ROYAL BLOOD + YOU ME AT SIX + WARGASM + KID KAPICHI + COACH PARTY + EGYPTIAN BLUE – BRIGHTON BEACH 29.7.23
Local promoters JOY have taken over a large part of Brighton Beach for a two-weekend ‘On The Beach’ takedown. We’ve already had the first weekend, three sold-out dates featuring such acts as Chase & Status, Carl Cox and Eric Prydz, and last night saw Above & Beyond. (Scroll down to the bottom of this review to see photos of these events).
So far, these have all been colossal DJ sets, but today marks the start of two days of rock acts. Tomorrow it’s the turn of Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, but today belongs to Brighton’s very own Brit/NME/Kerrang! Award-winning and Mercury Prize-nominated adopted sons Royal Blood.
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The gates open at 2 pm, and already there’s a good queue forming along the beach for those early arrivers set to make the most of the glorious sunshine forecast for the day, but by the time press passes have arrived, it’s after 3 pm before I enter the beach arena and first act Egyptian Blue are crashing through their post-punk set, but I thankfully manage to get down to the front to grab a few shots and an earful of their tunes.
What an honour for this Brighton-based bunch to open proceedings on a day with an expected sold-out crowd of 10,000 punters. Unfortunately, we aren’t up to capacity this early in the afternoon, but those in the crowd are here for a good time and already heads nod in appreciation, and each song gets a good cheer.
These early sets are all 30 minutes and leave roughly the same time for the change before the next band hits the stage. Talking of the stage, it’s a massive beast of construction, high and wide, giving a great view of the action way past the sound desk with large impressive video monitors on either side and another one at the back of the sound desk for those further back down the beach. Looking up towards Marine Drive, I can see a small group of people watching the proceedings from the roadside, which must give an excellent view of the whole festival site and the stage.
Next to hit the stage are Isle of Wight’s Coach Party, four-piece familiar with Brighton & Hove News catching them on several occasions in the city, including at the Komedia in October 2021 (Review HERE). I last saw them in roughly the same spot as part of this year’s Great Escape Festival after hearing great reports from other Brighton and Hove News reviewers, but they didn’t grab me like some of the others. Today though is different, and after the first few slower, more indie tracks of ‘All I Wanna Do Is Hate’, ‘Can’t Talk, Won’t’ and ‘Shit TV’, things kick into gear with the recent release ‘Micro Aggression’ full of crashing jagged guitar riffs that lift the set to new heights.
They build on this even more with ‘Sweetheart’, a slow builder of a bitter pop tune that blasts into grunge territory. They finish the set on a high with the powerful ‘FLAG (Feel Like A Girl)’, a wall of sound that’s as catchy as it is emotional and angry, with Jess Eastwood’s vocals the best of the set, piercingly beautiful and full of rage and bitterness.
Coach Party setlist:
‘All I Wanna Do Is Hate’
‘Can’t Talk, Won’t’
‘Shit TV’
‘Micro Aggression’
‘Sweetheart’
‘FLAG (Feel Like A Girl)’
5 pm and Hastings bangers Kid Kapichi, who we last saw headlining Chalk back in February (Review HERE), smash through a short but oh-so-sweet set starting with ‘Death Dips’ about a rollercoaster that’s no longer there and ‘Sardines’ a foot-stomping angry anthem that sets the tone for the whole show. They try to get the crowd worked up early by having the lads from SNAYX chuck an inflatable burger raft into the crowd to kick off some crowd surfing as they keep on kicking out the hits ‘Rob The Supermarket’, ‘New England’ and ‘Working Man’s Town’ keep the energy at max.
We get a taste of their own game show, ‘This Is What You Won’, which consists of the band lobbing chocolate bars and crisps to fans; it’s all fun, and so too is the circle pit that opens up with the Nova Twins slap bang in the centre of it. The way too short set finishes with the superb ‘Smash The Gaff’, and the band are off to get deservedly f**ked up and party.
Kid Kapichi setlist:
‘Death Dips’
‘Sardines’
‘Rob The Supermarket’
‘New England’
‘Working Man’s Town’
‘This Is What You Won’
‘Smash The Gaff’
Talking of parties, Wargasm who we caught up with last year at Patterns (Review HERE), are one never-ending one-live and an excellent addition to the festival bill that many of us have been looking forward to. Fronted by Milkie Way and Sam Matlock (yep, Glen Matlock’s son is following in his father’s footsteps), they bang out hard electronica rock with a punk edge full of slogan chanting choruses like the fiery ‘Fukstar’ and ‘D.R.I.L.D.O’.
There’s a more than impressive cover of ‘Lapdance’ by N*E*R*D nestled in amongst their self-penned titles which will be on their new album which is coming real soon. The band are relentless, with their energy never waning as all members dash back and forth across the large stage, leaving not an inch to waste. During closer ‘Spit’, Matlock jumps down to the barrier and crowd surfs, mic in hand. Not content with playing the festival, they’re at Concorde 2 later for the afterparty, where they’ll be spinning tunes as part of a DJ set.
Wargasm setlist:
‘D.R.I.L.D.O’
‘Do It So Good’
‘Spit.’
‘Lapdance’ (N*E*R*D cover)
‘Fukstar’
The final band before the headliners are the Weybridge quintet You Me At Six, who are here hot on the heels of their latest album ‘Truth Decay’ which sees them return to their emo roots and getting ready for stints at Reading and Leeds festivals, so what better way to warm up than playing to the now absolutely rammed ‘On The Beach’ festival.
Okay, so the crowd may be mainly Royal Blood fans, but judging by the reception these guys get as they pile into opener ‘Deep Cuts’, you’d think the crowd came just for them. They blend standard rock tropes with catchy as f*ck sing-a-long choruses with more hooks than a fishing fleet.
With a more extended set than the earlier bands, they work through 13 tracks spanning their career to date with new songs ‘No Future? Yeah Right’ and ‘HeartLESS’ standing their ground against fan favourites ‘Bite My Tongue’, ‘Underdog’ and ‘Take On The World’. By now, the sun has started to set, and the biting wind from the sea is taking a nibble out of me, but the fans are more than warmed up for the arrival of headliners Royal Blood, and they’re just about to get well and truly roasted.
You Me At Six setlist:
‘Deep Cuts’
‘Fresh Start Fever’
‘Heartless’
‘Bite My Tongue’
‘What’s It Like’
‘No Future? Yeah Right’
‘Mixed Emotions (I Didn’t Know How To Tell You What I Was Going Through)’
‘Take On The World’
‘Room To Breathe’
‘Suckapunch’
‘Underdog’ (with Ross MacDonald)
‘Reckless’
‘Beautiful Way’
Royal Blood Brighton’s pride and joy are the sensational duo – Mike Kerr on guitar and Ben Thatcher on drums. They’ve professed, “Playing live is the heartbeat of our music. It’s what binds us to our tunes, each other, and our fans the most!”
This dynamic pair embodies Brighton’s finest local talent, making waves worldwide as their eponymous debut album hit the zenith of the charts on both sides of the Atlantic. Since then, they’ve kept a tight grip on the chart positions and festival line-ups worldwide, becoming a true rock ‘n roll symbol.
A cascade of brilliant white lights floods the venue as the gig begins. Ben Thatcher’s drum kit stands in the limelight to the front stage left, proudly flaunting a Brighton and Hove Albion flag – a nod to their origins. The electrifying opening track, ‘Hole’, slices through the crowd with its potent riff, like a hot knife through butter.
The journey then proceeds, a mix of iconic anthems and fresh hits alike, each met with an uproar from the loyal crowd. Around me, fans are completely immersed, singing along and revelling in the spectacle of lights and sounds. Brighton craves such events, and an all-summer beach stage should be considered to attract big-name artists too large to be confined to the Brighton Centre.
The atmosphere is pure, charged energy. The band relentlessly drives the crowd to a fever pitch, leaving every ounce of their spirit on stage, with the audience striving to match their vibrancy. ‘Typhoons’, ‘Limbo’, and ‘Figure It Out’ are barnstormers. For a duo, the sound Royal Blood creates is impressively monumental.
They conclude with a fiery three-song encore accompanied by a stunning pyro display. Flames erupt from the stage, and even the roof seems to ignite. The grand finale featuring ‘Ten Tonne Skeleton’ and ‘Out Of The Black’ becomes a colossal sing-along. The success of the ‘On The Beach’ series is evident from this opening night, and the bands playing the next day have a tough act to follow this triumphant rock n roll show.
Royal Blue setlist:
(Intro tape) ‘Right Here, Right Now’ (Fatboy Slim song)
‘Hole’
‘Come On Over’
‘Boilermaker’
‘Lights Out’
‘Mountains At Midnight’
‘You Can Be So Cruel’
‘Pull Me Through’
‘Trouble’s Coming’
‘Typhoons’
‘Loose Change’
‘Little Monster’
‘How Did We Get So Dark?’
‘Shiner In The Dark’ (Live debut)
‘Limbo’
‘Figure It Out’
(encore)
‘All We Have Is Now’
‘Ten Tonne Skeleton’
‘Out Of The Black’
Further reading:
Mike and Ben are two best friends who hail from West Sussex – Mike grew up in Worthing and Ben is from nearby Rustington. They have been performing together since they were teenagers and they officially formed the Royal Blood partnership in Brighton at the start of 2013.
The guys worked hard and developed their sound at the Brighton Electric Recording Studios in Coombe Terrace, Lewes Road, Brighton. During their time recording here, they were snapped up by Warner/Chappell Music and then they joined the same management company as the Arctic Monkeys.
Royal Blood’s last few local concerts have been covered by the Brighton & Hove News Music Team. Read and enjoy our reviews below:
Brighton Centre 15th September 2021
De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea 8th August 2019
Brighton Centre 29th November 2017
Photos from the other ‘On The Beach’ events:
