Dark Waters – an exciting two day event brought to you by Nottingham’s Ministry of Goth (NMOG). The event provided an opportunity for music from the umbrella that is Goth to shine – and the beauty of this festival for me was the diversity of the bands: dark indie, post-punk, cold wave, dark electronica and psychobilly… with the black cave like venue as a perfect back drop.
The Friday night started with a bang – Dutch Order from London are proving to be a promising act. After the initial hiccup of the microphone crackling, they stomped through their set to play a gig that I feel was the best I’ve seen them – definitely one to watch. Next up were Malificent with their unique mix of metal and ballet, which is truely a spectacle to behold. They’re the sort of band that you know would be great to watch on a large stage. Lesbian Bed Death, much heavier than I expected. They’re a no-nonsense goth rock / punk hybrid who certainly appealed to the front row who were going wild for them. Nottingham’s own dark electronic duo, Method Cell, then went on to produce a professional performance amidst technical issues that were, to be fair, out of their hands.
Attrition suffered the most at the hands of the sound man as their set had to stop and start again. Saying this however, front man Martin Bowes pulled off an entertaining set, complete with insence sticks and off-stage grooving. The headliners for Friday, Devilish Presley, re-energised the crowd. They’re the sort of band that see technical issues and stick two fingers up at them. Frontwoman Jacqui Vixen stands on stage like she owns it, there’s a vitalness and attitude to her performance. By the end of their set, half the crowd is on stage with the band. A perfect end to the first evening’s proceedings.
Saturday commences, and to my relief – hooray – no sound problems! Nottinghams very own ‘dark poppers’, In Isolation, pumped through their set in a well rehearsed fashion – professional and on the ball. The frontman was clearly confident in his performance. Speedily on stage next was Luxury Stranger – another band with links to Nottingham – Echo and the Bunnymen crossed with Editors… but with balls. Dear God this lot have a big sound for a three piece and they stomped, posed and blasted through their 45 minute set in what felt like seconds. There’s something about this band – they get their claws in you and you just can’t escape… and thats a very good thing.
The Last Cry, from Brighton and fronted by the charismatic Andrew Birch, were the third act of the evening and again – a band who knows what they’re doing. Birch’s theatrics and Gahn-esque vocals provide an enteraining set. Next up are Scary Bitches – well, what can I say about these ladies other than “bats for dinner, bats for tea, bats for him and bats for me” – this sums them up in a nutshell. Their one hour set was a laugh-a-minute caberet show. Thank God they don’t take themselves too seriously as the now ‘smiling goths’ wouldn’t want them any other way.
Now on to the Saturday joint-headliners. First up, No More – NMOG’s ‘wild card’ in the mix. A German band that’s been going since the 80′s but have never played in the UK. No More are ‘art school’ in the very best sense of the phrase. Among the retro electro-clash noises, big beats, demanding vocal lines and crunchy guitar, they use an instrument called a theremin, which certainly creates an air of mystery and a sense of what is going on… Absolutely brilliant! Then it was time for Psyche (originally from Canada but now based in Germany) – what No More gave in arty electronic sounds, Psyche gave in catchy electronic sounds. The cavernous space of the venue turned into a full-on discoteque dance floor with people singing along and dancing like they just didn’t care. Vocalist Darrin Huss guided the dancers like a dark pied piper and their romp through Joy Division’s Disorder and Soft Cell’s marvelous track Sex Dwarf was wonderful.
Dark Waters Festival finished with a massive high – the atmosphere over the two days was electric, a sense that something is finally happening again for deep, passionate and thoughtful types of music in Nottingham. I for one really can’t wait for Dark Waters number .
Review by Lisa Waterman
