Handmade Festival, Leicester Academy

Frightened Rabbit, British Sea Power, Honeyblood, Jaws, Gallops, Superfood, Get Inuit, Happyness

Tonight, I’m in Leicester and feeling a bit nostalgic. I’m feeling that way because a trip to see a band in Leicester used to be a weekly occurrence (back in the day...) such was its draw for bands but probably nowhere has been butchered of their traditional gig venues more than the Leicester.

The Granby Halls went before we entered the new millennium, The Charlotte lasted barely a decade longer as a gig venue (but at least it's still there) and the revered Magazine went before I could even get there. All big losses but for me a trip to Leicester almost always meant a trip to one of the city’s two universities.

However, it’s been sixteen long years since my last visit to a Leicester university and that was to the much loved De Montfort Uni Arena (formerly the Leicester Poly Arena of course) to see Feeder (naturally). The Arena was one of the best around for sound and atmosphere, apparently it was loved almost as much by John Peel as it was by me. Sadly, it closed its doors to bands in 2003 and then sat there for a decade or more waiting to be reborn but it never was. It’s been even longer, 1992, 25 years since I was last at Leicester University (Zodiac Mindwarp by the way). That would probably have been in the Percy Gee building, never a favourite of mine and it never got the bands that the Poly did but it was decent enough.

The Percy Gee building is where I am tonight. In 2010, it was revamped as the University got into bed with the Academy organisation that you could say had done so much over the years to put so many venues like those in Leicester out of business. Whereas once a band would climb the ‘ladder’ of venues within a city as they grew in popularity, now they can do it all under one roof. Which is probably why it has taken me so long to make my first visit as Academy visiting isn’t really one of my must-do pastimes.

The four rooms under the Academy roof tonight host the 5th Handmade festival of which it is also my first visit. As I walk in at around 6.30pm, God Damn are playing loudly on the main stage. Apologies to them but they are so not my thing and especially not when my head is still a little tender from the night before.

Happyness upstairs in Academy 2 are better. Yes they’re a bit jangly 90’s indie but still very pleasant to listen to.

Moving back into Academy 1, I have to confess that musically it's a nice venue and ticks most of the required boxes. Unfortunately it has the standard appalling Academy range of drinks. I had hoped they'd have a beer tent as it's a festival and there are plenty of decent food tents outside but no. There's also no access to the Uni's own bar which used to do a decent pint or two but that may no longer the case of course.

One of the reasons I’m here is to see Honeyblood, who are a real favourite of mine at the moment and they are up next. 

Consisting of just singer/guitarist Stina Tweeddale and drummer Cat Myers with a sound reminiscent of the Belly era but they pack more girl power per pound than many bands with twice as many members. Sadly, they cram just six songs into their half an hour slot but still leave a big favourable impression.

A lot of bands seem to be struggling to set up and sound check in the required window. Superfood back upstairs in Academy 2 really struggle and come on well late but then it probably serves them right for being so arty and technical.

I would have really liked to have seen them again but I give up on them and head back downstairs to the more stripped back Scholar Bar where Superfood’s loss is Get Intuit's gain. They seem to have no such problems getting straight 'into it' and they turn out to be the find of the night.

Their songs are all played with a manic intensity and singer Jamie Glass is a joy to behold. They play a set full of wit and humour along with some pretty decent guitar playing which backs up some really catchy tunes. One of which, their recent single ‘Barbiturates’, is an absolute pop classic.

British Sea Power don't seem to struggle getting their foliage set up with time to spare but getting the necessary wires in the right places seems to take a lot long and they too come on late.

Their new album contributes a large portion of the set and in fact the opening five songs which, from a record that is still only a few weeks old, seems to subdue even their hardcore support. A pulsating combo of 'No Lucifer' and 'Remember Me' eventually restores disorder, then the bears are in the crowd... and everyone's trying to grab them for a selfie, meaning everything is again all right with the world.

As BSP close with their epic instrumental ‘The Great Skua’ I move onto a band with a set full of them. There's been quite a bit of talk about Gallops over the years although mainly because they did the rock 'n' roll thing of making one well received album and then splitting up. Now they’re back and, well, perhaps need to be viewed from afar with the aid of some substance to be appreciated fully. 

Upstairs Jaws are much sweeter on the plate, perhaps too much so. They remind me a little of Haircut 100 or perhaps it’s the Foals sound they’re after. Not my thing either but as they’re already well on their way to stardom they don’t really need my approval anyway.

I haven't seen Frightened Rabbit for a while and I have always been a bit disillusioned by the way they ultimately turned out. For a band build on the misery that Scott Hutchinson spread across their first two albums they have gone on to make that despair quite upbeat and now the band are very much rock stars that have embraced a sound that is bordering on stadium rock. I never thought that would be how they'd go. I’m not sure how you can rewind that and presumably the band don't want to.

That said, classics like ‘Heads Roll Off, ‘Fast Blood’ and real oldie ‘Square 9’ still sound great but whether they need three guitars to pull these off I’m not sure. FR entertain but it still doesn't feel right hearing them rock out so much.

The hardcore fans here continually call for the cult track ‘Snake’ which Hutchinson maintains is just to piss him off (as it's rather naff) but it’s probably more of a call for a more stripped back sound and maybe he should consider embracing the project.  

Hutchinson does further stoke my nostalgia trip when he alludes back to their performance at the much missed Summer Sundae Festival. I was at that one too and while that probably won’t come back either Handmade is certainly a nice additional to be going on with for now.

We Are Scientists, Rock City, Nottingham

I miss the first of tonight’s bands, The Heartbreaks, who were due on a 6:45 which is way too early to start a gig but I do see the second band, who are called Superfood and come from Birmingham. They play to a pretty small crowd, so I hate to think how few The Heartbreaks played in front of.

Superfood are very 90s, nodding their guitars furiously at the heavier side of Britpop. They also have a female bass player, which was almost compulsory in the 90s, with waist length hair, boots, black tights and a bare midriff. What's not to like?

The music? Oh yes, that’s not bad either particularly if you like your indie sort of 90s retro, like I do. I’ll be on their website later.

With only half an hour to go until We Are Scientists are due to hit the stage, Rock City is still looking a bit sparse and under half full tonight. I start wondering if perhaps the WAS bubble has burst and it’ll just be us diehards tonight but then suddenly the place starts to fill up. By the time the band take the stage, to the tones of REO Speedwagon’s ‘Keep on Loving You’, the place is almost full, although with the balcony closed.

I'm not sure I like the baseball hat Keith and perhaps he’s not sure about it either as it’s off after just one song, a newbie ‘Return the Favor’ from their just released new album ‘TV en Français’.

Old favourite ‘After Hours’ follows and then we get down to the serious stuff, the banter. Although... perhaps the banter’s a bit tired this year. I think we've heard all these gags about Robin Hood before, like the last time they played Nottingham... and the time before... and Keith still can’t pronounce Nottingham. So it’s sort of good when the boys move on to argue about Miley Cyrus.

In between the banter, there’s the music of course, which is still good and it’s great to see that everyone still goes mental for ‘Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt’. I’ll assume that girl who is yelling ‘My body is your body, I won't tell anybody, if you wanna use my body’ at the top of her voice in my ear doesn’t mean it, at least not to me. Perhaps she’s yelling at Keith.

She’d be wasting her time yelling at Keith Murray’s sidekick and bass player Chris Cain. Chris still seems distracted at the thought of Miley Cyrus, who apparently is in the crowd tonight. ‘Scream if you’re here Miley’ he asks and Miley obliges, screaming from all four corners of the venue at the same time. Impressive. This one’s for you ‘Sprinkles’, another of their new tracks.

The highlight, as ever (for me), follows in the glorious ‘Textbook’ from way back as they play pretty much all the big songs you’d expect them to play except for ‘This Scene is Dead’, which is a bit of a big omission but no worries, I like it when bands shake things up and there’s more than enough oldies tonight to keep everyone satisfied.

Highlight of the new material probably belonged to ‘Make It Easy’ which comes in three from the end and then in just over an hour and only 14 tracks they’re rounding things off with ‘It’s a Hit’.

They come back on for a photo with the crowd and Chris dedicates ‘Can't Lose’ to everyone in the audience called Chris... or Miley.

Then I discover that the guy stood next to me on the front row has colluded with one of the bouncers and has got a note up on to the stage where it’s stuck to Keith’s jacket. Keith reads it out and it’s a marriage proposal, not to Keith but from the guy to his girlfriend. Who, as they are both hauled up on stage, replies ‘well I’ll have to now’. That may be a yes.

The night ends with ‘The Great Escape’ dedicated to the happy couple and of course, Miley, who presumably is by now down the front screaming along. Possibly.

Then they’re gone and all ready to spend their day off tomorrow in Nottingham, the lucky people.

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