Hidden in a secret location deep in the Cornish fields, Knee Deep Festival has become a consistently exciting weekend for new music and original entertainment. Celebrating their fifth year of existence this year before take a sabbatical, the two-day affair kicks off today with three stages of eclectic and innovational music. Here’s just five of the bands we agree you should see across Friday and Saturday.
Releasing their accomplished self-titled debut album in March and following up with non-stop, exhilarating shows, Leeds’ Eagulls have made 2014 their own. They headline the Main Stage here, where you can expect to be incapsulated by their dark, ferocious post-punk heart and George Mitchell‘s incensed vocals. From listening to one of the highlights of the record in the adrenaline groove of ‘Tough Luck’, slight hints of ‘Disintegration‘ – era The Cure seep into their work, exposing an infectious, melodic attitude that will have any crowd captivated, much like The Horrors do with their live set.
Psychedelic, Garage, Surf, Lo-Fi, Acid Rock, Grunge, there’s no point in trying to settle Theo Verney into one genre, because he pretty much plays the lot. A vast amount of influences have led the Brighton slacker into creating riff-heavy grooves that touch on Ty Segall lost in a Quentin Tarantino Soundtrack, and doesn’t end there. ‘Heavy Sunn‘ from last year’s EP of the same name, was a lo-fi surf driving straight into a grungy k-hole of distortion, with head-nodding solos throw in for fantastic measure. Live Verney will sound even more dynamic and will let everything loose, expanded by a full-live band to give his tracks that extra level of balls-to-the-wall rock n’ roll.
The five-piece from London that do not let any barrier stop them from incorporating an idea or vision, Flamingods use a range of world and tribal instruments, organic synth and an assembly of hypnotising vocals that together create psychedelic, experimental work. They recently released their second album, ‘Hyperborea‘ on Mark Thomas from Islet’s label Shape Records, fitting right in with the band and labels expansive design and creative intentions. Live the group create an animated and entrancing experience, delving into improvisation within the seams, their set late into the night at Knee Deep will create the perfect party atmosphere.
Writing your debut album about sharing your birthday with Christ is always going to receive some questions, but from hearing this trio from South London’s record, driven by a 90s slacker-rock sound and lyrics not unalike Stephen Malkmus‘ written verse, Happyness work in the context of alternative. Their infectious single ‘Great Minds Think Alike, All Brains Taste The Same‘ is their ‘Cut Your Hair‘, a determined-two minutes, laced with woo-woos and lo-fi guitar, ‘Leave The Party‘ touches on Yo La Tengo territory, at ease and idyllic as boy-girl vocals meld together smoothly. ‘Weird Little Birthday‘ is a compelling indie-pop record, and in a field in Cornwall will have everyone thinking they are back at college.
Angela Won-Yin Mak was the guitarist in sadly departed Cambridge Shoegazers Carousels, before working on ‘Zaragoza‘ with Warm Brains, the solo project of Rory Atwell. Atwell and Won-Yin Mak went onto create velvet underground-esque garage with a hint of psych that is evident on their track ‘Devil’s Eyes‘. The 5-piece are bit of a family, having worked together on various other projects before forming Parlour together, coming from bands including Lost Fiction, Exlovers, Silkworms and more. Heading down to Cornwall after playing a big all-dayer for Marshall Teller Records a few days previously, Parlour will be a great spectacle this weekend.