Every live gig review, most recent first. Browse by venue, artist, or year below.
Browse by Venue
ASHTON GATE STADIUM, BRISTOL BEACON, Bristol Beacon, Bristol Sounds 2022, Bristol Sounds 2023, Bristol’s Lloyds Amphitheatre, Cardiff Castle, Cardiff, ELECTRIC BRISTOL, EXCHANGE, Jam Jar Bristol, LONG ASHTON COMMUNITY CENTRE, LOUISIANA, Loves Cafe, Marble Factory, O2 Academy Bristol, O2 Academy, Bristol, QUEEN SQUARE, ROUGH TRADE, Rough Trade, Bristol, ST GEORGE’S, STRANGE BREW, SWX, St George’s, Strange Brew, THE EXCHANGE, THE LOUISIANA, THEKLA, TRINITY, Thekla, Trinity Centre, Trinity Hall
Browse by Year
Browse by Artist
Punk Rock, Power Chords and Pure Joy Frank Turner & Bowling For Soup Bring Cardiff Castle to Life
Venue: Cardiff Castle, Cardiff Date: 2026-07-06T21:41:33.032Z The co-headline tour between Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls and Bowling for Soup was created in friendship, admiration and a magic syncing of schedules. Their musical styles don’t necessarily align but their shared defiance and punk rock ethos definitely do. As I stepped off the train, it felt…
REVIEW: ALDOUS HARDING, BRISTOL BEACON – ‘SURREAL, ENTHRALLING AND ENTIRELY HERSELF’
Venue: BRISTOL BEACON Date: Jun 4, 2026 Five albums in, and somehow I’ve never managed to see Aldous Harding live. But after hearing her new album’s first single One Stop I finally committed, headed to the Beacon and joined a devoted crowd. It was all Kiwi‑no filler from the start, with fellow New Zealanders and…
REVIEW: TOOTS & THE MAYTALS, TRINITY – ‘REMINDS US WHY THEIR LEGACY ENDURES’
Venue: TRINITY Date: May 12, 2026 I walked into the Trinity Centre battling hay fever and walked out with something far more powerful: Reggae fever. Toots and the Maytals have always held a special place in my heart. Their music has travelled through the generations of my family, becoming part of our shared soundtrack. Few…
REVIEW: JENS LEKMAN, STRANGE BREW – ‘IT’S A MUSICAL, IT’S A STORY, IT’S COMPELLING’
Venue: STRANGE BREW Date: Mar 16, 2026 It all started in 2004 when Jens Lekman sang: “If you ever need a stranger to sing at your wedding, a last-minute choice, I’m your man”. Except he’s no longer a last-minute choice, he is a wedding singer, meeting couples and writing them a song before performing it…
REVIEW: LUCY ROSE, ST GEORGE’S – ‘ELEGANTLY POWERFUL’
Venue: ST GEORGE’S Date: Mar 9, 2026 If ever a venue was fit to stage two phenomenal artists, the grand surrounds of St. George’s is the one. Lucy Rose is in town in the middle of her UK tour, a prelude to the upcoming release of her sixth studio album. She’s invited Margaret Glaspy as…
REVIEW: HEAVY LUNGS, THE LOUISIANA – ‘IF IN DOUBT GO INTO A TINY ROOM AND SWEAT IT OUT WITH STRANGERS’
Venue: THE LOUISIANA Date: Feb 2, 2026 Sometimes a gig exceeds your expectations and sometimes your mate carries the drummer out of the venue. This was a secret gig wasn’t it? I’m not sure if it was or not, but it sold out, so it must have done the trick. Having two of Bristol’s finest…
REVIEW: DOMINIE HOOPER, EXCHANGE – ‘VISCERAL, DESOLATE, BEAUTIFUL’
Venue: EXCHANGE Date: Jan 23, 2026 I’m no expert on refurbishment but when they managed to find both space and glamour in the Exchange’s basement, they mined gold. It’s now a bright, inviting venue. Less of a dungeon and more a creative space, where the band fit on stage: pure luxury, with rough edges still…
REVIEW: DOREEN DOREEN, ELECTRIC BRISTOL – ‘LEAVE YOUR EGO AT THE DOOR, GET ON THE DANCEFLOOR”
Venue: ELECTRIC BRISTOL Date: Dec 23, 2025 When I grow up, I want to be in Doreen Doreen. For a band founded in 1982 they are full of childlike mischief, maintaining the wonder and still ecstatic to be together on stage after all these years. The Bristol legends brought their annual Doreen Doreen party two…
REVIEW: MILLION DEAD, ELECTRIC BRISTOL – ‘SWEATY AND EUPHORIC’
Venue: ELECTRIC BRISTOL Date: Dec 15, 2025 “We outdate Myspace!” Frank Turner exclaims with a grin. Million Dead are back, for one tour only. 20 years have passed since the band split – but not before building a hardcore following for the post hardcore band that means the world to a lot of people. The…
Live Review | Kae Tempest @ O2 Academy, Bristol
Venue: O2 Academy, Bristol Date: 2025-11-14T14:57:44+00:00 I can’t be the only one who looked in disbelief and excitement when they saw a bill with both Kae Tempest and recent Mercury Prize nominee Jacob Alon set to share the same stage. Every type of intense beauty covered then: ideal. I’m pretty new to Jacob Alon’s music,…