By Jenny Dean
Images by Kieran Whitfield
Featured image: Black Rain
Local music fans from Sunderland and beyond flocked to Independent on Jan 30th to be part of an incredible fundraising effort, as well as to enjoy six genre-varying bands across the venues’ two stages. The gig, which was part of the Independent Venue Week celebrations, was conceived and put together by James Critchlow of CRITCH to raise money for the Sunderland Soup Kitchen charity, and by the end of the night, the fundraising efforts had reached over £1100!
Whoever said no one wants to go to a gig in January clearly hasn’t met Critch.
The evening was kicked off by a raucous performance from Newcastle rock band Odyssey, who have played at the venue recently as part of The Brand New Club, as well as bassist Harry having just completed a country wide tour with Paulie Boy Blues, alongside Critch drummer Adam Crookes. Despite being young, this band has all the makings of a successful musical career, with the audience not hesitating to get involved, get dancing, and get hyped for the next band, Trivia.
This two-piece always impresses. For having only two members, both of whom are in their mid-teens, you’d think they were seasoned professionals that had been in bands for years. The songwriting talents, as well as both of the lasses being very obviously in love with playing their instruments, makes for an enjoyable set each time, and I’m personally curious to see where they take their sound, and where it takes them. They will be continuing their fundraising efforts on Feb 27th at Vixen bar in Hartlepool alongside Claudia and Polyfillas to raise money for Harbour, which is set to be a packed day of live music, market stalls, and good vibes.
(Rumour has it they might be thinking about recording soon, but shh, that’s a secret so don’t tell anyone.)
Bogus were upstairs next, and intelligence (The Bunker calendar) tells me that they are definitely getting some recording done soon, VERY soon in fact. Unfortunately I missed their set as I needed to restore my strength, but something tells me I’ll have ample opportunity to catch their melodic indie sounds very soon, as these lads are no stranger to Sunderland stages; having played at The Bunker and Independent many times over the last year and a bit, as well as having venues such as Pop Recs and Diego’s under their belt. This band loves playing in Sunderland so much that they already have a return to Independent booked for Feb 28th, and since the crowd enjoys them so much every time they play, then why not!
Back downstairs, Black Rain were getting ready to kick off their set. The self-proclaimed ‘Too goth to be punk. Too punk to be goth’ band had even brought along copies of their debut album on vinyl for fans to purchase, which is also available on their Bandcamp alongside other merch if you haven’t managed to get your hands on it yet. Josh, Scott, and Mick are absolute pros and delivered a gothy-punky-fusiony set of tunes that fans in the crowd, who are well versed in the BR catalog, were singing along to. Twenty-five minutes of pure electricity, which meant that the audience was buzzing by the time the penultimate act, the man himself, Critch, took to the stage.
Anyone who’s been complaining about the cold weather lately would have been quite at home in the upstairs room at this point in time. An entire room full of excited, sweaty, and ready to have a good time music lovers were called into action as James and his Critchlings amped the energy up to 100. With a set full of fan favourites, EP tracks, and even some new tunes, Critch commanded the room, keeping everyone hooked on his movements, and of course, causing absolute mayhem.
But if you thought that was it, oh, theres more. Headliners Red Remedy came in clutch to keep the vibes going after Critch, and to see the event out with a loud, heavy, electric end to the evening. This band has been seeing insane growth recently, picking up fans from all corners of the globe —notably finding a keen fanbase in countries such as Germany and the Netherlands who love their intense ‘nu-gaze’ style — and with more tunes on the way, the fans will be getting fed nicely while the band can hopefully manage to plan some live dates in Europe. Us Sunderlanders, however, will be able to see them on Feb 27th at their own headline show at Independent for a full set of bangers.
All of the band members, team, and anyone who had a hand putting this event together should be commended. January is a notoriously hard month to pry people from the warmth of their homes to a gig, but even through the nasty weather, the masses turned up to support an incredible cause and raise an amount for the Sunderland Soup Kitchen that is sure to be appreciated by many. Here’s to doing it again, same time next year?
To keep up with what’s happening over at the soup kitchen, to get involved, or to make a donation, follow their Facebook page.
