Rowan Bruce
Taking inspiration from everyone from Feeble Little Horse to Neutral Milk Hotel, Bristol’s own Foot Foot have spent the last few years exploring their chaotic folk meets prog sound, pushing into broad sonic territory without frontwoman Esther Pollock raising her voice above an intimate whisper.
Picking tracks from their debut album Still Waters, Empty House, released back in February, Foot Foot carry their live show with a quiet confidence, driven by violin and saxophone melodies intertwining with American Football style guitar work and off-kilter rhythms. While they draw from influences far and wide, there are truly few bands that sound like Foot Foot.
Lying somewhere between the rich textures of shoegaze and the headstrong attitude of indie rock, Eli Dayo storms the stage with fierce vocals and intricate guitar work. Opening her set with single ‘Confidence’ Eli Dayo thunders through a thirty minute blend of mesmerising R&B vocals, funk inspired riffs and diverse sonic experimentation.
The single ‘Too Much’ exemplifies Dayo’s hypnotic style with a deceptively complex groove led by a powerhouse vocal performance and punchy bass riff. Closing out on the slow-building and contemplative track ‘Island’, Eli Dayo shows off her ability to write fun, catchy and memorable singles while breaking free of expectations and diving deeper into eclectic and niche genres.
Blending earworm funk grooves with prog and shoegaze exploration, Bristol based artist Lawi Anywar has been making his mark on the UK’s experimental music scene for over half a decade, appearing at Arctangent, Portals and Outer Town Festivals. Opening with the title track from his newly released sophomore album Centenarian, Anywar, as the leader of his five-piece band, leaps effortlessly between intricate Thundercat style bass shedding and soft, understated vocals all while cutting through an intense wall of distorted guitars.
While Lawi Anywar leads from the low end, guitarists Ester CG, Jordan Woollgar and Mike Griffiths are given the freedom to create expressive soundscapes, sneaking in math rock rhythms on ‘Court Jester’ and leaning into energetic, And So I Watch You From Afar style post-rock riffs on ‘Lordvessel’ without losing the danceable grooves.
The single ‘I See You’ stands out as a highlight of the set, ramming dense guitar textures up against dark and lush bass chords with Anywar’s vocals floating effortlessly overhead before breaking down into an explosion of shoegaze noise. Ending on ‘Grey Time’ and it’s climactic post-rock breakdown before returning for an encore of ‘The Wall’, Lawi Anywar delivers an eclectic set celebrating both his funk roots and current status as a trailblazer in Bristol’s thriving experimental music scene.