HAKE are a rising, fresh faced, Brighton name who bring to light some kaleidoscopic psychedelic vibes and maintain a distinct level of retro edge to their sound. Tonight, when the band headline Green Door Store, they put on not only a packed show, but have introduced this room to some equally brilliant supporting acts.

Tonight’s openers are the largest surprise of the evening, Good Guy Clarence bring a sound which is truly something special. The band open the evening with a great deal of instrumental colour and tranquil vocals that flood the room. As their set progresses, the talents become ever clearer, the high vocals from singer, Theo Byrd, are simply angelic and put into place a foundation for the rest of the band to thrive from, creating a bouncy sound which definitely puts the room’s energy into motion. Following such a high are Youth Sector, who bring a far more upbeat pacing through a great deal of fuzziness and strong use of heavy distortion. The rougher style adds a solid level of needed grittiness to the evening’s atmospherics and has warmed up the audience nicely.

With a holographic projection of their name being plastered on the venue walls, HAKE enter the stage and have managed to fill the venue to a great capacity (perhaps slightly aided by the fact it’s a free entry show). The band get things started with a colourful number which mixes vibrant riffs, phased guitar and raspy vocal work. For a five-piece on such a small stage, the group are able to uphold a great deal of stage presence and enthusiasm. Vocalist Harvey Dent is an engaging frontman and keeps the show flowing nicely between tracks, his bubbly personality and friendly attitude definitely rubs off on the room and gets them more eager to join in with the rest of the set.

Being a start up group with only two fully released singles, it’s always hard to fill your set with enough material that an audience are able to interact with, however, HAKE’s sound seems to withhold a certain level of inherent springiness which the room can still get into despite not knowing the songs directly. The stunning bass work from Ollie Ruff definitely has a part to play, throughout the set Ollie’s riffs are catchy, detailed and really provide part of the edge which keeps HAKE from blending into generic indie. This being said, when both released singles, ‘Alright’ and ‘Peach Man’, are brought out, there are a fair few in the room who are eager to bounce along and sing back to the band. Similarly, an all new track titled ‘Every Time’, is showcased and seems to be received very well. The track’s piercing solos are the strongest of the entire evening and pack a great deal of punch, adding yet another layer of firm grittiness to the evening.

There is definitely still work to be done in refining the group’s sound. Certain tracks feel mildly out of place, there are times where the vocal work does slack a little and the addition of a third guitar in the lineup does feel a bit overkill. However, as the band are still starting out and finding their feet, this can be overlooked, as they still put on an engaging show which no one looks disappointed with.

Hearing HAKE’s unreleased material live, it’s clear that they do still have a lot to give to their fanbase and I definitely feel there is a market for their sound out there somewhere, once they find it. Tonight’s show is yet another which has demonstrated some fresh Brighton talent which can’t afford to go unrecognised. We truly do live in one of the most colourful cities for its music scene and there will forever be new acts who have the potential to go far. HAKE, Youth Sector and certainly Good Guy Clarence are all groups you should give a try, I assure you, they’ll be something you can sink into from at least one of them.

Ben Walker

Facebook: facebook.com/HAKEmusic
Twitter: twitter.com/hakeband