More about: soundcityLiverpool Sound City

Since its establishment in 2008, Sound City has proved itself to be a fundamental event within the festival circuit.

In previous years, it’s been lauded an essential celebration of Liverpool’s thrilling music scene, taking place within local venues and uplifting local acts, while simultaneously predicting which new artists are surely headed towards stardom. With former headliners consisting of the likes of Loyle Carner, Beeabadoobee, and Self Esteem, the appeal has often lay in its eclectic line-up, of which your faves are found after crawling to some dingy corner of a Seel Street basement. 

The first Sound City since the closure of the Arts Club - a key, mid-size venue in Liverpool’s city centre - was moved to the all-encompassing Liverpool Guild of Students. Instead of utilising all the tiny, independent venues that constitute the city centre, the Guild was split into three stages - Mountford Hall, Stanley Theatre and an outdoor stage, with the occasional, secret acoustic set in Bold Street’s Bundobust. Naturally, the downsizing led to a reduction in this year’s line-up, resulting in the scope for stumbling upon some weird techno-punk or Scouse hardcore being drastically cut in half. 

Despite this, there was the addition of New Music Friday - which did exactly what we’ve come to love. Mollie Coddled kicks the weekend off with infectious delight and a radiant enthusiasm. An undoubtable alt-pop star in the making, her set consists of smooth vocals and polished R&B beats mixed with slacker-pop guitar riffs. Her y2k-infused sound oozes with that romanticised teenage longing - forcing you to picture yourself twirling the cord of a lip-shaped landline while daydreaming about pretty boys.

Then She’s in Parties take the stage at EBGB’s, and, despite showing up a little late, smash out a solid four-song set of introspective, pensive, and pretty dream pop - short, sweet but undeniably sick. Shelf Lives follow, ramping up the atmosphere with their pounding bass-fuelled grotty club-punk music: vigorous, excessive and deliciously camp.

What cements Friday as the best day of the weekend is its broad list of local acts. The provocative, endlessly dynamic Piss Kitti breathlessly screech their way through their set at Metrocola, providing fast and feral hardcore. Then the room is stuffed to the brim for Scouse indie-pop darlings SPINN, who have the crowd shouting along with each song. A late-night set by Monks is one of the most anticipated performances of the day, and their dreampop grooves exceed expectations.

In comparison to the day before, Saturday’s line-up is a little…bland. Without a doubt, it’s a boy’s club: four white guys with guitars, over and over and over again. Malady, whose combination of industrial beats, synths and elevated indie offer an alternative for those of us who don’t fancy straight up guitar music, as do Courting, who, despite being four white guys with guitars, are at least interesting about it. A back-to-back set of fast-paced pop-post-elecropunk - complete with a Charli XCX cover - makes them a refreshing act in a pretty tedious line-up. 

When vocalist Sean Murphy-O’Neill says, “You may as well dance now, because we’re the best band you’ll see for the rest of the day,” he’s, er, not wrong. While the acts that follow draw a crowd in, and are good at what they aim to achieve, if you’re not into it, there’s nowhere else for you to go. In previous years, you were able to dip - go somewhere else and explore, find a weirder, more interesting band. No such luck today. The staggering lack of options left you feeling uninspired and, frankly, a bit bored.

Sunday is much better.

Winnie Ama mesmerises with her Mountford Hall slot, effortlessly hypnotising the crowd with her sleek, soulful voice and easy-going electronic beats. Between each track she reveals a story of wonder, or beauty, that she’s found in her everyday life. Rianne Downey then brings a witty concoction of folk, soul and country to the stage - think CMAT meets KT Tunstall meets Amy Winehouse, providing a refreshing and upbeat set. The Goa Express are a solid live piece, playing a raucous set complete with some new songs. 

"...a triumphant commemoration of Liverpool and the UK’s prosperous music scene."

Everyone’s attention is captured by the magnificent Opus Kink, who storm Stanley Theatre with the certainty that it’s theirs. Equipped with a brass section and synths, they reimagine what live performance can be like, blending imaginative funk and jazz with experimental, harcore punk riffs. With an easy, self-assured magnetism and great tracks, they’re the type of act that has you  Googling where they’re playing next as soon as they’re off stage.

Maisie Peters closes the festival with blistering pop-rock tracks that serve as an electric catharsis. Empowered by a jubilant crowd who squeal with bliss at her catalogue, it’s a sweet, heartwarming end to a - mostly - lovely weekend.

Aside from the venue centralisation and Saturday’s lack of variety, Sound City remains, somewhat, a triumphant commemoration of Liverpool and the UK’s prosperous music scene. If anything, the pitfalls are indicative of wider issues facing the music industry - venue closures, funding, the gender gap, accessibility and the opportunity for more experimental artists to work on their craft without the threat of not being able to pay rent. It can seem bleak - but it doesn’t have to be. There’s still excitement to be found… we just might need to look a little harder.

See all the shots, captured by Georgina Hurdsfield:

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More about: soundcityLiverpool Sound City