Following up on her preview of the Indie Banquet last month, Cath Kane headed on down to Hyde Park Book Club on 17 August for the latest Indie Banquet by Pizza for the People.
It was my first visit to Hyde Park Book Club, nestled on Otley Road in between Hyde Park and Headingley, a place I’d been wanting to visit for a while. The folk behind Pizza for the People, Julia King and Ryan Morgan, had invited me down to their latest ‘Indie Banquet’ night which showcases upcoming bands and street food traders.
With me this evening were my partner Thomas, brother-in law John and his wife Olivia. They all love live music but have vastly differing tastes, which usually makes for some interesting conversations. The Book Club was busy outside as you would imagine, with it being a pleasant August evening. A few Otley Run beer walkers staggered past us in fancy dress as we made our way across the road.
We made our way down to the basement of the Hyde Park Book Club, being given our obligatory entrance stamp. Whilst the upstairs of the Book Club was light and airy with ample seating, the downstairs was vastly different yet perfect for live music. Work has been done over recent years to make it into a functioning space. No longer does the electricity source need hooking up from upstairs and it’s clean if sparse with bulb lights dotted around. In addition, there was a fairly decent sound system in place in the room which had I’d say around a 150 people capacity.
We caught the second half of the Shakamoto Investigation set, who along with Egyptian Blue offered the crowd propulsive post-punk beats with the former guttural shrieks juxtapositioned with the polished delivery of the latter.
Between these two sets, L.D.Moses provided a soothing slice of nostalgia with The Cure-like guitar licks and vocals delivery reminiscent of a young Bowie, all driven by a relentless rhythm section. Unfortunately, we had to leave before the headlining act Talk Show made it to the stage, but by all accounts, they were on fire.
We really enjoyed the evening and will definitely be looking out for future Indie Banquets. Hyde Park Book Club is worth a visit. The former petrol station venue hosts regular events, including jazz nights, band nights and quizzes throughout the week. Alternatively, you can just pop on by for a coffee, a drink or some food from their vegetarian menu. Check out their website for more details on upcoming events here.
More Information on Future Indie Banquet Nights:
Pizza for the People’s third year anniversary night in October 2019 is going to be massive. Give them a follow on their Facebook page to keep up to date with this event and who will be playing and serving food there: at https://www.facebook.com/weallwantpizza/
Photographs by Sam Joyce. Feature photograph is Talk Show.
