The Wytches, consisting of Kristian, Dan, Mark and Gianni, brought with them to the Brudenell Social Club a demonic lo-fi garage rock sound, hard to imagine being created in the picturesque seaside town of Brighton. Supported by Happyness and Abbatoir Blues, The Wytches came on around 9:30pm, right about when the large pub venue started to fill up to its back doors.

After a brief “hello”, The Wytches leaped into new track ‘C-side’, released only a month ago. The crowd instantly burst into a frenzy of energy, jumping and head banging to Gianni’s drums and Kristian’s gnarly riffs, pausing only during the subtler chorus. The highlight of the gig, offering an insight to the culture and devotion surrounding The Wytches, was ‘Gravedweller’. Lifted from their debut Annabel Dream Reader, ‘Gravedweller’ is potentially one of their heaviest songs, thanks to Dan’s prominent, melodic bassline. At this, the whole crowd gave their last legs to creating a mosh pit like nothing I’ve seen before; long, sweaty hair of all colours and genders blinded my vision, leaving only my ears to appreciate their artful form.

Admittedly, the gig calmed towards the second half, with songs like ‘Hannover’ and ‘Feeling We Get’ being played. After 45 minutes of wild, sweaty energy, they dropped their instruments, and walked off stage with a quick “thank you”. The crowd was left screaming for an encore, and an encore they got. We were not let down as they smashed their track ‘Crying Clown’, a perfect end to the night.

As is often said, the crowd defines a gig just as much as the band. The complete devotion of the two here meant a five-star gig; I’m very eager to catch The Wytches live again.

Zander Butler

[image: Far Out Magazine]