LIVE REVIEW: Stake @ Mother’s Ruin, Bristol

Mother’s Ruin has a pedigree for putting on a wide variety of gigs. And for being one of the most intimate venues in Bristol. With genres such as nasty as powerviolence being relegated to the venue’s basement stage, the upstairs is where STAKE find themselves tonight, and they might be too much for the venue to handle.

Opening the night are the synth trio of MUTANT-THOUGHTS. Made up of three members, drummer Ollie Medlow and bassist Joshua Lennox-Hilton provided the real enjoyment from the band whilst singer Han Luis Cera creates the epic and dystonia atmospheres with subtle synth and vocals. The melodies struggle to cut through the drums that steal the show with ease, backed up by the equally impressive bass playing. With lengthy songs that often feel technical for the sake of being technical, its when MUTANT-THOUGHTS groove that they shine the best. The synths are too subtle tonight to really stick, and the vocals feel pretty weak but the energy Cera throws into his performance is great. Its a pretty easy going start to the night all in all.

Rating: 6/10

LAST HYENA are next up and the trio bring an eclectic instrumental sound to the Ruin. Their rhythmic backing stands as the real driving force of their performance, and the unique play style of their drummer gives their performance a real sense of identity. The cacophonous sound makes finding the intricacies in their sound a bit of tough work, and the constant near over reliance on false starts becomes tiresome by the end of their set. When they come together, the shoegazey sounds create swelling and enveloping atmospheres that fill the entire Mother’s Ruin, and the quirkiness of tracks like Dogtopus brings even more panache to their set. These boys feel like they’re queuing themselves up for a headline tour very soon given, and with tracks like Yeah, You! giving the crowd a chance to participate with the vocal-less band, there are seeds of potential greatness here.

Rating: 7/10

Given the sheer hype that surrounds a band like STAKE, there is a certain level of expectation. The group, formerly under the name STEAK NUMBER EIGHT, have been pinned as some of the finest new talents to emerge from Europe, and the youth of the band is something to be aware of given how much they’ve done. Gabba is what soundtracks their set up, and it is loud. In fact, the band themselves are certainly loud, and very proud about it. They shake the Mother’s Ruin to its core, opening their set with a ear piercing scream before diving headfirst into their thick and layered musical assault. The vocals are unfortunately immediately lost in the mix, drowned out by the sheer volume of the double guitar attack.

When moments of clarity come through, the band show their talent. Creating interesting atmospheres thanks to repeating guitar leads and then injecting them massive swells of sometimes deeply textured music. But STAKE are potentially one of the loudest bands to play the Ruin, and unfortunately without being able to handle their weight they can become a bit unwieldy. A bigger venue would accommodate this band far better, and maybe even let their wings really unfurl. But for tonight, the band deliver a solid set, but not one that lets them live up to their reputation.

Rating: 7/10 

Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Bristol from Serena Hill Photography here: