The streets surrounding The Flapper in Birmingham might be frostbitten, treacherous and cold enough to make you reconsider ever leaving your home again. However after stepping inside it all proves worthwhile upon being greeted by not only the wonderful warmth of a cosy venue, but also a reminder of just how many great and varied bands are currently bubbling away in the British underground.
Opening tonight’s bill are the esoteric and rather raw Spits Milk. Although they take a little time to thaw out the band’s caustic industrial punk ends up getting things nicely toasite evoking Helmet and the early crop of British post-hardcore from the noughties. Certainly the heaviest act of the night and a further example of some of the gems to be found cropping up out there.
Shropshire trio The Losing Score follow suit and are keen to emphasise that this is their first show back after the madness of the last two years. While it’s true the band are occasionally a little rough around the edges, by no means does it take away from their endearing college rock which sits somewhere near Modern Baseball and Spanish Love Songs. For anyone who so desperately misses the former, The Losing Score also revealed their debut record will be released sometime next year and could well help scratch that itch when we all get to hear it.
The first of tonight’s co-headliners, Snake Eyes bring a rather surprising amount of energy to their slacker-punk anthems. Tracks like ‘Another World’ might be laid back and care-free, however the band are anything but; stomping around the stage with confidence bringing songs from their latest mixtape to life. The trio offer up a deceptively diverse range of sounds ranging from the light and airy to complete ragers fizzling with distortion. There’s just something about Brighton at the minute as the town continues to produce some of the most exciting and interesting bands around with Snake Eyes being the latest.
Finally Waco march on stage complete with faux military jackets and face-paint with vocalist Jak Hutchcraft running around like he’s training for a marathon and bringing an undeniable feel-good factor to end the night. Blasting out tracks from both their 2019 debut and last year’s Hope Rituals, Waco produce a wonderfully uplifting set helping remind everyone of exactly why we all missed live music so much. What is even more telling though is how due to their relatively short set time, tracks like ‘A New Future’ and ‘Busy Livin’ were unable to be squeezed in. When a band is already having to make difficult choices like these just two albums in, you know it’s the start of something special.