The Exchange, Bristol, 14th June 2024
First up is Wyr, a local female-fronted 4 piece shoegaze band, formed in 2023. Wyr is a collective of shimmering guitars, ethereal swirling vocals, and lots and lots of reverb. They have been playing frequent shows and obviously are gaining a bit of a following if the early crowd are anything to go by. A gig at Rough Trade is due in September all while writing and recording songs for their upcoming EP. Keep an eye out for these guys in the coming months (Sorry, no pics of these!).
Next up are The Priscillas, launching straight into their own brand of, in their own words, Glam-punk-power-pop-female-foxy-foursome tunes. Singer, Jenny Drag, clad in a black leather catsuit and shaking a star-shaped tambourine is backed by crunching guitar hooks and supported with sweet harmonies as their poppy songs with searing social commentary get everyone bouncing. Moreover, it looks like they are having fun, just how rock’n’roll should be. They’ll finish the weekend supporting L7 at the Electric Ballroom and I’m sure they will smash it.
Finally, and rather unassumingly, the Bykers drift onto the stage and once the drummer Kev Byker is located, it is time to get going. This was a very partisan crowd, with plenty of GBOA t-shirts on show. Considering the merch stand had a selection of more than 15 different shirts, this was no surprise.
After a promise of a set list full of new and old material, the tunes come thick and fast as Mary Byker (Ian Huxley), illuminated by projections throughout the set, deliver the vocals with passion. The in-between song chat is engaging and the crowd love it. Although encouraging Robber Bykers (Ian Reynolds) in his falling off the wagon is probably not the best use of his platform! Robber, however, seems unperturbed.
Billy Boy Byker (Will Crewdson/ScantRegard) on guitar is truly brilliant. Not only does he really look the part, but his mastery of some of the complicated guitar work in a live environment was some achievement. The crowd start dancing and singing along from the get-go and doesn’t stop.
GBOA are legends of the short-lived Grebo scene in the late 80’s, and early 90’s and the energy is still there. And the social commentary is just as relevant today as it was 20-plus years ago, with songs about the environment still striking a chord. A great night in Bristol.
Words and photos by Glenn Morrison – no use without permission.
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