This gig was definitely one to for the unsigned bands of Kent who gave up their time to raise over £600 for charities over in Ukraine. Though a smaller venue, the sound was impressive and resonated through the crowd. Opening up the event was Sayonara Suckers, a local band with a great sound that delivered a mountain of fast paced songs with a lot of shouting.
The second band on were a recently formed local band, Ode To Sleep consisting of three who write punk/metal music by their own description; their vocalist caught my attention the most with her powerful vocals and the guitarist with his charisma and energy to jump around on a smaller stage. The band made the most of their half an hour set throwing in a cover of “Heathens” by Twenty One Pilots which was a nice touch. In between Ode To Sleep and the next artist Estelle Mey, the show’s promotor Andrew Kesby invited two Ukrainian women to the stage to talk about their experiences and how they fled from war which was a touching and important section of the event.
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Next to the stage was Estelle Mey who in my opinion, has the most beautiful and unique heavy voice I have heard in the Kent area. Estelle was accompanied by her drummer Rob Dowsett who is as equally impressive a musician as Estelle herself. Estelle with her powerful voice and impressive skills on the guitar matched with Dowsett’s talent on the drums. The duo should go very far in the music industry when given the chance to show off their incredible talents. Dowsett’s speed matched his technique on the drums along with his accuracy and he is the drummer to watch in the Kent area.
The next and final band on were Crostpaths, headlining the night and opening up with a creative introduction by interacting with the crowd and splitting them down the middle to engage in a ‘high five’ wall of death which was a funny and interesting way to form a mosh pit in a smaller venue.
All of Crostpaths had a creative flare, engaging with the crowd throughout most of their set to involve them in each of their songs which was refreshing and new. Most local bands prefer to stand still and perform their songs whilst the of Crostpaths made sure everybody had a good night full of heavy riffs and powerful drums. The guitarist, Michael Edwards, stood out the most with his skill on the guitar and his charisma on stage that matched that of vocalist Richie Murray Jack whose vocals were aggressive and a pleasure to listen to. Richie’s vocals vibrated through the venue and I was even more impressed when the band mixed heavy metal with fast paced vocals that could be considered rap vocals.
Overall, this local gig was a fantastic way to raise money to help the Ukrainian people whilst showcasing the unsigned talent of Kent.
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Photos by JMJ Visuals
