The Great Escape Festival 2017 has taken over our city for a weekend of the best new music. Not letting a bit of bad weather get in the way of good time, we headed out to get stuck in to the first evening of gigs on Thursday, here are just a few of our favourite moments so far:
Sløtface, Thursday 6.30pm, Wagner Hall
The Norwegian punk band take to the outdoor Vevo sponsored stage for a more reserved than usual acoustic performance. Infectious tunes like ‘Magazine’ are delivered perfectly by vocalist Haley Shea and they manage to win over the crowd standing out in the pouring rain. en-gb.facebook.com/slotfaceofficial
Cheap Meat, Thursday 7.30pm, Prince Albert
The room quickly fills up for this London based trio thanks to the wall of thunderous guitars erupting from the stage. They sound like Weezer with more guitar solos, understandably it’s going down well with the rock crowd they’ve drawn in. Closing song “Sweetness, Take Me Back” wins them some new fans too. cheapmeat.bandcamp.com
Yonaka, Thursday 8.30pm, Patterns
There are a lot of people here for this one and the anticipation is suitably met. They deliver a very tight performance, loads of huge riffs, and even have dancers on stage throwing glitter around for the last song. Luckily it is the songwriting that shines through the most though, this band is definitely one to watch! en-gb.facebook.com/weareYONAKA
Blackwaters, Thursday 10.10pm, North Laine Brewhouse
It’s been a while since we’ve seen a young band with as much potential as Blackwaters. They may look fresh-faced but they’ve got the attitude and the anthems to match the likes of Slaves and Eagulls. Their in your-face-punk antics win over an unassuming crowd and everyone leaves with their sonh “F*** Yeah” stuck in their heads. blackwatersuk.bandcamp.com
