Venue – Night Train, Bradford
Fri 23rd February
Friday part one
Review and Photographs by Linda McDermott
This weekend I have a seven-hour round trip to Bradford to see an array of bands over two days. Most of them I’ve never even heard of before, but I enjoy discovering new bands, so this is perfect for me.
This event has been organised by Upstaged Ltd to showcase some of the talent that is emerging on the rock scene. The bands have the potential of gaining a slot on the Trailblazer stage at the Call of the Wild festival which is held each year at the end of May in Lincoln. This isn’t a competition, there is no particular billing order, it is an event for bands to show the organisers what they’re all about with the chance to play to a much bigger crowd and give them a boost up the music scene ladder.
Each band had a thirty-minute slot, so let’s get started with Friday night’s bands.
Bands
Spyder Byte
Fire Garden
Saints Among Us
Luna Marble
Autonym
Archy and the Astronauts
Spyder Byte
First to hit the stage were Spyder Byte who were ready to bring a bit of hard rock to around seventy people. They got stuck right in and had a lot of stage presence as they sang their uptempo songs with great guitar riffs and harmonies. I particularly liked ‘In Your Face’ with its drum beat intro before kickass guitars joined in. It had the crowd chanting along to the chorus and that’s always a winner for me. What a great start to the night these guys have given us.
Set List
Nocturnal
On Time
Black Velvet Love
Double Dose
In Your Face
Spark
Hooked
Video
Hooked
Fire Garden
Next up were a three-piece band who definitely had their musical abilities pinned down with some heavy and intricate-sounding songs. Unfortunately for them, there was a bit of a technical problem throughout the song ‘Crabs’ but they played on regardless. They introduced a ‘new song that they had written the night before’ which they renamed ‘22nd February’ on stage, but I think they may rename it again! Jake said, “It was amazing to play to such a friendly and kind crowd and a massive thanks to Raz and Jon for giving us the opportunity to play”.
Set List
The Circle
Crabs
New One We Wrote the Night Before!!!!
Burn
Firebird
Video
There’s Something
Saints Among Us
I felt sorry for this band, right from the start of their set they had technical problems that never really got resolved before their thirty minutes were up. The alternative electro-rock band have some brilliant songs, that are made mesmerising by Maddy’s distinctive voice, but on this occasion, we only got glimpses of it because of the issues. Unfortunately, the sound was way too loud on and off the stage which distorted things for both the band and the audience, unfortunately, the band were unaware of how the audience was receiving them. However, Maddy says “For our first gig in Bradford we didn’t know what to expect, but we had an absolutely fabulous time, and we properly enjoyed being a part of such a talented line-up”. I’m hoping to see them again without the issues so I can enjoy their music.
Set List
Hallucinations
Falling
Heaven & Hell
God Is A Woman
Ashes To Ashes
Run
Home
Video
Ashes to Ashes
Luna Marble
This four-piece classic rock band from Manchester started as they meant to go on and used the whole stage to create a great atmosphere. There were guitar riffs aplenty that Led Zeppelin would have been proud of to accompany Maria’s very distinctive voice which has great tone and depth to it. They played a variety of songs that showcased what they are all about, and there’s no doubt they definitely brought their ‘A’ game to Bradford. Luna Marble has something special, I’m not sure they know how good they really are, but they have definitely gained some new fans tonight. Whether you are into your classic rock or not, you will enjoy listening to this band. I also loved watching Maria happily dancing around the stage with a tambourine in hand, interacting with the rest of the band while I listened to them play.
Set List
All of My love
The Ride
Sea of sorrow
Redemption
Crazy loving
Running
Waves
Video
All Of My Love
Autonym
Post-grunge, dirty blues alternative rock band, is how this band describe themselves and I was looking forward to finding out if that was true. Standout songs for me were ‘Not Today’ and ‘Where We All Going’, which showcase their talents perfectly. This band are all about raw gritty vocals and punchy guitar riffs and that’s what we got.
Set List
Not Today
Where We All Going
Do What You Do
Chase My Fate
Again
(Piper)
Wearing Thin
Video
Where We All Going
Archy and the Astronauts
There are three guys who had the hard task of playing to a dwindling audience at the end of a six-hour event. However, they didn’t waver in their task to showcase their style of rock music. I really liked their latest release, ‘Something Funny’, it’s a great catchy song with some gritty guitars driving this tune along. For three young musicians, who complement each other they’ve got a great future ahead of them. The band say of the event, “It was a lovely day! We try and take as much inspiration from other bands as we can, and Friday night was a goldmine of style and precision. It was a pleasure to share the bill with all of the bands. Being on last, we certainly had our work cut out, but salute the community that came down to support everyone, especially those that stayed late.”
Set List
Bound to Break
Cut Your Teeth
Spot of Rain
Monochrome
Animal
John Doe
Something Funny
Video
Something Funny
Although there were technical issues throughout the night the bands played on, and it was great to be out listening to some brilliant live music.
If you twisted my arm up my back and made me choose two bands (no one is) to go on and play on the Trailblazer stage at The Call of the Wild Festival in May, I’d have to choose Spyder Byte and Luna Marble as the standout bands of the night.
Tomorrow is day two of this amazing event for rock bands to show what they’re made of, and with seven more bands lined up, I can’t wait.
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