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It has been said, but always deserves reiteration. The Covid-19 pandemic tore a gaping hole in the hull of the live events industry in the UK. Smaller venues were already feeling the pinch, with many having to close due to large corporate conglomerates soaking up acts and audiences, as well as rents rising sharply. Add to that a year or so of stagnancy due to lockdowns (2020 brought about a 75% revenue drop for grassroots music venues) and you have an untenable situation.
As the ‘UK live music: At a cliff edge’ report states, grassroots music venues are a “cornerstone” of artistic development. Southend venue Chinnerys is a perfect example of this. A vital venue for the rise of local, successful bands such as These New Puritans and The Horrors, massive acts like Ellie Goulding, The 1975 and Arctic Monkeys also cut their teeth there. The billing at the seafront venue is mostly tribute acts now, save for the odd band at the more antiquated Cliffs Pavilion, there isn’t much in terms of live gigs these days for Southend’s music-lovers.
Into this situation step Everything Everything on a stuffy August night. As part of the Music Venue Trust’s National Lottery-funded Revive Live Tour featuring Charli XCX and Paolo Nutini to name a few, the eccentric indie band take to the Chinnerys stage in a bid to electrify the local music scene once again with their sound that melds oddball melodies and lyrics with an indie style.
The first thing that is wholly apparent as the band begin with newer track Teletype, before picking away at their 6-album discography, is how genuine the performance is. A successful indie band in a smaller venue: in many ways it is a return home. Crowd pleasers like Can’t Do and Kemosabe certainly fill a larger venue, but there is an undeniable rawness apparent as the band lash out into the smaller space. Everything Everything have stormed large UK stages, from Alexandra Palace to The Roundhouse, but Chinnerys is the sort of venue that indie bands rely so heavily upon as they are garnering a following. For that reason, there is something so perfect about the flow and energy present. New tracks Cut UP! and Shark Week blast out with a ferocious energy, sending electronic kick drums lashing through the crowd.
There’s a unique intimacy as well. Known for his surreal and often comical lyrics, Jonathan Higgs can sing pointedly to crowd members, rather than out into an expansive space where his unique lyrical style could be lost. This, in turn, draws the audience closer into the band, as people aim to take part in the moment. There are no dregs in a smaller venue, no hard nucleus of energetic fans. The vitality washes over everyone present, drawing everyone in toward the spectacle.
As the band belts out in their chaotic single Night of the Long Knives: “it’s been a long time coming”, and seeing such a powerful act play in a venue that feels like their true home has, indeed, been eagerly awaited. By the Everything Everything fans of Southend, but also by audiences up and down the country. People cherish smaller venues for their intimacy and their character, for the unique experience they offer fans. Everything Everything set off a spark on the Southend strip with a tight set offering old and more recent cuts. The small venues around the UK need a great deal of support, but hopefully those featured as part of the Revive Live Tour can build on the momentum that such an experience brings.
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