Gig Review and Interview- The Confederate Dead and supports in Leicester
As far as gigs go, this one definitely walked or perhaps ran miles. With a glowing atmosphere throughout the night all four bands created a wonderful space within this lovely and intimate venue. Three bands supported The Confederate Dead at The Big Difference on Thursday 6 June, here’s more on them.
At seven-thirty the night properly began with the first support Leave Your Body Behind, throughout their set they played original songs such as ‘Rings Of Confusion’ that received a roaring love from the crowd and was a personal favourite for me. The set gave off an electrical feel and the band seemed as if they had a stress-free step in their walk, topped off with some of the coolest pairs of sunglasses. A great way to start the night for sure. Find their Instagram here.
Eight-thirty came around and as a result so did The People Assembly, playing a set that was so full of energy and life that it could’ve lifted the roofs of the room. The movements of the band on stage were beautifully messy, and it not only sounded but looked like a show. The band only played original songs that fed the audience so well that towards the end of their set people were dancing as if their life depended on it- this only increased the amazing atmosphere of the night. We got the chance to talk to the band a little about what they are like and where they stand, look below for more details. You can also find their Instagram here.
A very talented band touring with The Confederate Dead took the stage at nine-thirty, called Sierpinski. They played some amazing songs, my favourite being ‘Low Tide’ and continued to let the atmosphere of the night thrive. The harmony and mix of the four guitars used on stage was especially impressive, really standing out in the songs they were performing. The band orchestrated the set very well, giving a more chill but outgoing vibe and projecting it through the room. Find their Instagram here.
The night concluded with The Confederate Dead, which brought a lovely set full of original songs that radiated with the audience, some being ‘I Love Everyone But Me’ which is included in their new album and was a favourite, and ‘In My Electric Eye’. The band also used instruments such as a tambourine and a sound board to make the sound exactly as they wanted it to be heard by the audience, enhancing the music and bringing everyone along with it. Find their Instagram here.
The night ended with these four lovely and talented bands in a well-rated local venue in Leicester, more and more people arriving as the night had progressed on.
We got an opportunity to talk to some of the band members of The People Assembly, and got an insight into their progression as a band as well as how they go about making and performing music. Here’s more:
How did the band come about?
‘Most of us have been in the band for about 7 years now… a couple of us went to school together, one of them I’ve known my whole life… it’s all just people that we’ve known for ages and I think that definitely plays into it that we’re just best mates really’– Joel (Singer)
Have you always been writing original songs?
‘We made our first EP when we were 17, called ‘How to bomb-proof your horse’ now all available on Spotify, everything… we released our first album when we were 18… Because of how young we were we have kinda moved past it now, but we have a single coming out in about a month or so which we’ll be playing at a gig soon’– Joel (Singer)
‘The EP is longer than the album’– Andrew (Drummer)
‘We are mixing three of the four tracks ourselves, so it’s all DIY’– Joel (Singer)
How do you guys go about recording music?
‘We actually do quite a bit of work here (at The Big Difference), we set up amps downstairs and do whatever we can puzzle together with what we’ve got… in the future we’ll do the same, track everything live here and then take it away to work on it’– Joel (Singer)
Who writes the songs for the band?
‘We all do, absolutely entirely collaborative, we’ve always been like that which is often a difficult exercise… a lot of arguing back and forth on ideas but its all in service of making the music’– Joel (Singer)
What is your favourite gig you’ve playing in Leicester?
‘We always enjoy playing here, and we did our EP launch gig when we were 17 here back when it was called The Cookie so playing here is always great… its just fun and no stress at all’– Joel (Singer)
‘I like the 02 too, that was a really nice sound’– Andrew (Drummer)
Have you got any aims for your band?
‘At the minute we are trying to book a gig at The Windmill, we want more gigs in London and the cities and we’ve been doing a lot more gigs in Nottingham because Nottingham’s music scene at the minute is great… basically just to do more gigs out of the city and slowly build more of a following’– Joel (Singer)
‘I think theres something to say about Leicester and it’s local scene, I’m enjoying how its going… seeing it now it’s so much better than it was when we were a local band five or 6 six years ago, there’s more interest in music at the minute, as well as in younger bands… there’s more opportunities to be playing gigs especially here’– Joel (Singer)
‘I love the way this place operates to pay the bands as well, I could talk about it all day.. its great that young bands can come through, do a show and get paid for it, bring their friends… its just so much better now than it was’–Joel (Singer)
Have you got any advice for younger bands?
‘Just keep gigging’– Andrew (Drummer)
‘If you aren’t enjoying it, stop doing it, don’t worry about having five year plans or whatever just keep doing it if its fun… like the gig today was just fun to do and so we did it and if it stops being fun we’ll stop doing it’– Joel (Singer)
‘This is like the fifth show in the consecutive weeks’– Andrew (Drummer)
‘It’s a lot of effort and a lot of energy but its energy that’s worth spending because its so much fun’– Joel (Singer)
‘Don’t sweat the big picture just enjoy the gigs’– Joel (Singer)
How long did it take you all to start writing your own songs?
‘Pretty instantly, we did one cover on our first gig (Andrew: ‘Hated it’) and we did a cover of Ty Segall’s ‘Finger’ which is a good cover’- Joel (Singer)
‘We’ve only ever done three covers’– Andrew (Drummer)
What music would you say has influenced your band?
‘Because every member of the band listens to very different types of music, it’s all sorts of stuff- we aren’t really just fans of one specific genre of music’– Joel (Singer)
‘Hardcore’– Andrew (Drummer)
‘Yeah metal music, we are all into quite heavy metal stuff and I’ve often thought that the way we write songs is more akin to how metal bands write or structure songs’– Joel (Singer)
‘You always kinda know when the natural end of a song is as well’– Andrew (Drummer)
‘The structure of our songs is definitely influenced by metal music but its all just all sorts of stuff’– Joel (Singer)
How would you describe your band?
‘It’s an inside joke that no one else is in on and neither are we’– Jake (Guitarist)
