Sometimes gigs are all about the headliner, with the support acts being something to be endured rather than anything else, but that was not the case here. Each band on the bill was completely different and the select midweek crowd enjoyed them all.

First up were Sheffield post hardcore band Sobriquet. I have to admit that these were new to me and I had no idea what to expect. The label post hardcore really doesn’t do justice to Sobriquet’s outpouring, one moment clean vocals and catchy melodies and the next harsh vocals and growls all hinging around the vocalist who lurched around the stage as though deranged. Perhaps the stand out track was ‘Eros’ with its catchy hooks and rolling melodies and as the set came to a close I found myself writing that they sounded like a cross between Placebo and Kvelertak…….whether that is wide of the mark or not, they were definitely something different and I enjoyed them.

After a short turnaround, there was a complete change in atmosphere for Heriot who shook the Corporation to its foundations. Opening track ‘Absolute’ was a dense wall of noise, intense, crushing and very impressive.

The interplay between Jake and Debbie’s vocals brought a layer of aggression and variety to the aural onslaught and worked particularly well on the abrasive closing track ‘Cleansed Existence’. Whether this is hardcore, post hardcore, doom sludgy post metal or any other label you might think of, this straddled boundaries and the best label I can give it is ‘heavy’!

Another huge change in style came with Brighton’s CLT DRP. The angsty trio wasted no time launching into ‘I Don’t Want To Go To The Gym’ as Annie and Scott threw themselves around the stage. Electro-pop is perhaps a decent starting description but there were definite punk influences with a dash of nu metal and I found myself making comparisons ranging from Electronica to Rage Against The Machine to Skunk Anansie to Enter Shikari but CLT DRP really do have a style of their own as they challenged a range of social topics during the set including ‘Zoom 20’, ‘Seesaw’ and set closer ‘Where The Boys Are’.

Completely different but thoroughly enjoyable, entertaining and worth keeping an eye open for.

Svalbard have recently been reaping the reward for years of hard work with high profile sets at Bloodstock, The Wave Before The Kick In The Chest and of course Damnation (two sets!). With this in mind, I was amazed to see that this gig was taking place in the small room at the Corporation but that just gave an extra level of intimacy and intensity and I for one was not complaining.

Initial technical issues were soon resolved as ‘Throw Your Heart Away’ and ‘Revenge Porn’ were unleashed. It was apparent that Serena was struggling with her voice during the clean vocals, but she was still able to scream and roar with the best of them. The vocals of Serena and Liam were vitriolic on ‘Silent Restraint’ and ‘Disparity’, in contrast to the sublime melodies of the music giving their metallic post hardcore a hint of black metal.

The hard hitting lyrics continued on the phenomenal ‘Click Bait’ and ‘Grayscale’ which were simply fantastic although Serena’s clean vocals were deteriorating, but this seemed to pull the band and crowd together in the face of adversity. This continued on closing track ‘Open Wound’ where Serena invited the crowd to sing the clean portions.

Despite the technical and vocal issues, this was a fantastic set from a band rapidly on the rise and I really don’t expect to be seeing them on stages this small for much longer.

Review and Photos Andy Pountney