Music / News
Bristol best of 2015: Gigs
1. Goldie & The Heritage Orchestra
Lloyds Amphitheatre, July 26
This show saw the drum & bass pioneer’s 1994 debut Timeless reworked for orchestra, choir and a stunning rhythm section. Far from the selfindulgent snorefest sceptics had feared, the show was a triumph that shed new light on the album’s balance of aggression and fragility.
Read the Bristol24/7 review
2. Sleaford Mods
Bierkeller, Oct 4
With their venomous wit and Fisher Price beats, Sleaford Mods were born to divide opinion. Days before their much discussed appearance on the Jools Holland show the duo played to a hero’s welcome right here in Bristol. “The only English band that actually matter in these troubling times,” said our reviewer.
Read the Bristol24/7 review
3. Senyawa
Exchange, Sep 5
This duo combine the ritual and folk music of their native Indonesia with Western genres like punk and metal. Their performance at the free-entry Old Market Music Festival was breathtaking and quite unlike anything we’d heard before. If they ever return to Bristol you’d be daft to miss them.
4. Horace Andy
Love Saves the Day, Eastville Park, May 25
While his career goes back to the earliest days of Jamaican reggae, Andy’s work with Massive Attack means he’s a Bristol legend too. The festival crowd didn’t let him forget it, lapping up hits like Spying Glass, Problems and Man Next Door on what felt like the official first weekend of the summer.
Read the Bristol24/7 review
5. Dean Blunt
The Old Fire Station, October 25
Confrontational, arch and unpredictable, the former Hype Williams man is one of the UK’s most fascinating musicians right now. His spectacular set at The Firestation began with an easy-on-the-ear blend of indie and R&B, before rushing headlong into a fearsome battery of low-end rumbles, strobes and white noise.
Read the Bristol24/7 review