Vol. 136
Follow us on Social Media
Categories
Full Pelt Magazine
Tag: Live Music
Categories
Slam Dunk Festival
Hatfield Park
Saturday 23rd May 2026
Follow us on Social Media
SLAM DUNK SOUTH 2026 REVIEW
The late May Bank Holiday means only one thing for rock fans – the start of festival season!
Yes, Slam Dunk is firmly rooted into the fabric of the scenes DNA, and we once again popped to Hatfield Park for the South version of the two-day event. Tomorrow the circus will travel to Temple Newsum in Leeds for the North edition of 2026’s event, but for today the sun is certainly shining on Hatfield.
Indeed, we are in the midst of a spring heatwave and that does add an element of lethargy to what is normally a full-throttle day of relentless music. Fans, as is always the case in these scenarios, seek out any inch of shade and the water points become as popular as the bars.
With only one tented stage this year, that shade is at a premium, but the water points do appear to cope with the demand unlike previous warm years. The queues for the bars are their usual busy selves but the wait for food (barring the ice cream vans) isn’t bad in our experience today.
That’s enough of the admin stuff though, let’s get to the music! We commence our full-on day in that tent with upstarts Call Me Amour who are playing their first ever festival. You wouldn’t tell as they make the most of the early excitement amongst the crowd to engage them immediately with a polished set of atmospheric rockers.
This festival is of course built both upon nostalgia but also a fair splattering of the best new bands on the scene. We catch perhaps the two biggest hopes of rock music at the moment next as Dead Pony captivate the tent and then unpeople bring the riffage to the sun-soaked main stage. Both you’d expect will become mainstays of this event as they work their way to the top of the bill.
Our first dose of nostalgia comes next as we stick on the main stage for A! The band are back with a new album, ‘PRANG’ (their first in two decades), and it’s great to see the crowd enjoying the likes of ‘Shit Summer’ and ‘Hello Sunshine’, just as much as ‘Starbucks’ and ‘I Love Lake Tahoe’. A mass line-dancing session accompanies ‘Kings of Lowestoft’ and ‘Nothing’ provides the perfect exclamation mark to a brilliant set.
Each year the festival changes up their stage types and locations as they try to shoehorn in as much music as possible. After complaints surrounding their double ended tent set-up, the Monster stages this year are outdoor side-by-side offerings, and we catch Set Your Goals next who clearly appreciate the love shown to them. The only issue with this set-up being the big sound-bleed from the larger outdoor side-by-side setup opposite.
Slam Dunk this year celebrates twenty years and it has been fascinating watching the event grow, expand and change throughout those years. Equally numerous bands on the line-up this year are celebrating their own various anniversaries which both makes their performances extra special and makes us feel extra old!
Over the course of the next couple of hours, we catch Trash Boat celebrating, ‘Nothing I Write You Can Change What You’ve Been Through’ and Boston Manor recognising, ‘Be Nothing’. It’s a unique variant of nostalgia when bands you consider to be newer are celebrating such anniversaries, but both bands do so stunningly in their own ways.
Trash Boat purely focus on that album, and the performance has a real throwback vibe throughout. Boston Manor, sandwich ‘Burn You Up’, ‘Lead Feet’, ‘Cu’, ‘Laika’ and ‘Stop Trying, Be Nothing’ between more recent bangers. Both sets though are memorable and with both bands announcing anniversary shows for later this year, fans will no doubt be motivated to check out the full shows.
We then head back to the main stage for an emotive serenade from Dashboard Confessional including their brilliant Spiderman hit ‘Vindicated’. After then enjoying the latter part of the stirring The Menzingers back over at the Monster stages we catch Tonight Alive who commence their performance with their own Spiderman hit ‘The Edge’!
The Australians deliver a fantastic performance which is amongst the best of the day and incorporate guest spots from Harmony Cavelle (South Arcade) and Bonnie Fraser (Stand Atlantic), not to mention a cover of Mumford & Sons (never expected to say that at Slam Dunk, but it was great!).
The clashes are always a conundrum for Slam Dunk goers and attendees are split between Tonight Alive, Taking Back Sunday on the main stage and the most-hyped band of the moment PRESIDENT who evidently draw a massive crowd to the heavy stages.
We then head into the tent again for a high energy VUKOVI performance and another dose of big-time modern nostalgia with Deaf Havana. With a set celebrating their seminal record, ‘Fools and Worthless Liars’, Deaf Havana provide the most emotive set of the day. The genuine outpouring of love for these songs clearly moving frontman James Veck-Gilodi as crowd and band share a beautiful moment together.
Going back to the ever-revolving stage set-ups of Slam Dunk, the tent this year has a literal revolving stage set-up which keeps changeovers to a minimum!
We conclude what has been another full pelt (see what we did there) day at Slam Dunk with main stage headliners Good Charlotte. The band announced a couple of huge arena shows this week and many mocked the band thinking they would struggle to sell them…
…Well, today they attract one of the biggest crowds we’ve witnessed for a Slam Dunk headliner. The show, the performance and the setlist all equally suggest that the Madden brothers will have no issue convening their fans again when they return.
With a never-ending parade of hits, there is plenty of singing for fans to do before going home. The band sign off with a run of ‘I Just Wanna Live’, ‘Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous’ and ‘The Anthem’. That ensures that as fans make that journey back home, they can once again reminisce about a wonderful day of music.
The sun is out, Slam Dunk is in the bag and festival season is underway – let’s gooooo!
Share our review on Social Media
Categories
Full Pelt Magazine
Vol. 135
Follow us on Social Media
Categories
Full Pelt Magazine
Vol. 134
Follow us on Social Media
Categories
Full Pelt Magazine
Vol. 133
Follow us on Social Media
Categories
Millie Manders and the Shutup
Waterfront Studio, Norwich
Saturday 25th April 2026
Follow us on Social Media
Millie manders and the shutup – norwich – live review
📷Denis Gorbatov
As you drive into Norwich on this sunny Spring evening, football fans are exiting the nearby stadium having celebrated the final home game of the season. This is an opportunity to reflect on the endeavours of the past year together with like-minded people.
Many chants will be sung, and fans will lose their voices supporting their team. Often, you’ll leave these festivities with a renewed sense of hope and ambition for the future and a general sense of togetherness.
Well, those emotions all also ring true of a homecoming show from a much-loved musical artist. Indeed, tonight at the Waterfront Studio is another milestone for Millie Manders and the Shutup as they continue to win hearts and minds on their latest nationwide escapade!
ALL EARS AVOW
Opening proceedings this evening are Swindon’s alt-rockers All Ears Avow who released their debut album, ‘Horrors’ at the end of last year. A thoroughly enjoyable record, it’s no surprise that the album dominates their setlist this evening, kicking off with singles, ‘Young Horror’ and ‘A Night Like This’.
The band have just jumped on the second half of this tour and already feel at home with the Manders crowd, with those in attendance clearly appreciative of the bands ability to mix rock intensity with an innate danceability.
By the time their set comes to an end with ‘Fire’, the band have undoubtedly left a positive impression on those in attendance and reinforced why it’s always important to get in early and catch the support act!
MILLIE MANDERS AND THE SHUTUP
A lightning-fast changeover means that fans don’t have long to wait until Millie Manders and the Shutup hit the stage and deliver a blistering opening trio of ‘Fun Sponge’, ‘Bacchus’ and ‘Windows’.
With a packed venue clearly in the party spirit, the gig tonight fits straight into that celebratory ethos. Manders and her Ted Army fanbase combine to create an electric atmosphere as the show continues with fan favourites ‘Shut Your Mouth’ and ‘Angry Side’.
It is a love-affair between band and fans and there is definitely love in the air tonight, especially with a couple of local fans celebrating their own wedding day at the gig.
Outside commentators will lazily attach the “outspoken” label on Manders, but in this space Manders is just stating the obvious with many of the songs tonight calling out injustices and standing up for the marginalised. The fact that Manders so passionately ensures that this is a safe space, just makes that feeling of togetherness feel even more powerful.
The entire set is jam packed with songs that you can’t help but sing along with including an incredible final run of ‘Bitter’, ‘Your Story’, ‘Rebound’ and ‘Not OK’. Throw in a fun cover of Limp Bizkit classic ‘Break Stuff’ and many in the audience will have no voices left comes the morning.
With new track ‘Age Disgracefully’ representing a glimpse of the future, it’s also hard not to have high hopes for what the future holds for a band that are building undeniable momentum.
So, whether you’re a football fan waiting for next seasons fixtures to be announced, or a Millie Manders fan waiting for that inevitable next tour, there is so much to be thankful for and plenty of reasons to be excited.
Share our review on Social Media
Categories
Full Pelt Magazine
Vol. 132
Follow us on Social Media
Categories
Calva Louise
Waterfront Studio, Norwich
Monday 20th April 2026
Follow us on Social Media
Calva louise – norwich – live review
📷Denis Gorbatov
For fans engrossed in the world of Calva Louise, their current headline tour is a welcome opportunity to immerse themselves even further.
Tonight sees the second night of the tour arrive at the Waterfront Studio in Norwich and fans fill the venue early in anticipation of a big night of high-octane modern rock goodness.
KNIFE BRIDE
The evening begins with the arrival of the tour’s special guests KNIFE BRIDE. The Brighton quartet are quick to raise energy levels and it’s clear that many within the venue are already familiar with what the group has to offer.
Electric riffs, hearty hooks and enough pop elegance to enable you to sing those big choruses whilst banging your head and losing your mind. With new EP, ‘sorry about the plague’ out shortly, the likes of ‘crucify’ and ‘alone at the altar’ sound huge this evening and showcase a band in the process of taking a giant leap forward.
It’s an enthralling performance from KNIFE BRIDE with singer Mollie Clack coming across with real star power. By the time they close out their nine-song set with ‘WORTHY’, they have left everything on the stage and those in attendance know that they’ve seen a band worthy of their investment.
CALVA LOUISE
The back story of our headliners Calva Louise and how members Jess Allanic, Alizon Taho and Ben Parker assembled in the name of heavy music and heady storytelling is remarkable. Coming together from different corners of the earth to pursue their dream here in the UK, their journey is truly inspiring.
The world that they’ve built across their career thus far is thoroughly captivating and their latest album, ‘Edge of the Abyss’ really manages to bring the character of Louise to life.
What the trio achieve tonight is to further bring their world to life on an actual stage with a handcrafted set fitting of much bigger venues. This brings a grandiose feel to the performance, whilst keeping the immediate feeling of an intimate show.
Calva Louise aren’t just a theatrical delight however, and their musical talent shines tonight with ‘Edge of the Abyss’ at the heart of the setlist. Intermixing songs sung in English and Spanish, the universal language at play is kickass hard rock with a killer beat and intense delivery system.
‘Tunnel Vision’, ‘W.T.F.’, ‘Under the Skin’ and ‘Hate in Me’ represent the album incredibly well during a performance which is impossible to not become hypnotised by.
Whilst the focus is on their latest album, 2023’s ‘Over the Threshold’ record is also represented in the setlist including the big final track, ‘Oportunista’.
At the end of a stunning show, you can’t help but feel the momentum flowing through these two incredible bands. Both are evidently supremely talented and are ready to explode, so this tour has been a great chance for Norwich folk to get to experience the future of the alternative rock scene up close and personal!
Share our review on Social Media
Watch Episode 67 of The Full Pelt Music Podcast with guests Calva Louise
Categories
Full Pelt Magazine
Vol. 131
Follow us on Social Media
Categories
IST IST
The Waterfront, Norwich
Thursday 9th April 2026
Follow us on Social Media
IST IST – NORWICH – LIVE REVIEW
Sometimes the world just seems to be against you. This must feel like one of those days for IST IST as the first date of their headline tour almost gets derailed due to a run in with the DVSA.
A long delay and an urgent van swap means that the band only make it to the venue less than an hour before the scheduled door time. The band even stating that they were minutes away from needing to cancel their date with The Waterfront here in Norwich.
THE YOUTH PLAY
Thankfully after a short delay for fans waiting outside, those doors do open and the show is good to go with our opening act The Youth Play soon arriving on stage.
‘Maybe This Was All For Us’ introduces the crowd to the set and a band with plenty to offer. Indeed, much like our headliners, The Youth Play are a band with a layered sound that makes them difficult to pigeonhole.
Their early releases have displayed a shoegazey aesthetic but with an ability to cut through with melodies akin to The Cure. This isn’t lost tonight despite the band making quite the noise during their time on stage.
Whilst it seemingly takes the crowd a little while to warm up (probably because of the extended wait in the chilly spring evening), by the time the band exit the likes of ‘Last Day On Earth’ and ‘If We Just Ever Were’ have effectively gained their respect.
IST IST
It does feel like the audience are waiting obsessively for IST IST to arrive and this is no surprise given the cultlike following that the band have cultivated since arriving just under a decade ago.
In that time, they have delivered five well received albums including their latest, ‘DAGGER’, in February. It’s that record which is centre stage this evening with the fantastic ‘I Am The Fear’ beginning their performance before ‘Warning Signs’ and ‘Burning’ settle us in.
The setlist is carefully prepared to showcase their back catalogue whilst giving ‘DAGGER’ the platform that it deserves. The album is a contender for Album of the Year and it’s delightful tonight to see these songs take flight on the live stage.
It’s a professional and concise performance from the band this evening with crowd interaction mainly revolving around their anger towards the DVSA, but it’s clear to see the fond connection that exists between band and audience.
‘The Echo’ and ‘Makes No Difference’ represent two more highlights from ‘DAGGER’ whilst the likes of ‘Fat Cats Drown in Milk’, ‘Emily’ and ‘Night’s Arm’ give their fanbase some good cuts from the past.
Previous album, ‘Light a Bigger Fire’, also gets a lot love and an encore comprising ‘Encouragement’ and ‘Stamp You Out’ ensures that the passionate fanbase is sent back into the cold night with warm hearts.
Considering how close to a disastrous cancellation we got, you can’t help but appreciate the effort put in by IST IST both in getting to the venue and then still delivering a great performance.
Share our review on Social Media
Watch Episode Episode 71 of The Full Pelt Music Podcast with guests IST IST
