Leeds DIY scene newsletter: October 2016
Halloween's on the way and the nights are well and truly drawing in. Still, there's no reason to stay home – not during another busy month for Leeds DIY
The first week of October saw the final farewell to our friend Michael 'Archie' Archibald, who sadly passed away in September following a short illness. Archie was imperative to Leeds’ music scene, having worked as a sound engineer at the Brudenell and for bands like Hookworms, Eagulls and Field Music, and as a promoter in the mid-90s when he co-founded Cops and Robbers – a monthly publication with the aim of helping like-minded promoters and bands inform people about underground/DIY music events in the Leeds area.
It feels appropriate to dedicate this column to him. This loss has reiterated that it’s the people who make our local music scenes what they are. Rest in peace, Archie.
Sealings, Cowtown & XAM Duo
<a href="http://sealings.bandcamp.com/album/forever-young" data-mce-href="http://sealings.bandcamp.com/album/forever-young">forever young by sealings</a>
As ever, there’s a lot happening in Leeds this month, with this weekend in particular being so full of live offerings you’ll have a hard time choosing which one to go to. Cowtown are back from their European tour, playing a gig on Friday 14 October at Wharf Chambers with Brighton three-piece Sealings and Leeds’ own XAM Duo (featuring members of Hookworms and Deadwall).
Sealings play music that deals in “willfully abrasive” confrontation, with a haunting synth sound and inventive guitar dramatics recalling Warm Jets-era Brian Eno or cold-wave pioneers Ruth. XAM Duo explore New Age soundscapes, kosmische experimentation and Terry Riley-esque looped minimalism using a singular combination of synthesizer and saxophone, and Cowtown – well, everyone in Leeds should know by now what Cowtown are about.
Wharf Chambers, 14 Oct, 8pm, £5
Indie Banquet
Pizza for the People is all about combining unique locations with some of the best local food and music. They've teamed up with Duke Studios for their inaugural event to turn the striking space into a night of indulgence, and Saturday 15 October sees the venue playing host to some of the most promising up-and-coming bands.
From the grunge pop of Night Owls and the psychedelic surf rock of Cactus Knife to the foreboding post-punk of La Bête Blooms, there’s something for most discerning indie-philes. Also joining the line-up are riffy indiepop quartet Trash and Leeds’ own Mush, who’ve recently been on BBC Introducing Yorkshire to play some tracks from their recent EP Ex-Communique. If you like fuzzy, repetitive post-punk in the same vein as The Fall then Mush are the band for you.
If that’s not enough, there will also be culinary delights with pop-ups from What’s Your Beef and Mio Pizza, and the team from Flying Vinyl will be making a guest DJ appearance to keep you dancing until the early hours.
Duke Studios, 15 Oct, 6pm, £9 adv
Feel The Benefit 2016 for Leeds Mind
<a href="http://danopposite.bandcamp.com/album/full-tilt-boogie" data-mce-href="http://danopposite.bandcamp.com/album/full-tilt-boogie">Full Tilt Boogie by danopposite</a>
After the success of last year’s respective projects, Lust for Life and Feel The Benefit have teamed up to bring us a night of some of the best local entertainment to raise money for mental health charity Leeds Mind, and the Women’s Counselling and Therapy Service. The main aim of the event is to challenge the stigma and end the endemic discrimination surrounding mental health, all while raising money and having fun in the process.
The line-up includes a diverse array of local talent, from the ramshackle, Flying Nun-esque psych pop of Leeds trio City Yelps to the politically charged discourse of hip-hop duo Danopposite. Also joining them are Esper Scout, Miranda Arieh, Pariss Elektra, MVMV, visual artist Kelly Boyle, Carlie Martece and more. Did we mention there'll also be a raffle and some very tasty vegan food? Who doesn’t like a raffle?
All proceeds go to Leeds Mind and the Women’s Counselling and Therapy Service. A very worthy cause.
Wharf Chambers, 15 Oct, 5pm, £5 (full price) / donation (concession) – book tickets here
MAG, Beards & Cables
As well as being our favourite safe space, Wharf Chambers has become something of a hub for the diverse and the wonderful. If gloomy, dystopian soundscapes are your thing then you’d be a fool to miss this show from Sweden’s MAG, aka Magdalena Ågren, who works with the noises around her using an idiosyncratic hybrid of megaphone, vocals, guitar and live samplings of trombone, all built up from scratch. Often sounding like a lo-fi, post-apocalyptic orchestra, it veers from restrained and suggestive to chaotic and wild, and it’s an awe-inspiring live experience.
Also playing are Cables and Leeds’ own Beards, who on first inspection recall the post-punk disco aesthetic of the likes of Delta 5, but their progressive time signatures and post-hardcore inclinations point towards something more chaotic – get down early.
Wharf Chambers, 19 Oct, 8pm
Bloom, Mayshe Mayshe, Joanne & Nanna
Bomb The Twist is a label run by a collective of all women who also organise and promote shows across Leeds. Their next event promises to bring us a night of dreamy synth pop with Brighton quintet Bloom, Leeds-based Mayshe Mayshe, live coding genius Joanne and Leeds newbies Nanna, whose melodic, bittersweet dynamic is slowly winning our hearts.
All-male line-ups are such a monotonous, regular occurrence, so it’s great to see this being an explicitly all-female event. There are so many women out there making really interesting music, and we're tired of going to shows that are largely dominated by men; promoted by men, played by men, DJed by men...
It'd be cool to see more promoters actively seeking out and including women in their shows. It should go without saying, but this doesn’t have to be done in a patronising, ‘we need to find a female band to balance things out’ kind of way. What’s more, if you are only listening to music made by men, then you are neglecting some of the best music around today.
Wharf Chambers, 22 Oct, 7pm, £5
Girls That Gig: Ghouls Night
Speaking of all-female line-ups, the ever-reliable Girls That Gig collective bring us a night of live music at Wharf Chambers on 26 October. Having succeeded in the near-impossible task of writing most of this column without using any Halloween puns, with it being October'n’all, GTG's Ghouls Night event makes it all the more difficult because, like they said, ghouls just wanna have fun, right?
They’ve rounded up three of their favourite ‘zom-baes’ for an extra sinister gig, and you’re encouraged to dress up as there will be a prize for the best costume. There's live music from Sister Doom duo Chambers, confrontational punk band Witch Fever, who share a predilection for loud, grungey riffs, and Leeds-based artist Ramona Rose, whose fusion of sweaty basement rock and America is indebted to Band of Skulls, The Pretty Reckless, Jack White and The Black Keys.
Girls That Gig's main objective is to support, encourage and inspire women in music through hosting gigs and networking events. They also have a monthly podcast that features interviewes with notable women in the Leeds music scene – from promoters and musicians to writers and active proponents of Leeds music. You can find out more about them at girlsthatgig.com.
Wharf Chambers, 26 Oct, 7.30pm, £2
New release on Fox Food Records
<a href="http://foxfoodrecords.bandcamp.com/album/good-good-blood" data-mce-href="http://foxfoodrecords.bandcamp.com/album/good-good-blood">Good Good Blood by Good Good Blood</a>
This Friday sees the release of Good Good Blood’s new EP, Motion | Sickness, a collaboration between Fox Food Records’ James Smith and Nancy Kells of Spartan Jet-Plex.
Motion | Sickness is an intriguing hybrid of icy electronics and melodic, melancholy folk with deft guitar melodies, recalling some of Grizzly Bear’s earlier, more experimental material, the results of which you’ll be able to hear for yourself upon its release on Friday 14 October, via Fox Food Records' Bandcamp. Do yourself a favour too: take a moment to listen to some of the other gems released by the label.
Don't miss...
Wolf Girl, Mortgage, FOMO & Camboys
Wharf Chambers, 27 Oct, 8pm, £5
Los Cripis, Hilary and the Hate Crimes, Mush & Hamer
CHUNK, 20 Oct, 8pm, £5 donation, BYOB
The Wharves, Bears & Thick Syrup
Wharf Chambers, 30 Oct, 7.30pm, £6/£4 unwaged