Viva Brighton Issue #80 October 2019

MUSIC
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Ben Bailey rounds up the local music scene
CIEL
Tue 1st, Green Door Store, 7.30pm, £10/8
It’s always intriguing to hear of the appeal that
Brighton has for musicians from elsewhere.
Dutch singer and multi-instrumentalist Michelle
Hindriks decided to stay here after a decade of
trips to the city convinced her it was the place to
put down roots – not that it’s stopped her band
CIEL going back to play festivals and tour supports
in the Netherlands. The trio have recently
been recording the follow-up to their 2017 EP
which situated Hindriks’ breath-like vocals in a
pleasantly upbeat dream-pop bubble. They’ve
been booked by Melting Vinyl here as support
for Brooklyn alt-rockers TEEN, alongside Brighton
shoegazers HANYA – another likeminded
trio out to make a FULL-CAPS statement with
their band name.
ARXX
Mon 28th, Hope & Ruin, 7.30pm, £5/3
Arxx can expect a proper
homecoming party at
this show after being on
the road for two months
touring in Europe and
the UK. The ‘gal pal’
duo have been going in
their current form for just a couple of years, but
they’ve already honed a powerful sound that
bristles with the kind of confidence that only
comes from incessant gigging. Their latest single
Y.G.W.Y.W. (You Got What You Want) is even
more strident than the last, channelling the angst
of early Hole into what could genuinely be called
an anthem of empowerment. Like the rest of
their set it’s heavy on the riffs and easy on the
ears, but only in the sense that the drums and
distortion never get the better of the melody.
COLLATERAL LANGUAGE
Tue 29th, Komedia Studio
Bar, 7.30pm, £5/3
This Halloween charity
special showcases music
from three young Brighton
acts ranging from hip
hop to grunge and R&B,
but the line-up seems to
make a certain sense in
that we’re assured they’re
all ‘local witches here to ward off evil spirits with
their wicked songs’. Boudicca (pictured) has
come up strong in the last year or so, delivering
fiercely political rhymes with mischievous melodies
that have won her freestyle battles as well as
some decent support slots. Tilda Allie brings her
determined fusion of pop, jazz and electronica,
while the punchy fuzz of Kids R Kruel rounds
off the night as only a ‘shed punk farm family’
know how.
BUFFO’S WAKE
Thu 31st, Rialto Theatre, 7pm, £10/7
Buffo’s Wake are a homegrown gypsy punk gang
who have toured all over Europe and beyond,
but rarely play in Brighton. Here they’re expanding
into an eleven-piece orchestra for one
night only to celebrate the release of their second
album and lament the country’s supposed
break from the EU. The band’s fondness for the
continent is clear both in the Balkan influences
that drive their raucous cabaret folk and the anti-Brexit
shtick of their launch party theme (DJ
Brexit Banger Bus will be hosting the afterparty
with a pun-addled playlist). Get there early to
catch some jubilant banjo shredding from Dr
Bluegrass and a high-energy brass workout from
Town of Cats.
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