The good people of Sheffield know both how to throw a party and to party. Each time I come down, I promise myself that this time “it’s going to be a quiet one”. Each time Sheffield has very different ideas.

I arrived this year hideously under-prepared. Coupled with the poor early weather, this meant I hung around a few places seeing a number of unfamiliar bands just looking for that elusive connection.

I always associate music with “connection” whether it be totally getting transfixed into the music, getting a random memory or thought from a song line or rhythm, catching the eye of someone on stage while they make a little slip up and making them giggle mid song (waves at Stone’s Sarah Surrage), having a chance chat with a musician along the way, or just observing a band so into their own groove and path, so well practiced, that it is like poetry in motion. Sometimes its all of those things and more.

I was blessed to capture quite a few such connection moments at Tramlines Fringe 2023. On the Friday evening I met up with friends at the Frog and Parrot pub, where I had nabbed a little cranny for the three of us a little from the front of the band space in front of the window. This was the RGM stage, and so the band was always likely to be grand.

However, I was a little taken aback when Coalville band The Mercians realised they needed more space and in the blink of a microphone move, had the result to thrust us into a new front row. They don’t look like plump lads, why do they need that kind of space, I idly wondered.

While the Frog and Parrott is a fair sized pub, a pub it is, but for the The Mercians, tonight they were playing nothing smaller than a 10,000 seater venue. If I had to name a band that can put on a show, The Mercians are there.

From small acorns huge oaks grow, and from some initial confused, bemused smiles when The Mercians started at 1000 miles an hour bounding around their enlarged space, and playing their anthemic power pop/punk, it grew.

Those of us not hitherto in the know soon picked up that this gig was a special one. With production manager Tom Carnell filling in on drums, the sound was still so solid.

When a band can, within 15 minutes, get the people on the pavement passing by outside to stop and clap arms outstretched and get the road blocked, then you know you are witnessing connection. It was a f’king amazing stand out performance, and I’d see The Mercians in a heartbeat – just for that way they create something huge, swaying and cheering in a solid radius around them.

Absolutely nothing is going to stop this band from going to where they want to be, right at the top. I don’t see this kind of reaction that often.

No disrespect is meant in the slightest; my note of the performance just read “Spice Boys”.

My other pure period of connection came the following day, in the basement of the lovely Sidney and Matilda, where I finally caught up with Private Reg, where over the past few years I’ve reviewed a number of tunes from Private Reg (aka James Vardy) be it from his former band Chestefield based Alpaca Factory to the Private Reg recordings.

If I could name one band that has travelled a huge distance in musical style then I could easily cite Private Reg. There’s a whole range of sound in there, with tracks which veer from what I can only describe as anything from electro croon to techno cabaret and beyond to hard industrial.

What’s clear is that Private Reg is on a beautiful and cutting edge path – there’s influences from The Streets, through to Metronomy, and hard sounds which take me back to the dark uncompromising seedy side of the likes of Soft Cell (rather than the hits), and the electronic industrial feel.

Perhaps in the first few minutes of hearing Private Reg you might just think they are some kind of pi$$take given Vardy wanders around the stage aimlessly with a huge grin and shades, but quality wins through and you soon realise that this is the total deal.

These days Private Reg are a beautifully formed five piece: alongside James is multi instrumentalist and technical wizard Evan Martin, vocalists Tali Jackson, and Bethan Evans who have harmonies which complement Vardy’s crooning vocals perfectly, and the perfectly placed sax of Scarlet Bishop.

The band soon smoothed and melded into a mix of soft and harder tunes, all through showing a perfect connection within the band, and extending through to the regular group that comes to see them live – Vardy announced that he loved being in a room with all of his best friends, and so it felt, even as a nominal outsider.

While perhaps an inner circle surrounded the stage, behind that was a goodly number of interested souls, blending into the vibe. It was good to observe what might be initial puzzlement soften into understanding on a number of those casual curious listeners.

No one quite does it like Private Reg, and do not under any circumstances underestimate this guy.

My first 2023 Tramlines experience was to hotfoot it to the lovely Record Junkee and to sit out the afternoon, as I knew there were a couple of bands I was keen to see. As it happened I was late on the Friday afternoon, Leeds based Fuzz Lightyear were late too, and we almost collided in our rush up the steps to the venue.

With an apology, the organisers persuaded the band who were hastily organised to fill the gap, and sound checking, to stand down a while, and with little fuss or practice we were into a deliciously fuzzy start to Tramlines 2023.

Fuzz Lightyear are as tight as a drum live, but somehow they still manage to create a chaos on the stage. The band were founded in 2019 around studies at Leeds Conservatoire, and the years since have seen the band hone an angry grunge sound.

There’s a very full bursting to the brim quality to the Fuzz Lightyear experience, and I completely adore the stringy bass courtesy of the 5 string provided by Varun Goval, and the strong hard uncompromising sound of the music, not least through the angry sounding burst of release from vocalist Ben Parry.

Fans of the likes of Nirvana, Idles and Shame would be happy in the company of Fuzz Lightyear.

Despite the hard image, Ben completely disarmed the audience with his almost shy and pre-school waves he gave the audience in thanks for their early turn out.

I know Fuzz were playing a couple of further sets during the weekend, and where the ones later on in the day would have a better vibe, so it took a considerable amount of will power for me not to just make the weekend a bit of a Fuzz Lightyear one. There’s many worse ways to do Tramlines for sure.

Next up on the stage was young teen Dan Ottewell, a guy bouncing after his recent Glastonbury performance, for the year anniversary of his EP release, and with some new music to come.

I think what struck out for me with this performance was the way Dan played his acoustic guitar. As well as quality, there was an intriguing eastern/blues slant to the music, which blended well with Dan’s strident imploring vocal. This guy knows his way around 6 strings.

With the way Ottewell enunciates and the rolling story telling quality of his songs, I’m reminded of someone with a taste for theatre, perhaps like early Bowie, Donovan or Roger Daltrey. There is a strong earnest anti oil, environmentalist quality to Dan Ottewell’s music which resonates through to the audience – like our burning planet, this is a man with a burning message which refuses to be ignored. There’s a number of ways to spread the green ethos, and song and connection is one of the strongest.

As Dan played his new single, he asked that we imagine it recorded at Abbey Road with an orchestral backdrop, as it will be when it comes out. It’s going to be interesting to hear such a musically honest sounding musician, yet with all the bells and whistles – I have confidence that the UK is going to hear much more from Dan Ottewell – 2024 will be huge for this guy.

Fans of Jake Bugg will not feel out of place with Dan Ottewell. I was seriously pleased to pick up (another) CD for my memories collection.

I again stayed in situ, as Manchester’s Hollows were on our Record Junkee stage next. By this point I was on first name terms with the friendly bar staff.

Hollows are a band that have been slipping around my consciousness for a few years now, and it was great to get the chance to enjoy a better acquaintance. Hollows offer a polished and nicely balanced set of radio play ready indie. I also caught a very sweaty and shirtless Hollows later on the following evening at the Frog and Parrot, where the set was eagerly received and given a deserved love by an audience well up for the vibe.

I can’t see why Hollows cannot make the transition to a bigger headliner, they are certainly quality ready and have a style that few could dislike.

The band I pinned my early afternoon on seeing (again for my first time) was another Leeds band Scum.

Here I was not disappointed in the slightest. Here, I got a full blast of energy of music which rather reminded me of early Fall, and that kind of exciting blend of punkish, nascent post punk vibe.

It feels like there’s so much more to come from Scum, and this performance really felt like it could be at the early stages of something beautiful.

Bassist and shared vocalist Ezra Glennon is also a member of L’Objectif , so it’s an active life. With his bass slung high and his 2 heavily bandaged fingers, he cut an interesting figure. It must be a joy to be part of two such talented bands with huge potential.

Local Bradford band Red Shakes were also on at Tramlines, and I can recommend their quality happy style to anyone needing a lift. Red Shakes have a fairly rock and roll approach to their tunes, just tight, flowing tunes where the message is positive and uplifting.

Red Shakes have built up quite a body of released songs for their set list, all of which have a slightly different blend, which means the full set is flowing, but not where every track sounds the same – it was assisted with a whammed in and spirited Strokes number; Last Night.

I usually advise bands to drop the covers (haha, spoken as if they ask my opinion), but Last Night definitely worked for the set.

Red Shakes Sam is a lovely guy too, with a ready easy smile for anyone wanting a quick chat.

To my shame I’ve only seen Red Shakes a couple of times, and I thought the excellent band were tighter, and Sam’s vocals top notch. Shows how much I know as Sam told me he was concerned his voice would hold through the 3 gigs he had scheduled, and unfortunately Sam had to make a first ever gig cancellation (in Huddersfield) a few days later.

Another band I caught for the first time (and the last one I’m going to write about here) were Revivalry, a Cleethorpe 3 piece of lads, who are school age, but from the maturity of their music you would never know. Their band name plays havoc with my dyslexia (haha, ive spent about 20% of my review time trying to spell it right).

The band are pretty unusual as the 2 vocalists share each song, sometimes dong a line or two each in rotation, or perhaps with one doing verse, the other chorus. I thought they had the vocal mix pretty spot on, and the drumming in the band from Lewis was deliciously on beat, and hung the band together (just as the drums should do).

The Revivalry original material was original and well constructed, and well meaty, the performance likewise was great, with each of the front men aware of what the other was doing, and it came across as a punchy tight set.

In fact, my only criticism was that they did a couple of covers (the Arctics, and the Kaisers), and while they again were well put together, I felt their originals had a greater spirit. I do have to say though, their Reytons cover was totally on point, and received a well deserved reception.

Revivalry are a band that can only get better and better and they are on fire already.

Tramlines 2024 is on the weekend of 28/29 July – I’ve already booked my hotel and decided to forego the muddy delights of the main event for the Fringe events – a whole series of gigs held in venues in the town centre over 3 main nights. Dryer, easier, cheaper, more grass roots, and much much better.

* words by Tiggerligger

* dodgy images by Tiggerligger too.