The TSOTA Leeds Gig Digest: October 2015

After a brief hiatus, the TSOTA Leeds Gig Digest is back! With Beacons Metro Festival and the opening of Headrow House, there’s plenty on this month for the enterprising music-centric night owl. New writer Isabel Drake brings you her pick of the month:

East India Youth, 2/10/15 @ Headrow House

There are some fantastic acts lined up for Beacons Metro, a programme of events spanning 2 months and 3 cities created by the Beacons Festival team. They describe it as ‘a metropolitan music festival celebrating the very best in music, art & food’. This includes East India Youth, the nom-de-plume of the musical genius that is William Doyle. With influences like Bjork and Brian Eno, East India Youth is a heady mixture of neo-classical noise, Detroit techno and pop. He is a one-man-band who plays guitar, drops beats and sings all at once. When he’s on stage you feel as though he’s going through a breakthrough of some sort – truly mesmerizing and definitely worth catching a glimpse of.

Everything Everything, 17/10/15 @ Canal Mills

Another headliner from Beacons Metro is headliner art-rock band Everything Everything. They combine Jonathan Higgs’ outrageous high pitched vocals with pop synths to create an original, vaguely surreal sound. With their second album ‘Get to Heaven’ out this year, the band still seem to stand out as something very special.

Moodswings 17/10/15 Beaverworks

If you’re looking for a night of ska, hiphop, reggae, jungle and glitch-hop then this is the event for you! Moodswings has a brilliant line up this month including the likes of DJ Syntax, Mr Tea and the Minions, Howla and Rumpsteppas. There is also a fancy dress theme of ‘Indigenous Origins’ to get your teeth into, live art, performers and cake!

Spector, 25/10/15 @ Brudenell Social Club

Here’s some 80s pop synth to send tingles up your spine. This London-based band have recently released their second album, ‘Moth Boys’ which is filled with swooning lyrics and dreamy melodies. There are definite influences of Talking Heads and Roxy Music to this band with a hint of Pulp. They will be performing at the Brudenell Social Club as part of their impressive 3 week, 13 date tour. Be sure to bring a torch to shine.

Selatino, 25/10/15 @ Sela Bar

This is a monthly ‘future latin sound’ night at Sela Bar with a different artists playing at each event. It is a free gig that’s worth dropping into as Dorotop will always be playing an ‘andean music dj set’ after the main band. Dorotop’s sets are a unique experience often combined with maracas and face paint. In her own words she says the event is ‘perfect for hungry ears to taste some delicious, retro and electronic Andean music from Latin America.’

The Staves, 27/10/15 @ The Wardrobe

Sisters, Emily, Jessica and Camilla Staveley-Taylor, from Watford, Hertfordshire, make up this folk trio of beautiful, strong, passionate harmonies. This is girl power in a more subtle, less predictable form. With their second album produced by Bon Iver this gig will most certainly be a moving, potentially tear-jerking evening.

Beardyman, 30/10/15 @ The Wardrobe

There’s beatboxing and there’s Beardyman. He manages to bring this skill to a whole new level by combining comedy and wit with his artistic talent using his ‘real time music production machine’. There’s nothing else quite like it. Having previously performed at the BBC Comedy Proms and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, his performances are always utterly mind boggling.

Isabel Drake