A one-line review of every gig I’ve been to in March 2025

This monthly series is probably as much for my benefit as yours. I go to a lot of gigs and it is nice to have a way to remember them all. Maybe your interest will be piqued by one of the reviews. Maybe you’ll scroll straight past. Maybe you’ll unsubscribe thinking what did I see in this blog in the first place? You can find all of my one-line gig reviews here.

Feasts, Trades Hall, Walthamstow, 2 Mar – Just the two of them making a fearsome noise with a bit of an early Killing Joke undertow to it at times.

[Feasts at Trades Hall, Walthamstow]

The Scuttlers, Trades Hall, Walthamstow, 2 Mar – All angles and elbows and endearingly awkward in-between song banter. A bit of Black Midi, a smattering of Talking Heads rhythm guitar, I liked it.

[The Scuttlers at Trades Hall, Walthamstow]

Magnolia, Trades Hall, Walthamstow, 2 Mar – I only saw at little bit of this and they opened with a frenzied drum assault on the senses, and they had two drummers, and one of them had A VERY VERY BIG DRUM.

[Magnolia at Trades Hall, Walthamstow]

(Kill Mirror Image were also part of this package tour, but were unable to play the date at the Trades Hall.)

Among the promoters of this event, by the way, were Capital Salvage, who are hoping to put on some more kid-friendly gigs in the future, and have also been roped into the Fall night in June I am helping to run, so do give them a like/follow on the old socials here.

[Author and child at this kid-friendly matinee gig]

Hannya White, Windmill, Brixton, 4 Mar – I took a £7 punt on this gig and from checking out her tracks in advance I was expecting Hannya White to be quite a difficult sound collage, but compared to what I’ve heard of her recorded output live it was much bassier and beatier, veering a bit into performance art, and I really enjoyed it.

[Hannya White at Windmill, Brixton]

Hex Girlfriend, Windmill, Brixton, 4 Mar – This lot were great, reminded me of Snapped Ankles and LCD Soundsystem, incredibly loud heavy and enthusiastic.

GRÓA, Windmill, Brixton, 4 Mar – This Icelandic band were a lot heavier and more straightforward than I had anticipated from hearing a couple of tracks online, and made for a great end to the evening. £7 on a Tuesday night, three great acts, lovely venue, SUPPORT GRASS ROOTS MUSIC AND GO TO GIGS!

Low Girl, Oslo, Hackney, 6 Mar – I was so lucky I got to see them because this gig started insanely early at 7.20pm. Fortunately I checked Adwaith’s Facebook page to see if they’d put the set times up at about 7pm, and was just in a pub round the corner from the venue, so was able to dash there to see the start of Low Girl’s set. Live they had a lot less electronics than the recorded songs, and reminded me a bit of 80s Postcard records sort of jangly indie-pop. Regular readers will know I love watching people play bass guitar these days, as it is my most recently adopted instrument, and I got the bonus that halfway through this set the guitarist and bassist switched instruments, so I got to see two people playing bass for the price of one.

[Low Girl at Oslo, Hackney]

Slaney Bay, Oslo, Hackney, 6 Mar – On paper this was very much in my wheelhouse, but maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for it, as I just didn’t really connect with them.

[Slaney Bay at Oslo, Hackney]

Adwaith, Oslo, Hackney, 6 Mar – I first saw Adwaith supporting the Manics in Halifax a few years ago, but I don’t remember them being anywhere near as tight and as frenetic as they are now. They also gently at one point explained that if we couldn’t understand them, it was ‘cos they were singing in Welsh, not that we were too drunk. I ended up squished at the side of the stage among some people who knew the band and had an absolute blast. Go and see Adwaith, that’s the review.

[Adwaith at Oslo, Hackney]

Look Back Bores, Aatma, Manchester, 8 Mar – DIY versions of songs by the Fall, performed by fans of the Fall, for fans of the Fall. Genuinely such a joy to hear these songs live and people getting to wig out to them again. Mark E Smith often employed two drummers, the Look Back Bores (named after a dismissive MES lyric) go for the two vocalist approach.

[Look Back Bores at Aatma, Manchester]

A blistering good night of fun, in a room full of a lot of people I know from online, who naturally I didn’t talk to because I am a drunken liability to myself. Although I did have to big up in person the bloke DJing who managed an unpredicted switch from David Essex to Joy Division with songs I am both word perfect on. I do love me a bit of early Jeff Wayne-produced David Essex.

Also I hadn’t realised but the Aatma venue is above the Peer Hat where I played in February at the Manchester Folk Horror festival and honestly that is such a great place with brilliant vibes, if I lived in Greater Manchester I would be in there every night.

[There is a very decent longer review of Look Back Bores by someone else here and you can watch the whole gig on the ol’ You Tubes]

Solomon’s Seal, Paper Dress Vintage, Hackney, 13 Mar – Very gentle Fleet Foxes-adjacent folky singer-songwriter stuff.

[Solomon’s Seal at Paper Dress Vintage, Hackney]

Helen Ganya, Paper Dress Vintage, Hackney, 13 Mar – I’ve been wanting to see her since first being exposed to her previous moniker Dog In The Snow via a lockdown #TimsTwitterListeningParty and it did not disappoint. Her most recent release leans into her Thai roots and somehow seems to be really bouyant and also slightly melancholic at the same time.

[Helen Ganya at Paper Dress Vintage, Hackney]

Wednesday’s Child, Shacklewell Arms, Dalston, 18 Mar – You don’t very often see a bassoon on stage at the Shacklewell Arms, that is for sure. They played quite intricate gothy-prog.

[Wednesday’s Child at Shacklewell Arms, Dalston]

wych elm, Shacklewell Arms, Dalston, 18 Mar – I basically discovered wych elm randomly, as I was going to a 5.30pm cinema screening in Hackney and wondered if there would be a decent gig nearby to drop into after it finished, this lot were playing, and HOO BOY it turns out I have a new obsession. Pixies/Nirvana/Breeders-ish with feminist lyrics that lean heavily into the medieval and fortean in the lyrical themes, and just an absolutely vital wall of noise when playing, and really charming and funny in between songs. Go see them.

[wych elm at Shacklewell Arms, Dalston]

Incidentally I got absolutely bodied at the Shacklewell Arms by the bar staff, who repeatedly just assumed I was so old that I couldn’t possibly be going to the gig, and kept trying to give me my beer in a glass to sit on my own in the corner like a lonely old man, rather than in the plastic cups you can take into the venue where I stand in the corner like a lonely old man etc etc …

The Hangland, The Beehive, Bow, 21 Mar – I had an absolutely lovely evening watching one of my dear friend’s bands make their London debut – sort of 90s alt-rock vibes – but was slightly dismayed to discover that not only is Matt a much better guitarist than me, which I knew, but he is also a much better bassist than me too.

[The Hangland at The Beehive, Bow]

Find all of my one-line gig reviews here.