Ez Luscombe
Opening the show, hometown heroes Hamburger (who unsurprisingly got their name from meeting at a fast food restaurant, before you ask) are a kitschy pastiche of all of the weird and whimsical parts of the UK indie and punk-adjacent scene. Combining slice-of-life lyrics that celebrate all things quirky with melancholic riffs, unserious stage banter, (highlights include the Super Monkey Ball 2 theme) and swirling guitar tones that wouldn’t sound out of place on a My Bloody Valentine release, Hamburger’s offbeat yet undeniably catchy approach to emo combined with a dynamic and confident stage presence is exactly why they’re a pivotal part of Bristol’s diverse musical scene. Awkward in an endearing way, its a wonderful set.
With 2025 release Wield Your Hope Like a Weapon being featured amongst our 50 best albums of last year, Exeter’s finest Soot Sprite’s striking blend of shoegaze, dream-pop, and emo was a highlight of the evening. Opening their set with the dynamic ‘Surprise Guilty Party’, their already layered and established sounds even more lush and multifaceted live, fully allowed the powerful vocals of frontwoman and guitarist Elise Cook to really shine through.
Their bitterly honest and deeply personal lyricism that discusses mental health, feeling overwhelmed by the current political climate, and toxic relationships make Soot Sprite one of the most exciting new independent bands in a while. Genuinely, this set only proves them as one of the best names in UK emo and a band worthy of such hyperbole.
2025 saw East Anglian indie-punkers SUDS have had a belting year as a band. Their most recent album Tell Me About Your Day Again was a wonderful record bound by multifaceted lyricism, pleasant harmonies, and midwest emo-esque guitar lines, and their extensive touring alongside acts such as Dikembe, Macseal, and really big really clever is further proof of a band enjoying the spoils of the work they’ve put in. If this set is anything to go by then SUDS are in for another massive year.
Opening their set at the Louisiana with the electric and fuzzy ‘Paint My Body’, the energy in the room is fully matched the bands sheer intensity. they then followed up this infectious prowess with more upbeat cuts off their latest album, including the punky three-part harmonies of ‘Heavy in the air’, the grippingly anxious ‘I’ve been working on my posture’, and the emotive ‘Quietly feeling’ as a newly-formed five piece, with touring member and contributor Pedro Danger being rightfully recruited as an extra guitarist and (hopefully) permanent member of SUDS.
The highlight of the night is a stripped-back rendition of ‘Holding on and giving up’ with lead vocalist Mae Carter and drummer Jack Ames both on lead vocalist and guitar duties. The acoustic quality to this minimalist performance really allowed both voices to stand out and the the desperately moving lyrics offset the crystal clear harmonies perfectly. A truly remarkable performance that’s a powerful ode to their roots in folksy aesthetics and uncontrived lyricism and is further proof that every musician involved in SUDS has evident and raw talent.
Ending their set with arguably their most well-known song ‘A Terrible Thing’ from their 2023 debut album The Great Overgrowth, the show may have ended on a more mid-tempo and melancholic note, but every single live show that the now-quintet perform cements SUDS as one of the UK’s best kept secrets, as well as a live act that you won’t want to miss. Catch them at Norwich’s The Holloway alongside Problem Patterns, Stupid World, and Slowly in March. You certainly won’t regret it.