All Sparks Disco host an absolute fireball of an event with a trio of bands that collectively gave the audience an unforgettable (and very, very warm) evening of fantastic music.

Live Pictures: Chris Willmott

EARLY ARRIVAL

All Sparks Disco hosted an absolute fireball of an event over the weekend with a trio of bands that collectively gave the audience an unforgettable (and very, very warm) evening of fantastic music

You know when it’s going to be a great show when you are advised to arrive early, as it is a sellout show. Fortunately, knowing how intimate the venue was, I was there eagerly for the doors opening among the sea of Desperate Journalist t-shirts and got myself immediately down to the front, and although I was running on fumes from dad dancing to The Prodigy the night before, I planted my feet and remained in the same position the entire evening.

PROJECT OVERLOAD

Starting proceedings to an already packed room were Coventry’s Project Overload, who opened their set with Waiting For Nothing To Happen, and I have to admit that I was immediately invested as this incredibly youthful 5 piece have managed to incorporate soundscapes from at least 3 decades ago without trying to sound like a tribute act, their songwriting was excellent, and they had an exuberance and confident strange presence far beyond their years. As they made their way through Silhouettes, Late Night Dancing & closer Slide Show, the audience responded very warmly indeed – one of the first notes I made about Project Overload was one to watch, and even now, a few days after, I absolutely stand by that

ALPHABET

Up next was London’s shoegaze collective Alphabet, who breezed through their 8-track set with Cure-tinged undertones sprinkled throughout right off the bat. I would imagine them at home within the setting of 2000 Trees

Tracks like Echoes, Artificial Light and closer Pressure pulled the crowd in attendance through emotional waves, and they are now firmly on my radar.

DESPERATE JOURNALIST

Headliners Desperate Journalist have finally made their return to the East Midlands, and I, for one, couldn’t be happier. Tonight is one of only 4 dates the band is playing, and only 2 of them are UK-based after having played Manchester the night before (our review here).

Exploding with Fault, the audience collectively went into raptures – Desperate Journalist has such a widespread fanbase, and to see it in full form is truly something to behold. The correlation of audience energy feeding back to the band only seemed to be thrown back through the band’s flawless presentation

The set was, frankly phenomenal – I found my voice again for my all-time favourite track Hollow alongside Cedars & Everything You Wanted

RELENTLESS ENERGY

The band recently released a cover of White Rabbit. It doesn’t make tonight’s set, but we are treated to a brand new, as yet untitled track, so everything crossed, we may see a follow-up to 2024’s No Hero. I mentioned earlier the warmth of the underground basement, and by the mid-point of the set, you could see the band physically pushing through the heat, but at no point did the energy dissipate

Unsymphathetic was unanimously greeted with an eruption from the crowd. This was followed by the two final tracks, Personality Girlfriend and closer Satellite. The band took to the stage at 10 pm and finished around an hour later, and honestly, I could have watched them for another hour again

The whole night was structured well with well timed sets, and I look forward to attending an All Sparks Disco Party very soon – you can also check out their interviews with the bands over on their socials

Desperate Journalist: Website

Alphabet: Instagram

Project Overload: Website

All Sparks Disco Party: Instagram

At The Barrier: Facebook / X / Instagram