Dum Language, The Verinos, Melonade
at Duffy’s Bar 30th June 2022
It’s so brilliant to be able to go out to gigs again! These three Leicester bands were all quite different, but it made the event at Duffy’s Bar that bit more intense. If you’re the kind of person still reluctant to go out or thinking your gig-going days might be over – think again. There’s so much joy, shared emotion and thrilling noise that you get from live gigs, and you don’t get the same from recorded music, TV coverage or even going live on social media.
Melonade
Melonade were chosen to play this first anniversary gig because their music had impressed us; they’d recently moved rehearsals to Stayfree Music after some disappointing experiences at P*rate (no staff on duty to help with any issues). We were blown away by Melonade’s tight 90’s-sounding rock. They have impressive original songs and do perfect covers of Chili Peppers’ songs too.
The Verinos
At the forefront of a campaign to get more women of all ages playing in garage bands, The Verinos are all about making noise, having fun and not putting up with any nonsense. Their songs hark back to the early years of tuneful punk with the same kind of attitude – ‘Up Yours!’ and ‘Take Off Your Porno Glasses, Mate’ being two of their songs. Despite being old enough to be the mums of most of the audience, The Verinos went down really well and at the end there were lots of women wanting to sign up to learn how to play.
Dum Language
Wow! These lads have great songs and amazing energy. We’re a little biased because drummer Ethan works at Stayfree as a rehearsal room assistant, but they played with style and humour tonight. The dual vocals are really strong and they’re great at the rock star vibes. It’s fun watching Dum Language play because they are obviously a close-knit group of guys who goof about and depend on each other. We’re watching a bunch of mates, not just some muso blokes who got together, and frontman Bradley sings with immense passion. Go and see them when you can!
More anniversary gigs?
Afterwards, speaking with promoter Caroline from Stayfree, we found out that there are more of these anniversary gigs to come. Some will have a linked musical genre, others like tonight will show the diversity of bands that rehearse or base themselves at Stayfree Music. Next one will be July 29th at Firebug!
