The Great Escape 2018 – Day Two review

Friday at The Great Escape brought more sun and more awesome talent for our entertainment. Happily, on top of the official music line-up, there was so much more to enjoy at this many-branched tree of a festival. For the industry folk, there were a number of conferences and networking options, which gave professionals the chance to make new contacts, learn new stuff, hear some interesting panels and, let’s face it, sink as much free booze and eat as many canapés as possible. Also, for those not lucky enough to have secured a ticket to The Great Escape at all, there was The Alternative Escape – a massive offshoot of the official festival, featuring tons of local, national and international bands, some of whom were also playing at the main festival. Wanna catch Australia’s Hockey Dad but don’t have a ticket? No worries, just head along to The Hope & Ruin, and it’s gratis. The Alternative Escape is basically a free musical gift to Brighton. On top of that, this year there was also The Queer Escape and other pop-up events, such as the brilliant Bella Union record store’s line-up of shows in their lovely little shop, tucked away down a side-alley.

We spent our afternoon drifting from conference to Alternative Escape to Great Escape, winding through Brighton’s labyrinthian streets from venue to venue, seeing familiar faces from across the globe, making new friends and contacts, and catching some sick bands.

One of the hottest acts on the official bill this Friday was Newcastle’s Sam Fender, who squeezed a whole lot of tunes into his 30-minute set, while as many punters as possible sardined themselves into the venue. The Geordie’s radio-friendly, guitar-led, melodic tunes offered some interesting sonic flourishes and his vocal showed nice nuance. The whole thing was filmed by Fender (name coincidental) and shared online, so check out one of his tunes…

Next, Tshegue got the party started in Jubilee Square, with their eclectic trance/dance getting the crowd literally jumping. Meanwhile The Alternative Escape was in full swing, with the Hope & Ruin the place to be as B.A. Johnston‘s madcap turn caused utter carnage after equally pleasing sets from Peggy Sue and Abi Wade.

Just off the seafront in the Latest Music Bar, New Zealand artist Louis Baker displayed a seriously soulful voice and some fine compositions. After his impressive show, we couldn’t resist sticking around to see Alex The Astronaut (pictured, below) again, following yesterday’s wonderful performance. Tonight, she ended the set with the touching and beautiful I Believe in Music (“I don’t need no winged friends, just my guitar and some paper and pens”), which perfectly illustrated why her truthful and accessible storytelling is so appealing.

Later, in the Unitarian Church, Helena Deland performed entrancing and atmospheric tunes which were sincere and intelligent and weaved their way through indie, folk and pop. Meanwhile on the seafront, Erol Alkan rung in the weekend and things got seriously sweaty. For those with enough stamina, the excellently monikered Ross From Friends would do the same in the early hours of Saturday morning.

As the busy streets outside gradually quietened and Sussex’s ludicrously massive seagulls began their morning call, it was time to stumble into bed in preparation for the festival’s final day, which, excitingly, would bring with it an Aussie invasion on the beach.

For information about The Great Escape go here: http://greatescapefestival.com/

Review and pictures by Bobby Townsend.