The Sheffield Scenester

Burden opened the latest Soundclash, instantly summing up what these events are about: giving young local bands an opportunity to get up on stage and show what they can do, introducing their music to people who might not otherwise have heard it. Given that their set comprised mainly of covers, I got the impression Burden are still finding their feet and getting used to performing in front of crowds. The six-piece band pretty much filled the small stage and quickly made a good impression with a rendition of Blink 182's 'All the Small Things', which was spot on and soon followed by an equally well-executed cover of The Arctic Monkeys song, 'Fluorescent Adolescent'. The band seemed to concentrate on keeping things tight and playing as well as they could, perhaps at the expense of looking up to take in the atmosphere of the room. That was left to singer Ciaran Wilson, who did his bit to get the audience involved, especially during a notably enthusiastic version of Green Day's 'American Idiot'. There was an apparent confidence amongst the band and they embraced being up on stage in true rock 'n' roll style with drummer, Alex Shaw, playing a solo before bassist, Nathan Law, kicked off the bass introduction to one of their own songs, 'Ignite'. This one fit perfectly with the covers as the rest of the band chipped in with vocals on the rebellious, Ramones-style chorus. Overall, a very solid performance showing great promise. Definitely one to watch in future.


I last saw Cut Your Wings headline Soundclash at The Boardwalk and came away raving about them. That was the first time I'd heard them and was looking forward to the Academy performance. I must confess, I didn't actually make any notes during the gig because I just wanted to enjoy the set. I suppose you could say I'm "winging it". See what I did there? Never mind...

This gig was more of the same and I could just as easily point you in the direction of the Boardwalk review, such is the consistency of Cut Your Wings' performances. You don't always get that degree of musicianship on a local scale so it's a pleasure to watch and listen to a band who really have their stuff together. Highlights included, 'Lonesome Man', the ever-groovy, 'So High', with its impressive and intricate bass playing from Nick, and a raucous finale of, 'Cut Your Wings', during which, singer Rob jumped the barrier and apparently scared everyone because they all moved backwards! The pace of the performance meant that Rob was out of energy by then and decided against attempting to jump the barrier and back onto stage to close the set. Wise man! All the while, guitarist, Matt, seemed to mind his own business, focused on rockin' and blasting out the dirty, fuzzy riffs which suit this band so well. My attention at that point though was drawn to drummer, Mark, as I noticed he seemed to be taking great delight in beating someone else's drum kit to within an inch of its life! Once again, a brilliant performance which I couldn't fault. You can pay me later, lads!


The Black Flowers, all suited and booted, looked like they would be brining something a little different to the stage. An altogether cleaner and softer sound, giving singer, Ben Stanton, some ideal melodies over which he could deliver pitch-perfect vocals, most evident in 'Play with Me, Play with Fire'. Throughout their set, each member of the band showed good amounts of talent. From the Johnny Cash-like dueling guitars of Ben and Aaron Butcher, to the straight-forward yet complimentary bass lines from Ashley Birch, and the various creative drum beats from Mark White. Plenty of styles could be heard, ranging from 80's pop to the latest indie vibes and, when weaved together, the results were quite interesting and unlike anything else I've been hearing locally.


Headliners, The Plug Factory had brought a decent number of supporters with them and walked onto stage to a big round of applause. Bringing a punchy, fast-paced sound with all the combined trademarks of indie and a bit of punk, it's all catchy and easy to get into. Every song in the set encourage a full room of fans to sing along and front man, Mike seemed to revel in it. Plagued by sound problems though, Mike almost lost his cool and things could have fallen apart. Up until that point about half way through the set, bassist, Aaron looked like he was really enjoying himself, but it then seemed as though he felt almost responsible because the initial sound problems concerned the bass levels. The band certainly weren't at fault and I have to give them credit for apologising to the audience. It was obvious they were intent on giving the best performance possible. The sound was never quite put right but the band pulled together and battled on, especially during a seriously impressive and surprisingly enjoyable cover of Spandau Ballet's 'Gold'. The audience really got into that and the collective atmosphere helped the band through. The highlight of the set for me was, 'That Girl', with some fast-paced fret work from guitarist, Danny, and sizzling hi-hat sounds from drummer, Matty.

With their well-crafted songs and a dedicated following, there's no reason why Plug Factory can't go on to much bigger things.

Words and Photos by Paul Handley