HANYA + THE LEANING + HARPER – THE PRINCE ALBERT, BRIGHTON 27.10.22
Rising shoegaze dreampoppers HANYA have been making their ascent from Brighton’s thriving talent pool over the past four years and this evening have concluded their select seven date UK tour at The Prince Albert at the top of Trafalgar Street courtesy of local promoters Love Thy Neighbour. HANYA have been thrilling punters in Bournemouth, Newcastle, Glasgow, Birkenhead, Bristol and London as part of their October tour.
Indie upcomers HANYA are named after the ‘hannya mask’ traditionally worn in Noh theatre. The group was originally constructed by talented vocalist and guitarist Heather Sheret who was exploring the many faces of the female psyche. As time went on HANYA emerged as a fully-formed collective after she recruited a trio of friends, each with impressive musical backgrounds, and thus the dream-pop quartet were born and continue to show us they have a lot to offer.
Thanks to the group’s captivating songwriting, hazy soundscapes and thick-grooved basslines, HANYA have received a whirlwind of support across the alternative scene from key UK tastemakers in radio, including Jack Saunders, Huw Stephens (BBC Radio 1) and Tom Robinson (BBC 6 Music), as well as a plethora of support from leading UK DIY press including The Quietus, Gigwise and Line of Best Fit.
Following on from their trip stateside to ‘New Colossus Festival’ in New York City, HANYA released ‘Texas’ (in August 2020) the follow-on single from their EP ‘Sea Shoes’, then dropped in February of that year. The track received a wash of support across the alternative realm, leading to Clash Magazine naming it “A gorgeous shoe gaze hymn” and Jack Saunders remarking “It’s a beauty, that.” During his hotly-tipped BBC Radio 1 Indie Show.
In November 2020 they dropped the ‘Monochrome’ single, where Heather’s vocals certainly stepped up a notch as she whisks listeners away on a cloud of loveliness. Think Slowdive or The Sundays and you’re there! On 24th March 2021 the band released ‘Lydia’ and then on 27th October HANYA fans were overjoyed to be able to purchase their seven track ‘100 Metre Sprint‘ EP which again featured their blend of dreamy psychedelia and indie rock. This limited edition red cassette release, which has long sold out, showed the group really coming into their own. Bringing HANYA fans up-to-date, the band unleashed their ‘Amateur Professional’ single on 27th July.
They are this evening’s headline outfit, and so we first have the matter of witnessing The Leaning and also Harper.
First up are Harper.
Tonight was the first time I’ve come across Harper, another product of Brighton’s BIMM music college and I was really impressed on first hearing and I will look out for this band next time they gig in Brighton. Front woman Calista Stickells who is on vocal duties as well as Squier Mustang guitar, and supporting her were Ollie Francis behind the sticks, Mikey Squire on Ibanez bass, and taking care of the guitars were Alex Fordham and Oli White. There was also a keyboard on the stage floor that Calista rarely used.
Harper are a young outfit who were here to entertain us with their 28 minute half dozen lazy Sunday afternoon tunes. Five of which were Harper compositions and the other was their arrangement of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Seven Wonders’, (which my friend was better than the original!) which Calista performed as a solo whilst her chums sat on the stage floor. Their material is reminiscent of tunes on film closing credits and the punters enjoyed the performance. If you ever need the details on how many teeth sharks lose during their lifetime, then Calista is the person to ask, as this was a talking point during their set.
Calista has an almost warbly Irish vocal style, which is accompanied with twangy guitars, thus fans of The Cranberries, Fleetwood Mac, Lana Del Rey or something like Joni Mitchell should take note. They opened with ‘Miler’, ‘Blister Pack’ and ‘Dogwoods’ which were rather pleasant. Song four, ‘Hythe’, was about a Geordie legend. For me, they had saved the best till last with ‘Betty’ which showed off Calista’s vocal chords to the full.
Harper:
Calista Stickells – Vocals/Guitar (she/her)
Alex Fordham – Guitar (he/him)
Ollie White – Guitar (he/him)
Mikey Squire – Bass Guitar (they/them)
Ollie Francis – Drums (he/him)
Harper setlist:
‘Miler’
‘Blister Pack’
‘Dogwoods’
‘Hythe’
‘7 Wonders’ (Fleetwood Mac cover)
‘Betty’
Harper are followed by The Leaning who formed in Brighton during lockdown and offer a sound that reverberates between psych-noise and surf-pop. The Leaning’s music pays homage to the modern romantic songwriters and the eerie dawn of synth music.
The Leaning are another local band I haven’t heard before and again was really impressed with their set. Lead vocalist Sam had a slightly Bryan Ferry-esqe sound to his voice, no bad thing and the proficient 5 piece band played a great five song set.
My favourite song of their short set was the last song they played ‘As The Ladies Dance’, the dreamy keyboards really dragged you into the song. ‘Surf And Destroy’ the opening song of the set was also a really strong track. I noticed that Jack and Lily from Penelope Isles had come along to check out their set as both bands had played the Oslo in Hackney on 9th September. Chatting to the band’s manager during the Interval I was told that Jack from Penelope Isles and Sam from The Leaning are good mates and hope to work together in the future, so watch this space. She really believes in the band and who am I to argue.
It looks pretty certain to me that this act will soon be headlining this size venue in their own right and then even larger ones shortly after that. The Leaning are set to play The Hope And Ruin on November 26th 26th November with The Roebucks and Anknee. The ticket link HERE will be going live from Monday 31st October.
The Leaning:
Sam Jordan – lead vocals
Ez Stone – lead guitar, vocals
Fred Helmer – bass
Declan Haughian – drums
Jamey Bullers – keys
The Leaning setlist:
‘Surf And Destroy’
‘Long Lost Lagoon’
‘Stranger’
‘Somewhere To Fall’
‘As The Ladies Dance’
This evening’s celebrations were rounded off by headliners HANYA.
This was probably the sixth time I’ve seen HANYA live and tonight was the best gig I’ve seen by them. I last saw them at the Alternative Escape way back in May when they played the rather cavernous Pryzm nightclub at the bottom of West Street on the Saturday afternoon of the festival. Sadly the size of the venue made it a bit of a soulless set, but the band still gave it their all and played a really enjoyable show. Previous to that the Brighton & Hove News team last reviewed them in November 2021 when they headlined at The Hope And Ruin.
Tonight was their first sold out Brighton show and you could tell it meant a lot to Heather and the rest of the band. Before they played ‘Monochrome’ she borrowed a phone from a member of the audience to take a selfie of the band and the crowd behind to remember the event. That very shot can be seen at the foot of this article!
They took to the stage at 10 o’clock and played a great 11 song set. New song ‘Vapelord 2000’ (working title) was the only tune I hadn’t heard of theirs before, but it sounded as good as the rest of the set and the crowd were encouraged to scream along during the chorus. Crowd favourites ‘Dream Wife’, ’Monochrome’ and ‘Logan’s Run’ all sounded better than ever and the whole band really seemed to be enjoying themselves and the infectious response from the audience. Having heard most of these tracks in the past I think tonight they really upped their game and are up there as being one of the best Brighton bands around at the moment.
The set finished with ‘Everyone’s Tired’, including me as I’d been up at 6am and the band left the stage. Talking to the band post gig, I think that will be their last show of 2022, but I look forward to seeing them live again next time they play in Brighton and here’s hoping that 2023 brings them the success that they fully deserve, I for one will certainly be at the gig next time they play in the city.
HANYA:
Heather Sheret – vocals, guitar, keys
Davey Penetecost – bass
Kit Narey – vox and tambourine
Ben Varnes – guitar
Jack Watkins – drums
HANYA setlist:
‘Fortunes’ (from 2021 ‘100 Metre Sprint’ extended EP)
‘Dream Wife’ (from 2020 ‘Sea Shoes’ EP)
‘Lydia’ (from 2021 ‘100 Metre Sprint’ extended EP)
‘Amateur Professional’ (from 2022 ‘Amateur Professional’ single)
‘Houseplants’ (from 2021 ‘100 Metre Sprint’ extended EP)
‘Swim In My Sleep’ (from 2021 ‘100 Metre Sprint’ extended EP)
‘Monochrome’ (from 2021 ‘100 Metre Sprint’ extended EP)
‘Logans Run’ (from 2021 ‘100 Metre Sprint’ extended EP)
‘Texas’ (from 2021 ‘100 Metre Sprint’ extended EP)
‘Vapelord 2000’ (working title, unreleased new song)
‘Everyone’s Tired’ (from 2020 ‘Sea Shoes’ EP)
Check HAYNA out on YouTube, visit their Bandcamp page HERE and check out their website www.hanyahanya.com.
