Three bands played a show in the middle of town. Everyone either jumped around or watched intensely as they felt things. As our second headliner thus far, we couldn't help but feel we raised the bar for ourselves. There is a great bulk to unpack after the show, which is why we have compiled a debrief for those who missed it, or even those who want to re-live it, because we sure as hell do.
"You're gonna miss it all" AHH polaroid XD
And here are some videos of our set, including our new song 'Bugged out'. Isn't it great? All I can do while watching is try to reach for the lazers.
Starting with a fresh off the press band with punky Sheffield blood, Mannequins absolutely ripped Network 2 to shreds, with the help of a few crowd pleasers: mainly Deceptacon (Le Tigre). They are definitely worth a watch when you have the chance to see them again. They are next up at 4th October at the very same Network here.
I was incredibly excited for Newly Unwed having only seen them once, and they didn't disappoint. All I can say is listen to their new EP now, and what a stunning show.
Now then, time for all of the intricate details and goods of the night for you to add to the stash. Setlists, warts and all.
This was our newest song at the time of playing, and it was actually only a week and a half old when we played. This made it the youngest song we have ever performed live. Performing such a fresh song means it was clunky at times, for example us all forgetting where to end. Is that really a problem? Yes and no.
Well this was one of Ringo- I mean one of Otto's songs, so he can tell you. He has a really great style of songwriting though, and it definitely fulfils our goal of shouty and emotional words. In the song's current iteration, I sing the chorus and one verse, the rest is left to Otto's delicate vocals. And here is what I sing:
“Your presence finally caught up. A bleeding sunlight. With broken knees and paper cuts You didn't realise I would fight. Bugged out. Bugged out.”
It's different to most of our stuff in a great way. When I write music I have a way of overcomplicating things and trying to be clever, whereas Otto has a nice natural style of his own.
We had an hour to kill, so it was our longest set in a while. Highlights include Holland 1945 (Neutral Milk Hotel) cover. Here is Jackson's laminated setlist.
Usually at concerts of our vein the main attraction is the crowd. We had new faces moshing, although from where we were stood on stage I couldn't tell you how intense it was. Our cult regulars showed irritation at people moshing to the wrong songs, at the wrong time. This is completely fair and a natural response.
From my point of view it's brilliant. And it naturally boosts your confidence to see people jumping about. Something I have never experienced at a gig (ours or anybody's) is stage diving. So as someone with an intrigue I have never seen in person, I thought it might be fun to encourage it. No one tells the crowds to clap, or cheer, or mosh really. Bands who do tell crowds to mosh often don't get the result they want. So with that, I thought it would be fun to let people on stage: walk around and say “Come up here then. I'm up here doing it so you can too”
The response was amazing, but very unexpected. For Wit & Commentary, we ended up creating a mere wall of vibing people. People got on but not back off. The unit under their feet began to struggle, the bouncer told everyone to get off. So that was fun and cheeky. I did feel sorry for the older audience in Zone B or C, but I'm sure they found it charming.
(Otto:) I love moshing, I just wish I could get in with the crowd at our gigs and mosh with them to tracks like Revolver, but my job is tooooo important.
Hmm, I wore shorts inspired by Viagra boys who I saw the day before, seemed comfy and practical. They all wear denim shorts so I was like fuck it I'll do something similar it seems really cool.
We regret to inform you that the band are splitting up. Thank you for everything, but that is all from tellyeaters for this lifetime.
Haha not really. But we are all being slightly displaced this new academic year, which means more opportunities for new friendships and stuff. We do however have far too many ambitions for tellyeaters to end the story just now. Not to blow the whistle too hard, but we want to release a few more EPs in the coming months. On top of that, our calendar of events and gigs is nowhere near clear, so expect another great year for the band.
“The drums are probably my favourite part of the track. They are, in a word, full - there's always something going on with them, and it always serves the song. There's a lot of skill and, more importantly, musicality within them - what is evident is an understanding of what is too much drumming, and what works nicely with the bassline. I love the way the drums simply never stop changing, every line turns into a clean fill (unless you're in a slow section, in which case a repetitive ride-snare edge rhythm is kept quite expertly instead). This just makes the track rip hard. It's a lot of fun to focus on when listening.Previous Business certainly relies on its quick changes of tone, and the drums supply this quite nicely, just as much as the changing guitar timbre. It has all the energy. These quick changes also point to skilful stamina and musical sense/memory. Signs of a good drummer.”
It takes longer to read the review than to listen to the actual song. I am also a fan of the criticism, I think it's fair and accurate. The best review we have received so far. I am also a fan of Highbar's anti-AI values. There really is a critical lack of substance to a lot of what is thrown around these days.
If you're like us and what to know what's next, get tickets to our next gig now. It will be supporting Weave, who are brill, with Fairly Well and Split the ticket, who are also brill.
That is all for now. Thank you, truly, to everyone.
RUN by DM DOKURO
they know who they are | act I: downfall
Carry me Ohio by Sun Kil Moon
Ghosts of the Great Highway
Do I Wait by Ryan Adams
Ashes & Fire
Alphabet Town by Elliot Smith
Elliot Smith
