‘VARIOUS ARTISTS’, ‘MUTATIONS FESTIVAL’ – BRIGHTON 3.11.22 (DAY ONE)
Following on from last night’s ‘Mutations Festival‘ ‘Opening Party’ at the Green Door Store (featuring live performance from Moa Moa, Shady Baby, Slant, and Gus Tiramani – Review HERE) Mutations 004, gets under way proper on Day One, ‘The Thursday’, with a dozen acts across a trio of local nearby Grassroots Music Venues; those being Chalk, Patterns and Latest Music Bar.
Thankfully, today is a slow introduction to the festival, so that we can get the feel of the event and not overdo things. Sadly Ghost Woman are unable to perform, so there are eleven acts to choose from. We admirably cover eight of these!
The 850 capacity Mutations Festival is brought to us by FORM and One Inch Badge and they are making use of 8 Brighton music venues across the 4 days. The previous festivals were in 2015, 2019 and 2021 and hopefully will be an annual affair in the gig goers calendar. It’s fair to liken Mutations to a compact version of The Great Escape, as both events feature exciting up-and-coming artists, for those punters that are hungry to uncover the unknown and the unexpected. There are around 75 acts to choose from and those selected to play are a very good snapshot of the buoyant music industry.
So without further ado, here are the acts that we witnessed today………………..
TALLIES 4:40-5:15 Patterns
First up for the Brighton and Hove News team on the official Day One of the ‘Mutations’ Festival were Tallies. They are a 3-piece dreampop act from Toronto, Canada consisting of Sarah Cogan (vocals), Dylan Frankland (guitars) and Cian O’Neill (drums). For live work, their numbers are bolstered by a couple of chums and so this afternoon at Patterns they are a quintet.
They proved to be a great start to the festival with a fresh take on the late 80’s and 90’s indie guitar sound, Tallies set started off with dreamier songs ‘Hearts Underground’ and ‘No Dreams Of Fayres!’ from their recent Bella Union released album ‘Patina‘ which dropped on 29th July. There were similarities to The Sundays’ debut brilliant album ‘Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic’ with lead singer Sarah Cogan’s bright light vocals. Their jingly guitar leads had hints of The La’s, while the echo effect on some of the guitar sounds was reminiscent of The Passions 1981 hit ‘I’m In Love With A German Film Star’. As the Tallies set developed, the tempo increased, while keeping the quality melodic sound. Their set ended on two lively songs ‘Easy Enough’ and ‘Wound Up Tight’, leaving the crowd at Patterns very happy with a very good start to Mutations.
Tallies:
Sarah Cogan – vocals
Dylan Frankland – guitars
Cian O’Neill – drums
(Peter Greenfield)
PIP BLOM 5:20-6:00 Chalk
Pip Blom were back in town having previously headlined at the Concorde 2 back in February. They are a four piece indie guitar band from Amsterdam and are named after the lead singer and guitarist, Pip Blom, with the other members being her brother Tender Blom (guitar/vocals), Darek Mercks (bass) and Gini Cameron (drums). They have thus far released two albums ‘Boat’ (2019) and ‘Welcome Break’ (2021). I first saw the quartet live in Brighton back in May 2019 as part of The Great Escape new music festival, when they played at The Hideout on the seafront. I had never seen the venue so rammed! Clearly they were a band on the up.
After a slight soundcheck delay, we are allowed into Chalk to witness the Dutch quartet’s entertaining performance to a surprisingly half full venue. Pip recalled that the last time they were here (17th October 2019) was with fellow Amsterdam outfit Personal Trainer who are also appearing at ‘Mutations’ (at The Hope & Ruin on Saturday morning from 1:30am to 2:00am). The punters at today’s ten tune teatime Pip Blom slot enjoyed the tight set and the band have certainly improved since I last saw them. After this performance, they hot-footed it to The Windmill in Brixton for a DJ set. After which they head off to Sheffield tomorrow and Sunderland the following night.
Pip Blom:
Pip Blom – vocals, guitar
Tender Blom – guitar, vocals
Darek Mercks – bass
Gini Cameron – drums
(Nick Linazasoro)
THE DINNER PARTY 5:30-6:00 Patterns
I’m in Patterns taking in the joys of The Dinner Party, who are a six piece from London consisting of Abi on vocals, Lizzie on guitar, Emily on guitar and flute, Aurora on keyboards, Georgia on bass, and a drummer for live gigs. I had previously seen them supporting The Rolling Stones at Hyde Park, (Review HERE) where for some reason they reminded me of a Europop act. I really couldn’t have been more wrong. This is well crafted rock reminiscent of Kate Bush and David Bowie. At times they evoke classic pop too.
Vocalist Abi’s stagecraft is well-honed. Indeed, there is an element of stage school about her. That doesn’t stop her being rock ‘n’ roll – she puts her foot on her monitor on numerous occasions. Many of their songs are about human relationships. ‘The Feminine Urge’ is “about being a woman”. It’s depressingly bleak. A sample lyric is “Do you feel like a man when I can’t talk back”. Similarly ‘Nothing Matters’ pulls no punches: “And you can hold me, like you held her, And I will f*ck you like nothing matters”. This band oozes quality, both in terms of material and performance. One to watch.
The Dinner Party:
Abi – vocals
Lizzie – guitar
Emily – guitar, flute
Aurora – keyboards
Georgia – bass
Session drummer for live gigs
(Mark Kelly)
GAFFA TAPE SANDY 5:50-6:20 Latest Music Bar
Next up was a Brighton based punk band, Gaffa Tape Sandy at the Latest Music Bar. Formed in 2015 in Bury St Edmunds, Gaffa Tape Sandy are singer-guitarist Kim Jarvis, singer-bassist Catherine Neilson and drummer Robin Francis. Their set started with singer Kim shouting “I don’t wanna die” before launching into a punk frenzy on the opening number ‘Water Bottle’. There was also good variety in their set amid the high-speed loud delivery, ‘Dinner Jacket’ was a relatively quieter song. (Dinner was an ongoing topic for the band between songs, as meal times have to fit between band sets during the festival).
Gaffa Tape Sandy treated us to some new material from the album they’ve been writing. ‘Devour’ has a real intensity, with its screaming vocals ‘Split’ starts with a very good opening bassline. The running joke of every song starting with Kim saying “Ready?” was picked up by the excited crowd, with a few shouting “Ready?” as Gaffa Tape Sandy launched into the final number of a full-on lively set with ‘Beehive’.
Gaffa Tape Sandy:
Kim Jarvis – vocals, guitar
Catherine Neilson – vocals, bass
Robin Francis – drums
(Peter Greenfield)
PENELOPE ISLES 6:30-7:00 Chalk
Penelope Isles are the brainchild of siblings Lily and Jack Wolter. They hail from the Isle of Man but are based in Brighton. Today at Chalk they are joined by drummer ‘JT’ (Joe Taylor). Last time I saw them at The Green Man festival they had a violinist with them, but she is nowhere to be seen today. However, playing as a three piece allows for more space in the songs. There is a lot of interesting things going on in the songs, and with more space that is more apparent. Jack’s guitar playing is particularly enjoyable – he indulges in much mangling.
Jack sings quite a bit of falsetto, but that means that his voice fits in very well with Lily’s, and drummer JT sings harmonies too. This is the band’s 81st gig this year, so it’s no surprise that they’re so tight. The middle-eights are pleasingly ferocious, and they’re usually longer than eight bars too! They’re a very exciting live band. They ended their set with ‘Gnarbone’ which is pretty cataclysmic, with Jack throwing his guitar across the stage and narrowly missing his sister! They don’t seem to have any further dates planned at the moment – but when they do – I’ll be there!
Penelope Isles:
Jack Wolter – guitar, vocals
Lily Wolter – keys, bass, vocals
Joe Taylor – drums
(Mark Kelly)
DO NOTHING 7:20-8:00 Patterns
Coming out of Nottingham are Do Nothing, who are not as their name might indicate a ska outfit. The quartet have been brooding over the past 4 years and dropping several tunes and a couple of EP’s on Bandcamp during that period. Some of these tunes have been gathered together into a limited edition (293 copies!) citrus yellow vinyl compilation album via Rough Trade – Order yours HERE.
This evening in Patterns the outfit offer up ten gritty funky quirky jaunty twangy guitar numbers with usual vocals, bass, guitar and drums with presets format. Singer Chris Bailey (who often folded his arms) is rather smart in his suit. He has an unusual spoken and occasional shouted preacher style vocal delivery, which strangely reminded me of Mark E Smith (The Fall), but these guys are totally different. Think Pulp meets A Certain Ratio with The Mo-Dettes ‘White Mice’ drumming and you are about there! Tune four ‘Über Alles’ got the fans bopping towards the end. ‘Rolex’ was next, which they said they haven’t played in a while. They have just recorded their proper debut album and next tune, ‘Ivy’, will be on it when it eventually drops some time in 2023, after the singles and videos beforehand. Expect a Resident instore on its release I say. I kept thinking that maybe these guys would be the successors to Yard Act during this set. I took a punt on Do Nothing and I’m very glad I did.
Do Nothing:
Chris Bailey – vocals
Kasper Sandstrom – guitar
Charles Howarth – bass
Andrew Harrison – drums
(Nick Linazasoro)
W.H. LUNG 7:30-8:10 Chalk
Manchester’s W.H. Lung brought their highly danceable synth pop sound to the stage at Chalk. Singer Joe Evans is a very animated front person for the band. He must have covered every inch of the stage during the set not taken up by various synths or other band members. At times, he almost appeared to be an aerobics instructor energising the crowd. Given the quality and upbeat sounds, the enthusiastic Chalk crowd didn’t need any extra encouragement. W.H. Lung are more than just Joe’s lively charismatic performance. The shared vocal arrangement with Hannah Peace on synths was impressive. Although on the wings and somewhat out of the spotlight (pun intended), the two guitarists Tom Sharkett and Chris Mulligan deserve a mention, with hints of Peter Hook in their delivery.
One of the many highlights in W. H. Lung’s set was the penultimate song, the aptly named ‘Showstopper’ from their recent album ‘Vanities’. The final song of the set was dedicated to local Brighton record shop, Resident Records, for their support of new music and new bands. The drummer, Alex Mercer Main, was wearing one of Resident’s t-shirts. Having used up the whole of the Chalk stage, it was almost enviable that Joe Evens would make his way into the crowd during the final number of W. H. Lung’s entertaining and highly danceable set.
W.H. Lung:
Joe Evans – vocals
Tom Sharkett – guitar
Alex Mercer Main – drums
Hannah Peace – vocals, synth
Chris Mulligan – bass, synths
(Peter Greenfield)
PUSSY RIOT 8:40-10:10 Chalk
Pussy Riot are a musical collective from Moscow. They gained notoriety in 2012 when they staged a performance in Moscow Cathedral, to protest about the Russian Orthodox Church’s support for Vladimir Putin in the then recent elections. Three of their number were arrested, refused bail, and eventually jailed for two years. I completely support what Pussy Riot stand for, but I did have an underlying concern: are they actually any good musically?
The early portents at Chalk aren’t good. The stage set consists of a small drum kit, a laptop and three mic stands. Hmmm….. so not much in the way of live instrumentation then. Showtime rolls around and the show’s (for that’s what it is) producer Alexander Cheparukhin explains that this is a multi-media production, featuring live music, theatre, film and narration. So obviously it is essential that at this point we abandon all preconceptions of what a gig should be. Of the ladies imprisoned, Maria Alyokhina is the only one present tonight, although honourable mention must be made of Diana Burkot, who broke her foot and is wearing a plastic boot and using crutches. She continues to play her drum kit standing up. The show tells the story of Pussy Riot’s cathedral performance, their arrest and subsequent imprisonment. The show is in Russian but there are English subtitles on the screen. The audience aren’t spared any details. This show is based upon cold hard fact. This is quite simply one of the most powerful and moving performances that it has been my privilege to witness. This is not rock ‘n’ roll. Compared to this, rock ‘n’ roll has no meaning. This is far more important. This is not entertainment. This is education, and by God we need it in this time like no other.
Pussy Riot:
Alexander Cheparukhin – show producer
Maria Alyokhina – vocals
Taso Pletner – vocals, flute
Olga Borisova – vocals
Diana Burkot – drums
(Mark Kelly)
Read our review of the Mutations Festival Day ‘Opening Party’ HERE.
Read our review of Day Two of the Mutations Festival HERE.
Read our review of Day Three of the Mutations Festival HERE.
Read our review of the Mutations Festival ‘Closing Party’ HERE.
The Brighton & Hove News Music Team reviewed last year’s ‘Mutations Festival’. You can check out who we saw below:
Day One – Thursday 4th November 2021
Day Two – Friday 5th November 2021
Day Three – Saturday 6th November 2021
Day Four – Sunday 7th November 2021
