Review: Simple Things 2018, Various Venues

Photo: Tom Ham

Simple Things has always been a festival for the music heads of Bristol. Previous years have seen household names such as IDLES, Death Grips and Ben UFO take to the stage but this year was somewhat different as the festival shifted to a stripped back event due to the closure of Colston Hall.

For the 2018 instalment the festival split into separate day and night events with the day’s programme being spread over six venues across the city and the night’s being held entirely within the Lakota / Coroners Court complex.

With the exception of the Colston, most venues from last year’s event were in action again, with the O2 serving as the location for the headline acts.

Local post-punk boys LICE kicked off proceedings at the O2 and set the tone early on for what was an ambitious and young line up that featured acts such as 2018’s viral sensation Jimothy Lacoste and possibly the UK’s most elusive and hotly tipped bands, Black Midi.

Having lost the space that a venue like the Colston Hall offers, there was a lot of pressure to try and replicate something within the confines of the O2. Although the crowds were naturally smaller, the sound in the venue was great and the visuals, courtesy of Crack Magazine were outstanding throughout the day.

As for the acts, a special mention has to be given to Jimothy Lacoste whose feature was an anomaly in a lineup of experimental guitar bands. His performance had half the crowd in dancing adoration and the other half in relative bemusement as he bounced around the stage. His music deals with the likes of having a busy weekly schedule and gives an appreciation for the efficiency of the London Underground.

He was followed by Black Midi, a band that have managed to earn accolades like the ‘best band in London’ without having any real material released online and next to no social media presence, an achievement that would have been difficult a decade ago let alone in 2018,

Their performance was an impressive blend of the best elements of math rock and post punk that left everyone there wanting more and their elusive reputation was only enhanced by the fact that they neither addressed the crowd nor revealed the title to any of their songs.

However, there is no doubt that the show was stolen by the festivals headliners, Slowdive. One of the early pioneers of the shoegaze genre really put on one of the best shows I think I have ever seen, every tune brought to full crescendo by overdriven guitars and blinding visuals. A man stood in front of me appeared to have an existential crisis and strangers hugged each other as pure noise hit the audience through the speakers. Words can’t really do that show justice but it really was beautiful.

One of the beauties of Simple Things is that it opens the doors to venues that you may seldom find yourself at. This year saw the return of Zed Alley and Sportsman’s utilised as venues and the event is undoubtedly a great opportunity for them. Sportsman’s had the pick of the bunch in terms of lineup with Meat Raffle and folk / punk outfit Warmduscher both making appearances. These venues are both perfect for this scale of gig and hopefully it encourages them to put more shows forward, especially as Bristol’s small music venues continue to face external threats.

The daytime of Simple Things was a great opportunity to see and discover new music. The crowds were eager and friendly and it was a real show out for the music heads. However, I feel that the crowds were diminished by the new ticketing system.

It is hard to say whether the decision to split the tickets was the right move or not. On the one hand it offered a more affordable option to those who preferred one to the other and created a more systematic schedule but on the other hand it split the festival in two.

The night featured legendary names such as Helena Hauf, DJ Stingray and Bristol heavyweights Giant Swan and was definitely something I was looking forward to. Unfortunately I only caught the second half of Helena (who absolutely smashed it) and the first part of Giant Swan before calling it a night. The shear crush of people made the night uncomfortable as dancing, getting a drink, going to the toilet, going for a cigarette and basically everything else was made impossible by having to move around in a sea of people slowly shuffling around trying not to lose their mates while negotiating a confusing one-way system.

This was a disappointing end to what had been an excellent day. Simple Things 2018 still offered lots of great music and I wouldn’t hesitate to do it again. I admire them for experimenting with their system but I hope they will have a review of how their night time event is planned as they head into next year.