LIVE REVIEW: Gideon @ Thekla, Bristol

Bringing their spin-kicking, yee-hawing brand of metallic hardcore across the Atlantic to Bristol’s iconic Thekla, GIDEON not only rock the boat but do their best to capsize it. With UK hardcore mainstays GROVE STREET, New Zealand grown hardstyle experts XILE and London supergroup STILL IN LOVE joining the convoy this is the place to be for all who call the turbulent waters of heavy music their home.

Featuring members of DEAD SWANS, BRUTALITY WILL PREVAIL and even BRING ME THE HORIZON (in their early deathcore days), STILL IN LOVE stomp on stage with big shoes to fill. Even disregarding their well-earned pedigree, the London quintet have made a name for themselves as one of the UK’s most exciting acts with their 2025 debut album Recovery Language taking their chaotic metallic hardcore sound into ROLO TOMASSI style expressive emo and mathcore territory.

Hitting the deck with the force of an atomic bomb, STILL IN LOVE lash out at the crowd packing the ship-turned-venue, finding the balance between blackened and thrash riffs and genuine, honest emotion on tracks like Pillar Of Strength, the London five-piece rise up above their reputation to solidify themselves as one of the scene’s most exciting bands.

Rating: 8/10

Formed in New Zealand, recently relocated to Leeds, Grafton born five-piece XILE have spent a decade crafting their own unique brand of “Kiwi Hardstyle”, taking equal inspiration from beatdown and death metal from this side of the Atlantic and US metallic hardcore. Performing worldwide with legendary acts like DYING FETUS, ALPHAWOLF and EVERGREEN TERRACE, XILE are here to make their mark on the UK’s scene that they now call home turf.

While their relocation to the UK has been relatively recent, XILE still build up plenty of hype in their new home, drawing a substantial crowd of moshers and 2-stepers. Frontman Luke Manson delivers a masterclass on hardcore kiwi style, demanding the crowd try and tip the floating venue on tracks like 369 and ripping through hits like Diamond Eyes with a cheeky yet confident swagger. Despite being fresh faces to our shores, XILE make their impact known.

Rating: 7/10

Southampton crossover hardcore act GROVE STREET have had their name on everyone’s lips since their 2023 full-length debut The Path To Righteousness hit the scene like a boot to the chin. Rejecting the aggressive masculinity of their hardcore and thrash metal roots, GROVE STREET’s vocalist Ben ‘Sully’ Sullivan embodies the same bouncy hardcore spirit as TURNSTILE frontman Brendan Yates or DRAIN lead singer Sammy Ciaramiatro.

Dedicated to openers STILL IN LOVE, the track Ultimate Penalty highlights GROVE STREET’s ability to fold a memorable chorus and riff into a non-stop hardcore banger. While so much hardcore focuses on looking tough it’s refreshing to see a band like GROVE STREET who, while wearing their love for the genre proudly, clearly care more about having a great time, tearing through their set with goofy smiles on their faces. Closing out on the title track from their debut album The Path To Righteousness, GROVE STREET justify their place at the top of the UK’s thriving hardcore scene.

Rating: 8/10

When discussing the rise of American metalcore into the mainstream of the 2010s, Tuscaloosa four-piece GIDEON are bound to come up. Led by Stetson clad frontman Dan McWhorter with his throat-ripping screams and commanding stage presence, GIDEON cement themselves as more than a nostalgia act, focusing more on their modern material than their late 2000s origins. 

Despite being over a decade in with contemporaries who’ve abandoned the genre, broken up or aged like a pint of milk, GIDEON manage to retain their chaotic and brutal metallic hardcore sound. While mixing southern charm with hardcore attitude is hardly a totally novel concept, GIDEON seem to live their heritage authentically, taking the stage to country ballads with beards like ZZ TOP before flying into their opening track Wrong One.

Wasting no time, GIDEON rip and tear through certified Southern-fried metalcore hits like Locked Out, spinning the crowd into a piranha-like bloodlust. Before anyone can even think of catching their breath McWhorter splits the crowd like the red sea for a tidal wave-like wall of death on More Power, More Pain. 

Closing out on arguably their biggest hit No Love/No One, the Alabama quartet whipped the crowd, whether wearing Western wear or camo shorts, into a tsunami of crowd-surfing, stage-diving chaos. Left gasping for air and rushing with adrenaline, the swarming crowd at Thekla won’t soon forget the day that GIDEON tore through their town.

Rating: 8/10

Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Bristol from Rowan Bruce here: 

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