Did you know that Tuesdays are for live music? Neither did we, but The Kids Are Solid Gold showed us what a good time is about with a line-up made of three incredibly talented artists from the region… And Ireland! On Tuesday Sprints headlines Newcastle’s Head of Steam supported by The Samphires and Cat Ryan, and we had fun.
Opening are three-piece The Samphires, however in somewhat of a different setting. The band are, just for tonight, a duo and play their songs in a stripped back setting. Their timid performance works well to start up this crowd and with their warm voices they truly know how to melt our hearts. Strong melodies and grown in confidence, the two play their songs ending with two of our favourites, ‘Papercuts’ and ‘Coppers’! Despite the stripped back set did not only we but also some of their new fans in the room get to hear a great introduction to The Samphires’ sound.
We continue with Newcastle’s emerging artgaze band Cat Ryan who have been releasing some incredible songs in the past two years and are now working on their stage performance and growing a live audience. The band starts off with a joke, “we are Cat Ryan and we are going to play some death metal for you”, which receives some giggles and approving nods. The band play most of their released and crowdpleasing tracks with charm and a catchiness you can’t refuse. ‘Connection’, ‘Lost’ and ‘Amsterdam’ are undeniably infectious and still stuck in our heads. A bit more energy from the band on stage and they’ll be the next big thing!
Now the reason we had entered the venue was most of all Cat Ryan however we were also very intrigued by Dublin based poweroutfit Sprints who did not disappoint! From the get-go it was clear why they were headlining the stage and despite having to get into their sound, they soon got us shuffling our feet. A powerful lead singer almost lifted the roof of the building and played the audience like a puppet master. Great energy, building soundscapes throughout and incredible vocals make the band a live act to watch! Built on riffs and… Anger? Sprints well and truly know how to convey a message and played their set for a packed and bouncing room. For a first time in Newcastle, they really did leave quite the impression. Overall, our Tuesday was festive and rather memorable, great gig and great turnout, we’d be happy to do that again soon!
Our next live gig: Palma Louca, Stay Lunar and Firesites at Head of Steam on Thursday the 4th of November.
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