A View From The Back Of The Room: The March Violets (Rick Eaglestone)

The March Violets, The Faces Of Sarah & Bloodworm, The Firebug, Leicester 18.07.25

On a particular warm and melty day even the thought of some dry ice is appealing so I journeyed off Tattsyrup style to the familiar setting of Leicester’s Firebug for evening of pulse racing goth music

First up were Nottingham’s three-piece Bloodworm who had been recommended by a good friend who has seen them a few times and can absolutely say they were the perfect opener for the evening, not only did they seem to have traveling support with them by the end of their upbeat and energetic set they certainly had the attention of the room.

Among the various guitar changes were cure like melodies intertwined with high energy tones – Particular highlights were Depths and Clairvoyance.

Up next were a band I have “Fanboyed” over for at least 25 Years The Faces Of Sarah, have seen many influences and iterations but at their very core their overwhelming brooding emotions & flawless delivery shines through. Among Classics such as All That Is Devine and Misery Turns which were given a modern spin there were some very promising new tracks Death Of Summer which will have an accompanying video shortly and World’s Apart which had some wonderful dual vocals showcasing just how the FOS have stayed such a firm fan favourite for many years.

Headline act The March Violets were just sublime. They may not have played Leicester since 1980 something but from their sheer mix of anarchic energy mixed with dry humour and smouldering serenades, they proceeded to turns the hands of time through a journey of their entire musical career, opening with Long Pig and treating the audience to such gems as Grooving In Green and 1,2 I Love You it just felt with every track the well versed three piece enjoyed every moment and this was absolutely reciprocated by the amount of people not only in the room but by the sheer amount of movement.

The March Violets ended their set with the encore of 1984’s Fodder and the absolutely anthemic Snake Dance to much fanfare.

It is nights like this that make me feel the version of me that DJ’d under the wolfman guise was not so far away than I thought. A straight 10/10 from every angle. My night was Made Glorious indeed.