{"id":30080,"date":"2023-07-20T10:14:28","date_gmt":"2023-07-20T09:14:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/?p=30080"},"modified":"2023-07-20T10:17:07","modified_gmt":"2023-07-20T09:17:07","slug":"review-handmade-festival-sunday-30th-april-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/review-handmade-festival-sunday-30th-april-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Review – Handmade Festival, Sunday 30th April 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Reviewed by Kenny Cassells<\/a><\/p>\n

After a decade (give or take a few years for Covid) Handmade<\/a> festival has reached it\u2019s final year and aims to bow out with grace and style. Split across 3 stages, Firebug<\/a> upstairs and downstairs and Duffy\u2019s<\/a> bar, a plethora of the best upcoming and local bands were set to perform.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Handmade Festival sign outside Firebug<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Downstairs at Firebug<\/h2>\n

I arrived in time to catch the fantastic Other Half<\/strong><\/a>, a tight three-piece from Norwich whose noisy, catchy, Pixieesque sound also featured shades of At the Drive-in.<\/p>\n

Songs The Tiny Gap<\/em> and Jollies With The Boys<\/em> were standout songs in an energy-driven set which was a great introduction to Handmade.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Other Half downstairs in Firebug. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Next up was The Bronze Age<\/a> whose sound featured some very interesting dark brooding riffs, interspersed with melody, harmony and screamo vocals split between 3 vocalists. I was impressed by their clever guitar interplay which weaved throughout each song whilst bass and drums kept the rhythm steady.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Bronze Age. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ambient rock band Eyre Llew<\/a><\/strong>, who hail from Nottingham, are an incredible 3-piece band who create luscious ethereal sounds.<\/p>\n

The Explosions in the sky style set opener built to a mesmeric crescendo which set the tone for the rest of their set. Beautiful lush melodies and guitar interplay, bathed in swathes of delay whilst violin bows are drawn over guitar strings adding even more dynamics to the atmospheric soundscape.<\/p>\n

Even the drummer joined in on piano at times to add the ambient sound over which luscious melodies were added.<\/p>\n

Standout song was their track which vocalist Sam advised he had written in Korean.<\/p>\n

The band have been incredibly busy since their inception having a slew of releases since 2014 which can be found on their bandcamp<\/a> page, however we are told today that this is their first gig since 2022. On this showing, you would never have guessed.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Eyre Llew. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Shoegaze alt rock band October Drift<\/a> really impressed in front of a packed room.<\/p>\n

The Energetic 4-piece pack a big sound and opener Lost without you<\/em> went down well. Their sound features strong vocals, big singalong choruses, powerful drums and distortion laden guitars.<\/p>\n

Songs Airborne Panic Attack<\/em> and the fantastic Lost Without You<\/em> and Losing My Touch<\/em>\u00a0were standout tracks.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
October Drift. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Local Leicester band Maybeshewill<\/a> closed the festival on the downstairs stage of Firebug. Described as post-rock, the group who are an all-instrumental act reminiscent of bands such as Mogwai and God is an Astronaut, mesmerised the crowd for an hour with their blend of heavy instrumentation.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Maybeshewill. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Having been together since 2005 the band are clearly tight and each musician works well together to produce a blend of programmed and sampled electronic elements, guitars, bass, keyboards and drums. Their sound was a perfect soundtrack for the end of the event with music that hooks you in and doesn’t let you go.<\/p>\n

This is made even more impressive given there are no vocals or the usual tropes most bands utilise.<\/p>\n

If you have not had the pleasure of losing yourself to them, this reviewer would highly recommend doing so at some point in your life.<\/p>\n

Upstairs at Firebug<\/h2>\n

Mouse Teeth<\/strong><\/a> was a solo performer who created dreamlike soundscapes over which heartfelt lyrics and poetry were delivered with a beautiful and powerful vocal. Reminiscent of Jeff Buckleys take on Lilac Wine<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Mouse Teeth. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Soft Lad<\/strong><\/a> (aka Sophie Galpin) is a Singer-songwriter who is no stranger to the music scene. Her set showcased her great voice, varied range and use of backing tracks which rounded out the sound to great effect.<\/p>\n

Standout track was Singapore<\/em> which blended beautiful subtle verses which gave way to great singalong choruses.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Soft Lad. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Grace Petrie<\/strong><\/a> is a local lass and self-proclaimed leftwing lesbian folk act. Grace lit up the stage with her brand of folk\/punk protest songs aided by Ben on violin and various other instruments.<\/p>\n

Like a female Billy Bragg for the modern generation. Stand out track was Storm here to Weather.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Grace Petrie. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Duffy’s Bar<\/h2>\n

I arrived at Duffy\u2019s<\/a> just in time to catch the end of ST Manville<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s set. He was ruminating with a captivated audience about the highlights of life in Leicester which has been his home for over a decade.<\/p>\n

The Solo performer is reminiscent of Elliott Smith or City and Colour with soft acoustic engaging songs that were beautifully delivered.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
S T Manville. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There was a heavy excitement in the air for the next band on at Duffy\u2019s, taking to the stage to rapturous applause were Jools<\/strong><\/a> who exude rock and roll cool and delivered an energetic set featuring the dual vocals of frontman Mitchell Gordon and Chelsea Wrones.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Jools. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Roaring guitars were supported by phat basslines and thrashing drums, crafting a signature Leicester sound which manages to combine post-punk and heavy rock, sounding like the result of a mash-up between Idles, Kasabian and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Jools. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The band had the venue jumping and standout track Be my Guest<\/em> went down well with the fervent crowd.<\/p>\n

Prima Queen<\/strong><\/a> were one of the standout performers of the festival for me. An all-female band fronted by the songwriting duo of Louise Macphail and Kristin McFadden.<\/p>\n

Their sound included fantastic 3-part harmonies and jangling guitars which was very reminiscent of the Laurel Canyon sound and is the perfect chilled summer sound. Stand-out tracks Eclipse<\/em> and I don’t believe in the American dream<\/em>\u00a0Left the crowd wanting more.<\/p>\n

These ladies are headed for bigger things and it was special to see them at such a small venue.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Prima Queen. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Wytches<\/strong><\/a> are an English rock band formed in Peterborough but have been based more recently in Brighton. Their blend of post-punk\/noise rock entertained a packed Duffy’s Bar and had the crowd fired up with their Infectious grooves and hypnotic Vibes.<\/p>\n

A Kyuss meets Horror sound which has been honed over years of playing, certainly left an impression and was a joy to behold.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The Wytches. Photo (c) Kevin Gaughan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This definitely was a handmade festival, it was well-crafted, thoughtfully and lovingly put together by people who like what they do and know what they like. Other festivals should take note.<\/p>\n

Sadly, however, this was the last one. But what a great way to end the run.<\/p>\n

If you would like to share this review, please help us by using the share buttons below instead of a screen print \u2013 thanks!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There was a heavy excitement in the air for the next band on at Duffy\u2019s, taking to the stage to rapturous applause were…<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":30088,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[330,134],"tags":[264,239,205,193,259,260],"class_list":["post-30080","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-330","category-festival-reviews","tag-acoustic-music","tag-folk-music","tag-indie-music","tag-music-festival","tag-rock-music","tag-shoegaze"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/IMG_1507.jpg?fit=1001%2C667&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p73uhX-7Pa","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":414,"url":"https:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/handmade-festival-2013\/","url_meta":{"origin":30080,"position":0},"title":"Handmade Festival 2013","author":"Trevor Locke","date":"27\/05\/2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Leicester's Handmade festival 2013 The Handmade festival took place in Leicester over Friday 24th May to Sunday 26th May 2013 On the music side of the programme there was a wide range of bands spread across several venues including The Firebug, The Peoples' Photographic Gallery, Duffy's Bar, The Cookie Jar\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2013"","block_context":{"text":"2013","link":"https:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/Music\/history-of-leicester-music\/articles-relating-to-2013\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":11992,"url":"https:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/venues\/","url_meta":{"origin":30080,"position":1},"title":"Leicester music venues","author":"Trevor Locke","date":"02\/04\/2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Leicester live music venues 2017","rel":"","context":"In "2017"","block_context":{"text":"2017","link":"https:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/Music\/2017\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Oxjam-Venues-Soundhouse.jpg?fit=600%2C574&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Oxjam-Venues-Soundhouse.jpg?fit=600%2C574&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Oxjam-Venues-Soundhouse.jpg?fit=600%2C574&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":30612,"url":"https:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/preview-pyjama-jam-all-dayer-at-firebug-and-duffys-bar-sunday-21st-july-2024\/","url_meta":{"origin":30080,"position":2},"title":"Preview – Pyjama Jam all-dayer at Firebug and Duffy’s Bar, Sunday 21st July 2024","author":"Kevin Gaughan","date":"15\/07\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Cushion Castle Promotions and Pillow Fort are excited to announce Pyjama Jam: a multi-stage all day festival and celebration of alternative music, focusing on emo, indie punk and math rock. The festival is taking place across three stages at Firebug and Duffy's Bar in Leicester on July 21st 2024 and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2024"","block_context":{"text":"2024","link":"https:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/Music\/2024\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Pyjama-Jam1.jpg?fit=1200%2C607&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Pyjama-Jam1.jpg?fit=1200%2C607&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Pyjama-Jam1.jpg?fit=1200%2C607&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Pyjama-Jam1.jpg?fit=1200%2C607&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Pyjama-Jam1.jpg?fit=1200%2C607&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4059,"url":"https:\/\/www.musicinleicester.co.uk\/index.php\/handmade-festival-2014\/","url_meta":{"origin":30080,"position":3},"title":"Handmade Festival 2014","author":"Trevor Locke","date":"19\/05\/2014","format":false,"excerpt":"2nd, 3rd & 4th May 2014.\u00a0\u220f Handmade Festival. Leicester. by Keith Jobey After a successful first festival in 2013, Handmade Festival returned in 2014. Spread across venues surrounding its hub at the Firebug, there were\u00a0more bands this year and hence more choice. 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