LIVE FROM THE PIT: Mouth Culture, Beauty School and Heart Sauce

Since bursting into the UK alt-rock scene in 2021 with their debut EP ‘These Days Mixtape’, Leicester based trio Mouth Culture have made an immediate and unforgettable impact, blending the raw catharsis of angsty rock with the restless energy of pop punk. Since then they’ve kept themselves firmly planted in the scene, having even joined You Me At Six on their farewell tour. With no shortage of top-tier explosive material, the high voltage new kids on the block have made it known loud and clear that they are the ones to watch, showcasing knockout performances at 2000trees, Download, and Truck Festival last year.

Now, armed with three acclaimed EPs under their belt, and a trio of hot off the press singles (‘Ratbag’, ‘Regret 101’, and ‘Picking Wings Off A Butterfly’), Leicester’s latest and loudest exports are about to kick off the opening night of their first UK headline tour. Joined by Heart Sauce, another one of Leicester’s up and comers, and Leeds’ answer to contemporary midwest emo Beauty School, this new chapter begins at Bristol’s very own show boat Thekla.

Heart Sauce, the self described “piss-pop” band, opened the night seamlessly. With fans arriving out of the cold by the bucketload, vocalist Ellis soothed chilly bodies to the tune of velvety smooth vocals, accompanied by dreamy disco inspired guitars, groovy basslines, and bouncy rhythms. Wasting no time getting the crowd warmed up both metaphorically and literally with their spirited and witty stage presence, they dived headfirst into their setlist for the evening. Featuring songs from their 2024 EP ‘Fools of Life’, their smash single ‘It’ll Probably Be Fine’, and an all new untitled song informally dubbed on the setlist as “Song in G”, they provided nothing short of a stellar start to the night.

Beauty School were the next act to grace the stage of the boat. In their first live appearance since July, the Leeds rock six-piece launched into their set with the adrenaline-fuelled tune ‘Day of Iva’ from their recently released heartfelt sophomore album ‘From Now On’. It didn’t take long for the Beauty School fans in attendance to make themselves heard, their voices infused with passion and excitement as they chanted along word for word. Declaring the attendees as their “guinea pigs”, the band mercilessly ripped their way through a setlist filled with all new material from their latest album, evoking the fans to up the ante on the energy levels. After wrapping up a standout performance of the cathartic ‘Old Rotten Teeth’, during which one fan in particular made his way through the crowd to the front of the stage on a mission to hand vocalist Joe Cabrera his phone to take a video from his stage perspective, the lads took a humbled and emotional moment to express their gratitude to the audience. Standing on the edge of the stage, Cabrera spoke directly to the crowd saying “this is your night, and we wouldn’t be able to do this without any of you, so enjoy it and get what you want out of it”. Pits began to swarm as they ended their set on a high with fan favourite ‘Pawn Shop Jewels’. We absolutely cannot wait to see what Beauty School do next, with hopes for a headline tour of their own on the horizon.

The air was electric as the lights dimmed, with anticipation pulsing through the veins of the crowd as Mouth Culture were just moments away from kicking off their first UK headline tour set. The band crashed onto the stage to the sound of the Jaws theme and iconic quote from the film “we’re gonna need a bigger boat” which served not only as a clever nod to the venue, but also as a signal of meteoric set opener ‘Sharkbait’ from their sophomore EP ‘Mishaps Of My Mid Twenties’. Intensity levels stayed high as they danced through ‘Dead In Love’ and ‘Little Wednesday’, finishing the three-song showcase of anthems from 2024 EP ‘Whatever the Weather’ with ‘Happier’.

Showing no signs of slowing down, they catapulted into the live debut of ‘Picking Wings Off A Butterfly’, sending fans into a frenzy of excitement being the first to hear it performed live. Murmurs and whispers of speculation flowed through the crowd as the band teased the intro of a song they “haven’t been able to play live for a very long time”, and as they launched into ‘Paradise’ the fans' speculations were confirmed with screams and cheers. If the energy levels weren’t already enough to rock the boat, they certainly were during fan favourite ‘Don’t Pull Up’. Fans appeared up on the shoulders of one another, as the crowd opened up and the pits charged through the room. After gracing the lucky fans with the second live debut of the night in the form of unreleased track ‘On and On’, the band exited the stage to the sound of explosive angst anthem ‘Cherry Red Rage’. Naturally returning for an encore, they ended the night on an electrifying note with all star performances of ‘No Shame’ and ‘Ratbag’.

Words and Photos: Sarah Henry