It’s not often you get to go to a gig and hear new songs for the first time before an album has been released. Today, The Mysterines performed a sold-out show at Bristol’s Rough Trade, to give a glimpse of new material from their forthcoming sophomore album Afraid of Tomorrows, set for release on the 21st June.

It turned out to be way more than just a glimpse of the new material you usually get at these mini gigs as we were treated to the new album in its entirety! In the lead up to the show, I had been busy listening to The Mysterines and my excitement levels rose at the thought of seeing them in such an intimate venue (200 capacity).

The Mysterines are a band that I've only seen in passing at festivals, so I was keen to get to know their songs in more depth. I managed to get the best view possible (stage left), I was so close, I spotted one of the band members bank cards on the floor and duly let them know. The band took to the stage slightly later than billed, rumours of a meal that had gone on past their curfew were confirmed in my head by seeing the singer and writer Lia Metcalfe, nipping to the washrooms with a toothbrush and toothpaste in hand, best to be fresh for such an intimate gig!

After taking a photo of the setlist for some eager fans behind me, they appeared and kicked off the show. They opened with ‘Stray’ a single that’s familiar to most due to radio play, and a song that picqued my interest in this show. Tonight’s show is stripped back and running at an altogether slower tempo, the band are sat on stools and the stripped back nature of the show sees Lia’s voice take centre stage. It hits me straight away, what a stunning voice she has! Her performance grabs me from the get go. The song has a real groove to it, a bass line that hooks you in. The first new track to drop is The Last Dance, I look to my left and see a fan with their eyes closed, singing along, word for word. The song has a ‘waltz’ feel to it, and I imagine doing a little slow dance to it as my mind starts to wonder.

Lyrically the new album seems to go deep, with Goodbye Sunshine  and Junk Yard Angel hitting the hardest, there is clear heartbreak as the lyrics appear to address loss and desperation of being in a place of unease and uncertainty. It feels like we are seeing the songs at their rawest, seeing how they originally came together before being embellished, to create the final offerings. This makes me wish that the gig had been recorded so that it could be released as a stripped back version of the album in the future.

Hearing the lyrics to So Long, they were so pronounced and clear, it left me wanting to sit down with Lia and discuss them to get to the essence and the root of the subject matter, she’s the type of performer that stops you in your tracks. I was reminded of the Nirvana ‘Unplugged’ album that they did for MTV, high praise indeed and it had NOTHING to do with bass player George Favager’s Nirvana t-shirt at all. 

These are stripped back rock songs, which are fierce, powerful and guitar heavy. They are lyrically personal, succinct and sublime. I'm now also left eager to find out more about the background of the incredible, intense lyrics and what the songs will sound like performed loud at a full show. This happens so much, but The Mysterines have changed on my list from a ‘maybe’ to a ‘definite’ to catch in the future.

Current Single Sink Ya Teeth sounds so gloriously polished, like a hit single should. The set closer Afraid of Tomorrows (also the album closer) is an up-tempo, tambourine fuelled toe-tapper of a tune which makes you feel a wide range of contradicting emotions all in one go.

I left the gig intrigued, excited and looking forward to the album’s release next week, and for Y Not Festival where I will now choose them ahead of Snow Patrol for sure! Another show, another new band to look forward to seeing in the future. Thanks also to the band for signing my Take That ticket as if they were Take That, I’ve always wanted to meet Gary, Howard and Mark!

Review by Matthew Barnes

Photos by Lydia Cashmore Photography ©