. Charlie has one of the wedge monitors up on its end, which provides a high platform from which he can better survey the mayhem.
Between songs Charlie gives a shout out to the charity ‘Safe Gigs For Women’, who are present here tonight, and urges us to look out for one another. Apparently, they are short of volunteers in Brighton, so if you’re a gig-goer and feel you could help, check it out and see if you can get involved.
Safety isn’t the first thing that comes to mind observing the mosh pit during ‘H.A.N.G.’, the super-heavy vibe rendered slightly surreal as Charlie delivers the snarled fury of the lyric wearing a Christmas hat with elf ears. Ollie bounds around the stage, whipping up the crowd. Sampled sirens wail and the front rows get involved in a singalong during ‘Boys In Blue’, with the vocalist getting in the faces of individual fans to deliver the “and what does that say about you?” hook. ‘Work’ is always a crowd favourite, and tonight the section detailing Charlie’s failed loan application has a seasonal update as Santa appears on stage, in full costume and carrying a sack of presents:
“Ho ho ho Mr Herridge, you’ve been naughty this year and there’s no f*cking presents.” If Charlie’s Christmas hat seemed surreal, the sight of the red-costumed Santa then doing a spectacular crowd surf around the venue is utterly bizarre. Safely back on terra firma, Santa opens his sack and hands out nicely wrapped gifts to delighted audience members.
The Santa surf is reprised during a superb cover of The Prodigy’s ‘Breathe’. Charlie informs us that a recorded version is live now on Amazon Music, and should be on other streaming platforms after Christmas. The Brighton and Hove News Team get a “massive shout out” for having supported the band from the very beginning, which is very gratifying. Also acknowledged is The Belly Crawlerz Social Club, an excellent online community of SNAYX fans, and there’s a special ‘Badge Song’ (“Who’s got a badge from Larry?”) played as the group’s administrator distributes commemorative pin badges.
Santa’s still handing out gifts during ‘Sink Or Swim’, suggesting that a lot of thoughtful preparation has gone into this party. We’re coming towards the end, and things get properly crazy for ‘FAYX’. The laptop provides the intro riff, accompanied by scudding kick drum from Lainey, and Charlie and Ollie take turns to crowd surf around the room. Liv from Hypsoline kindly takes over working the kick pedal so Lainey can have a go too. Charlie gets in amongst the crowd to conduct the customary bounce-along, and it’s quite a sight to see.
The party will continue with a DJ set in the bar. Charlie thanks us all for coming, and launches one final number, ‘Violence’, a metallic grind with a “No sex, no drugs, no violence” hook. Santa, now shirtless, leads a circle pit that quickly becomes a swirling vortex of humanity. What a night! SNAYX certainly know how to throw a party, and I’m sure everyone here will be cheering the band on to new triumphs in 2025.
SNAYX:
Charlie Herridge – lead vocals
Ollie Horner – bass, vocals
Lainey Nix-Watson aka Lainey Loops – drums
SNAYX setlist:
‘Wasted Again’ (unreleased)
‘Better Days’ (from 2024 EP ‘Better Days’)
‘Deranged’ (from 2022 EP ‘sit on my FAYCE’)
‘Concrete’ (from 2024 EP ‘Better Days’)
‘Braincellz’ (unreleased)
‘Body Language’ (from 2022 EP ‘sit on my FAYCE’)
‘H.A.N.G.’ (a 2023 single)
‘Boys In Blue’ (a 2023 single)
‘Work’ (a 2022 single)
‘Breathe’ (The Prodigy cover)
‘Badge Song’ (unreleased)
‘Sink Or Swim’ (from 2024 EP ‘Better Days’)
‘FAYX’ (from 2023 EP ‘Weaponised Youth’)
‘Violence’ (unreleased)
Main support tonight is from ‘Celebrations’, better known as congratulations. The four-piece are looking stylish as ever in their band uniform of brightly coloured fringed rodeo-style jumpsuits, though vocalist Leah’s outfit is a short dress. It’s all splendidly good fun, punky energy with a pop sensibility and a funk groove, expertly delivered with plenty of dancing and cool poses. The opener is a joyous clap-along stomp that breaks down into grinding bass from Greg, before unleashing a massive burst of all-out noise. ‘Junk’ has a complex rhythm augmented from the trigger pad, with staccato guitar from Jamie, who seems to be channeling Prince. There’s a gorgeous swoop of effects controlled via the expression pedal on his extensive board. Leah and Jamie share the lead vocal for recent single ‘Hosepipe Ban’, which is presented with a freaky looking “chicken dance” and lots of running on the spot.
We pause while the band pulls Christmas crackers with audience members in the front rows, reading out the corny jokes and donning the party hats. Drummer James regales us with the amusing story of how the crackers were initially returned until they could come back with a store loyalty card to get a better price. For the powerful vocal on ‘Ice Tea’ Leah is looking particularly strident, standing with arms akimbo. A nifty stop is embellished with a satisfying plectrum slide, and there’s a false ending with a piercing scream. Clipped drum rolls open ‘Easter Island Head’, and I’m hugely impressed by Jamie’s wonderfully fluid wriggling dance whilst instigating another clap-along. Set closer ‘Zeitgeist’ opens with some angular riffing, and expands to a slab of pomp magnificence. Huge fun, as ever.
congratulations:
Leah Stanhope – lead vocals
Jamie Cellar – guitar, vocals
Greg Burns – bass, vocals
James Gillingham – drums, vocals
Congratulations setlist:
‘Fought 4 Love’ (unreleased)
‘Junk’ (from 2023 EP ‘Woo Hoo’)
‘Hosepipe Ban’ (from 2024 EP ‘Slap’)
‘Ice Tea’ (from 2024 EP ‘Slap’)
‘Easter Island Head’ (from 2023 EP ‘Woo Hoo’)
‘Zeitgeist’ (from 2023 EP ‘Woo Hoo’)
Opening the show tonight are ‘Vaseline’, more usually known as Hypsoline (pronounced “hip-so-leen”, in case you were wondering). I’ve seen them before, and the first thing I notice is that it’s a changed lineup. Apparently singer Beth has very recently left, so tonight bassist Trilby is on lead vocals, and making a fine job of it too. Guitarist Natalie and drummer Liv chip in with plenty of vocal backing, and a dep guitarist called Johnny has very gamely stepped in after just one rehearsal.
The music is mainly poppy, with occasional strident moments, contrasting with more reflective and atmospheric pieces. ‘Cherry Blossom’ alternates loud and quiet sections, and I particularly like the vibey ‘Satellite’. Natalie generates beautifully effective chord swells with the volume knob, interspersed with short bursts of tremolo strumming. It works really well.
Trilby confesses to being a bit nervous, which is understandable. The bass-led throb of ‘Instead Of Me’ is embellished with jangling arpeggios and an impressive break of slide guitar, and there are very effective call-and-response backing vocals for the shuffling groove of ‘With You Gone’. The set closes with ‘Disposable Girl’ from a recent EP, the sparse opening building to a satisfyingly noisy conclusion. It’s been an excellent start to the evening, and well done to the band for pressing on and playing the gig in challenging circumstances.
Hypsoline:
Trilby – vocals and bass
Natalie – guitar and vocals
Liv – drums, vocals
Johnny – guitar
Hypsoline setlist:
‘Nights Like These’ (from 2024 EP ‘Nights Like These’)
‘Call Your Name’ (from 2024 EP ‘Nights Like These’)
‘Same Love’ (from 2024 EP ‘Nights Like These’)
‘Cherry Blossom’ (unreleased)
‘Satellite’ (unreleased)
‘Instead Of Me’ (unreleased)
‘With You Gone’ (a 2022 single)
‘Disposable Girl’ (from 2024 EP ‘Nights Like These’)
