The crowd in Nottingham’s Bodega were treated to an evening of unique, genre-bending theatrics, courtesy of Priestgate. Fin Rowe reviews.
Combining the goth pop of bands like the Cure with Killers-esque indie rock, the quintet from Sheffield know how to captivate a crowd in a way that very few other bands could. For this, the band can thank frontman and lead vocalist, Rob Schofield. He is an absolutely electrifying performer, so much so that even if you didn’t like the music you’d still happily pay for a ticket just to see the performance. From ripping his shirt off to kissing guitarist Isaac Ellis, Schofield is a master of keeping the crowd fully engaged in the band’s display.
"Said studio recordings have a perhaps lighter feel to them, with glassier guitar tones, giving the songs more of a sense of pop music to them. However, when live, Priestgate much more heavily lean into a sound far dirtier and atmospheric."
This is not to say, though, that Priestgate rely on stage theatrics for their merit as a band. With bright and driving guitar melodies contrasting with vocals reminiscent of one Ian Curtis, Priestgate offered a truly striking performance, containing an edge that you perhaps wouldn’t find in the studio recordings of their songs. Said studio recordings have a perhaps lighter feel to them, with glassier guitar tones, giving the songs more of a sense of pop music to them. However, when live, Priestgate much more heavily lean into a sound far dirtier and atmospheric.
Priestgate are yet to release their first full length studio album, but have more than enough songs to excite the crowd and get everyone jumping. A particular highlight is one of their newer songs, Some Things Never Change, the chorus of which is an emotionally charged cry from Schofield that resonated around the Bodega, quite unlike anything that the crowd would have heard before. The band also treated the crowd to a currently unreleased song as the final song of their set. Just before this, though, for their penultimate song, they played the fan favourite that is Summ(air). A particularly fitting song for this time of year, Schofield rues the hot, long days of summer while lamenting the dark days of winter we are currently dealing with. He uses the contrast between the two seasons as an effective metaphor for his happiness in relationships and how he misses the girl who felt like summer to him.
With songs as stirring as Priestgate’s, it is hardly a surprise that they had fully packed out the small but intimate venue. Fans filled it up astonishingly quickly, with people lining even the back walls by the time the band came out. The crowd was truly a testament to the passionate and loyal following Priestgate have managed to acquire before even having released an album. One can only imagine what the future holds, but Priestgate have all the charisma, talent and enthusiasm to take them all the way to the top of the music scene.
Finlay Rowe
Edited by: Jodie Averis
Cover photo courtesy of WildBlanketBis.
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