OPAL MAG + GOODBYE + GRACE EQUI – HOPE AND RUIN, BRIGHTON 28.02.25
Headlining The Hope & Ruin on Friday was Opal Mag courtesy of JOY. promoters. Born and raised in London but now based in Brighton, Opal Mag’s exciting venture blends dream pop and slacker rock. Opal Mag’s fuzzy sound is sweet but self-assured, brimming with melody and soaring vocals that wrap around confessional lyrics. For her live show, Opal was joined by Jessica Stretton (keyboards), Tim Spencer (drums), James Bowden (guitar) and Martin Eddington (bass).
With a simple “Hello”, Opal Mag went straight into their first song, ‘Feel It All’, with its guitar sound mixing post-punk with fuzzy dreamy undertones. The keyboards on ‘Wasting’ added softness to the fresh indie guitar sounds.
Opal announced she was bringing back an old song to the setlist, ‘Don’t Change’. Its upbeat poppier sound went down well with the audience. After the song, Opal asked, “Should it be a permanent fixture?” Adding, after cheers of approval from the crowd, “Thank you for your feedback. Please fill in a form at the end.” After the softer ‘Try Not To Hate’, it was the faster up-tempo debut single ‘Looking For’, which got some people dancing.
Ironically Opal announced the next song as ‘Confusion State’, before bassist Martin corrected her as it was ‘Kitchen Song’. Opal’s use of the alternative microphone made from an old-fashioned telephone handset gave her vocals a retro 1950’s sound. The song also featured a great bass line from Martin and effects from Opal.
The track ‘Confusion State’ was jinxed on Friday, as there was a short break for a technical issue. Unflustered, Opal calmly declared “So much confusion, now this is ‘Confusion State’”. It was worth the wait, as ‘Confusion State’ was a highlight of the set. Afterwards Opal commented that the lyric “‘I am the president’ should change to ‘I hate the president’”.
There was a change in pace with the slower ‘Young Forever’. Afterwards Opal said “Let’s keep it emotional. Perhaps I am your therapist.”, as she introduced ‘I Don’t Like You, I Love You’. Its mix of fuzzy dream pop and powerful vocals typified Opal Mag’s quality performance. Their sound had a real warmth about it. Unfortunately, the cold blue lighting for much of the set contradicted with the music from the band.
The lighter indie pop song ‘Glow’ went straight into the closing number, the more upbeat ‘Love To See You Shine’, which Opal said was her new song. It was a good choice to close a thoroughly entertaining performance.
Opal Mag:
Opal Mag – vocals and guitar
Jessica Stretton – keyboards and backing vocals
Tim Spencer – drums
James Bowden – guitar and backing vocals
Martin Eddington – bass
Opal Mag setlist:
‘Feel It All’ (unreleased)
‘Wasting’ (unreleased)
‘Don’t Change’ (unreleased)
‘Try Not To Hate’ (unreleased)
‘Looking For’ (a 2024 single)
‘Kitchen Song’ (unreleased)
‘Confusion State’ (unreleased)
‘Young Forever’ (unreleased)
‘I Don’t Like You, I Love You’ (unreleased)
‘Glow’ (unreleased)
‘Love To See You Shine’ (a 2025 single)
Fast-rising Brighton 5-piece Goodbye (stylised as ‘goodbye’) were the main support band on Friday night. The band comprise of Megan Wheeler (vocals), Sarah Ryan (guitar, synth, vocals), Alfie Beer (guitar, vocals), Jake Smith (bass) and Elik Eddy (drums).
Goodbye started with a new song to their setlist, ‘5/4’ which had an interesting slightly funky start. While the song may have been new, the quality of Megan’s stunning vocals wasn’t new to Goodbye’s live performances, whether on her own or on the brilliant harmonies with Sarah.
Their second number ‘Endearing Fool’ started softly with a great melody, which built through the song becoming more pronounced. ‘MEAT’ built in a similar way with Megan’s soaring vocals rising to match the music perfectly. Goodbye slowed the tempo with ‘Take Time’, which started softly with Elik swapping the drums for shakers at the start of it. The song lifted effortlessly, closing with a splendid vocal harmony from Megan and Sarah.
An improvised jamming session led into ‘The Boy’ with guitarist Alfie taking lead vocals. ‘The Boy’ included some fitting effects from Sarah’s keyboard, while Elik’s drumming and Jake’s bass was key to the clever changes in tempo across the song.
As well as some great guitar work, Alfie added a fun side with his impromptu humour. Promoting their new merch, he was asked if he’d rehearsed his pitch. Admitting it had just come to him; Megan joked he “should stick to playing guitar”. This was one of several examples of the good-natured banter within the band. Alfie’s unrehearsed bizarre comments between songs added to the fun element of their live performances, without distracting from their excellent musicianship and vocals.
The stage lighting darkened for ‘13a’, which started with Megan singing to Elik’s drums. The vocals had a choral quality later in the song when Sarah joined.
Their final number ‘Benjis Collar’ was one of the many highlights of a special performance. It began with Megan singing to Sarah’s guitar, before the song exploded, and later beautifully faded with a jazz nightclub feel. The way Megan’s vocals responded and matched the changing mood and tempo, further showcased the quality of her voice. Goodbye closed the song and their set with a striking crescendo.
Goodbye are on the road shortly, but are returning to support Bdrmm at The Old Market, Hove on Saturday 15th March. Purchase your tickets HERE.
Goodbye:
Megan Wheeler – vocals
Sarah Ryan – guitar, synth, vocals
Alfie Beer – guitar, vocals
Jake Smith – bass
Elik Eddy – drums
Goodbye setlist:
‘5/4’ (unreleased)
‘Endearing Fool’ (unreleased)
‘MEAT’ (unreleased)
‘Take Time’ (unreleased)
‘The Boy’ (unreleased)
‘13a’ (unreleased)
‘Benjis Collar’ (unreleased)
Opening at The Hope & Ruin was Grace Equi, a solo singer-songwriter. Unlike many solo artists these days, there was no laptop or backing track for Grace’s set; it was just her and her acoustic guitar. She began playing without any introduction. Very soon people were tuned into her music, and respectfully listened in silence.
From the opening lines of her first track ‘Stain’, the warmth in her voice was clear. There were a lot of heartfelt emotions in Grace’s vocals throughout her set. Her newest song ‘Adeling’, which she said had only been written a few days before, showed off more of her vocal range, as she comfortably held the long notes and added a louder style at times. ‘Taste Of You’ had a slight Americana feel, which gave some variety to her set. Grace closed with ‘Birds’, another beautifully and emotionally delivered song, typical of the quality and style of her overall performance.
Grace Equi:
Grace Equi – vocals and acoustic guitar
Grace Equi setlist:
‘Stain’ (unreleased)
‘Too Good’ (unreleased)
‘Wheezy’ (unreleased)
‘Taste Of You’ (unreleased)
‘Good Yet?’ (unreleased)
‘Dream You’ (unreleased)
‘Adeling’ (unreleased)
‘Birds’ (unreleased)
