Rowan Bruce
With a pedigree that would put most bands playing stadiums to shame, Brighton’s Every Hell feature members of British underground institutions Black Peaks, Memory Of Elephants, No Violet and Broker, although this project leans more experimental than most of their work, blending doom metal and old-school punk with pop hooks and baritone sax-led jazz.
With only a single EP, 2024’s Vertebrate, behind them and an upcoming full-length album, Every Hell use everything at their disposal to blast through their short set, screeching through half an hour of all new material including forthcoming single ‘Let Me Go’, a shredding thrash and prog inspired hit which constantly, and closing track ‘Chokehold’, a more dramatic, slow paced progressive stoner anthem. Despite not playing the hits Every Hell give a small glimpse into their exciting new chapter with a dramatic and intriguing live show.
There are few artists in the post-hardcore world with as strong a resume as Kurt Travis. While he’s known for his stint as vocalist for Swancore pioneers Dance Gavin Dance, his bands Royal Coda and A Lot Like Birds as well as his math-rock focused record label Esque Records, Travis’s solo work remains equally impressive, keeping the complex guitar work of his other ventures while rounding the rougher edges into a more intimate mix of indie and progressive post-hardcore.
Keeping things nice and breezy, Travis and his trio of backing musicians amble through tracks like ‘Desperate’ with laid back ease despite their complex, math-rock influenced guitar lines but equally give funky tracks like ‘Tootsie Roll’ enough groove to keep the crowd moving. Diving into his extensive back catalogue, Travis showed he could still handle some of the old Dance Gavin Dance material, pulling out ‘Strawberry Swisher PT. 2’ and closing the set on ‘Uneasy Hearts Weigh The Most’. Kurt Travis leads a masterclass in crowd control, proving why he’s still one of the most respected names in modern post-hardcore.
No strangers to extensive international touring, Californian post-hardcore heroes Hail The Sun return to The Fleece for their debut Bristol headliner, last performing at the venue in 2022 as the main support for The Fall Of Troy. Rising from humble roots on their 2010 debut Pow! Right In The Kisser to last year’s unstoppable cut. turn. fade. black., the Chico, California quintet have always brought a sense of drama to their wildly inventive brand of prog-forward post-hardcore. Leaning heavily into their new material, Hail The Sun open their set with the opening track from their latest album ‘The Drooling Class’, a hectic yet catchy blast of energy with a huge sing-along chorus.
While much of their material is extremely upbeat, Hail The Sun know how to bring the energy down while keeping the audience transfixed on tracks like ‘Consumed With You’, a more delicate ballad which sees frontman Donovan Malero take centre stage with his powerful, captivating voice. Not letting the pace stay low for too long the band launch into ‘insensitive tempo’, an upbeat, Coheed And Cambria-esque prog emo banger which builds up to a gloriously memorable finale.
To celebrate their first Bristol headline show Hail The Sun delivered a career spanning set with tracks like ‘Burn Nice And Slow’ from Culture Scars demonstrating why the five-piece became darlings in the post-hardcore world. As a throwback to the band’s early days frontman Donovan Malero jumped behind the drum kit for a pair of songs, ‘Ow! (Slipidao!) [I Like It Though]’ and ‘Missed Injections’, shredding through complex rhythms while also handling acrobatic lead vocals in a captivating display of virtuosity.
Closing out on a pair of hits, the gentle and emotionally driven ‘Relax/Divide’ and the dynamic Divine Inner Tension era single ‘Maladapted’, Hail The Sun hit The Fleece with a blast of incredible musicianship and swaggering rockstar energy in a set that’s bound to be remembered.